Friendly Faces, Unfamiliar Places

First: There's something I forgot to mention about yesterday. Part of the train ride, from Spiez to Visp, was spent entirely in a tunnel. I timed it on the way back and we were in the tunnel for thirteen minutes!

I visited Geneva today. When I first got there I was trying to find where the boat docks were on the map, and must have looked very confused because a guy and his dog came up to me and asked if I needed help and if I spoke English. He showed me where to go and what boat I should take. He asked if I was from England, which is where everyone asks if I'm from before they realize I'm American. I guess the English don't have much of an accent either?

Geneva is a pretty city, but I didn't do much exploring. There's a lot of shopping and museums, neither of which I wanted to do today. When I stopped at McDonald's for lunch (as expensive as it is, it's still the cheapest meal around), there were two canopies to sit under if you wanted to eat outside. It was too hot inside the restaurant so I ate outside. I think every bird in Switzerland decided they wanted to eat there too. It didn't help that people kept tossing their fries to them. I wasn't sure if I would make it through lunch without a bird pooping on me.

I did take a boat tour on Lake Geneva though. It was a nice ride along the edge of the lake. It was a one-hour tour in which they verbally pointed out landmarks along the shore. They even have a little spot they call Geneva beach. The coolest one was the man-made water jet, which shoots water straight up about 140 meters (390 feet). This you'll find in my pictures.


I do believe I like the German part of Switzerland better, I'm not sure why, it just appeals to me more.

There are a few things I'm going to miss about Switzerland when I leave, things I never thought I would:

1. Walking. A lot.
2. Taking the train, bus or tram, everywhere.
3. The bells that go off every hour, and for about 15 minutes or so at 8PM. They go for even longer on Sundays.
4. The price shown for an item is exactly the price that it is.
5. The cost of everything ends in an even number, there are no .92, 1.04. It's all .05, .10, .15 and so on.
6. The sun rising early and setting late.
7. My internship.
8. Good food everywhere.
9. Swiss chocolate.
10. Being able to keep my window open all day and night.
11. Being able to ignore your surroundings and know you're safe.
12. How everything I see is beautiful.
13. The Alps.
14. Not having to carry an entire week's worth of groceries. Having a small fride to share limited a lot of what I could bring home.
15. Historical buildings and features that still function (and aren't falling apart).
16. Learning basic functions (washing clothes, cooking with German directions, finding my way around a city, etc) all over again.
17. Reading maps at least once a day.
18. Not knowing the language.

There's so much more than just that list. As an American, most of these things I've never really had to know or do. At times, it was frustrating, but in the end, has made me that much more confident in myself when it comes to conquering the big idea (surviving in a foreign land). When I first got here, I immediately wanted to turn around and go home, but finally, a few weeks before I am leaving, I suddenly can't wait to come back - or even visit another country. For the first time in my life, I feel truly appreciative of my experiences - everything else seems like pocket change.

But don't worry, I'll go out with a bang.


Love,
Jessica