Les Sirens

The manager at the hotel we are currently staying at, Hotel Marécottes, was sure I needed to see a doctor today at the hospital because of the way that I limped into the dining room this morning. Really, the hurt has gone away and now it is just a little swollen and I can feel the throbbing a little. Hopefully, this means it is healing?

After we had dropped the kids off at the museum, he drove me over to the hospital where I was seen by a doctor. He took an xray of my knee, but ended up telling me that when I get back to the states I should probably have an MRI done. That's like a $5,000 procedure!!! Hopefully, I will just get better with time.

Anyway, after I walked to the museum and we had our picnic lunches and looked briefly at the Marc Chagall exhibit. It was very nice. Then we walked to an old Roman amphitheater. That was real cool, until, as luck would have it, I was stung by a bee on my back. Yes, the bee landed down my shirt and when I went to scratch the itch that I felt, the mofo stung me. It hurt for a while, but surprisingly I had little reaction to it. Hurray! The kids were joking that things come in three's. I wasn't laughing.

We then went to thermal baths where we spent the next four hours just absorbing the warmth of the pools. It was a mixture of mountain water and chlorinated water, so apparently, it didn't hurt your eyes when you opened them underwater. It was a nice way to relax though. It started to rain though, so we moved to the indoor pool and then all ate some icecream afterwards.

I am exhausted though and I'm sure it is from being in the water for so long today. Mermaids must sleep 12 hours every night just to have enough strength to wake up in the mornings....wink.

Everybody Hurts Sometimes

I hurt my knee quite badly. The patella is inflammed (I think) and I had to stay behind today to give it a rest. It's actually very frusterating. I can't do all the things that I want/thought I would be able to do. I originally hurt it the first day on the hike. We went down steep hills, actually the side of a mountain, so it was sore. It gets sore when I run a lot, but I can always just stop running, ice it and it gets better. However, yesterday we were biking so I thought it would be easier on my knees. Only we went up the mountain to go mountain biking and it was really only for expert mountain bikers. We had to cross a waterfall 6 times without a bridge. It was horrible. I was in pain the whole time and couldn't appreciate the scenery and the nice weather. It makes me realize how lucky I am to have two operating legs most of the time.

I've been taking Ibuprofen, icing it when ice is available, putting icy hot on it, and I bought a knee brace today. Thankfully I found a man on a four wheeler to take me down the rest of the mountain. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have made it. Unfortunately, it wasn't soon enough. When I saw him I mean. So, all the possible damage was probably already done.

But, luckily I am just resting today and hopefully after a few days rest of not being on my feet will be just what I need to get back to the beautiful Alpes!

In other news, the kids have really started bonding which is great! There are no cliques. No romantic flings. Really, the group of kids that I got are great. Most of the time they are respectful of eachother and me. There are a few times when they do things that make me want to scream. But overall, there are more times when I want to smile and congratulate them on how conscious and thoughtful they are.

My Night Out with Coralie!

Coralie and Me




The night of the host family farewell party, I went out with Coralie because after speaking with all of the families and answering ten thousand questions, making sure every thing was cooked and ready for 50 people, I was in need of some good ole fashioned fun. We went to a cocktail bar where Jacquotte, her mom, joined us. It was a lot of fun to be able to see them again. Then Coralie, her friends and I all went out to a night club and danced Danced DANCED. It was fun. By the time we were ready to go home though I was too tired to wait for my train so I slept over at the Dupuis. A bug-free night was just what I needed to refresh myself. In the morning I rode home on the Harley. All in all, it was a great day!

Harley Ride

I was SO excited!!!! I look cute on the back of motorcycle, no?

Yodeling

We did yodel. It was fun. We started the yodeling trandition at the top of the Alpes and would sporadically burst into a guttural vibration every now and then. Oh, Suisse, je t'aime.

The hills are alive with the sound of music in Saas Fee

Yes indeed. We arrived in the mountains yesterday and started off on the right foot. Literally. We went up one of the mountains and hiked our way down. It was so exciting. All the kids were laughing because I had a permanent smile on my face. Not like one of those creepy tranquilatrist smiles though. A nice one.

Then we just ate dinner and learned a little bit about the Swiss flag and how Switzerland represents "quality" and "stability." Beat, our Swiss German leader, told us all we ever would want to know about how great the Swiss are. You can't really blame him though for being patriotic, we all are sometimes. I don't think the kids get the Swiss sense of humor though. Although Beat speaks fluent English the jokes he makes don't always translate and sometimes might be considered offensive...but no complaints yet.

Today we went to the top of one of the many Alpes and hiked our way down and across two other Alpes before stopping for lunch. At first, it was breezy and chilly at the top. But as we hiked down, more vegetation appeared until we were smack in the forest. The wild flowers were beautiful and there were so many small streams that were flowing down the mountain sides. It really is amazing that I am here. I keep thinking to myself that I have to come back here with family or friends and show you guys how beautiful Switzerland really is.

We hiked for about 4 hours total, so my legs are tired, but not yet sore. Tonight we are going to a "mini discoteque." Judging from the people and the feel of Saas Fee it will be nothing like the discoteques in Lausanne. But, never judge until you try, so I will just have to see.

Jura Mts.

Today was another beautiful day en Suisse. SO beautiful, that in fact I got a sun tan. Woohoo. Christine, Marette and I went to the Jura mountains to pick up Christine's two daughters Sabine and Lucie from a week-long camp in the wilderness.

However, on the way we made a few pit stops. For example, we drove up this wind-y, twisty road to a small chalet that served food. There was a terrace that over looked the valley. Of course they had plenty of cows roaming about equipped with the bells and a few donkeys. They served fondue, but it was so hot that we just got Rivella's and sandwichs. Next time, I will get the fondue.

Then we made another pit stop at this music box museum. Sounds lame, but it was actually pretty cool. It was very small, but they had everything from the first music boxes to these huge stage-like vignettes that had puppets. I wasn't able to take pictures and I'm sure it is easier to describe with my hands, so if you are interested just ask me.

Then we went to the camp site which was right in the valley. It was nice. Right next to a cold stream, there was a campfire. And instead of singing 'Merci à la cuisine' they chanted M-E-R-C-I Merci Merci Merci. A different approach.

All in all, it was a hot, long day in the car, but a beautiful last day in my host family. Tomorrow. Saas Fee.

First Harley Ride

That's right. I rode a motorcycle. Not just any motorcyle, but a Harley Davidson. Jacquotte's Harley to be exact. It was so exhilarating(sp?) and now I want to get my license so I too can drive around on a Sat. morning. It was the perfect temperature, not a cloud in the sky, and what better scenery than the rolling pastures of Switzerland? (Dad, you would have loved it, I hope next time we come back we can rent at least a moped) We did go on the highway, which was a little scary, but I managed to remain calm, not make any sudden movements, and keep my center of balance. Don't worry Dad, they lent me jeans, a leather jacket, leather gloves, and a helmet...they don't mess around in Switzerland.

Then afterwards, Marette and I went to à la plage to nager dans le lac Léman. It is normally very cold. I'm not sure if any of you remember my crazy days, but I went for a brisk dip in the beginning of April when the water was about 10 degrees...This time it was cool and refreshing. We brought a picnic lunch and just sat out by the beach and managed to communicate for a few hours. Marette is Swiss German and French is her second language like mine. It was a good afternoon.

Well, until we had to go home on bicycles. Yens is pretty far from the lake, which isn't bad going downhill. BUT, going up hill is a completely different story. It was hard and tiring and I feel like I got my workout for the day in.

On Monday we go to Saas Fee in the Valais in the mountains. I'm looking forward to strapping on some leederhosen and yodelling. Totally kidding. But, I am genuinely looking forward to spending a few days in a place I have never been before.

J'ai cuillit des ceries

I don't know if that is how you conjugate that verb, but it means 'to pick.' Not in the sense 'I pick my nose' more 'to gather.' Nonetheless, yesterday morning I picked cherries with Christine and Marette, the Swiss German student. It was very relaxing. I think that Christine thinks I'm a bit of a priss because she asked about a million times, are you sure you want to? oh thank you so much for picking cherries, etc. But, I picked enough to fill one basket and a half.

It was a nice location to pick cherries too. We could see Lac Léman and a little bit of Lausanne, the Alpes on the other side of the lake....ahhhhh Suisse. It was a very tranquille moment for me.

Running through the Alpes

Ok, well really I didn't run through the Alpes, but I was very close to them. I went running this morning because it is a beautiful day today. Not a cloud in the sky. They say it is supposed to be 30 degrees!!

But, I went running on this winding road through the countryside and it was great. There was only one car that past and the rest of the time it was just the sounds of nature. I could see Geneva in the distance and today I can see Mount Blanc, which is in France, not Switzerland.

A wonderful start to a beautiful Friday the 13th. haha.

Yens

This is where I live. In the SMALL village of Yens. It is quite beautiful on the nice days because with one swoop you can see Lausanne, Geneve, les Alpes, and the beautiful countryside.

More photos

The best Swiss family. The bottles of Champagne that we are holding are empty because we wanted to celebrate that Coralie and Gwen had finished their exams and that I was back in Suisse! See why they are the best?



Just to let everyone know I'm ok, here is a picture of me at Ouchy.



At the Harley Davidson parade in Morges. I don't think this is a Harley though....

Geneve

This is in Gruyère



New stuff at Artamis



The infamous staircase that goes "down"