Ohh the Things in my Normal Swiss Life

(Photos for your viewing pleasure)^^

Okay, so I know I have not been that good with blogging often. I have just found nothing that special to tell you guys about. I mean who wants to really hear about things that i find so normal? Well my parents but I don't really count them. Life in Switzerland for me is now like life for my brother in America, normal. Everyday just seems normal not so special, just your average Joe day. Though sometimes there are things that still manage to amaze me when it is so normal for everyone else. And I embrace the moments when I stand out because of some of my American ways. Those things make me, me. I take them as a badge. Though I try to blend in I still manage to stand out, especially when I speak since I only speak High German and I have a bit of an accent, but that is normal. So now here it goes, this is what I have been doing for the past couple of weeks since I last wrote.

First of all my class is still wonderful and I am making friends. I also found out that they are really supportive of their friends. One of them had a performance this weekend and me and about 5 other class mates were there to see them and support them. Also this and next weekend another one has a dance recital and I know of 2 people who are going this week and I am going next week. I love the fact that they are supportive it makes them like a family. Well since they will be together all day for 4 years it is a good thing that they are like a family and not fighting.

As for the performance that I saw on Friday; it was good. Though it was very long for my liking (8.00-11.30). It was a thing for the town she lives in to promote it and raise money. It was about these 2 guys that were trying to go somewhere and they missed their train and all the people that they met were going to or from that town. And then there would be performances of gymnastics/dances in there. Though the plot I am not quite sure what it is about since it was in Swiss German and I don't really understand Swiss German.

A couple of weeks ago I joined a volleyball team. I have had 2 practices so far. Though I have not yet played in a game. I enjoy it since I have always like volleyball and because it is a good way for me to meet more people. Also I like having something to do. I really appreciate being able to go and play with them every Thursday. They don't mind that much that I have never played on a real team before or that I joined the team after they have already started playing. Or if they mind they haven't said anything.

There is this one show that I really like that I sometimes watch with my sister. It is called "Wetten Dass?" I find it to be entertaining to watch even when I don't fully understand it. This show is about betting, or at least that is what I think it is about since it is almost pointless but very entertaining.

Switzerland is still just as amazing now as it was when I first got here to now when I have been here for about 12 weeks. It is extremely divine. All the colors on the trees make my bike ride home wonderful; I love it. though unfortunately I keep forgetting to take photos of it and hopefully I remember to before all the leaves fall off the trees. I am chipper with being here. I feel at home. Though AFS has said that before that I will go through a time where I was homesick. I haven't I skipped that part. OR if by homesick they mean REALLY wanting some Taco Bell; then yes...yes I was homesick. I was homesick on Wednesday. But that is only if homesick means craving Taco Bell. I am happy to wake and think that I am in Switzerland right now!!! More then happy actually, I am bouncing off walls with joy.

Schule

Okay so I haven''t written in a while.
This past couple of week were my first 2 week at the Gymnasium. For the 4 other weeks I have been here before that I was at Migros Klubschule. It is a place where adults (everyone 16+) can go to learn a new language.

At the Gymnasium you are with one group of people all day. Also the schedule is similar to that of a college student where the classes are different from Monday to Tuesday and so on. All the people in my class are really nice and I get along with them. On my first Friday at the Gymnasium I said "me geusta grande chi chis" and "Ich habe eine banana in meine tosche". The first means I like big boobs in Spanish and the other is I have a banana in my pocket in German. I told them these things because I thought it would be a nice way to lighten the mood and since it was the end of the day it would be a good ending. And it was it was a hilarious ending to the day. Now my classmates and I have an insider joke.

Now as for the classes that I have since I know that's what you all have been waiting for. That is why you are reading this isn't it?

Chemistry (Praktikum)

It is just a chemistry class like in America where I don't understand what I am being taught. Except now I have an actual reason for not understanding. Now Chemie Praktikum is a class that I have about every couple of weeks were it is just a chemistry lab. I like this class best since my favorite labs are in chemistry class. Also since I am working with these 2 boys who are hilarious and crack me up.

Englisch

It is like learning Spanish in America. It is a foreign language class. This class is the easiest and a nice break in the week to have a class where I understand what is being said. Though the class is almost a waste of time for me. I usually do my German home work or other home work that I was given for that day.

French

This is a foreign language class. I personally don't understand much of it since it is in French. Also because I have had about 3 years of French. They on the other hand have had about 6 years of French class. The good thing is though that I only have 1 hour out of the 3 that the rest of my classmates have. I will explain this in the next one.
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German

This class is where I learn to speak German. I have this class with 2 other exchange students. There are a total of 9 exchange students (including me) in my school of 700 or so students. Here I am working on making my German better. For me the grammar is the hardest since there are so many rules that I don't know about or why it is like that. But in time it will be easier for me to understand.

Mathematik

Mathematik is....Mathematik. My teacher is very special. It's hard to explain how but he is just special. Though he is a very nice guy. Currently we are doing geometry which I didn't understand that well in English and now I have to relearn in German. This class will be quite confusing for me. Hopefully I will be able to understand better as the weeks go on.

Sport Mädchen

This is gym class but for girls only. They have the girls from my class and other class. So far we have done Gymnastics and OLs. OLs is where you have to find these orange things in the woods when walking around the woods with a map. It is kind of hard to describe it. I personally liked it since I got to know a couple of the girls in my class from it.

Geografie

There really is no class like this in America so I can't really describe it. Though it is my favorite class so far. :)

Bildnerisches Gestalten

This is an art class. Though so far we haven't done art projects. We have learned things and this makes it to be quite a boring art class. Hopefully when we start to do "real" art class things it will get better. Since I am used to painting, drawing, scuplting, ect... in art class not this thing called learning.

Wirtschaft und Recht

This is Economic (accounting) and Law class. It sounds like it would be awesome right? Well I understand nothing in it. These people have been doing this for 2 years and I have never taken an accounting class in my life. We have yet to do anything with law so all I know is the economic part which I don't understand.

Deutsch

This is like English class in America. I am going to Zurich with my classmate for this class. We are going to see a play based on a novel.

Biologie (Praktikum)

This is just like Chemie class and Chemie Praktikum. The only difference is that I understood Biologie in English. I do understand it in German when the words are similar or the same to there English counter-parts.

Geschichte

This is History class. It is like most other history classes in the world. You are learning about things that happened in the past. If it is history then you learn about it. So far we have been doing things to do with religion and watched a little bit of a movie (in German) called Luther (I think).

Physik

Don't get me started on this class. I don't dislike it. I just don't know what I am doing all the time. It is not that it is in German that gets me. I just don;t understand why we are doing something. I really need someone to tell me why I am doing this. I need to know how this is important. Then this class will become much better.


Oh and I forgot to mention that I am with the same 20 people for all classes. The only time it is not just my class is Art and Gym. In Gym it is girls from another class. And for Art it is people from another class who are not taking music class like me.

First Day of Language School

Swiss money is BEAUTIFUL! It is so colorful and makes American money (already ugly) look like dirt.
I started my language school today and it was kinda boring. We mostly went over the stuff that I learned from my host family and Rosetta Stone. I loved that about every 10 minuets we had a brake. There are 14 of us at the language school. We are from Hungary, China, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Columbia, and America.

I met my liaison on Saturday. He came over for dinner (yes it is a he I too thought it would be a she). His nam is Simon and he is REALLY tall. Then again I am short so of corse he is all. He is about the same height as Raffie my host brother who I think I am only to his shoulders. As you can tell I am the shortest person in the house. Simon is really nice and he too was with AFS and went to Kansas (poor boy who goes to Kansas???). He is friends with Raffie and plays badminton with him (Raffie).

The bread here is to DIE for and I would not want anything else. Also of corse the chocolate is good it is Swiss chocolate. My family has bread that they only eat on the weekends and it is so rich that I could barley eat half slice when they were eating one or two whole slices.

I watched my first movie in German on Saturday too. It was the movie Gamer with Gerard Butler. I saw it with my liaison and brother. I did not understand most of it but I got in a few words here and there. It was good from what I could tell but I do not know since I did not understand most of it.

On Sunday I saw the waterfall. It is on the border of Germany and Switzerland. It was my first ever waterfall and I thought it was pretty awesome. We walked around a small village that was near the waterfall and that the tour boat took us to. Of corse all the talking was English since well it is Switzerland and that is the main language. And for those of you who did not get my sarcasm then you should go see a doctor. Also Switzerland does NOT speak Swedish that is in Sweden.


Now some Pictures of the beautiful Swiss Franc.

Guten Tag Schweiz!!!

I am now in Switzerland. My flight took off in JFK International on August 19 at 5:30 pm and landed at 7:35 am Agust 20 in Zurich Switzerland. Or it was supposed to it landed about 40 mineuts early. My suitcase fully packed and backpac/carry on ready to go I left for New York on Thursday Agust 18. The day before I had kind of a going away party. It was where me and my family (mom, dad, and Tim) all went out for breakfast at Mastoris. Ofcorse I had my other amigos with me (Kierra and Vanessa). It was delicous as it always is at Mastoris.

Enough about American stuff. Okay so today is my second day in Switzerland. I am loving it here. They live in the hills which are beautifull. Surronded by farmland at home and city for school. It is all awsome. My family is very nice. The food here is WONDERFULL for lunch yesterday I had this yogurt, fruit, and cereal thing that was delicous. The bread here is so good yummy! The USA kids going to Switzerland are all very cool people. My family here in Switzerland are all taller than me (shocker) Daniel (father) and Raphael (brother) are much taller than me to hug them I was on my toes. Language school starts on Monday(Montag) I am very excited for that and the Gymansium (high school) when normally in the states I am never excited for school. Wish me luck!

Is it Time Yet?

Oh that question that my mom has heard every year around the same time. Well not that phrase exactly but you know the phrase I am talking about, the one that they made a movie and a horrible sequel to... but I should stay on topic it would be best. Time is flying by and soon it shall be summer time and school will be over then off to vacationing and then to Switzerland! Where I shall live for eternity, well actually 10 months but hey I'm almost 16 (June 9th) so 10 months does feel like an eternity.
I recently had a "senior moment" or what ever you want to call it. I had got a package in the mail a couple of weeks ago with my host family information in it. Well the other day I got an e-mail with the bio-thing in English. This would have been a lot of help when I original got the packet because it took over an hour to translate it on some random translating site. Plus the translator didn't even get all the words and it did not make much sense.
Well the names of the people I am staying with which I forgot to tell you in my last post are: Selina, Luca, Raffeal, Daniel, and Margrit. Selina is there daughter who is 13 years old and taking the test to see if she can go into high school early. Which I personally hope she makes it because that is a really cool thing to do. Luca their youngest son and middle child is about 16 or 17 and he is doing an exchange in America. Yet not with my family, even though that would be quite interesting. Raffael is 18 and there oldest child, he is a computer person and that will be helpful for me since I am not the best with computers. Daniel and Margrit are the parents. Daniel is a banker and Margrit is a nutritionist who works at home. Since she cooks all the meals I know that I will be eating healthy. That is all that I have to say and all my posts will become more interesting once I have gone abroad to Switzerland, and will have plenty of stories to tell about my adventures; with skiing, speaking another language, and just stories of complete embarrassment.

Host Family News

Okay well I now have a host family!!!!!!! Yay!! I am very happy about this incite. I am staying with the Sahli family. I will be in Hofstetten, Switzerland in the province of Zurich. I am very much excited and cannot wait until I get to meet them. Since it is almost midnight and I have to get up early tomorrow to go to my first orientation I shall keep this short. It is just under a month until my birthday and Tim (my brother) has just gotten back from Florida on his senior trip. Now back to the important stuff. I will be staying in a German speaking place. This means that I shall need to take the Rosetta Stone in German from a family friend. Which I cannot do until he gets back from Miami (oh how I wish that I could be in a place were the weather isn't going crazy). That is about it because I have to go to bed before I get into anymore trouble.(;