Switzerland: Magical Nation of Cows, Mountains, Snow, Chocolate and Near-death Experiences

Switzerland is easily the prettiest place in the world. Having only been to a few countries in Europe, I am of course assuming and exaggerating. It is really and truly beautiful and breathtaking anyway. My host family owns a one room apartment (kind of like a really nice hotel room) in southern Switzerland. Thankfully, the people in this region speak German and not French. However, unless you have magic powers, or were born in Switzerland, you can't understand Swiss German. It sounds like the people are constantly singing and speaking at the same time. It's a song to which no one really knows all the words.

Driving in the mountains is not something I would ever do alone. I spent most of the time in the car being afraid of falling off of cliffs. I fell asleep in the car on the way there, on the ground, where it's safe. I woke up to a very dimly-lit Swiss town and the car was driving along a bridge. My host dad said, "Good, you're up! We're about to drive up." Before I knew it, we were weaving up a mountain at what felt like a hundred miles an hour. The road only has room for one car. If you encounter a car driving in the opposite direction, you have to play a little game of "Maneuver Your Car Carefully So No One Dies." Sometimes there is a guard rail. Sometimes there isn't. Even when there is one though... I get the feeling it wouldn't stop a bicyclist from going over the edge.

The view from my host parents' apartment is beyond amazing. If you're a religious person, it is one of those views that really settles your thoughts and you can't help thinking, "God really does exist and really is this great." Just as cool as the views is the amount of cows that live in Switzerland. Sure, you can see cows grazing on the side of Highway 50 on the way into Orlando... but they are boring. Why are they boring? They don't climb mountains, wear giant bells, or beat the crap out of each other in organized town events. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see one of these epic cow battles, which occur naturally, as the cows always want to establish Alpha Females. We are going back in March to see some cow-fights.

I haven't seen snow since I was seven. I got to in Switzerland. It was awesome. We wanted to actually go hiking in the mountains, but the snow blocked the path. We drove the car until it couldn't pass through the snow on the road. My host dad wanted to push it though. The car really did swerve, but he never lost control. I, however, don't trust the Mercedes Station Wagon built sometimes in the 80s as much as he does. I got out. I never realized it before, but I guess I am afraid of being in a car as it drives off of a mountain. Imagine that...

The air feels cleaner in Switzerland. It is, of course. It is refreshing. You can drink from the tap with no worries. It is a beautiful place. I wouldn't live there. I hate driving on mountains. It takes FOREVER.

Check out the rest of my pictures on Facebook if you're interested! I highly recommend Switzerland as a vacation spot to EVERYONE!

I just got finished watching the craziest TV show. It is called "Bauer Sucht Frau" or "Farmer Seeks Wife." Rather than American TV dating shows, like the Bachelor, this show features people who are less than ideal looking, but still want someone to marry. And, yes, the contestants are all actually real farmers. Also, "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" is still popular here (Wer wird Millionär?). It is just as exciting as it was in the late 90s/early 00s. I wish it were still on Primetime in the USA.

I only have one more week of school. Then I will have a two month long internship with the Staatstheater Darmstadt! I am so excited!

Cultural Observations II

I hope everyone enjoyed the first list of cultural observations. Germany is a funny land. I highly recommend a visit sometime.

Here are some more oddities:

Chart Drawing: German students take charts very seriously. If during a lesson the teacher takes the time to draw a graph or chart on the board, the students all break out their markers, colored pencils, colored pens, and rulers. The teachers are also obsessed with drawing charts. My wholesale and trade class may as well be called "Mostly Chart Drawing and how charts relate to trade... but mostly Charts." I feel actually a little embarrassed that I don't take the charts as seriously as the other kids. Then I remember that I don't have to take the tests or get grades and I feel better.

Walking in on somebody: In Germany, the lights switch is usually located on the outside of the bathroom door. This is frustrating. Sometimes I forget to turn it on before locking myself in (yes, there is usually a real KEY in the door that you need to lock not a locking door handle) and then hitting my hand against the wall looking for the switch. On the off chance that I remember to turn the light on before going in, there is always a split second where I think I am walking in on someone while they do their business. I dunno how after almost four months it can still surprise me, but, seeing the light already on when I walk in, I always think first that someone is already in there.

Obama: Obama is God here. He can do no wrong. It's funny, because the leading party here in Germany is the Christian Democratic Union. Emphasis on CHRISTIAN. God in politics. Democrats would have a giant, man-eating COW over this. While the party is shrinking, it only received 1.8% less votes than in the 2005 elections. Either way, a lot of Germans love Obama, and therefore, the USA. It's a good time to be an exchange student here.

Presentations: German students have to give presentations all the time. There is at least one per week. It's a little crazy. Germans are also, for the most part, better presenters than Americans. So... many... posters...

Tests: Here at my school, the kids take fewer tests... about once a month. Their grades are pretty dependent on doing well, since there won't be another test next week. Serious students worry about and study for these tests. I took the English one. I expect to get all of the possible points.

Greetings: Greeting a German is very important. There are several things to remember. Guys always shake hands with good acquaintances and may hug friends. Girls will shake with guys or hug them, depending on their relationship and hug girls, giving each other one or two kisses... the Euro kiss. *peck peck* The Turkish guys also partake in this Euro kiss with one another. It's a tradition from Turkey that, despite Western European/American views on guys kissing anywhere near each other's faces, survives and thrives in Germany. It catches you off guard the first few times, but I see it at school everyday. Also, Germans are very big on greeting and saying goodbye to friends daily. In the morning, you are expected to not only say "hello" for that day to all your friends when you see them, but also greet them with a handshake, hug, whatever... It's nice. I like it. This can happen in the US, sure, but it isn't commonplace.

Can't read: Germans write a few things weird. I can read all of it, of course, but the connect their c's and h's weird... which makes sense because it appears so often in German that they eventually came up with a thing that looks like a roller coaster loop. Doesn't happen all the time, but it's cool. Also, instead of umlauts (üöä) Germans have taken to just making a dash above the vowel. Some teachers do this too. The number 9 always has a tail on it, and the letter Z still has the dash through the middle.

Random Festivals: Every other week the Germans find a new reason to celebrate. They say they are old traditions, but I am on to them. I think really they just hate working... or hate having boring weekends and need a reason to set up rides, temporary bars and restaurants and eat and get drunk. There is apparently this old tradition called a Kerb festival. I still don't understand how it started... something through the church... but there is a group of young people, in their twenties, and they chant and sings songs... and make a list of funny, random things that have happened throughout the year. Confusing... I know. I'll research it more and report on it later. Anyway, one of the people in this group is awarded a title... can't remember what it is, but he has to drink anything that's given to him. He is usually always drunk. My host mom said she saw one of these young guys stumbling home last week at 6:00 in the morning.

That's it for now!

Oh, also I am working on picking a new layout for the blog so it doesn't look so lame and like it's a book that sits on the shelf in a cat lady's house. :-D

"Nein... ich BIN dein Vater." "Nein...Nein, das ist nicht wahr! Das ist nicht wahr, niemals!" "Erforsche deine Gefühle, du weißt, dass es wahr ist!"

EPICNESS.

There has been a Star Wars marathon on a TV network here in Germany during the weekends. It is interesting to see the movies in German, because I've seen them so many times in English. It's really easy to follow them when you know exactly what's going on. :-D

Applying to college and deciding what to do with the rest of my life is the second most important thing constantly on my mind. The first currently is trying to understand German. Here is my current plan:

1) graduate high school [check]
2) go to Germany [check]
3) go to college
4) ???
5) Profit.

I dunno anymore. I wish I knew what I wanted to do. It's stressing me out constantly. Something is being whispered in my ear... but I can't hear it. I need to focus. Focusing takes time.

Other than that, I am doing very well. I have lucked out again. My host family really is great.

Two weeks ago I went with a school group to Belgium. That really was a lot of fun. The pics are on my Facebook, but here are the highlights.













Top center you see a statue. It's called the Mannekin Pis. In English it means, The Little Peeing Man. Yep, it's a little boy taking a leak. The story goes that a man lost his son, went looking, and found him peeing. Then someone made the statue. There is more to the story, but it was told in German, so that's all I remember from it unfortunately... Then, on the left is me standing in the Grote Marke, or Large/Grand Market. It is pretty big, and it is just another stereotypical, European market place. The buildings are old and beautiful. To the right is one of the prettiest places I've been in Europe. It was a simple, little park... but it was in SHARP contrast to most of Belgium. Belgium is fun, and I recommend the visit, but it is a little dirty and can be scary at times... though not as scary as Paris.

Anyhow, now on to current issues.

I am really excited to have an internship. I am looking forward to deciding what I want to study next year. Hopefully I can make this happen sooner than later.

The weather is starting to get cold. Today the HIGH was about 60°F. It gets colder at night. It's only the beginning of October though. I am excited. I might see snow soon!

I haven't had a dream in German yet. I am very upset about this. It needs to happen. It could've already and I just forgot it... I need to dream in German and REMEMBER it. Goal set.

Hopefully I'll have an oboe by Tuesday. Say a prayer.

That's it for now. Sorry to disappoint! Next week, you can expect another cultural analysis write up!