Kantonsschule Büelrain

Before school started, I've been hanging out with all the exchange students in the Lanugage Camp that I was in before I dropped out of it. Both Monday and Tuesday last week I met up with them and went swimming in Zürich by this huge fountain in the middle of the lake. I just sat in the water, looked at my surroundings and just tried to soak in all of the city's beauty. It was the most gorgeous site ever. It was a perfect sunny day and I was spending it swimming in ZÜRICH. How much more epic could my life be?

I started school last Wednesday. I am going to completely honest and say I was scared and nervous out of my mind to go to school in a foreign country. The thoughts in my head were, "Am I going to make friends?", "Am I going to be able to communicate?", "WILL THEY EVEN LIKE ME?!?!". I woke at 4:30 in the morning to catch the bus at 5:33 in the morning.........Rough, if you ask me. My lovely host mother came with my though to set up my classes and make sure I knew where I was going. I go to school in a city called Winterthur, and it takes roughly an hour to get there. I walk to the bus stop from my house, go to Hüntwangen-Wil Bahnhof (train station), catch a connecting train at Bülach Bahnhof, get to Winterthur, and take another bus to school. It was a lot to handle at first but I'm so use to it now. The time goes by pretty fast.
The first day was pretty hard. It was a lot to take in and translate. I barley understood what was being said to me. **Sidenote: School is spoken in Hochdeutsch, which is standard German. But when the class is over, the students and the teachers switch back to Swiss German, which is still a foreign language to me**. On a good note, the kids in my class are so friendly and nice! They ask me to hang out and spend time with them. I was more than shocked that I made friends this quickly. This past weekend, I spent some time in a nearby province, Schaffhausen with a good friend, Guiliano from school. He showed me around the old city and ate lots of food at his house. Later that night, I took the train back to Winterthur and went to a local-band concert event with even more kids from my school. They're all so nice and it's totally beneficial for me so I can keep speaking German. Having friends and speaking more German everyday... It's the best of both worlds!
Last Friday night, I went to the biggest club in Zürich, Alter Börse with my host brother, Niclas. One of the most famous DJ's in the world, Skrillex was holding a concert there. IT WAS OUT OF THIS WORLD I HAD SO MUCH FUN! The techno music was crazy loud and we had a great time. I'm glad I had a chance to hang out with my host brother. It was really nice of him to take me to this concert.

This past Sunday, my host dad took me to another city called Stein am Rhein, which is famous for it's castles and scenery. I couldn't get over the view from the top of the mountain. I kept asking myself, "DO I REALLY LIVE IN THIS COUNTRY?!" I always ask people around me if they ever get sick of Switzerland's beauty because I don't think I ever will.

On a sad note, I got this really awkward cold the other day. The weather here last week was SO HOT and then this week changed to autumn-like weather in a flick of a switch. I'm also not the only one sick. It seems like a bunch of people around me are sick, too. AHHH! I hope I get better soon. I going to spend a day in Germany with my host family this Saturday shopping because everything is MUCH cheaper than it is here. Shoes that would cost about $40 back home are literally FR. 150... Yeah....A tad expensive.

Thanks for reading!

President of Switzerland

I've been so busy I forgot I even had a blog! Oops... Anyways, I can't remember everything I have done this week but I'll try to remember.

I've been spending a lot of time in the Rhein river. It has been so warm here that you can't NOT go spend a few hours swimming. We blew up the boats and floated down the river. It was so relaxing. After floating in the river, my host brother asked me if I wanted to jump off the bridge nearby. Of course I said yes! Never thought I would have jumped off a bridge here! My host mom was more nervous than i was. How cute :). No worries, though! I'm still in one piece!

I went to the river a few more times after that. I was actually there yesterday and we floated down the river for almost 2 and a half hours. I couldn't get over how beautiful this country is. I forget how lucky I am sometimes.
Last Tuesday was kind of stressful. I had to wake up at 6 in the morning and go to language camp in a city called Oerlikon. Since, I believe, my German is decent, I didn't think I should have to go to this school. I had to take a test, speak German with one of the Rotary advisors, and then it was OK for me to leave. A tad annoying, but it's all fine now. The only thing is now, because I don't have language camp, I start school on Wednesday in Winterthur. I'm so nervous for school, to be honest. I hope everything goes well.
I MET THE PRESIDENT OF SWITZERLAND. I DON'T THINK I EVER THOUGHT THAT WOULD HAPPEN! My host father and I went to an opening of this new Nature Reserve in Flaach. There were so many people there and I wasn't exactly sure as to why. I turn around and I see this woman walking with a bunch of bodyguards. I knew she was a political figure but didn't know what all the fuss was about. I ask my host dad who exactly she is and he tells me she is the highest positioned President of Switzerland. Now, that may sound weird to you. The Swiss Confederation has a board of 7 "Presidents" that work together. There isn't just 1 person making all the decisions. But, Doris Leuthard, the woman I met, holds the highest position. HOW CRAZY IS THAT?! There were animal-like performers and lots of music there. It was really interesting, if you ask me.
I finally met a HUGE amount of exchange students! They're awesome. Today was our Welcome-Orientation and I finally got to exchange pins. I'm loving my blazer now! I'll post a picture of it sometime this week. At the meeting, we got in groups and talked about what is expected of us as exchange students in Switzerland. I met former Swiss exchange students, new ones, and old ones that have been here since January. We laughed a lot and I am sure I'll see them all very shortly.
My German is getting better and better each and every day. I'm even beginning to understand SOME Swiss German. I didn't think it was going to click that fast! The other day, one of the main Rotary councilors came over to my house just to do some paper work. We were talking and he began to say that I speak German like an exchange student that has been here for one year already. I literally was SPEECHLESS after hearing this. In all COMPLETE honesty, it's just decent. Conversation is OK but I can't state my opinion as well as I want to. I know that I won't have that much trouble as other exchange students. I only know of one other person here in the whole country that has had previous experience with learning german. Everyone else is a small fish in a pretty neutral pond.
Oh I forgot! I went to work with my host parents the other day and REALLY got to know what my host parents do for a living. They own this glue-adheasive company that distributes it's products all over the world. (***If you want to learn more, the website is http://www.alfa-klebstoffe.com/en/simalfa/overview/***) It has a sister company in New Jersey, too. Anyways, my host dad had me translate the english websites for him to see if there were any mistakes. Everything was OK! Just a few things only a native speaker wold notice. I was happy I could help him out. :)

I've been riding my bike a lot lately. It just relaxes me and makes me happy. Plus I am getting my exercise! I love being out and about having my own adventure. The other day, my host mom, host brother, and I went and explored Zürich. It's so diverse and beautiful. We walked through a lot of the old city which were just these stoned paths and alleyways with cute little shops and restaurants. Later that night I met up with a lot of Aussie exchange students and went to Enge, which is a very popular place to swim in Zürich.

I meet new people everyday. Everything is still pretty new but I am finally beginning to settle in. All is well and will hopefully update this sooner.

LG aus Hüntwangen

Mark

Party Party Party

I honestly couldn't have asked for a nicer first host family. They have been nothing but kind and welcoming to me since the day I arrived. My host brother, Niclas gave me his older cell phone (but it's still pretty fancy) and loaded the SIM-card for me the other day. And, I also learned that Rotary is giving me 150 CHF (Swiss Francs) every month. That, at the current moment, is over $200 American dollars. Woooot woot!

So the other day, I had my first Rotary (Zürcher Weinland) meeting. It was kind of awkward at first meeting about 56 Swiss men and 3 Swiss women that run the club. Thankfully, I met my "oldie" (other Rotary student in my club) from Australia,  Megan and my club's most current outbound student, headed for Russia, Rossana. Both of them are so sweet and have formed a good friendship with the both of them. The meeting was short. We ate lunch, I stood up and introduced myself and thanked tim for hosting me, blushed severely, and left and got ice cream (Glacé in Swiss German) with Megan and Rosanna. Later, one of the  Rotary leaders drove us around, showed me Winterthur and his beautiful home, went to the bank to establish my Swiss bank account (hahahaha) and went home. The next day I spent at the local community pool with Tobia, Niclas, his girlfriend, Selina, and my host mom. We then went to my host mom's sister's house for dinner, which consisted of traditional cheese fondue and lots of conversation. They asked a lot of questions about life back home, my friends, family, etc. It was nice to see how interested they were about my life back home in America.

Today was CRAZY. We went to Zürich where there was this HUGE street fest that is held in the city every year. Over 500,000 people showed up so you could only imagine how packed it was in the streets. I could barley move! I also met up with Megan which was so cool. We had another chance to chat and I got to learn some pretty awesome Aussie slang words. But in a nut shell, the party was so crazy. People were dancing, blasting music on the music buses, and other crazy things. 

When we got home, I went on a walk with my host family and the dog and they told me Hüntwangen will have a Countryfest next weekend. So many festivals already! Later they taught me how to play a very traditional Swiss card game called "Jass". I swear I had a headache at the end it is so complicated. We laughed, talked more, and now everyone is getting ready for bed. That's my life. Thanks for reading again!

LG aus Hüntwangen

Mark

My Travels and First Day in Switzerland

Leaving my family and friends was probably one of the hardest things I've ever had to do in my entire life. I didn't think it was going to be this emotional, but obviously, I was completely wrong. My mom went to the gate with me at Albany and for some reason I think it only made it harder to say good-bye. I wasn't a happy camper flying to Washington D.C, that's for sure.
When I landed in Washington, I got all sorts of stares. People were just looking at me all across the airport because they see some teenage boy wearing a decorated blazer. I got on the shuttle bus to get to my gate and as soon as I got off, I heard, "ROTARY EXCHANGE STUDENT!" I turn around, and little did I know, there was another Rotary exchange student. And to make it better, he was going to Switzerland on the same flight! i didn't think I was going to fly with anyone. We boarded together and then met ANOTHER Rotary exchange student. What a small world!

The flight wasn't horrible from Washington to Zurich. I ended up sitting next to the Rotary students and by and German and Swiss girl. I practiced my German and even conversed, for the first time, with a Swiss person. The accent is SO different. I can barley describe it. All I know is that I cannot wait to be able to sound like everyone else around me! 8 hours later, the plan touches down in Zurich. I was literally shaking I was so nervous to meet my host family. The other exchange students and I were all feeling the same. At least I wasn't alone. I walk through customs (speaking German...SCORE), got my luggage, and walked through the meet my family. At first, I didn't see them. For a second I thought they forgot about me! But then a Swiss woman told me there was a family towards the right side of the area the had M-A-R-K written on four different pieces of paper with a big yellow balloon. I found them! I introduced myself in horribly pronounced Swiss german but they seemed to really respect the fact I was trying. In a nut shell, I speak Hochdeutsch (the dialect of German spoken in Germany) and they respond back to me in Hochdeutsch. Sometimes it is hard for me to understand because the accent is like no other but I think I'm already use to it. They say they are stunned that my German is as good as it is for only taking 2 years of it in school. Having them say the really meant a lot to me. now I can have the confidence to survive a year away from home. But, when I am not spoken to, everything is in Züridüütsch. I can't understand a word of it. YAY...

We ate Zmorgä, (Frühstück), breakfast as soon as we got home and finished packing. I wasn't very hungry at the time so I didn't eat much. THE HOUSE IS BEAUTIFUL. The best feature is probably the sauna in the basement. How sick is that?

I met lots of people today, too. People that work for my host father's company, aunts, uncles, cousins, Rotary people, and more. I also played an hour game of ping-pong with my host brothers. I toured around the area and was absolutely stunned to see how beautiful it is. I'll post pictures. But for now, Liebe Grüsse aus Hüntwangen!

Mark

1 Week Left in America: Packing

7 days left in the United States. My stomach literally drops every time I think about it. I'm currently packing my life away and stressing over what I should or should not bring. How do you pack for a year? Oh well.... looks like I'll learn as I pack. As you can see, my living room is quite the mess.

I started putting on the pins I have collected so far on my Rotary blazer. I'm not going to lie, it looks good so far! I couldn't help but put one of my numerous Hannaford name-tags on it. Now, when I meet my host family for the first time, they'll know they are picking up the right kid! Plus, it reminds me of home a little bit.

So, that's my life at the moment. The days seem shorter everyday and I can't help to feel a little nervous. Oh well...bring it on, Switzerland!

Liebe Grüsse aus Albany

Mark