Thursday, November 11, 2010

In Switzerland - Kelly Ernst

Hello Rotary and fellow Viewers of this blog-

Whats crackin?!

I have officially been in Switzerland for……. whoa- 3 months…. and I am just realizing that as I am typing it-
Its very strange- three months is a long time, and it has gone by so quickly!
The school year is now well in gear and my family and I have gotten into the daily routine of… school.
Its funny- As incredibly different everything is here in Switzerland, the attitudes toward school, from my new friends and host sibling are still. exactly. the same. = DEvery hour of sleep is precious and clocks seem to mysteriously stop working during that all so interesting class of geography (And its funny, becuase they told me that they make clocks the best here in Switzerland…)

But luckily- the system gives us a two (yes TWO!) week long break at the end of october to flee the country and locate some sun and sea.
And that is exactly what my host family and I did.

While all my new friends here in Switzerland were freezing their tails in the snow (yes, snow in october)
I was tanning aboard the Red Sea in Dahab Egypt (Google It! it's INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFUL!)

My family and I left Switzerland at 9 O'clock Saturday night and took the 12:00 Am plane to Sharmel Shak Egypt- we got in about 4:30 int he morning, slept in a little, and a full week of wind-surfing, snorkeling and enjoying the most incredible fruit cocktails in the whole entire world (non-alcholic, don't worry Rotary :D ) started first thing in the morning.

The fish and the coral were something that I have only ever seen in books, and oh was it incredible! My host mom is practically a mermaid because she knows the different types of fishes SO WELL!
We saw Firefish, and Picasso fish,  and so much more which names she told me but- it was all in German, so alas, I am not able to recall.

Next weekend, the other 2 American exchange students and myself are planning on cooking a grand ol' thanksgiving dinner for our three familys. American Style
It has proven very difficult to find a date that works for all twelve people but, i think it is set for the Saturday before Turkey Day!

Other than that, Swiss life is going incredibly well-
Im eating lots of bread and cheese, and coffee maybe 3 times a day-!

Alright, Ill keep you posted,

Ciao For Now,
KELLY


Here is a quick photo of me at Lac Noir. It is a little different climate than Egypt. Lac Noir is a small ski station (perhaps a bit larger that Howelson)  about a 30 minute drive from my house. I would like you to take note as well, this photo is probably a bit blurry, and my face is slighlty contorted- That was because of my violent shaking due to the cold-
But it was beautiful none the less.

And P.S. ALLI: My Mountains are Coooolllerrr than your Kangaroooss! = p