Closing Time in Lugano

My final 12 days in Lugano went by in what seemed like 12 hours. As you may remember, I arrived in Lugano just before 8am on Monday the 14th of April after spending the night on the floor of the Milan Airport.

While I loved my time in Spain and Portugal, I was particularly excited to return to Lugano to see my family who was arriving that afternoon. I met them around 4pm at AnaCapri, the restaurant by the train station where I celebrated my birthday exactly three months prior. Having not seen them in months, our reunion was incredible. I had so much to tell them before they left for Zermatt the next morning.

Within a matter of minutes of meeting with them, my mom noticed the large purple bruise on my left forearm. It was then that I told my family about my incident in an ambulance a week before. Having survived it, I didn't want to concern them by telling them via text while they were enjoying their time in Italy. Following a light snack, I took my family to the Montarina to show them around my home and introduce them to my Lugano Family. 

Disclaimer: Arjan is standing on his tiptoes.

I later took them to the castle for a view of the city from above and later the newspaper tunnel, just for fun. We ended our evening at the Spaghetti Store, where Molly, Cat, MK and I enjoyed one of our first meals in Lugano when we arrived in January.

I met them again the next morning for breakfast before they caught their train to Zermatt. My hope was that they would see the Matterhorn clearly after we missed out due to snow on our first weekend of travel. Within minutes of their arrival, I received a photo of it. That afternoon I took advantage of the lovely weather and explored Lugano with some of the ladies on the trip.

Professor Brinberg welcomed us in as part of his family for Passover. Led by Jenny and Dana, we were taught about the traditions of the Passover Seder. We celebrated the evening together as a family and it was wonderful.

Dana, Professor Brinberg, and Jenny at the Passover Seder

Wednesday was the last day my Eurorail was active. I made a quick trip to Riva San Vitale, where Virginia Tech's other Swiss campus is located, to meet up with Jenna Zschaebitz. Jenna made a trip back to Blacksburg for Ring Dance a few weeks prior, and returned to Switzerland with a gift from my SGA friends. From Riva I got back on the train and went to Bellinzona. I figured there was no better place to end my a Eurorail travels than where I started them. With David's card in hand, I made my way back to Montebello, one last time. On the way the train stopped in Lugano and eight other members of the Lugano family boarded. The nine of us spent the afternoon throwing a football and enjoying the weather in the beautiful castles of Bellinzona. As you may recall, the first two times I visited the capital of the Ticino canton, it was snowing. 

Back Row (from Left): Kyle, Jenny, Kaitlyn, Susan
Front Row: Ashley, Logan, Mary Katherine, Trip, Me

Bellinzona was even more beautiful on this clear day. Mary Katherine, Trip and I made a visit to the top of Castelgrande before returning to Lugano.

Enjoying the view atop Castelgrande with Mary Katherine.

That night we celebrated both Professor Brinberg's birthday and Trip's 21st birthday at dinner. We moved our celebration to Coyote Ugly after dinner. As the celebrations came to an end, a handful of us took a dip in Lake Lugano.

On Thursday morning we spent the day at the pool before going paddle boating. Logan and I invested in 750 water balloons at the 2-franc store and had filled most of them in preparation for an epic water balloon fight at the castle set to take place after going to the lake. About twenty of us rented boats. Once we were in the middle of the lake, Trip started jumping between boats, stealing shoes and taking them back to his boat. Who knew there were pirates on Lake Lugano? When we returned from paddle boating we were devastated to find our water balloons were all gone. Where they disappeared to is still a mystery.

Coyote Ugly was hosted a thirty-two team beer pong tournament on Thursday night. When we arrived there was room for one team left. Trip and Taylor were our best bet. They needed a little bit of time to adjust to the strange rules of European Beer Pong, but after narrowly winning their first game they went on to win it all. They hoisted a large trophy and each got medals for winning.

On Friday night we went to the carnival located near USI. We spent a while playing in the bumper cars, which were way more intense than any bumper cars you will ever experience in the US. After the carnival, we made a trip to Oops Bar directly next to USI. A group at the table next to us had a delicious looking pizza on their table. Logan and I started talking to one of the guys at their table, while eyeing their pizza. He told us he would offer us a slice, but since it was a vegan pizza, he didn't think American's could handle it. I explained to him that I've been a vegetarian my entire life. With that, he walked to the back of the bar and returned minutes later with an entire pizza for us covered in vegan meat. It was delicious. Hands down, one of the best pizza's I've ever had. We thanked him profusely, and enjoyed the pizza thoroughly. We also came across a stick on mustache at some point, which made for some fun photos.

Kaitlyn, Logan, and Trip showing off their mustaches.

Lugano was a happening place over the weekend. An Easter festival took over the town. Saturday morning you couldn't walk ten steps without being handed free chocolate samples from people in bunny costumes. As I walked around town while doing some last minute souvenir shopping, I ran into Molly and her parents. As it turns out, this was not Mr. Piffath's first time in Lugano. He had returned with a mission: to find the mysterious George Washington statue near the lake. Molly had told me about this earlier in the semester, but I had never seen the statue myself. To my delight, we were just a few minutes walk from the statue. I joined them in their hunt for the presidential bust. It was a nice treat to see Mr. Piffath's journey complete, and it reminded me of the last thing I needed to do in Lugano. My Uncle Farid had been to Lugano before and insisted I find Cafe Minerva, a hot spot when he was in town.

Giorgio Washington

I said my goodbyes to the Piffath family, and made my way back up the hill to find Cafe Minerva. I was told that it was near the Hotel Colorado, which was visible from the soccer field we frequented. As I made my way to the Hotel, I was delighted to find Cafe Minerva was still there. I treated myself to a celebratory beer and took a few pictures to show my uncle when I returned.

On Sunday morning, our friends who were teaching in Kenya for two weeks finally returned to Lugano. The highly anticipated reunion was tear-filled and much needed. We spent the afternoon listening to the stories of their time in Africa, including their experiences teaching at Bambakofi Academy and their safari. Later that afternoon we played soccer at Franklin University and enjoyed Easter dinner by the lake.

A photo of Kenya taken by Marissa Forte 

On Tuesday we were treated to a fancy dinner by the owner of the Montarina as part an end of semester celebration. We enjoyed dinner outside with wine made on the property. It was there that the winner of the promotional video contest for the Montarina was announced. It was no surprise that the video produced by MaryKate Goff won the grand prize.

On Wednesday we took the train to Riva San Vitale, to take a hike up Monte San Giorgio. The hike itself was arguably the most difficult hike we've completed while in Switzerland, even more so than Monte Boglia which is directly across the lake and almost 500 meters higher. Kyle, Trip, Nick, Molly, Marin and I completed that hike about two days before our trip to Spain. The view from the top of both mountains were incredible.

All smiles atop Monte Boglia! From Left: Marin, Molly, Trip, Kyle eating a snowball, me, Nick

The view atop Monte San Giorgio

When we returned to Riva, Professor Brinberg took us to the Riva campus to show us around. We saw a few of our friends and got a feel for what their campus was like. After our brief visit, Professor Brinberg treated us to gelato. That delicious cup of banana gelato was the last cup I had in Europe.

On Thursday it finally started to sink in that our time in Lugano was almost up. We gave our final presentation and finished packing. That evening Nick, Trip, and Taylor hosted the 2014 Lugano Superlative Award Ceremony. I was honored to take home the award for Best Blogger. Thanks to everyone who has been keeping up with the adventures!

At the end of our award ceremony we presented Professor Brinberg with a Swiss flag that was signed by every member of our 2014 Lugano Family.

Immediately following the award ceremony, we took the Smiley Train a few towns over to Bioggio, Switzerland for "The Last Supper." We enjoyed an appetizer buffet followed by a risotto dish. As dinner came to a close, Professor Brinberg gave a speech that brought almost everyone to tears. Our time together really was coming to an end.

Following a sentimental dinner, we made a stop at the newspaper tunnel before our last visit to Coyote Ugly. We closed down Coyote Ugly to the tune of Closing Time by Semisonic, before making our way to Club One. Our plan for the evening was to avoid sleeping. We stayed at Club One briefly, before heading to Lake Lugano, to jump in all together, one last time. We did exactly that.

We returned to the Montarina just hours before our bus left to take us to the airport. At 5:30am we were loading the bus and by 6am we were on our way to the airport after saying our goodbyes to the wizard himself, Professor Brinberg.

We arrived safe and sound in the USA on Friday around 4pm. While my European adventure has come to a close for now, this blog has not. Stay tuned. Ciao!

Four Cities in Four Days: Madrid, Lisbon, Cascais, Carcavelos

Our trip to Lisbon did not go as planned. The overnight train from Sevilla was booked, so we made adjustments. The next available train was 24 hours later. There were only three seats left on the bus, with 9 passengers eager to get to Lisbon. We considered renting a car. I really wanted to drive stick through Europe, but the 500 euro charge for taking a car across borders deterred us. To my delight, we decided to take a train to Madrid for the afternoon, and a bus overnight to Lisbon from there. I watched the movie Gravity in Spanish on the train ride to Madrid. I look forward to watching it again in English to see if I missed anything.

We were only in Madrid for a few hours. Within my first hour in Madrid, I wound up in the police station. Believe it or not, I wasn't there for committing a crime. Jenny had her credit card eaten by the ATM machine in the train station and I joined her to attempt to translate. The officers were very helpful but were unable to retrieve her card. Poor Jenny was without her credit card for the last few days of our break. She was a good sport however, and since she was the only one of us who had been to Madrid before, she showed us around a bit. Under Jenny's direction, we wandered our way to Madrid's main square, Plaza Mayor. It was there that we settled in for our last Spanish meal.

Justine, Trip, Taylor, and I treated ourselves to paella and sangria. While we ate, FC Barcelona fans flooded the plaza for a rally in support of the team prior to their big Champions League match versus Atletico Madrid that night. The fans chanted for hours as we enjoyed our meal. With time to kill before our bus, we made a stop at a Churreria for Madrid's finest churros. They were divine. As the sun set, we boarded the bus and arrived in Lisbon at six in the morning as the sun rose.

With only one day in Lisbon, we made the most of it. Our first stop was São Jorge Castle. The castle offered a beautiful view of the city of Lisbon and the Tagus River. Armed with cannons, it once stood on the hill to defend the city.

Our group split up after the visit to the castle. Part of the group visited the aquarium while Jenny, Dana, Madison, Carolyn and I made a trip to the city and Belem. The girls and I enjoyed a lovely lunch by the Praça do Comércio (Commerce Plaza) and then hopped on a tram to Belem. After five minutes on the tram, we had moved about one hundred feet. Realizing that it would take us at least an hour reach Belem by tram, we got on a high speed train instead, and arrived within fifteen minutes.

Belem is a beautiful part of the city of Lisbon, located on the water. Home to multiple museums and monuments, Belem is a must see. Most prominent are the Padrão dos Descobrimentos, a monument celebrating the Portuguese Age of Discovery and the Belém Tower. Thanks to the encouragement of Madison, connoisseur of everything sweet, I tried Pastel de Nada (also known as Pastéis de Belém) for the first time. This delicious pastry tart, served warm with a coat of cinnamon and powdered sugar is heavenly.

Following a beautiful day along the river with good company we had a wonderful Portuguese dinner and went to bed early knowing we would be going to the beach the next morning.

We made our way to Cascais, about 40 minutes from Lisbon by train first thing Friday morning. Once settled in we rented bikes near our hostel and took them to the beach. We spent our day relaxing on our beach, playing paddleball, and frisbee. Our last few days were incredibly relaxing. We enjoyed a delicious dinner and spent the evening at an Irish Pub. Upon returning from the pub, I was facetimed in for the Virginia Tech Soulstice Concert at the Lyric in Blacksburg. With the help of Maddie Potter, Taylor Cugini, Austin Tatum, and Patrick Acker I enjoyed the Rock N' Soul of my favorite a capella group. If you missed their concert, check it out here:

We spent Saturday at a different beach, this time in Carcavelos, about 20 minutes by train from where we were staying in Cascais. Since surfing conditions were less than ideal, we spend our afternoon playing wiffleball and reminiscing on our time in Europe. We decided to take advantage of the grill at our hostel and had a cookout for dinner. We stopped at a grocery store on our way back from the beach and everyone made a dish. I found mango-curry tofu and a smoked tofu and made mini sandwiches. They were delicious, if I may say so myself. The cookout was a blast. We ended our evening on the beach, and laughed the night away.

We woke up Sunday morning in disbelief that our final trip was coming to an end. We spent our afternoon on the beach before a delicious all you can eat sushi lunch. Around 4pm we made our way to the airport. We arrived a few hours before our 10pm flight. If all went well, we were set to arrive in Milan at 1:20am with plenty of time to catch the final bus to Lugano at 1:50am. Instead our flight was delayed 25 minutes giving us only five minutes to make our bus upon arriving in Milan.

We arrived and sprinted through the Milan airport to catch the bus. We ran to the bus in time, only to find out the entire bus was reserved for the students of the Lugano Center for the Arts. We were forced to spend the night in the airport until the next bus at 5:50am. We did just that.

We finally arrived in Lugano around 7:30am. I took a short snooze before our meeting for our final project.

My final two weeks in Lugano are wrapping up. Stay tuned for the final days of fun! Ciao!

Monkey See, Monkey Do

An early wake up call was in order for our trip to Gibraltar. The eight of us were at the bus station by 6:45 and we were on our way by the top of the hour. After a three hour ride and a much needed nap, we pulled in towards Algeciras. As I woke up I noticed someone wearing a Virginia Tech hat sitting directly in front of me. Naturally I assumed it was one of my friends, but at a second glance I realized it was a man, well into his 60's with a thick white beard. Clearly it wasn't a student. I couldn't help but strike up a conversation. It turns out the gentleman is in fact a Virginia Tech graduate. He and his wife were visiting their son and provided us with some tips for our trip to Gibraltar. I am still amazed by how many Hokies there are around the world. What are the chances we would meet one on a bus from Sevilla to Algeciras at seven in the morning?

We stopped briefly in Algeciras to switch buses to La Linea. We arrived a bit after eleven and our adventure began. We took a tour with a native Gibraltarian, named Jacky. He was born there and has been giving tours for 42 years. We made our way up the mountain and our first stop gave us a view of the continent of Africa across the water. We waved to our friends teaching at the Bambakofi Academy in Kenya and then continued up the mountain.

Our next stop was St. Michael's Cave, a limestone cave in Gibraltar.

Finally we reached the main attraction, the apes. One of the main reasons we made the trip was for the opportunity to play with monkeys. The apes were not shy, as they climbed atop the cars and practically posed for pictures. After about fifteen minutes we were forced to continue down the mountain for our final stop, the Great Siege Tunnels. We explored for a bit before returning back to our mission. 

We hiked about 40 minutes back up the mountain to a less touristy spot of the mountain known for being home to lots of monkeys. Upon arriving, we were greeted by two large monkeys, who pounced at Taylor who was holding a shopping bag filled with snacks from the bus. Within seconds the monkeys had torn open the bag, sorted through his clothes, and were eating his chocolate chip cookies and Kit-Kat Bar. It was clearly not this monkey's first Kit-Kat Bar, as it was breaking each bar off as demonstrated in the commercials. After the monkeys had devoured every morsel, Trip attempted to clean up the wrappers, only to be attacked by one of the parent monkeys. It ran at him from behind and shoved him in the back of the knee. Trip took the hint, and kept his distance.

Top (from left): Me, Madison, Dana, Ashley
Bottom: Justine, Jenny, Taylor, Trip

Having made the hike to the top, we all wanted pictures with the monkeys. We observed that the monkeys liked the olives and flowers growing nearby and picked a few to lure them in. Soon we had befriended the monkeys as the babies were climbing onto our laps and even jumped on Dana and Taylor's shoulders. Dana seemed to be the most well liked by the monkeys, as they spent the most time with her. While Taylor's new friend was perched on his shoulder, it stole his sunglasses and ran into the trees. Apparently one of the adult monkeys thought Trip was going to intervene, as it jumped on him and scratched his elbow. 

Eventually we made our way down the mountain, after I made friends with one of the monkeys as well. We returned to the city center and made our way back across the border after lunch. 

That evening we went out with Carolyn in Sevilla, and I was again reminded of how small the world really is. Upon walking into the bar, I ran into my friend from Spring Hill Elementary School, Josh Sklar who is studying in Sevilla. It was a great surprise.

Our next planned stop was Lisbon, Portugal. Our plans had to be adjusted a bit as the overnight train was booked, giving us a bonus stop in Madrid. Stay tuned! Hasta luego!

Feeling Sevilla

We arrived in Sevilla around 10pm on Sunday and enjoyed traditional Spanish tapas for dinner. Prices were low, with each plate costing less than 1.50 euro and each beer only 0.40 euro. Along the way I found a shop with soft serve ice cream. To my delight it was their grand opening, and all ice cream was free for the day as part of a promotion!

Dinner in Spain starts late. 10pm is generally the earliest time dinner is served. With consistently high temperatures, siesta's are particularly important in Sevilla. Restaurants stop serving meals or shut down from around 2pm until dinner time in order to eliminate the heat from the ovens. After a tasty dinner, we returned to our hostel. Taylor and I sat down for a game of chess before bed and ended up playing until 2am!

On Monday, we woke up to meet Carolyn Remmey, one of Madison's best friends, and my friend since Hokie Camp. Carolyn is studying abroad in Sevilla and kindly showed us around the city. We started at the Alcázar de Seville, a palace reminiscent of Versailles. The grounds were overwhelming. There was so much to see. The gardens appear to be incredibly difficult to main. While dozens of gardeners were hard at work, one of the main attractions within the grounds was a peacock that was screaming at the top of its lungs.

A girl and her sister taking photos for her quinceañera at Alcázar de Seville.

Our next stop was the Plaza de España. The plaza was built in 1929 within la Parque de María Luisa for the World's Fair. It is now home to government buildings. A few scenes from Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace were filmed here as well.

Carolyn took us downtown for tapas. This was one of my favorite meals of the ten day break. I enjoyed Spanish peppers, patatas bravas, fried zucchini, and tinto de verano. Tinto de verano is a delicious mix of red wine and sparkling lemonade.

As with most cities we visited, Sevilla offers an attraction with a panoramic view of the city. The Metropol Parasol is a strange building located in the middle of town said to resemble a mushroom from aerial view. The building was completed in 2011 and claims to be the largest wooden structure in the world. We took the elevator to the top and saw Sevilla in all its beauty.

Metropol Parasol

The Crew (from Left): Me, Dana, Trip, Jenny, Justine, Taylor

Taylor and I went to the bus station to purchase tickets for our trip to Gibraltar while the rest of the gang made their way to the river. We planned to meet back up in an hour and a half, but Taylor and I managed to return to our meeting point within thirty minutes. Knowing that the others were laying out along the river, we decided to rent a paddle boat instead of walking across to meet them. With a pitcher of sangria by our side, we floated down the river. As expected we spotted them about a quarter of a mile down the river as we paddled along. They were shocked. As we pulled up to the shore, Trip jumped on and we met the girls back at the dock. Dana joined our boat, and we all enjoyed an evening on the river.

Paddle boating with Taylor and Trip

It is evident that the people of Sevilla are very proud of their city. Everywhere in the town the motto "NO8DO" is displayed. The motto means "It (Sevilla) Has Not Abandoned Me."

We had an early dinner by Spanish standards and were in bed before midnight for our early morning bus ride to Gibraltar. Hasta luego!

Adventures in an Ambulance: Barcelona

Our third spring break, and final trip of the semester started on Thursday April 3rd. We took our final exam of Junior year on Wednesday and gave our final presentation on Thursday. We flew RyanAir and arrived in Barcelona just after midnight. We arrived at the hostel around 2am and called it a night. We needed as much energy as possible for our bike tour on Friday Morning. 

On Friday we made our way to La Plaza de Sant Jaume, home of Barcelona's town hall and the starting point of our bike tour. We made our way through the city stopping at some of Barcelona's main attractions including the Arc de Triomf, Gaudi Cascades, and la Sagrada Familia. Our final stop was on the beach before biking back through the city.

Barcelona's Arc de Triomf

Cascades

Sagrada Familia

Molly, Cat, MK, Audris, Taylor, Trip and I returned to Port Olympic for a late lunch. We enjoyed traditional Paella and Sangria, before making our way to the beach. We only spent a few minutes there, but we enjoyed soaking up the sun. As the sun began to set, I made my way to the Magic Fountain. This was one attraction I missed last time I was in Barcelona, so I made sure to see it this time. The show was fantastic. The water flow was set to music and lit up throughout the evening.

That evening we visited a bar called Dow Jones, where like stocks, the prices of beverages changed throughout the night based on their popularity. It is rumored that each night the Dow Jones crashes for a few minutes, dropping the price of every drink to 1 euro. 

Top from left: Cat, Molly, Ashley
Middle: Carmen, Audris, Madison, Dana
Bottom: Mary Kate, Jenny, Taylor, Trip, Me

On Saturday we went straight to the beach. We spent a few hours there, and enjoyed a game of beach volleyball as a group. After some much needed relaxation, Trip, Taylor, Dana, Justine, Audris, and I made our way to Camp Nou for the Barcelona versus Real Betis soccer match. I can't explain how excited I was about this game. I never expected to have an opportunity to see my favorite team play in their home stadium. Lionel Messi put on a show, as the world's greatest player netted two goals in Barcelona's 3-1 victory. Nearly 90,000 fans of all ages filled the stadium. The passion for the sport was evident and the love for their team is undying. While by most standards a 3-1 victory is something to celebrate, it was clear that many fans expect more from their home team than that. Barcelona is a team with a long history of success and winning sometimes isn't enough. Regardless, I enjoyed myself thoroughly and am incredibly thankful to have gotten the opportunity to watch the world's greatest sport, played by the world's greatest player, in the world's greatest soccer stadium. 

Lionel Messi, the World's Greatest Soccer Player

As if my day wasn't exciting enough, my night was very eventful. My Spanish skills were put to the ultimate test, and if it weren't for my awesome Spanish teachers, I may not be alive to tell the tale.

I ordered a veggie burger for dinner, and verified with the server that my meal was both vegetarian and nut-free to accommodate my allergy. After two bites however, I could feel my throat closing. I made a mad dash to the bar, and chugged two glasses of water with benadryl, in hope that it would stop the reaction. I asked the server once again if there were any nuts in the burger, and she assured me there were not. Noting the complications of my diet, she offered me a free tequila shot, as tequila is both vegetarian and nut free. I politely declined. While her offer made me chuckle, I was in no condition to be drinking. I downed at least four more glasses of water before making my way up to my room hoping I was cured. I wasn't. The human body absolutely amazes me. In a matter of seconds it recognized that I had eaten nuts and was rejecting it almost immediately. I began tossing my cookies and sneezing uncontrollably. Soon my nose got clogged and I was breaking out in hives and my lips began to swell. Finally I admitted to myself that I needed to administer my Auvi-Q epinephrine shot. Up until this point, I had never had to use an epinephrine injection before. I made my way to the front desk and told them I needed to go to the hospital. They offered to call a taxi, but I insisted on an ambulance. My friends are awesome, they literally dropped everything they were doing to help me. Trip got my passport, Taylor got my jacket, Molly escorted me throughout the hostel making sure I was conscious. I administered the Auvi Q, which was far less painful than I anticipated. Within minutes the effects of the adrenalin kicked in. I was shaking but alert. I made my way outside to the ambulance where two paramedics, Carlos and Javier, greeted me. They spoke no English whatsoever. While Trip and Taylor were insistent on joining me, the paramedics wouldn't allow it as they were of no help unless they spoke Spanish. I was on my own.

We got inside the ambulance and I started explaining my symptoms and answering an array of questions. One thing led to another, and next thing I knew I was getting a shot where the sun doesn't shine and another in my arm soon after. They monitored me for a few minutes, and as I started to feel better they released me. When I stepped out of the ambulance, all of my friends were waiting for me. They kept an eye on me throughout the night as the antihistamine and cortisone kicked in. I stayed up for a while to make sure I didn't have any other reactions. Finally I fell asleep, and woke up good as new on Sunday morning. I made my way back to the restaurant to ask for a list of ingredients in the burger I had ordered the night before. The first ingredient: pine nuts.

Thankfully I lived to tell the tale. I was once again reminded how awesome my friends are, and how lucky I am to be a part of the Hokie Nation. 

Special thanks to my Spanish Teachers over the last seven years: Dr. Pagán-Teitelbaum, Profesora Lopez-Romero, Señora Schultz, Señor Stryker, Señora Hall, and Señora Calhoun!

Additionally, I owe a big thanks to my spectacular allergist Dr. Jacqueline Eghrari-Sabet for providing me with the new Auvi-Q epinephrine injector. The paramedics had never seen it before, but it got the job done!

On Sunday morning we visited Park Guell briefly before catching our train to Sevilla for our next adventure. My return to Barcelona was filled with excitement. I look forward to returning for more fun and paella soon! Next stop, Sevilla!

Next Stop: Geneva

Following an incredible visit to Jungfraujoch, I woke up early on Saturday to visit Geneva for the first time. I arrived around noon, grabbed a map and explored. The flea market in Geneva is huge on Saturdays, so I started there. The people were trying to sell items that have no value whatsoever for high prices. At one point, I saw a stand with US pennies for sale. These weren't antique pennies, or pennies that were ornately decorated. These were standard US pennies from the 1990's and 2000's being sold for 20 Swiss Franc each, (roughly 22 US dollars)! As I walked through the market, the man selling them offered to give me a deal, 3 pennies for 25 Franc. All I could do was laugh.

Needless to say, I didn't spend any money at the market and made my way toward the park. On the way I passed a small skate park with kids doing tricks on bikes, skateboards, roller blades, and even scooters!

The park was full of life. There were about half a dozen giant chess boards set up at the entrance with people of all ages playing with intensity similar to that of Harry and Ron in the Sorcerer's Stone.

Deeper in the park was the Reformation Wall, on the grounds of the University of Geneva. Built in 1909, the wall commemorates the Protestant Reformation.

As I continued to explore I came across a church at the top of the hill overlooking Lake Geneva and Jet D'eau. On the way to the lake I stopped at the English Garden, home of the Flower Clock. While I was told to find this clock, I didn't know what to expect. It's exactly what it sounds like, a gigantic clock made of flowers.

Finally, I made my way to see Jet D'eau up close. One of the world's largest fountains, Jet D'eau blasts 132 gallons of water towards the sky per second.

On Sunday morning I visited the United Nations Headquarters. Unfortunately it is closed on weekends, otherwise I would have taken a tour in a heartbeat. Outside the facility the flags of 193 nations hang proudly in front of the UN Flag. As an International Studies major I've taken several classes focused on the work of the United Nations. It was neat to stand outside the facility where so much of what I have learned about occurs.

Outside the UN facility is a gigantic sculpture of a wooden chair that had one limb broken off. The sculpture is there as a symbol of the opposition towards land mines. 

My last stop was the Museum of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. With only a few weeks left of travels, I've visited countless museums. This was the most well put together. The Humanitarian Exhibit is split into three parts, each designed by a different architect. The museums include exhibits on Defending Human Dignity, Restoring Family Links, and Reducing Natural Risks.

The interactive museum just recently added new audio guides which have a built-in GPS to know exactly where you are in each room of the exhibit. Based on your exact location in the room, the audio-guide automatically explains what you're looking at. The museum also includes stories of 12 witnesses. These stories are incredibly touching and serve as an important reminder of the incredible work the Red Cross does.

Geneva was very welcoming and was a wonderful end to my weekend travels. After my final week of class, my third and final spring break started in Barcelona. Stay tuned! Ciao!