Rewind: October

1) Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany
UofC Engineering has an annual "Mechtoberfest" modelled off of this real festival devoted entirely to drinking beer. Here I drank the best beer I have had to date, sang German drinking songs, wanted to wear a dirndl, and I also got to visit a beautiful city that I did not spend nearly enough time in.

A bit from an email to my mom:

****Hi mom,
My trip was fantastic! Oktoberfest is just like the Stampede. There are alot of people and there are rides and games, maybe no shows though. The only difference is that everyone is wearing traditional German clothing and there is alot more beer. And everything is in German. The beer they served at the festival was sooooo good. There was a brand that I liked alot called Augustiner, but they do not export outside of Germany! Also, the beer at the festival only is specially brewed to 6 or 7 percent alcohol, so it is a lot stronger than normal beer. They only serve beer in 1 litre sized mugs, which is alot! So I had to share with another friend the entire weekend because I can't drink alot of beer. I ended up drinking 5 litres of beer over then entire weekend. Hahaha. Also, Munich is a beautiful city that I would like to see again!****

I spent most of my time there with my Olivia, so what she has written is pretty much exactly what I did as well, check it out: http://wennichnurmehrdeutschgesprochen.blogspot.com/2009/10/oktoberfest.html

Another Oktoberfest experience by Steve: http://steveseuroadventure.blogspot.com/2009/10/munchen-is-batcave.html


2) Leibstadt, Switzerland with IAESTE and Europapark in Rust, Germany
I got a chance to visit Switzerland's largest nuclear power plant with IAESTE this Saturday. Woke up early and caught a train north to the town of Leibstadt, close to the German border. Here we watched "Power On", an unintentionally funny presentation on the plant, visited inside the massive cooling tower, and toured an exhibit on nuclear power. I especially enjoyed being inside the cooling tower where it was 40 degees Celsius and 100% humidity inside. My clothes were instantly drenched and of course my glasses (not smart for wearing those) fogged up. It was really neat to recall all my education on nuclear physics again and see it put to work in real life!

I quickly went home after this morning visit to prepare for a Canadian Thanksgiving dinner that night with all the interns plus a few others. I brought over some mashed sweet potatoes that night and devoured one of the most delicious Thanksgiving meals I have ever had! Two hams, three chickens, mashed sweet/regular potatoes, five pies, veggies, casseroles, I was stuffed to the max. Haha turkey did not make that list since neither Switzerland or Germany seem to sell the bird whole.

The next day I took an early train to visit Europapark for the day. It is Europe's largest amusement park. Haha as if I didn't get enough of rides and fair food the previous week at Oktoberfest. This park is set up so that you can visit "countries" of Europe, so there are sections of England, Spain, Iceland, etc. The best ride by far was the Silver Star, a mega roller coaster that I rode over about six times. Stopped for lunch in Greece, had some fish and chips in England, ate some mini donuts too. The park was also themed for Halloween so there were witches and cobwebs hanging everywhere, and THOUSANDS of pumpkins littering the streets. I managed to scream my way through a haunted house. Left the park at closing, with a pumpkin in my backpack ready to be carved in time for Halloween.

3) Kandersteg, Switzerland
Chillin in Baden is the best still! I still enjoy spending my weekends here, relaxing and exploring around town.

From an email:
****last weekend i went to zurich to go shop around for ski rentals with three friends, but i ended up just doing regular shopping. i bought a jacket here, it is so cold! the humidity makes 5 degrees feel more like -10. On sunday i went to a church in Baden which i might consider attending regularly when i am in town. it is in both english and german. the pastor delivered the sermon in english, and there is someone translating in swiss german. the songs we sang were in both english and german. i met a guy in my german class who said he went to church, so i asked him about it and went with him last week. after church, myself and a few friends went for a short hike in Kanderstag. it was beautiful to see the fall colors in the trees, and also some snow since it is very chilly now! i wore 2 hats. ****

4) Wellness Weekend with IAESTE in Brunnen, Switzerland
I don't know what I was thinking, signing up for this trip. I think I was lured by the spa and forgot to factor in an all night hike which means not sleeping. Hahaha this was definitely a one-of-a-kind experience. We left late Friday night at 10pm and met the entire hike group in Brunnen. I tried Gluweine for the first time, it is a warm drink made of wine, spices, and sugar and just what you need before you trek into the darkness, second-guessing why you are climbing up 1000m at four in the morning. And so we left by the light of our headlamps, and all I can say is that it was uphill for FOREVER, and fantastic with the rain, and eventually snow as we got higher. We had frequent stops though for rest near a fire, tea and soup and snacks. It was worth it though to see the sunrise at the top of the mountain, simply gorgeous! We finally made it to the top, and then......you remember that you have to go down. And be awake for a second full day.

Haha, at 11 am (yeah that was an 11pm to 11am hike) we arrived at the Swiss Holiday park where we spent the next four to five hours soaking in warm hot tubs and saunas, special thermal baths, and getting a very nice soap and brush massage. It is the only spa I have been to but boy, it was nice! There was even a bowl of apples for grabs, and a NAP ROOM!!! I took a glorious one hour nap to soft jazz and pleasant scents in the air. We wrapped up the trip with a nice Italian dinner and then I went home to sleep the next 13 hours away.

On Sunday, I enjoyed a nice eggs benedict breakfast with the Dave and Bruce, and just relaxed all afternoon doing crafts and origami with the Berg girls and Chris. I made may over to Mellingerstrasse as well for a nice Swiss meal of raclette (pretty much melting cheese on anything possible).

5) Baden, Switzerland
Watched the movie "Desperado" with Antonio Banderas on Friday night. What a terrible movie. It is one of those awful movies that are so funny because they are so bad. Saturday I spent a very relaxing day shopping in Zurich with Bruce, Dave, and Olivia. We all needed something and had a great day just walking around town, enjoying the weather. We had some roasted chestnuts which are so warm and tasty and sweet and delicious! There are these booths set up all over around the wintertime that sell these snacks. On Sunday, the entire country shuts down and I enjoyed the day doing some chores and relaxing. I went for a beautiful walk in the forest near my house. The trees tower above with pretty fall colors. We are thinking of doing some time capsules and burying them in this forest so we can come back maybe 20 years from now to dig them up and bring the group together again.

Euro stylez

For those of you who don't know, Europe is incredible when it comes to the fashion scene. I feel like a hobo most of time in my very casual wardrobe that is common to general North Americans. I love sweat pants way too much. But today, I had this realization while chatting with a friend: The day I let go of sweat pants will be the day I truly become 'Euro'.

accesssory pizzazz...

...was the theme for Friday night's birthday party for six of the Canadian intern group with birthdays this month! Happy early/today/belated birthdays to Isabel, Celia, Steve, Alex, Shannon, and Chris! What a night of outrageous accessories including scarves, tights, sunglasses, jewellery, fanny packs, and also full out (three) clocks, and a polar bear hat that also was wearing its own Ray-Bans. A great house party!

Saturday was spent at the Dance Academy in Zurich Oerlikon. This is where Isabel takes a dance class and on Saturday I was invited to check out FREE hour long dance sessions to promote the classes offered. I spent the entire day learning the basics to some Samba, Salsa, Reggaeton, standard ballroom/latin, and House dances. The day wrapped up with great show performed by all the current classes!

And on Sunday I had just enough energy to make it out for IAESTE's Caving Adventure. We went to the Hoelloch Caves in Muotathal, the largest cave system in the Alps, for my first caving experience! It was awesome to wander the massive galleries in total darkness aside from the light from our headlamps. I walked through these huge 'galleries' and shimmied up and down tight shafts, and slid down these long chutes of sand and mud. There was some scrambling with the help of ladders and ropes and chains too! It was great! I want to check out the Castleguard Cave in Canada now, apparently the largest/longest caves in Canada right in Banff National Park.

Can't wait for John Mayer's new album "Battle Studies" to come out tomorrow. It might be a frantic search tomorrow in all the music stores of Zurich since this country doesn't know who he is. Wish me luck!

Sunday Bread

It's been a solid five months now, and thinking back on my weeks and how exactly the time passes so fast, I don't think there has been a slow week here. There is always something to do. IM at work is not a huge influence on this at all whatsoever. Anyways, compared to how my weekdays and weekends pass in Calgary, I seem to be just as busy here. But just without the classes and homework, which quite nice.

An example of a busy week:

Went to the Rise Against concert am Montag. So fun to go to a punk show again, and nice to see the Swiss relax a bit and not see turtlenecks everywhere. I have a very nice bruise on my left arm now from moshing.

Shopping in Waldshut, Germany am Dienstag. (I take this 30 min train ride every few weeks here for groceries - much cheaper EVERYTHING there)

Mittwoch was busy! Just for one day, a Christmas market (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_market) appeared out of nowhere in Baden. Checked it out after work and bought some new mittens to replace my holey old ones. Went to my dance class, and then to some late-night bowling after! Scored 76 points in both games ugghh.

Donnerstag, I made some bran muffins! Man so good to finally have some. Switzerland does not sell any Weizen Kleie would you believe it. You would think they would love it since bran fits in with all the typical boring Swiss food. MMMMM ich liebe bran!!

Freitag was an escapade. Thank you Pat Meunier for finding Expovina. I went to a wine tasting on some boats on Lake Zurich, where I sampled a number of fine wines from all over the world. A definite highlight was finding a 1999 harvest of Brunello di Montalccino! I found again the BEST wine I have ever tasted. Only goes for 63 CHF a bottle here compared to 90 bucks at home. Hahahha

Samstag was a great day of wandering! Went to the flea market in Zurich to pick up some bling for next week's party (themed Accessory Pizazz) and got a hideous belt. Stopped by a cafe where I learned if you want to order a cheesecake, don't ask for a kasekuchen because they will literally give you a slice of cheesy pastry. Haha then we bought some "burgers" (these DELICIOUS sweet candies/desserts that look like burgers - will have to find out what they are called), stumbled into a goth store, found a really cool thrift store, then I was off to see the Bodyworld's exhibit! That was super cool. It was incredible to see your body's skeleton of veins, or a cross-section of your insides. Headed home and OD'd on drama watching 21 Grams.

This morning I got up at 8 and helped Alice, my floormate, prepare an amazing brunch for our entire floor. It was so nice to sit down and chat/not understand Swiss German and eat muesli, cheese, and wonderful Swiss breads. And then some chillin for the rest of the day.

Some brunch photos:





























Genau.

Rewind: June to September

It is really very unfortunate that I didn't manage to blog over the past four-ish months. Just trying to remember tonight everything that I have done has taken a lot of detective work, piecing everything back together! So here is (hopefully) Round 2 of blogggggg. Here we go.


JUNE

1) Alsace, France
Bruce has done a great job writing about our trip, check it out: http://switzerbruce.blogspot.com/2009/06/wine-in-france.html


2) Europride Parade in Zurich, Switzerland
I actually wrote a bit about this here:


3) Lucerne, Switzerland with IAESTE
Lucerne was a special trip where I first experienced the unmatched beauty of Switzerland. This is truly one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen, so beautiful it's hard to believe that what I'm looking at is real and that it's not a postcard! So pretty it hurts. I also had the chance to meet alot of other trainees like me on this trip, but a lot of them were only here for the summer and I have had to say goodbye :(

On a boat tour on Lake Lucerne

4) Berlin, Germany
Bianca, a very talented violinist and friend of mine, invited me to join her on a trip with her to Berlin to see an outdoor performance by the world-renowned Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and also a solo performance by Evgeny Kissin. We also joined her orchestra friend Alex who is working in Dusseldorf, Germany. It was a fantastic weeked of music and exploring a city with such a cool, raw vibe. This history that I learned there about the Communist rule and liberation on November 9, 1989 was more than an social studies class that I ever had in school. Definitely a city everyone must see!

At the original start of the East Side Gallery, Berlin's longest remaining stretch of the Wall. This exact segment isn't there anymore because they have repainted the entire Gallery for the 20th anniversary of the Fall this year.

5) Interlaken, Switzerland
I met with Megan Chan and Alex Chan at one of the world's top places for adventure and extreme sports and activities! I think I can almost compare it to a Swiss Banff. We went for my first hike from Schynige Platte to First in the famous Swiss Alps (although it was so foggy we couldn't take advantage of the panoramic views that this hike was known for), and then went canyoning the next day! Canyoning is pretty much descending a water/stream/river filled canyon by any means possible (eg. swimming, rappelling, sliding, jumping of 25 ft cliffs...) and it was thrillling!!! You really have no time to think or else you'd just get too scared and be one of those wimps that have to walk on the paths that are actually right beside all this ridiculousness that you are doing. Oh, and I also visited the Schuh chocolate factory where I was this close to dropping my Engineering career and instead aspire to become a Chocolatiere. Hahha a great time and visit with some Canadians!

Oh, and can I just add that I am in complete awe of Switzerland's hiking/biking/trails network? Every path in this country is marked with a yellow sign that can take you anywhere you want. The small alley behind hind my house is an official hiking trail, or "Wanderweg". It makes hiking so incredibly easy, no wonder the Swiss are so fit. I love it here.

Hiking the Faulhornweg

JULY

1) Amsterdam, Holland
I clearly remembering this weekend materializing out of nowhere, where my plane was just suddenly booked in a matter of about 20 minutes. It started with me just casually chatting with Bianca, when suddenly she says:

"Hey Rachel, Shannon is going to this HUGE party in Amsterdam called Sensation White. Want to go?"
"Uhhh, what is it?"
(come the magic of the Internet and YouTube)
"WHOAAAA...yeah let's do it."
"Ok. This is the plane that Shannon booked."
Done.

Went back to the Schad where I was temporarily living at and ended up convincing two more people to go, then consequently they convinced another five people to go, and in the end all of us joining the original five that had started it all.
And so finally after many days of antsy waiting, I attended the famous Sensation White, where 70,000 people crowd into an enormous area dressed in white attire, and dance into the night. World-class DJs, amazing theatrics and lights, it was EPIC. Slept for about 3 hours, and then played tourist in Amsterdam for the rest of the weekend, where I visited the Van Gogh Museum, did a countryside bike tour, and went shopping. Yup.

In the arena at Sensation White

2) Hiking the Surrenenpass, Switzerland

I got a chance to do a two-day hike from Engelberg to Altdorf, called the Surrenenpass. This hike is Stage 7 of the famous 'Swiss Alpine Pass Route', a large hiking tour of Switzerland that takes about a month to do. I was really excited to do this hike because it was going to be my first time staying overnight at the a mountain hut called Blackenalp. (hahaha the process of booking beds for 11 people was a little chaotic with my inability to speak Swiss German) In Switzerland, there are these mountain huts stationed all over ready to give you a bed and hearty breakfast for everyone who is hiking the many trails of the Swiss Alps! This hike (haha not well planned by me) turned out to be gruelling, seven hours straight uphill and 1 hour descent on the first day. A net elevation gain of 1800m which is not bad at all. I got some massive blisters but it was totally worth it for the warm beds, cozy atmosphere, and DELICIOUS dinner and breakfast that we had! (note to self: never forget drinking amazing warm milk from a bowl probably unpasteurized from the cows only 10 feet away outside) The next day was a great 3 hour hike downhill to Engelberg, where we relaxed in the beautiful town while waiting for free trains to start after 7pm. A great weekend with great company :)

Breathtaking view outside the Blackenalp Hütte

3) Gurtenfest in Bern, Switzerland

You know when you go to a concert and when it's over, you're just all depressed that it just had to end? No, just me? Well this weekend was exactly NOT that. It was just simply indescribable, one of the best that I've had this summer! Megan Chan was such a pal and came to visit from Canada and join me at Gurtenfest, a four-day open-air music festival in Bern. I also went with two friends, Bruce and Chris. It was an awesome four days of being among thousands of other music fans and attending non-stop concerts all day long by local and international acts. I got a chance to see Franz Ferdinand, Kings of Leon, Bloc Party, Dropkick Murphys, and some new unknown bands that I really liked were Ska P (Spanish ska hahha), Peter Fox (German electro), Hockey (indie band from Oregon), and Royksopp (Swedish electro/synthpop), and more! Also a great time of three straight days of thuderstorming rain and mud (ended up spending 100 bucks on rain boots), tenting on a 40 degree inclined hill, budget eating from the local grocery stores, and epic barefoot dance parties until five in the morning, and just way too much more than I can't even explain. I had just that much fun that I came home and got deathly ill but it was so worth it.

Travis performing at Gurtenfest

4) Davos, Switzerland

Spent the Saturday running my first ever race! Took a train to Davos and ran 11km through the mountain trails, and it was great! Here's a bit from an email I wrote:

****hey guess what! i am proud to say that i ran 11 km, even at ease yesterday! i think i could have pushed myself a little harder though. i also ate way too much food beforehand because i was scared that i was going to be hungry and not be able to run, but while i was running all i could feel was all the food that i hadn't quite digested in time blehhh.

but yes, here are my stats:

time: 1:03:41

i was aiming to finish give or take an hour, and i definitely did!

placement: 30/152 for womens, 93/264 overall

not bad!!

definitely got beat by these 8-12 year olds running this race too. and some very old men and women. but hey, this was my very first race! right now i think i'm in the best shape i've been in since i sprained my ankle.****

Yup. Even got a medal at the end and a lot of free banana. Can't wait to run my next race!

Me and my running crew after the race

AUGUST

1) Ticino, Switzerland with IAESTE

AWESOME WEEKEND. Let Steve and Bruce tell it like it was.

http://steveseuroadventure.blogspot.com/2009/08/best-weekend-ever.html
http://switzerbruce.blogspot.com/2009/08/potentially-greatest-weekend-ever.html

At Lake Lugano

2) Week in France (Paris, Aix-en-Provence, Nice)

I took solid two weeks off work to travel France and Spain with my friend Eunice Poon. Here's an excerpt from an email I wrote right after a week in France.


****so my keyboard is stuck in italian. just to let you know in case anything weird pops up that i can't fix.

hey everybody!! i just got into barcelona about 5 mins ago to my hostel and found out they have free internet so i have decided to write to let you all know that i am safe and sound. i just spent the last five days in france which was just absolutely great! 3 days in paris, where i got to see the eiffel tower of course, the notre dame cathedral, sacre-coeur basilica, arc de triomphe, and walked around their many arrondissements. turns out as well that my friend sophia just happened to have been in paris during the same weekend, so we met up too! i also decided to take advantage of cheaper haircuts in france but got a TERRIBLE haircut unfortunately in paris. so if you see pictures, my hair does not look quite as nice as i'd like.

i left paris for the south and went to aix-en-provence for one day. it is a beautiful little french city that is just what you would picture france to be like. also very unfortunate that we were there on a sunday and monday when everything is closed, so we were more than ready to leave for nice. i just spent the last two days in nice where we stayed in a DIRTY hostel but met some very cool people that shared our dorm room with us; a guy from zurich who could speak spanish portugese german english and french, a british guy named alastor that we spent most of our second day with, and two girls from barcelona who gave us alot of tips for our stay here! in nice eunice and i INDULGED in the french cuisine. we ate so much, some crepes, salade nicoise, mussels, croissantes, les tartines (which is just a giant bagette with jam and butter but sooo good) and so much ice cream. nice is along the cote d'azur so we went to the beach on a daytrip to antibes, and also walked around the old city, watched a french movie called "partir", and just enjoyed the atmosphere. being in france has been great in practicing our french.

last night we left nice and caught a late flight to barcelona, and then we spent the night sleeping at the barcelona airport. a great time, we laid our new beach mats we bought in nice in this nice private corner and slept for 7 hours. and now we are here! eunice and i will probably go to the beach after this email and walk around Les Ramblas, a popular street in barcelona, and then go explore the nightlife tonight, maybe after a nap though (we were told that no one goes out until about 1 am and then they stay out until 7am. we are going to be tired). we'll take off to valencia tomorrow night and then finally wind up our trip in madrid.

so yes, that is an update. i hope that everyone is doing well at home! email me! ciao!

love rachel :)******

Being my number one country to visit for a long time it was amazing to finally go to France! It is incredible how a completely new culture can exist just over a border (from Switzerland). I am pretty sure I will be back again, who knows, even this year.

Ahh I just went to look for a photo of me with the Eiffel Tower and I don't even have one! Hmm this will do.

Eunice and I in the streets of Antibes, France

3) Week in Spain (Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid)

From an email to my family:

****hey family, i'm back home, just got back late tuesday night, and eunice left early the next morning. yesterday i spent the day cleaning and doing laundry and resting before going back to work today. eunice and i spent the last week in spain. we went to barcelona for two days where we went to the beach, visited a park and a the cathedral "La Sagrada Familia" designed by the architect Gaudi (amazing!), and also went to the Picasso Muesum where we saw Picasso's famous renditions of Velasquez's "La Meninas". ( you should just google everything i just mentioned, they are amazing) We then took a train at night to Valencia, a beautiful smaller city along the coast where we went to the beach again, rent some bikes and biked around town, and just enjoyed the spanish atmosphere. we also met few other travellers at night. Spain's nightlife is incredible, no one wakes up early, everyone sleeps in beacuse people don't start going out until about 1am, and then go home around 7am. so in spain eunice and i were very tired. Our final stop was in Madrid which is the Spanish capital and inland, so no more beaches :( We got to see a flamenco show! it was fantastic, we spent a little more money to see it in a great taps bar that fit about 30 people, and it was an incredible performance by the musicians, dancers, and singers! We also went to the Reine Sophia Museum, another excellent contempory art museum. And finally our trip ended too soon :(*****

Spain was another fantastic week! I left it knowing I could have stayed another month there. It is very different than France, the people are a lot more lively and passionate, the colors are brighter, the flavors are bolder! I think that I've enjoyed Spain even more than France, and can't wait to go back. Although I could leave the +35 degree heat behind hahaha.

Flamenco show in Madrid

4) Creux de Van, Switzerland

I originally was going to spend the weeking relaxing and resting after just getting back on a Wednesday from Spain. Nope, decided to go hiking anyway (well the hiking season was nearing, and you know gotta make the most of the best hiking on the entire planet.) And so was the plan to hike to the Creux de Van, a huge chasm/canyon/gorge in the earth with 200m , and then to camp for the night at Neuchatel and spend Sunday hanging out at the lake. To our dismay, a part of the route was closed and we ended up taking at detour that added an extra three hours to our hike. The entire day's walk was through farmer's fields, back road, nothing too challenging, but by the time we all arrived at the end (I forget where) at 9:30pm (!!! good thing some of us brought headlamps) we were all so exhausted we just went home. We also missed the last train to the campsite anyway too. Oh well, gorgeous views (not sure if the 8 hours of hiking leading to it was worth it though hahaha), and it gave us a relaxing Sunday at the schwimmbad.

View from the top of the Creux du Van (courtesy of the Internet)

5) Baden, Switzerland

A weekend at home! Check it out:

****hey parents, well i thought i'd say hello and update you. i spent the weekend in baden. on saturday i went to jumbo, the swiss equivalent of candian tire+home depot to buy some new fenders, brake pads and headlight for my bike. then i hauled my bike onto the train with my friend dave to zurich where he needed to pick up his bike from getting repairs. we hung out in zurich for the later afternoon and then decided to bike home from zurich to baden. a point to point distance would be about 20 km, so we thought we could make it home in less than an hour, but it turns out that we would bike for about 2.5 hours instead! it was a beautiful and scenic ride but by the end i was getting really hungry and tired. we made it home and i just relaxed the rest of hte night and watched a movie. on sunday, my friend ran a triathalon so me and two other girls when to cheer her on and wave our signs that we had made for her. then it was an organized girls day, where 3 other girls and i baked muffins, cheesecake, cookies, and a loaf and then watched another movie. it was a great weekend. this week, i bought tickets to see STOMP, the famous group of percussionists that play on anything, from garbage cans to cars. i'm going to see them in zurich! aside from that, it is a good free week. on the weekend i will be going on another trip to a swiss region called Zermatt. iw ill be home on sunday night again if you want to talk. let me know!****

And a bit on STOMP from another email:

****i ended up working 9.5 hours yesterday at work and then had to rush to catch the train to STOMP and eat a hot dog really fast on the way. STOMP was so cool! you shoudl really see them the next time they come to calgary. it was a great show, more than just people banging on garbage cans. these performers are so talented, they are so coordinated because they have to be able to drum/dance/throw/climb/run/everything! and be able to interact with the audience as well all at the same time! the stage was super cool, everything it was made of you could hit it with a stick and it would make a cool sound. there was a part it got pitch black and they ended up doing really cool beats and making light with zippos.****



SEPTEMBER

1) Zermatt, Switzerland with IAESTE

Another fantastic weekend, described by an email:

****It's monday morning and i don't feel like working, so i will write an email! Well i just got back from a trip to visit the town of Zermatt. This town lies at the base of a mountain called the Matterhorn, the one that Toblerone chocolate is modeled after, that mountain picture on the box. i saw it! It was a great weekend to bring my down vest, toque, and mittens because we took a cable car up to a very high point, where people were skiing! Some people got dizzy from the altittude even. Zermatt reminded me of a swiss version of banff or cochrane. The next day we went to hike along the Aletsch glacier, a UNESCO site. I got to see my first glacier! The hike waw spectacular, switzeland's scenery is outstanding. the hills and mountains and flowers are so beautiful. Please go on facebook and see my pictures!

This week in baden is an animation film festival. I am going to see pixar's UP (i finally get a chance to see it in english, all the theatres released it in german), say goodbye to some irish/scottish friends that I have met here (they are wrapping up there summer work term in switzerland), and play some badminton at a local sports facility. Did i tell you that i've signed up for some hip hop dance classes in baden?

This morning on my walk to work today, it was cold! the transition to fall here was very quick, just last week we had our last hot day and suddenly they weather got very cool! the nights have also suddenly come much earlier now. compared to calgary it changed very fast. i think i might have to go buy a new fall jacket since i don't really have one here.****

Described by Steve:
http://steveseuroadventure.blogspot.com/2009/09/straight-up-is-better-than-piddling.html

Described by Olivia:
http://wennichnurmehrdeutschgesprochen.blogspot.com/2009/09/zermatt.html

View from hiking alongside the Aletsch Glacier

2) Baden, Switzerland

Spent another low-key weekend in lovely Baden (it really is lovely). The weekend began with a Latin party at ALSTOM on Friday night, where I was taught how to salsa for the first time and try alot of different types of food from all over Latin America. I also met some students from Britain and we spent Friday night dancing to some Reggaeton music which I am now a big fan of! (What is reggaeton? Quote Bruce, "...like reggae, but faster and with a lot more bass.")

I had a great Saturday and Sunday hanging out with my flatmate Nadine and another fellow ALSTOM coworker Duane. Did some shopping in Waldshut and hung out in Zurich the next day. Drank a lot of coffee both days. Mmmhmm.

3) Baden, Switzerland

This weekend I celebrated my 21st birthday! Check it out:

****i had a great weekend and birthday! on saturday i had four friends run a half marathon in zurich, so i went to cheer them on for the afternoon and i went shopping with another girl. i made dinner and then read a book and met up with a few other friends around 10pm for a night out in zurich for mine and another guy named mike's birthdays (his was on friday). we danced to some hip hop and r&b until 4 in the morning! i could not believe that the two guys who ran the half marathon still had enough energy to go out and dance. it was really fun. took the train back and got into bed at 5am. woke up yesterday at noon, and then went out for lunch at this nice german restaurant with outdoor seating with my internship friends, two flatmates, and a few coworkers to celebrate my birthday. my flatmate nadine managed to get our table a bottle of champagne on the house (she is a frequent customer and knows the manager). we went to my friend's house afterwards to play some settler of catan in german and eat a surprise birthday cake that my friend celia baked for me! it was a delicious chocolate bundt cake. we just hung out for the rest of the day and watched a spirited away to end the night. ****


4) Lyon, France

So during my trip to France and Spain I bought Eurail pass. This pass allowed me to take five days worth of trains over a two month period. Well it just so happens that two of the days I traveled the train operators never checked my pass, leaving me two "free" travel days up until early October! I decided to take advantage of this and invited 3 of mein freundes to travel with me to Lyon for the weekend!

Olivia has done a fantastic job writing about it: http://wennichnurmehrdeutschgesprochen.blogspot.com/2009/10/lyon.html

Pasta Party

At work, on our internal instant messaging system:

Bruce Duong/C... get the email about the pasta party?
Rachel Wong/C... hahha got it
Bruce Duong/C... what kind of pasta are you bringing?
Rachel Wong/C... my cupboard only has spaghetti and penne in it
Rachel Wong/C... which one should i bring
Rachel Wong/C... OH
Rachel Wong/C... and i just bought a giant block of mozza yesterday
Rachel Wong/C... i should bake something
Rachel Wong/C... LIKE A TUNA MELT
Bruce Duong/C... mmmmm mozza
Rachel Wong/C... yeah i wanna make a tuna melt
Rachel Wong/C... gotta go buy some tuna
Rachel Wong/C... who's idea was this pasta party
Rachel Wong/C... *whose
Bruce Duong/C... haha, i guess spaghetti could be described as fun
Bruce Duong/C... but you're bringing pasta tonight right???
Rachel Wong/C... will i be shunned if i brought rice
Bruce Duong/C... which geniuses do you think came up with this brilliant idea
Rachel Wong/C... YES i am bringing pasta!
Rachel Wong/C... you
Rachel Wong/C... and pat
Bruce Duong/C... yep
Rachel Wong/C... hahahahha
Rachel Wong/C... mmmm great now all i am going to think of today is making pasta
Bruce Duong/C... i have to grab some tomatoes and basil
Bruce Duong/C... i wish i had mozza, that would just complete it
Rachel Wong/C... you want some?
Rachel Wong/C... i have a giant block
Bruce Duong/C... i'll trade you some gouda
Bruce Duong/C... let's trade cheese!!!!
Rachel Wong/C... yes!!
Rachel Wong/C... k i'll give you my leftover mozza after i make my tuna melt
Rachel Wong/C... and i'll bring it up
Rachel Wong/C... lol it's prix guarantee mozza though, not hte best i found out this morning
Bruce Duong/C... noooo you can't eat a tuna melt
Bruce Duong/C... you have to eat pasta
Rachel Wong/C... what
Rachel Wong/C... htere is pasta
Rachel Wong/C... and tuna
Bruce Duong/C... you're gonna put tuna in the pasta and then bake it?
Rachel Wong/C... isn't that what a tuna melt is?
Bruce Duong/C... ohhhh
Bruce Duong/C... tuna melt to me is a sandwich
Rachel Wong/C... hahaha
Bruce Duong/C... it all makes sense now
Rachel Wong/C... is that why you kept asking me if i was bringing pasta
Bruce Duong/C... you really frazzled me for awhile there
Bruce Duong/C... yes!
Bruce Duong/C... whew
Rachel Wong/C... hahah
Rachel Wong/C... OK i am bring baked tuna pasta?
Bruce Duong/C... yay!
Rachel Wong/C... hahaahaa
Rachel Wong/C... glad we clarified
Rachel Wong/C... this is such a funny conversatoin

Happy Canada Day!

Wikipedia: "Canadian expatriates will organize Canada Day activities in their local area on or near the date of the holiday."

Can't be more right! I am looking forward to a BBQ tonight with 20-something other Canadians living in Baden. Should be good times eh?