Sweet, Sweet Switzerland

Hi everyone! Sorry it’s been awhile since my last post. It’s been 2 and a half months since I moved to Paris and every week seems to be getting busier and busier! Some everyday updates: Obviously same routine with Josh and the boys, but during the week, I spend my days wandering around La Defense (the big shopping mall that connects my train from Suresnes to the Paris metro), visiting museums, getting lunch with friends, reading in parks, working out, or hanging at a cafe (more than likely- Starbucks). Yes, even though I’m in the cafe capitol of the world, a girls’ gotta budget! Even though a regular Starbucks latte still runs a ridiculous 4 euros. Rough life, I know. By night after I’m done at 8pm, most nights I go grab a coffee or drink with a friend, or if I stay in, you usually find me on Skype, facebook, or my favorite, catching up with my Real Housewives :) On Wednesdays and Thursdays I play soccer at night which I’m loving and the Eiffel Tour still sparkles just as magnificently at the top of every hour.

Once Friday hits, well, it’s a no brainer where you can find me. One of my favorite things to do lately is try new areas to go out because believe it or not, Paris is already starting to feel like a smaller city to me. Everything seems to be growing around me: my knowledge of Paris and its restaurant/bars/places of interests, my circle of friends, my schedule, my happiness here... the only thing that seems to be doing just the opposite is my bank account! But as I’ve said plenty of times, this is the time to do this! I wouldn’t trade what I’m doing right now for anything in the world... I have the rest of my life to (actually) work! Other than becoming my own adventurous bar guru, I’ve been spending my weekend time sleeping in, hanging out with friends, wandering around Paris, giving English lessons to kids in the neighborhood, and still attending church every Sunday at the American Church of Paris which I truly look forward to each week.

This past weekend, however, I could not make it to church because I was driving back from Switzerland with Thom, Sadia, and Josh. Thursday was a holiday which meant a 4 day weekend so Thursday afternoon the 4 of us loaded into the Volvo and drove a miserable 7 hour drive to Zurich. When I say miserable, I wish I was referring to the length of the drive, but as luck would have it, I got the 24 hour flu which started about an hour into the drive. Sweat dripping, bones shivering, head throbbing... I wanted to die. Thankfully it only lasted one day and one night so I didn’t miss out on anything.

Thom and Sadia have friends all over Europe they keep in touch with and/or visit and the family in Zurich was no exception. However, I don’t know if they purposefully neglected to tell me that THREE other families would be going to stay with them this weekend as well. 18 people under one roof. Yes, the house was big but I don’t think there’s any size house to keep yourself sane with that many people all eating, sleeping, and pooping in the same quarters. Still, everyone was very sweet and the weekend was definitely worth the trip. Of the 18 people, there were 4 couples (one of which didn’t have children), 9 kids ranging from the ages of 2-16, and me. As I met and got to know everyone, it was very interesting to hear about their lives because it is quite different than in the US. For starters, all the families were at least bilingual although the host family were trilingual- French, English, and German (the mother was German). Overhearing the kids playing, it’s a constant ping pong match of what language their speaking at any given time. Also, all the families had lived in at least 4 different countries. They were all so cultured, it blew my mind. 

We didn’t get to the house until almost 8pm on Thursday which meant we’d have all day Friday and Saturday there before heading back early Sunday morning to beat traffic. The family lived 30 minutes outside Zurich in a beautiful country-side area with lots of land and a panoramic view of the Swiss Alps. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see Zurich, but I’m pretty sure what I did see wasn’t too shabby. 

All the families we were with are extremely outdoorsy people so we spent Friday and Saturday hiking different areas. Friday we went to a place called Elm which is apparently smack dab in the middle of the Swiss Alps. Fun fact- for those of you who know the story-tale of “Heidi, Girl of the Alps,” (I didn’t) the story takes place here. This area had so much snow fall in the winter that much of it still has not melted so a good portion of our hike we were hiking in the snow... but it was absolutely break-taking. My favorite part of Friday was our transportation back down to the base of the mountain. We took a gondola up to where we started the hike and on the way back, you had the option to take the gondola back down orrrrr take a mountain kart. I didn’t even think twice before I was plopping myself into one and strapping on the helmet. The ride took about 20 minutes to go down and we reached speeds up to 40/mph! So fun. Once back at the house, the kids were all eager to have me play soccer with them outside but after an hour, I had to tap out due to utter exhaustion from 5 hours spent hiking all afternoon.

Saturday we headed to another beautiful area called Walensee. This was my favorite of the two because we were still in the alps, but on a lake. Once we parked the cars, a ferry picked us up to take us across the lake to where we would hike. The only thing I can compare Walensee and Lake Murg to is Lake Tahoe and even that is not nearly equivalent. It’s an overwhelming feeling right now as I’m sitting hear trying to describe in words the views I saw this weekend in the Swiss Alps and the only word I keep coming back to is indescribable. Luckily, you know how these blogs go by now so you can have a look for yourself. What would we do without cameras?!

Getting back to camp Saturday night, we were all drained but that didn’t stop the family from making another mouth watering dinner. Side note- there was always a ton of Swiss chocolate around-- definitely lives up to its hype. Tonight was also noteworthy because it was the Champions League Finals (European soccer for those really not in the know) between Chelsea and FC Bayern Munich. As I previously mentioned, the host families mother is German so you can just guess how excited all the kids were. All 18 of us huddled around the living room tv, all the kids sporting FC Bayern scarfs, hats, t-shirts, even blankets. All the kids knew everything about every player on the field and their palpable passion for the sport was admirable. Even all the parents were getting into the game as it headed into overtime with each team scoring a late goal. By the time the second ot was done and was heading to penalty kicks- the kids were going bananas. If that didn’t have you on the edge of your seat, watching players score, miss, and goalkeepers save the shots, it all came down the 5th kickers. FC Bayern- hits the cross bar and misses. Chelsea- buries it left corner to win the game.That very second I wish could have happened at least a few more times that weekend- deafening silence. Of the 9 kids, 3 began to cry. As a long time fan of Fernando Torres, I was rooting for Chelsea but after witnessing the pure devastation on these kids face, I’d gladly have handed the win the Munich. 

This weekend getaway was quick but absolutely great. Everyone was so warm and welcoming, the meals were delicious, the views were spectacular and another first crossed off my list: hiking in the Swiss Alps :)

Up next on my agenda: Tomorrow Leslie and I are going to check out the Tim Burton exhibit currently on display at the Cinematheque francaise, Wednesday I’m going back to Campus Langues (my French school) to register for new classes that I’ll start up again next week- for those curious, my French is still dreadful. I don’t put fourth the effort I should be probably because when I do, my accent is so bad people still don’t understand me. Foreign languages were NOT my thing. To shed some light for you, I was a straight A student in high school but with Spanish, my mom had to have several parent-teacher meetings. Even so, this time around I’m saying I’m going to give it more of a try (we’ll see...).Thursday and Friday afternoon, Thom bought tickets for us to go watch some pro tennis here in Suresnes. It’s basically a tournament for the players to get ready for the French Open which starts on Sunday! I’m on the lookout for you, Nedal! Then Friday late afternoon, Leslie and I have a flight to catch to Amsterdam! We’ll be there for 3 nights and I CAN’T WAIT! 

Lots of fun and exciting things happening here... thank you all for the continued love and support! I’ll be sure to get my next blog about my Amsterdam trip up asap next week!

Bisous!

Base at Elm Sportbahnen

... Not the best hiking shoes

Moutain Kart!

Friday nigh dinner- "racler" which translated means "to scrape"
This machine melts the cheese which you scrape off and eat with meats and potatoes. Yum!

Saturday hiking spot: Walensee

Lake Murg- we crossed by ferry to hike on the north side

  

The kids waiting for the ferry

Thereeeee it is!

Josh is ready to go :)

Pulling up to the dock

Too cute

There were vineyards allllll over the place 

The men leading the way

Treehouse :)

This spot was my favorite view

Waterfall you can't really see

The 4 older boys

Campground we stopped to snack at with a stick teepee 

Lake Murg- beautiful

some of your average village people

When in Rome... (part II)

Continuing my Roman adventures from my previous post, I'll pick up right where I left off...

Thursday: When in Rome... know who Michaelangelo and Raphael are.

Today’s lesson came to me right now as I’m reviewing everything we did today. When you know the history behind the places you visit, it makes it much cooler and not just another big church or museum you’re in. 

All the cite seeing we’ve been doing has definitely started to hit us (at least me and kids) as we got up and dragged our feet over to The Vatican. As one of the “must sees” here, I was looking forward to it but I have to say, it wasn’t my favorite. Nonetheless, I’m glad I can say I’ve been but we were in there for over 2 hours and apparently just barely scratched the surface... I guess similar to how the Louvre is in Paris, the thing is just ginormous. After being in there for what seemed like forever to me, everything becomes a blur and sort of all start to look the same. That’s not to say I didn’t see some cool stuff because we definitely did. Michaelangelo and Raphael are the two major leaguers and most popular painters in there. One of the most famous paintings in there is The School of Athens by Raphael which I’ll describe a little more in the picture below. The other most notable thing about The Vatican is the world renowned Sistine Chapel. If you are the least bit claustrophobic, good luck in there (Mom), the room is a mad house full of tourists. The ceiling was all done by Michaelangelo and the room is the same dimensions as Noah’s Arc... kinda cool. Internally, I was jumping for joy when we finally made our way to the exit but like I said, it was cool to see. 

After our lunch break, next on the agenda was going to Saint Peter square and the basilica. This place was HUGE and made the Sistine Chapel look like crap compared to here. But obviously with the city being as old as it is, each building and “must see” has a lot to do with the history behind it. Some cool things about Saint Peter’s church: it’s the largest church in the world and one of the holiest Catholic sites in the world and is used for most of the chief religious ceremonies in which the Pope participates. The big door (pictured below) is only open on Jubilee years (once every 25 years). Saint Peter is buried under the center alter. This church was first built in the 4th century by Constantine but then later torn down and rebuilt in the 1500’s although it took over 100 years to build but it’s what we see today. Sagrada Familia in Barcelona held the reign for coolest church I’ve ever seen until now. Walking around this place blew every other church I’ve ever seen in my entire life out of the water with both the history, architecture, beauty, and even overall feeling I had just being there. Saint Peter’s in my mind definitely tromps The Vatican and I could have spent all day in there.

My favorite moment of laughter for the day came from Nathan, the 15 year old. I’ll preface this by saying that all 4 boys are very good kids and not bratty at all. But, being boys, they have more fun throwing punches at each other while Thom and Sadia aren’t looking than they do visiting all the attractions here. Anyways... We had made reservations to go into The Vatican at 10:30 (which if you ever plan on visiting I HIGHLY suggest- you cut about a 2 hour long line). Breezing by everybody, we make it inside and Thom enthusiastically says “Ohh my, where to being!” Immediately Nathan points to a sign and says “Umm lets begin with the exit.” Well played, Nathan.

Friday: Another jam packed, feet aching, sun exhausted, cite seeing day in the books. I really wish I had a pedometer to see just how many miles I’ve walked the past 4 days. Today’s two main attractions: Musei Capitolini and the Baths of Caracalla. I have to say, both exceeded my expectations and I really enjoyed both. 

First, at Musei Capitolini which is located on top of Capitoline Hill (and as most know, Rome was built on 7 hills) and it’s basically a big stew of art and archeological museums. Fun fact- it’s the most ancient public museum in the world. Right now, they have a special museum going on called “Exemplaria Praetiosa: Archivi Secreti Vaticani.” It had a ton of history all about the history behind Rome. My favorite rooms were the Pope room and Influential Women room. I probably learned more in 2 hours there than I did all of my high school history classes. Not to mention all the original artifacts they had such as letters written by Marie Antoinette while in prison, documents addressed to Jefferson Davis, things from the Thirty Years’ War, original seating charts from the Papal conclave (who picks the next Pope) in the 1300’s at the Sistine Chapel, and much much more. There’s also a killer view from the 3rd floor I took a picture of... we were joking that the background actually doesn’t look real but it is :)

After another mouth watering lunch, we hit up the Roman Baths! This was something I definitely under estimated but after being there, I am shocked that this isn’t on LonelyPlanet’s and other websites “top 5 must see’s of Rome.” The place is SO old and SO big and SO rad. Walking around with these ginormous ruins that covered 33 acres of land, you can’t help but imagine what this place was like almost 2000 years ago (it was built in 212 AD!). The Baths in general were a place that any Roman citizen (which meant men only- the Romans were actually pretty good with equality but yet, women were not considered “citizens”) could come and swim, work out, and use the steam rooms, cold rooms (called frigidariums) and hot rooms (called caldariums) and about 6,000 people came to use it a day. Not only was it used for recreational purposes, the place back then could of been its own art gallery. The entire complex used to have mosaic tiling and statues everywhere. This is where Hercules first became a prominent figure with statues of him originally all over the place. Needless to say, this place was spectacular and one of my favorites so far. 

Leaving the baths, Sadia wanted to make a “quick stop” at the basilica of St. John. 30 minutes later, we finally get there however, I’m glad we did. As I mentioned from Tuesday seeing many churches and there being something about 4 main “basilicas” in Rome, well now I get it... and Saint John (“Arcibasilica Papale di San Giovanni”) is one of them. I’ve seen a lot of obelisks all around the city but today I realized that you can tell if the church is one of “the ones” if it has an obelisk in front of it. Saint Peter (the MASSIVE one I was at yesterday), Saint Maria, and Saint John all have obelisks in front of them. Saint Paul, the fourth one, is the only one I haven’t seen yet... but something tells me the Ricke’s are sure to be showing it to me before we leave. Although Saint Peter is still my favorite by far, Saint John sets itself apart because it’s the oldest and ranks first among the four Papal (major) basilicas of Rome. It’s also the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome aka, the Pope... NBD.

Since it’s becoming a trend, todays quote of the day was awarded to Paul, again. He wasted no time by earning bright and early at breakfast this morning. Yesterday after we were done at Saint Peter’s, I went and did my own thing (aka shopped) for a bit before all meeting back at the apartment. While passing the pot of coffee around, Thom was exuberant starting to tell me “after we separated yesterday, we took this really cool route...” using hand gestures and all. Paul was quick to interject “no Dad, we were just lost.” Winner winner, chicken dinner.

Saturday: Not a whole lot to say about today as the awe-factor has worn off and I think my feet are about to hate me if walk any more in my unsupportive moccasins and flats I’ve been wearing around. We left the house late as usual and went over to the Musei di Romana. I had no idea what to expect and after seeing it, I’m still not sure what the museum is all about. There were lots of sculptures, paintings, and mosaics, and then some more sculptures. If you ever travel to Rome, I can suggest foregoing this place although I’m sure if I put in more effort, I would have learned/enjoyed it more than I did just aimlessly walking around. In the afternoon we went over to Pantheon and walked around inside. It’s one of the most famous things in Rome and I liked it because it’s only one big room and you can see all there is to see in just a few minutes! Kidding aside, the place was gorgeous and definitely worth checking out. Afterwards we split up and I amazingly got a second wind when I knew it was time to go shopping :) Corso st. is the place to shop in Rome but if you're like me and hate crowds, you better steer clear and learn to go off the beaten track. Luckily I've adapted some sort of innate ability to find just the type of stores I'm looking for (I guess you could say lucky for my wardrobe, unlucky for my bank account) and I was able to come back home with some great finds! Since it was our last night in Rome, I decided to go grab a drink at a popular bar I'd seen/hear people talk about. Cool place but I don't know if it was my lack of familiarity or what because I have to say Paris nightlife is way better.

Sunday came it was time to fly back. In this week, I’ve truly learned the exhaustion cite seeing can have on you, no matter how fit or active you are. All in all, the trip was a great time and definitely brought me and the family closer together. The boys are really starting to act as though I’m their “big sister” and I adore them all. Because of Sadia’s hectic work schedule, it was the first time we’ve been able to spend some quality time together and I really enjoy her company. 

Getting back to Paris and looking back on my week in Rome, I have the same feeling as I did when I left Barcelona- great place to visit and so happy I got to see it, but makes me appreciate and LOVE Paris that much more. It's been a surprise to myself just how much I've taken to this city... it's one place you can say absolutely lives up to its hype. 

Musei Vaticani

Inside the Vatican

The School of Athens painting by Raphael- very famous.
Plato and Aristotle walking in the middle

Inside the sardine-packed Sistine Chapel

Ceiling of the Chapel done by Michaelangelo between 1508-1512

In the courtyard of the Vatican

Outside the entrance of the Vatican

St. Peter's Square ! 

View standing in front of the church

Balcony the Pope speaks from

Inside St. Peter's

St. Peter himself- the tradition is to rub his foot when you walk by

Walking up to Musi Capitolini

View from inside the Museum of the Forums

gottem love em. (They're impersonating the statue behind them)

Baths of Caracalla !

Back in the day

photo shoot? 

Side of St. John (notice the obelisk)

Inside St. John

In front of St. John

Where the President lives

We happened to walk by the Pres's house during a Changing of the Guard ceremony

Inside the Pantheon

Decided to add these last 2 in from Tuesday... It was May 1 and is a holiday here- the French Labor Day. It's been raining non stop but it was sunny and a great day with Leslie and Isabel. Lunch at my new favorite place, Pause Cafe in the Bastille area and hanging out, drinking wine at Champs de Mars :)

 ... as I said, this place I'm calling home is definitely living up to its hype and then some.