"It won't be long/ I belong /somewhere past the setting sun/ finally free / finally strong/
somewhere back where I belong"

Geneva from atop Saleve... see the Jet D'eau??

So I have been totally losing track of blogging... I'm really in shock that it's April already and that in a couple of weeks time I will be in Ireland for spring break... In general, I am planning on doing most of my traveling this summer, but I've been on some interesting day trips...

I guess recently, I have been feeling like even if I had the money to go on a trip every weekend, I wouldn't want to. I am starting to fall in love with Geneva in a way I honestly didn't think I would my first couple of months here. It might be the sudden appearance of summer (we seem to have skipped spring here... Or at least I believe that. I jumped in the lake one day and people looked at me like I was a psychopath).

I've been on two hiking trips since the good weather hit - one trip with a new friend, Verena, and a group of other Erasmus students, biking to Saleve and hiking up... and one to the Alps with my flatmate Laurena, Dagny, and a hiking group from IHEID (the graduate institute). I think hiking with people is one of my favorite things here, partly because it's just so breathtakingly beautiful, and because it's nice to be able to chat and to fall into silence and feel natural.

Cafe near the top of Saleve, view of the alps

hi that's definitely me parasailing right now.

our group resting after a long days biking and hiking!

Saleve! the mountain I can see from my window

SO those pics were all from Saleve, which is basically in walking distance.

Here are some from the daytrip I took to Les Diablerets, in the alps:

Dagny, in shock at the beauty?

mountain silhouette from the train station

not skiiing...there was just that much snow on the trail, but it was warm enough for t-shirts!


I also had tons of fun the Berne weekend, both hanging out at the Cite, and with Kayla and her awesome friend Jordon who was visiting from Grenada... we spent a lot of time at the park and took the little boat from the park to the "Baby Plage":





I sadly forgot my camera for the actual trip to Berne, but Kayla tends to be a better blogger than I am and when she updates it, you may find that and other interesting entries about Geneva here: http://kcarpenzano.blogspot.com/

advice to future Geneva students: always take advantage of the free Smith trips! The tour of Parliament wasn't my favorite part, except for the fact that our swiss german tour guide had the most enchanting accent, pronouncing "village" as "willage" and country as "country" which if combined into one phrase, results in the almost-too-charming-to-handle "countwy willage."

It's often a struggle for me to want to correct my friends' or student's english mistakes whether of usage or accent when they're just so endearing/ enchanting. Like when the little girl I tutor wrote a paragraph about her cousin and used the phrase "she is naughty with me" or when another friend said "we have to go upstairs" to indicate having to continue up a mountain path. I think trying to improve in french, keep up a tiny bit with italian, and hearing various kinds of english accents etc is actually resulting in my losing some sense of what is actually correct in my native tongue! Or actually, I am finding that I really WISH some french words had an english equivalent and its too bad we can't just import them. even just using a phrase as simple as "Il faut que"... One night I actually had to keep turning it around in my brain trying and trying to think of a satisfying english phrase that could substitute in the sentence in my head "It's necessary that I..." sounds awkward and "I have to" doesn't get at quite the same sense... also I really love the word "incroyable" and even though it's a direct translation of "unbelievable" it sounds way more expressive. I still feel like I'm lacking enough opportunities to speak french with people, but maybe I will try and initiate french conversation more with my flatmates and friends rather than reverting to english.

So anyways, yeah right now my life consists of french class and a class on international orgs at the Smith center, a class called "water as a literary element" at UNIGE (university of Geneva, which is in the Park de Bastions, which is just a short walk form my residence), an internship with International Bridges to Justice and independent research project related to it, university chorus, giving guitar lessons to two awesome people at the Cite, and tutoring a really sweet middle-schooler once a week... and then whatever little routines develop around that - reading at the park, writing, sketching, painting, occasionally trying out different churches when I'm not traveling... and trying to plan my summer and future while trying to live in the moment and just connect with people and have experiences.

Of which I will try to write soon....

Speaking Corramente

While in Geneva, I have found myself immersed surprisingly in none of the four national languages, nor in English, so much as a 5^th language that may be familiar to some of you: Franglais.

Franglais is a little like “Esperanto” – a language Dagny did a lovely presentation on in Jaci’s class yesterday, so it is fresh on my mind. Esperanto was an attempt to create a language that would be easy to learn so that members of the UN would be able to communicate without linguistic barriers, miscommunications, or hierarchies/ divisions caused by language.

Franglais is more of an organic Creole, serving many purposes. As well as building bridges between speakers of different languages like Esperanto, Franglais has many stylistic purposes that place it a cut above what I will refer to here as “Traditional English” though that may be a PARAPLUIE term.

Adding a hint of a romance language into the POTAGE of your daily speech really brings out the zest or intensity in phrases that have dramatic implications such as « That’s what YOU pense” or “que’est-ce que c’est happened?” The element of surprise is like an implicit exclamation point.

Alternativelty, franglais can, in certain contexts, give an edge of superiority or sophistication. It says "I am not only pretending/ attempting to be bilingual. I have the confidence to ride the wave that is the erosion of two languages into one and dit ce que I darn well Veut" Speakers of franglais are pioneer of the future, not natives anywhere but nomads everywhere.

Some common uses of Franglais:

“Are we prêt?”

« She didn’t succeed in getting the avocat» (**note: use with caution. This creates some fantastique ambiguity regarding whether “she” failed to obtain a lawyer or an avocado)

« Il me faut un nap »

« This ascensure is a piece of zoot »

“Quelle sour-puss” (and its uncensored variations)

“That is just pas juste!”

And perhaps the most common and beloved: “quoiever”

Franglais is used not only among my circle of acquaintances, but in Geneva itself… I saw a gym called “EXERSUISSE” and a beach called “BABY PLAGE”

Similar, but not to be confused with franglais is the construction of French phrases in the English language such as:

“I am following a class about 2 times a week” (as in learning in a classroom, not creepily stalking a group of students on a bi-weekly basis)

“I am in the bus” (in traditional English this would communicate and image of being digested by a bus with personality like the magic school bus or the catbus in Totoro)

“I have 20 years” (you've lived 20 years or you have 20 years to live?!)

“I take myself a shower” (in T.E. (Traditional English, this has a sort of a southern feel “I’mna take me self a shower”)

“The words escape language” (like one of those phrases that foreigners say that make you forget what is actually correct because the new version sounds so charming)

“We have to continue upstairs” (for continuing uphill on a mountain path… for relation to TE, see above comment)

Or, some very fascinating results can come of literally translating French idioms and importing them into the English language, as in “she laughs like a whale.”

These phrases tend to build a sense of incroyable intercultural unity and faith in language’s ability to transform and grandir… nothing is really set in pierre. tout peut change.

It's a good idea to expose your children to franglais at an early age in order to build their confidence in linguistic improvisation and understanding of other cultures. Take them to a Baby plage near you and let them mix with other young pioneers. Sometimes audio tracks are available at progressive local libraries. Don't perd a moment!

CARNEVAL!

This is how I ended my day at the Carneval at Basel:

confetti strewn over everything, oranges and candy bulging out of my pockets... and a turnip in my backpack.

How did this happen? Let's go back to the beginning:


I woke up earlier than I've woken up EVER in Switzerland: 6:45!
And saw this sunrise out my window, and was so shocked to see the sunrise that I haven't seen yet here that I took a picture.

I didn't know what to expect from Basel. Kayla was apprehensive about the clowns that would be involved. (She is on the lookout for clowns in this picture. Of course, she also seemed torn between her instinctual fear of clowns and her desire for the flowers they were handing out...)


As well as flowers, they were also throwing fruit and candy. Mostly oranges, which actually seems a little dangerous... my french teacher got hit in the head by one!

And there were the occasional vegetables.

At one point, a Swiss stranger in the crowd came up to me and said something in German. I stood staring at her blankly and before I knew what was happening, she was unzipping my backpack and holding a turnip. I didn't know if I was being robbed in a very friendly way or given dinner. And in my language-barrier paralysis, I pulled another "roadrunner" like at the store in Zurich and simply didn't react. Maybe it was also my carneval- induced joy and trust in all humanity. At the end, she saw that I was troubled and switched to English, bothering to give cooking instructions, so I knew it was safe.

But like Kayla, I had had my reservations about Carneval. I wasn't expecting much because I am the kind of person who hates parades and skipped every rally in high school.

Maybe this is because the only couple of parades I've been to have been bad experiences... the first was a county fair parade I went to when I was about 5. I hadn't been plannning on going, but my parents found out at the last minute that I could be part of our landlords' float (they had a float because they had one of the few businesses in my small town, selling produce from their farm... and maybe showing some of their llamas? For those who don't know, I grew up on a llama farm because my parents rented the bottom floor of their farmhouse).

Anyways, long story short, they thought it would be a brilliant idea for me to go as a bumble bee and commenced to cover me in strips of yellow and black duct tape... I have a very traumatic memory of having to go to the bathroom all day and being stuck in this impenetrable suit of tape...

The only other parade I can think of offhand that I've been involved in was the Memorial Day Parade, in which I played trumpet. But one of the two years I did this, I somehow forgot my mouthpiece and found myself stuck in the center of town, after the roads had closed to cars, with a trumpet and no mouthpiece... someone ended up sacrificing one for me or having an extra. I sort of forget how it worked out...

But before Carneval, I really thought parades were just a source of stress, the benefits of which were nil.

Let me say I have changed my opinion. In spite of the unsettling clowns:


There was some really fascinating, beautiful architecture in the city of Basel as well, as we walked around beforehand.





And then, the festivities themselves just blew me away. Most of the themes were really clever, witty plays on political ideas. The costumes are made a year in advance, so they pertain to pressing issues of the past, but are still relevant, like the references to BP and saving the oceans. There was one group of military posters that had a really rousing, and chilling demonstration. But not all of them were political, such as the army of Shreks, or the monkeys, which I didn't entirely understand. Maybe some of them were also specific to German culture... Every group had handouts/ written up explanations, but of course

This was part of the anti-military demonstration:

Sweeping up for the environmental campaign:


One I didn't really get:
The clowns give and they take:




And all the while, all these pipers were coming... pat a pat pat, tut a tut tut, tut a tut pat, tuppete tappeta pat, pattepa pattepa tut...





All in all, I just loved the celebration. and honestly, as stupefied as I was about the turnip, after that incident, standing in the sunlight, hearing the music, catching oranges, feeling like I was part of some medieval village celebration... I hit euphoria. Carneval was definitely a great memory for me, one of those days when time just time just stops for happiness.

It was also very thrilling to run through the crowds as a group and enter the train just before it took off, in a shower of confetti...

Zurich!

Ready for another lightning-speed, skipping details catch-up blog?

This is Zurich, which someone told me today is actually the largest city in Switzerland. Which surprised me because I'm not a city person, and even i didn't think it was all that big.



A lovely Old Cathedral.

"Pizza Go Home" This is either a failed attempt at "we do delivery" or "our pizza tastes homemade" or else some strain of anti-pizza sentiment rampant in German-speaking Switzerland.

Ah German Speaking Switzerland... I have never been in a country before in which i knew absolutely NONE of the language. I tried to learn the word for "excuse me" from Anne, who live in Zurich for 3 years of High School, but whatever she said sounded to me like a 4 syllable sneeze. So needless to say, in every crowded store we went into, I was reduced to waiting to get around people and smiling apologetically like a mute if I bumped anyone.

I tried to buy post cards, thinking I could just hold out the money and leave... but the woman behind the counter actually said something to me that sounded interrogative and I panicked, totally frozen. I didn't even reason that I could try French or English in this very multilingual city... I just stared blankly at her, like Road runner staring up at the anvil crashing down on him.

Thankfully, she must have been used to this kind of behavior and immediately said, in a perfect accent, "English? Do you want stamps?"

It really made me reflect on how foreigners feel who come to live in a place as monolingual as America.


Some more pictures:

This is a great statue, but I just realized that this angle sort of makes it look like a terrible story of abuse.


pretty!

So yes, most of the day was spent walking around, seeing Anne's old house and school, trying to understand the significance of a mysterious company building with a sign on it that said "Hebert the Nose"... and shopping/ generally sightseeing.

Also, in the more suburban part of Zurich, farther from the city center, we found this incredible slide. It was definitely a highlight of the day for me.

Gruyeres

Once upon a time, a group of girls set out who were tired of Museums. They wanted to see a little village in the country in Switzerland, a happy land named for its famous cheese. or perhaps the cheese was named for the place. But in any case, off they set in search of this magical place.



They did not know that they would actually find themselves in NARNIA. Yes that is the self-same lamp post that Lucy Pevensie stumbled upon - (and not "stumbed upon" as in the online phenomenon of being led to a random webpage... stumbled upon in the flesh) - the day she met Tumnus the Fawn and began her second life. It was a little like that, with a little Julie Andrews in the mix for good measure just in case it wasn't happy enough.

Also they did not travel through a wardrobe, but by train. But it is highly possible that there was magic involved in the journey because, as has become tradition, the moment they arrived on the train, they all opened Kinder Eggs. Kinder Eggs have a way of bringing magic with them. As you can observe in the pictures below:




But the moment they got out of the train, they noticed that they had arrived at the very doorstop of another museum! DA DA DUNNNN....

Yet this museum was not like others they had experienced. It was not a museum of history, natural history, Rousseau, art history, ancient Baths, church ruins, or watch-making. It was a museum... of CHEESE.


a trilingual museum of cheese no less. At first i thought "Cave" was the English translation haha

... and something else was different about this museum too. The audio guide was not a distinguished deep-voiced gentleman, but an uppity British Cow. In the video here, it is hard to make out well, but she informs the public:



"...Man had the idea of turning my milk into cheese
so that he could feed himself in winter
And he’s still pleased with himself
As Man said, “my cheese”
But its not true! It’s MY cheese! (here she sounds a bit sadistic while remaining cheery)

... We're superior to humans.
They only have one stomach.
But my girlfriends and I have four each!
Okay so we can ruminate, but at least we aren’t chewing over our past…
We chew the cud to turn grass into milk.
Say whatever you like, but it’s magic!"

As if our day wasn't full of enough magic already!


(kayla looks skeptical of this "magic")


Another magical thing happened: I smelled! You may know that I have an extremely weak sense of smell. My cousin Heather can relate, but only because she fell on her head. So she has better reasons. When I saw her at new years, we were in Bath & Body works trying in vain to smell the difference between "clean cotton" and "water" and "grass" or to smell anything at all... But somehow, at this museum, the concentration of scent in these things was high enough that I really felt like I was out in a meadow, ruminating with Cherry, smelling all the subtleties of the fields and flowers. A miracle!


This picture is from a trivia slide show in the museum. Cherry can be so cheery, but she has a sadistic side that comes out if you A.) think humans are superior to cows, B.) think cheese belongs solely to humanity or C.) answer one of these questions about the process of cheese-making incorrectly.


After the magical museum with its magical free samples, we went to a magical CASTLE!


In the magical tourist town:







And from there is was sort of too beautiful for words.

Also, they ate fondue. and lived happily ever after, only with mild indigestion.

The END!

Bobbie

No you're not hallucinating. That is a rabbit. It's just hard to tell because he's pretty sedentary.

If you were to enter my apartment building, walk past the elevator and turn left, you would see Bobbie, the resident rabbit.

Or I have been told this is his name, and in the same breath, that the name connotates stupidity.

I look at this picture and think "one of these things is not like the others/ one of these things does not belong..." And I wonder, is it the ceramic parrot, the coat hangers, or the rabbit itself?

I know if I lived in a veritable Tupperware container in a triangle of glass between an elevator and an office, beneath a curious assortment of what do seem to be coat hangers, and my only companion was a ceramic parrot, I might be too perky myself.

This is the most enthused I have ever seen Bobbie. I think the flash startled him:




One of my projects this semester will be to cheer up Bobbie. And I may continue putting updates here about how Bobbie is doing from day to day.

Suggestions for cheering him up are welcome. So far I have just made an effort to stop and greet him and channel positive energy. Sometimes I also pet him if the office is open and I can get in.

If I were the owner I would at least TRY to deceive him into thinking he's in the country - some large leaves, pictures of fields... a bonsai... something! Even I had to get pictures of nature for my room, to remind myself of the country and I am not

a. a field animal
b. living isolated (with a parrot) in Tupperware.

Let's all take a moment to consider the well-being of those unnoticed around us who might need cheering up... they are there, just around the corner. Or around the elevator in this case...

Oriented

I have really lost any sense of time here. In some ways, I feel like I've entered an alternate life. But I'm starting to find my niche in it, to be familiar with many of the street names and bus and tram lines, to know my way to the most important places I'll need to go... I suppose it's good I feel oriented, considering that I just finished orientation.

The conclusion of orientation was a delicious dinner, choice of fondu or raclette. I chose fondue, reasoning that it's not just a meal - it's an activity too - an experience. Every time I plunged my pronged spear into the vat of gently bubbling cheese, I thought "I made the right decision." The fondue pot is mesmerizing like watching a fireplace, or else watching a gentle volcano... and fondue is pretty much heaven on a stick. Apparently it goes with white wine but I broke the rules and picked red. Supposedly also, wine and tea are acceptable but you're not supposed to drink water with fondue? Odd, but I'll trust the experts.

So, backing up...

The past couple of weeks have been very packed. One of my favorite days was our trip to Chateau de Chillon on the train. I was enthousiastically snapping pictures out the window when the local sitting next to me said "you might want to wait to take pictures... there's something better coming.

She was right:

This is our whole group. most everyone in the program has a shot almost identical to this because our director was patiently taking pictures with everyone's cameras while passerbys were patiently... well waiting to pass by!

The castle was gorgeous inside and out, but our tour guide didn't want us to take pictures during the tour and there wasn't time afterwards... It was a fascinating tour, in french. The most striking detail I learned was that long ago, people slept sitting up because it was a religious superstition that lying down at night could result in death! Then, a witch walked by and I thought "well that's odd." Apparently, children can have themed birthday parties at this Chateau led by the witch (who is actually Professor McGonagal), the architect, or the page. So I know what I'm doing on May 15th lol.

As Kayla said "Silly Switzerland, thinking they could fool us into believing these mountains are real." It's sort of an elaborate hologram I guess - only explanation for this much beauty. It's working apparently - attracts a lot of tourists.

So that was last saturday. Sunday, I had a lazy day and then met the family I'll be working for as a tutor. It seems like it will be a lot of fun so far, and seeing family life here makes me feel more connected to the city.

The next week, in addition to my orientation class (3 hours of french every day), we had a few outings. One to the United Nations.

I love the symbol of the UN - the image of the earth from the north pole, which is essentially as neutral as they could be, embraced by olive branches.

And here is a painting in a UN building that is an optical illusion, designed to look as if the road is facing you no matter what angle you're standing at:

To me, this serves as another insight into the ideas at the foundation of the UN - a kind of pluralism that leaves room for many perspectives in peaceful co-existence... No matter where you stand, there is a path to the same goal.

Also, the UN grounds are full of peacocks, oddly enough:

LOVELY!!!

In addition to the UN, last week, we went to the Patek Philippe Museum, which is a museum of swiss watches. Aka, purgatory - soft classical music, a very nice guide, nothing truly terrible... but a sense that I would be looking at watches in glass cases for all eternity. Every time I thought we'd reached the end, we came into a new room or level and I felt like Sisyphus pushing his stone to the top of the hill only to start at the beginning again... Some people in our group enjoyed that museum, but somehow for me, it was too much like being in a historical department store.

Anyways, this weekend, I went hiking two days in a row!

Friday, I went to this mountain, just over the border, a short bus ride into France with one of my roommates, Katie, and some other girls from the program. There was a lovely town with some little fruitstands and quaint houses and cafes, and a really nice trail.

Then, on saturday, I went with my french roommate, Laurena (right), Kayla, and 2 of her friends, on another hiking venture, more of a woodsy walking trail, and some parts by a lake... Lots of fun.

So from my first days here

To this last weekend before classes and my internship start,

I have had a great time. And I am officially ORIENTED. !!