Once a Garrison Girl...Always a Garrison Girl! Paw Power through Europe!

You can take the girl out of Garrison... 

 

 

                       

    

 

 

    

But you can't take the Garrison out of the girl!

Paw Power!

Paw Power in Geneva!! BEST WEEKEND EVER!

INCREDIBLE, is the only way to describe this weekend!!! It started Thursday night (as all good weekend do!!) with a trip to Spring Brothers Irish pub with the Geneva crew! Spring Brothers is located in Old Town, my favorite part of the city! It is full of cobble stone streets, pubs, restaurants, and cute unique restaurants. Friday, after class I met Kierstin and Poppy and their friends at the train station. Kierstin, Mary, Poppy, Nicole, Margot, and I dropped our stuff off at the hotel and then we went for a delicious lunch in Paqui. We went to this little Italian cafe with original pastas, pizzas, and salads. After we took the bus to the Swiss-French border, walked into France and took the cable car to the top of Mt. Saleve. It was a little overcast so the cable car was empty and we had the whole top of the mountain to ourselves! We open a bottle of champagne, took pictures, and enjoyed the view!! 

After the cable car we hopped back to the hotel and got ready for dinner!! We went on an awesome Fondue Cruise about Lac Leman!! 

It was great eating delicious fondue, drinking good wine, with new and old friends, watching the Jet d' eau, and the city of Geneva lit up! From the cruise we headed to the Cornavin area and went to L.A. Club. It is a great lounge bar and we hung out and enjoyed Geneva. The security guard kept coming over to us to take pictures and even lifted up Mary!! Pop and I headed back to Le Cenacle (my dorm) and the others went back to the hotel. Pop and I talked until almost 3 in the morning. It is great being with my GFS friends. We always pick up right where we left off. I feel so lucky to have such awesome friends I have known for 12 years!!!

Kierstin and her new friend

Mary and Kierstin left Saturday morning, so we met them for breakfast and then went off for a tour of the United Nations! It was really awesome! We look pictures with the Ghandi Statue, "broken chair", flags, and conference center. After the UN we went to Old Town for a delicious lunch!! 

                                                         

We ate at Chez Ma cuisine and we each got a 1/2 chicken, fries, and salad. We left happy and stuffed!! We walked around for a little, got some chocolate and climbed up the steep steep STEEP stairs to the top of San Pierre Cathedral for an INCREDIBLE view of Geneva. 

Gelato followed this adventure and went back to the hotel for a much needed nap!!! After our nap we went to Carouge for dinner! I love Carouge, it is a really cool, unique, funky, different part of Geneva; great for dinner!!

 We had some traditional swiss cuisine and headed back to Spring Brothers in Old Town to meet up with Caitlin and Heidi from my program for drinks!! 

The gang at Spring Brothers

After Spring Brothers we went back to the hotel and fell right asleep!! We woke up this morning and I bid farewell to Pop, Nicole, and Margot and headed back to Le Cenacle for a day full of laundry... It was an awesome weekend!! I am having the time of a lifetime here!! I am also constantly reminded how lucky I am to have such great friends from home AND school, and the BEST family!! I am so excited to see Pop, Kier, Mary, Margot, and Nicole next weekend; and my mom and dad on Friday in Paris!!!! Can't wait to you Mom and Dad!!!! Hope everything is going well at home! Miss you guys!!

Dear Mondays--GO AWAY! and RIP Hard Drive

I have never been a huge fan of Mondays…the weekends over, you have to get up early, etc. and this Monday was particularly not my day…Why you ask:

1. Woke up made myself a lunch and forgot it.
2. Spilled Coffee all over myself on the train ride to work
3. I go to start up my computer and a flashing question mark pops up on the screen and won’t load my home page or anything!  I look online and it says it is a hard drive problem.  I have a Mac (**thanks Nema and Pa) and conveniently enough there is a Mac store in Geneva.  I get permission from my boss and hop out of the office to bring it to the store.  The gentleman there tells me that my hard drive is shot.  No reason, just sometimes hard drives do that. I think he thought I was about to burtst into tears (which was not far from the truth) and left for a quick second, and came back telling me that his boss said they could do it complimentary!!  So nice, especially because it is more expensive over here to replace a hard drive!!  ALL of my internal memory is gone, so that means that everything that was not backed up is good as gone...but thanks to Nema and Pa again for getting me Carbonite, all of my information is saved in a satellite! Not all is lost!!!  I am now computer-less until they order and install the hard drive, sorry if I am not responding quickly to e-mails, etc. I do have my blackberry and computer access at work, and friends with computers so I am still connected!
4. I get back to work, finish out the day and attempt to head home.  I was so flustered, tired, and frustrated with the computer situation I got on the wrong tram without realizing…Next thing I know I notice the currency on the store windows just changed from Swiss Francs to Euros and all of a sudden it hits me… I’M IN FRANCE!  Holy Cow. When did that happen?!  I hop off the tram at the next stop and finally figure out that I got on the 14 instead of the 12, I find the right stop and wait for the correct tram.  I have never had a very good sense of direction and I realize I probably never will.  I started getting down on myself how much this day has not been great and I caught myself being negative and decided…NO. I am in an amazingly beautiful country, have an awesome internship, am making great friends, just crosses a border by accident (that is pretty cool), have great friends and family at home, get to see Poppy and Kierstin this week, Mom and Dad next week, and have my health, ok my hard drive crashed and I spilled coffee on myself, and forgot my lunch, and turned a 30min commute into 2 hour commute… so what? Life is not too shabby.  I would rather have optimism as a traiT than sense of direction any day of the week.  Come on Monday’s you’re gonna have to try harder than that to put me down.  Tuesday—BRING IT ON!

And a special Happy 21st Birthdaz Shout out to Amy Wheaton!! Can't wait to celebrate!

Loving Lugano!!!!!

What a whirlwind it has been since my last post…where to even begin!! I am going to divide this into two posts!


Wednesday : Wednesday was the Israel vs. Switzerland soccer game…and not just any game, this was the qualifying game for the world cup…VERY EXCITING !! Norina, Aurelie, (the other 2 interns- Swiss and Swiss-French) and I went out for dinner downtown. We ate at a cute little Swiss restaurant and then headed to a local bar to watch the game on the big screen. It was really fun and exciting. Hanging out outside of the work place was great, and we really got to know each other better. The bar where we watched the game has these awesome drinks called Penasche-sprite mixed with beer- it was so good and only 3.50 Francs!! Israel and Switzerland tied, so now they both go on to the next round.

Me and Norina watching the Swiss V. Israel Soccer Match

My fundraising job if really in full swing, I am writing grant proposals and formatting and modifying requests and proposals. I have been corresponding with Ciruela Luisa Groher, a contact I was given by my boss. She is an expert in fundraising and has been helping me learn the tricks of the trade of fundraising. Fundraising is a really difficult, rewarding and frustrating task. You are not able to just copy and paste the same information into a form and send it off; each organization has different requirements ranging from a detailed budget, to a letter of inquiry. Many organizations do not take unsolicited requests and many just don’t even respond. While this can be immensely frustrating I just keep reminding my self why I am doing and I know that I am gaining skills that I will be able to take with me for the rest of my life.


Lugano: Friday morning we had class and then Kelly, Alison, and I headed off to Lugano!! Lugano is a city in Switzerland located on the Italian border. After 6 hours and 3 trains we finally got there. IT was dark when we arrived but none the less absolutely spectacular. The city is built into the mountain and it was all lit up!! We were very hungry when we arrived so we walked to our hostel, checked in and headed into town. Not much was open so we grabbed a bottle of wine and walked around Lugano. We found a bar, Koala Bar, that was open and we went inside for drinks and food. The owner was so nice and made us fresh delicious paninis and pizzas! We ate, drank, hung out and headed back up the mountain to our hostel. Ironically enough, 2 girls on the EUSA trip from Boston University were staying in our hostel as well…what a small world!




The next morning we woke up early, and headed out with our maps. Lugano used to be part of the Roman Empire and has a large Italian religious influence. With those two things combined there is no question why Lugano is filled with TONS of churches. Each church is so uniquely beautiful.

Gorgeous Fresco

Gorgeous frescos, exquisite interiors, some lavish, some modest, each was different and incredible. We spent a good part of the day exploring the churches and open squares right on the water of Lake Lugano. We also explored some gorgeous flower gardens, on the water as well.

Lugano

We stumbled upon an open air food market and had the most AMAZING croissants, pastries, and Italian Cappuccinos. We sat on the side of the Cartier building…We had Breakfast at Tiffany's Cartier, classy as always!

Me and Kelly enjoying our Breakfast at Cartier

For lunch we ate at a cute pasta restaurant over looking Lake Lugano…the most incredible fresh pasta!!! Kelly introduced me to Prosecco—a white, bubbly delicious Italian wine…I think I am in love…with the wine, it’s going to be hard to go back to Natty light and 4.95 vodka after this!! ;) After lunch we walked to get some gelato and got in a cable car to go to the top of Mt. San Salvadore. At the top of the mountain there is a church, I walked into the church and all of a sudden a group of nuns broke out into hymns. It was a really cool experience, I felt like I was in a movie. I climbed to the top of the steeple and stepped out to enjoy, one of the most incredible views I had ever seen. I can’t even describe the feeling but to see such beauty, that you can’t see the end to it. It just keeps

going, and going, and going…360 degrees around you. It can almost  seem overwhelming. You know no words, explanation, or pictures will ever be able to do it justice. You just want to soak it all in.                                                             

                                                                                                     

Kelly, me, and Alison on the top of the Church on Mt. San Salvadore

We headed back down, grabbed some dinner on the go and headed home. We brought a bottle of Prosecco for the train ride, of course…

Sunday: We did not arrive home until 2:30 a.m. on Sunday morning so I woke up for breakfast at 8am (it is only served 7-9) and then went back to sleep until 1:30. I made lunch and then Jesse, Rachel, and I decided to walk around. I usually take the tram and buses so I wanted to have the opportunity to explore Geneva by foot. Geneva is easily walk-able so I was happy to do so. We walked around the old town, the park, the opera house, Plainpalle, and Paqui. We stopped for coffee in Plainpalle at Central Perk (**Amy Wheaton—the whole time I was thinking that I wished I had a cut out head of you to take a picture there). It was getting chilly (especially because my winter coat zipper broke…) so I got roasted chestnuts from a cart on the street and enjoyed them on the way home. I was looking forward to watching the Ravens Play on Sunday, but the sports bar was not playing it, so I was all set up to watch the live update on the computer and the internet went out…so thanks to Mom, Dad, Eric and some friends from home I was able to get the play by play via BBM. I was wearing my Flacco jersey all day! What a sad and disappointing game.


***I will put pictures up on Picassa as soon as I get my computer back

Cheese, Carbs, Chocolate...and hiking in the Alps!

My diet currently consists of the 3 C’s: Carbs, Cheese, and Chocolate while they are delicious, they are not so nutritious. I am so busy that I really don’t have time (or a place unless I run outside) to exercise. I decided that was not a good excuse and I am in one of the (arguably THE) most beautiful countries and I need to get off my lazy (but not really lazy because I'm always doing something…) butt and exercise! What better way to exercise than to hike up the swlss Alps! So that is what I did. Sunday morning Stephen, Chris and I woke up and went to go hike up Mount Saleve. First we got off at the wrong stop, and then we could not find the right bus, but…eventually we got there! We took a cable car up the mountain to the top. Mt. Saleve is in both France and Switzerland so I was literally in 2 places at once. Pretty cool!! On the top of the mountain we had sandwiches and enjoyed the view!

On the border. I'm in Switzerland...AND France!

The GORGEOUS view from the top of Mt. Saleve

Then it was time to hike down, now most people take the cable car up and then the cable car so we were being pretty adventurous. Somehow, I’m still not quite sure exactly, but somehow we managed to loss the hiking train and end up in the mountain bike trail which is much steeper, and especially difficult with mountain bikers whizzing my every few minutes! It was really fun and I really liked the challenge. The boys were in all their hiking gear including shoes, and here I was with my clean white running sneakers, needless to say there was not much traction, so a good ¼ of the mountain I slip down on my butt, but hey, it was fun! The guys kept calling me granny, because they said I was walking like an old lady (those of you who are familiar with my duck feet can imagine), and I have an unfortunate feeling that that name is going to stick.

This was about a milli second before I fell.

It was absolutely beautiful. We passed through little quaint towns built into the side of the mountain. We could see the entire city of Geneva, including Lac Leman and the fountain.

Lac Leman Fountain and Geneva seen from Mt. Saleve.

About half way through we discovered what looked like a large cave/tunnel built into the mountain. It had a LARGE sign in French that said DO NOT ENTER, I don’t know French and even I could understand it; as well as an 8 ft. high fence. Chris and Stephen had the brilliant idea to “explore”. I waited outside until I heard them oh and ah for about 5 minutes how it was “the best view ever, etc.” so finally, with some help hopped the fence and went inside. They were right…WHAT A VIEW! It was absolutely beautiful. I know I use the words awesome beautiful a lot and that does not even do any of it justice! You just need to come out here and see for yourself!

Inside of the Restricted tunnel.  The view from the arch you see here was spectacular.

We finally arrived at the bottom of the mountain and ran into some people we knew. That has happened a lot! It is really cool to be in a foreign city and see people you know! I feel like such a local. I was exhausted, hungry, tired, and dirty (I really need to do some laundry….) so I made dinner, showered, and went to bed! Oh, and watch the Ravens Game of course…tragic. 

Stephen, Chris, and Me...Don't worry, I was wearing my Natty Boh Ravens Shirt on game day!!

At least the Buckeyes had a win!! Oh, and I am still sore from my hike...SUCCESS!!


This week has been another exciting week at work. It has been really clear this week and I can see the snow capped Alps out my window…pretty cool! I have been doping research of different countries and their views and interest in Juvenile Justice and preparing grant proposals to send to their Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I have also been searching for other private grant organizations to help plan Phase II Follow Up to General Comment No. 10…sounds really boring but it’s actually not! It is essentially trying to keep kids out of jail and to make those who are imprisoned have their rights surrounding to the UN’s convention of the rights of the child. My boss asked me to go to the print shop (basically a kinkos) and get 300 color copies made and bargain with the gentleman who works there. I have been there before and I told my boss that he does not speak any English, she replied with “In the Netherlands we always say if you want something badly enough you can get it no matter what the language barrier”…ummmmm, ok? So I went and somehow, with A LOT of hand gestures and pictures and writing things down and a random guy who walked into the shop and spoke English managed to bargain down the price!!! Dad—Thanks for all your bargaining tips! I have also been working on collecting pictures to put in the Defence for Children International’s 30th anniversary book. Tonight is the qualifying rounds for the World Cup and Switzerland is playing Israel…I am a little torn. The other interns at my office and I are going to go downtown for dinner and then go to a bar to watch the game, I’m really excited!

Pics of Mt. Saleve are up on Picassa!!!       Miss you all TONS!    xoxo

Even cloudy days can be spectacular...

It never ceases to amaze me how you can go 15 minutes in another direction from your home and it feels like another world.  This is exactly what happened Friday afternoon.  We decided to go to Carouge, Switzerland; sometimes known as the “Greenwich Village of Geneva”. It is a cute area of Geneva located on the water full of unique restaurants and boutiques.  It is modeled off of small villages in Italy; the buildings are painted in pastel colors  there are beautiful churches and fountains.  We walked around, looked in ships, took pictures and found a small restaurant that has Rösti, a Swiss dish, it is like a big latke and it can be served with a variety of things cooked into it or on top, I got mine with cheese and a salad.  It was delicious!!  The restaurant was small, there was a group of 9 of us and I believe we took up over half of the restaurant! The walls were decorated with framed cat puzzles.  It was so funny!  The bathroom even had large posters of cats and bright blue toilet paper; it was quite an interesting place!  I ordered a tap water and they charged me 2 Francs!!!  It was absurd, the whole situation was funny we just had to laugh.  After, we all had a craving for ice cream but we could not find anything that was open.  We were walking around enjoying the evening when we saw an elderly man eating gelato.  Ami ran over and asked him where he got it and he explained it and told us it was “magnifique”…how could we turn that down!  We followed his directions and they led us to Gelato Mania!  The gentleman was right… it was magnifique!  They had such interesting flavors; I had ½ cinnamon and ½ vanilla with chocolate chips! We ate alongside the fountain in the center of Carouge, trying to enjoy the good weather while it lasts! 

This morning I woke up in time for breakfast and headed to the train station with Stephen, Kelly, and Alison!  I used my ½ Swiss pass card to get a ticket to Gruyere via Luasanne.  The ride from here to Lausanne is about 40 minutes, and from Luasanne to Gruyere it is another 40 minutes.  We arrived and saw someone we knew! It’s crazy how small the world is!  At Gruyere we went to the Gruyere Cheese Making Factory! They were starting the cheese making in an hour and a half so we decided to eat lunch first.  We got DELICIOUS fondue, it's made with cheese that was made in the same building!! We ate it with bread and potatoes! 

It was neat and we got to see the process from start to finish!  We sampled different cheeses and then bought come cheese along with chocolate…they had quite a selection.  We bought chocolate with pistachio, cereal, honey, orange, and even absinthe!  We then walked into the town, it was about a 15 minute walk and we passed a pasture with many cows with wreaths on their head and huge bells around their necks!  It was cloudy and rainy and still managed to be beautiful!!!  It appeared as if the clouds were right in the middle of the mountains.  Cloudy, rainy, and gray…it was still spectacular!  The town of Gruyere is really cute and has a lot of art, museums, and culture.  I as very pleasantly surprised! We walked up to the Chateau, a castle on the top of the hill, and saw a wedding!!  It was beautiful! 

O-H-I-O on Chateau Gruyere

 After Gruyere we hoped on the train and bumped into two other girls from our program who were headed to Montreux; we couldn’t believe it!!  We got off at Lausanne and walked down to the water.  It was absolutely stunning.  The way the clouds, sky, and water all blended together was remarkable. We took the subway to Notre Dame and climbed up A LOT of stairs to the top for an AWESOME view of the city!  After a long day we were happy and tired and hungry and hopped back on the train to go home!  Got home, made dinner, watched the latest episode of Grey’s Anatomy (for all my GA addict friends---WHOA!), and hung out in Le Cenacle!  Tomorrow Stephen and I are planning on going hiking!  We will probably go to the Saleve Mountain; hopefully it won’t rain tomorrow!!  Off to bed! 

Don’t forget to check out pics!  I added some to the ‘Geneva!’ album and the ‘Gruyere and Lausanne’ album is new!!  http://picasaweb.google.com/samanthaebloom

Great win today Buckeyes!  Would love bbm updates of the Ravens game tomorrow!!!

Lots of love from the land of cheese and chocolate!!  xoxo

Celebration Station

 What a busy workweek it has been!  So glad that it is finally Friday!  Not too much to report, just keeping myself busy!  I have been working feverously on our 30^th anniversary celebration.  Making brochures, fliers, and other marketing material; by working with the anniversary special events planner.  I have also been busy sending out applications and requests for fundraising grants.  Julien and Kate, the 2 new interns keep recommending places I should visit…I want to see it all!  Norina, another of the interns, is celebrating her birthday next weekend and invited me to go home with her and come to her party, depending on what I have planned I might take her up on the offer!  The president and the International Executive Council of Defence for Children’s International were here for a conference so I got to meet them, which was really exciting! 

This week is the Celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the Adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child!!!  Basically, 20 years ago the United Nations adopted a set of rules and regulations that protects children; rights such as:

The right to food

The right to not have to work

The right to an identity

Etc.

This relates directly to the work DCI does in relation to Juvenile Justice. 

Thursday I was asked to be at work at 8:15 am to prepare brochures before the event for the 20^th anniversary.  Later in the morning I got a pass and went to some of the events.  It was so interesting!  I was planning on leaving early (since I got to work), and as I packing up my things my boss asked me to stay late and attend the reception at the event.  I headed over to the NIIG building after work to attend the celebration.  It was really neat!  There were so many people from all over the world and different types of organizations.  I met dignitaries, leaders of NGOs, representatives, scholars, experts on human rights, etc.  It was a very fancy reception with cocktails and wine and appetizers.  (The plates had holders for wine glasses, it was really COOL!)  After the reception and several speeches (in French, so I didn’t understand much) I mingled.  I met various people from national sections of DCI and spoke for a while with 2 interesting gentlemen from the Sierra Leone ministry of foreign affairs.

After the event I came back home, late, and a bunch of us hung out in Le Cenacle hallway.  At about 10 pm one of my friends who works at the front desk, Ruvy, took me and Alison and Kelly to a cool bar downtown called LA lounge.  It was a really relaxing chill lounge bar with drinks for 5 Swiss Francs (the cheapest drinks we have found) and they were good!!  The security guard was really funny and kept looking out for us and told us that if anyone bothers us he will kick them out.  He also brought us platefuls of gummy worms!  We had a lot of fun and then took the bus home.

Kelly and Me at LA downtown! 

This morning we had out second class.  Some of the other students and I were talking about activities for this afternoon and this weekend.  It is supposed to rain and most of the places we want to visit have such an incredible view it is a shame to go when it is not clear.  If it does not rain I may go to Lucerne or Montreux where there is the Chateau de Chillon.  If it does rain I am thinking of going to Gruyere, the cheese capital of Switzerland!  Apparently you can see how cheese is made, and there is a chocolate factory not far from it!  Sunday I am hoping to go hiking with my friend Stephen!  I also am hoping to eventually make it to Annecy or Lyon, France, both places not far from Geneva, and Ireland!  Off to lunch!! Have a good weekend!!!

1st Legal Post!!!!

My first post of US legal drinking age…Wahoo!!  So yesterday was my birthday!  It’s tough to be away from home on your birthday…especially when it’s the big 2-1 there’s no denying that…but I had a GREAT birthday nonetheless.  When I arrived at work I had a gift on my desk from one of the other interns.  She gave me a coffee mug and chocolate, it was very sweet!  I had to switch offices since they had meetings in some of the rooms today so I got to know Anna, the Juvenile Justice Program Officer.  She is very nice and knowledgeable…she also is hilarious and kept me thoroughly entertained.  I had a birthday lunch in the park with the other interns and some friends from my program who work in the same area.  Two new interns joined us this week.  I have been working closely with Kate, she is from Rhode Island originally, went to Syracuse and now lives in Bern, Switzerland because her husband got a job in the Bern symphony!!!!  She is really nice and told me she would love to help me plan weekend trips all over Switzerland!!  After work I went home, it was the first rainy day we’ve had, and we all got ready.  Then the whole lot of us went to Road Runner.  It is a burger, fries, beer, and milkshake joint!  It was really fun…I don’t think they had ever had so many loud Americans in their tiny restaurant at once!  I got a burger, fries, and of course… a beer!  I have made such great friends here, I really do feel lucky!

            

FINALLY 21!!!

Best Birthday Meal Ever!!!

 Today started out with a mortifying yet hilarious event. I was at the tram stop with my friend Claire and the tram was really full, per usual for the morning commute.  I was getting on the tram and literally got stuck in the two doors.  They would not close and the bell started going off, etc.  It was quite the ordeal, but it certainly woke me up and I did manage to not spill any of my coffee, not an easy feat…thanks for the sturdy coffee mug, Laura!  I HATE getting up early...with a passion, but I really don’t mind my 40 minute morning commute.  From the walk, to the tram, to the walk, to the bus, to the walk…there is an energy in the city.  I can’t really describe it and I know it sounds cliché but you can feel it.  Everyone goes about their business, everyone has a place to be and knows where they need to go, but not in an obnoxious I’m better than you way, morel like a nod as you walk, grin a little way.  I love waiting at the bus stop looking over lake Geneva and the Alps in the background.  I can understand why Geneva was rated the 3^rd best place to live in the world!  I guess the beauty and international diversity attempts to make up for the absolutely outrageous prices!  On the tram people get up to leave seats for the elderly of the mother with kids; people are always willing to point you in the right direction of help you figure out which train to get on, all you have to do is ask!  I love the bus that takes me to work…it is the same bus that takes people to the UN so it is always a mix of languages and types of people.  Really interesting…. hopefully I will still enjoy the commute when it is cold!  It has been in the 70s and sunny since I got here (except yesterday) but I have a feeling the seasons are about to change…

Today at the office my boss brought me Dutch desserts that she made for my birthday and Anna brought me 2 kinds of her favorite chocolates.  I have officially eaten my body weight in chocolate.  But it is sooooooo worth it!  I have been very busy at work; I have been helping with our 30^th Anniversary book and with the symposium in November.  There are some other people on the program who are really bored at their jobs and I am very happy to say that that is not the case here!!  Today on my lunch break I was talking to the other interns about my plans to travel after the trip; the day before my flight back to the US I am in Geneva with no place to stay and my friend Aurelie told me I could stay with her!  I am really excited! I think it will be a great way to end the trip!  Also, Kate and I were talking about travels in Switzerland and she told me I am always welcome at her place!  I LOVE these people!!!  Here are the trips/travels I have planned so far…if you have ANY suggestions or recommendations I would LOVE to hear them!!!  Xoxox

September 25^th-27^th: Munich (for Oktoberfest) with Kierstin and Poppy

October 3^rd: Interlaken, Jungfrau, and Grindenwald

October 10^th: Lucerne**tentative

October 11^th: Hiking trip up Mt. Jura or Riederalp**tentative

October 16th -18^th: Lausanne (to visit Uncle Jon’s friends)****tentative

October 22^nd -25^th: Kierstin and Poppy (and friends) visit!!!!!! (Maybe Lausanne with them??)

October 30^th- November 1^st: Paris with Mom and Dad!!! (M and D is Europe October 28^th- November 5^th)

November 6^th-8^th: FREE (Maybe Gruyere to go to the Cheese and Chocolate Factory)

November 13^th- 15^th: FREE

November 20^th- 22^nd: FREE

November 27^th: Good-bye Fondue Dinner

November 28^th – 30^th: Brussels (to see Andrew)

November 30^th - December 3^rd: Amsterdam (with Kelly and Alison)

December 3^rd:  Geneva with Aurelie

December 4^th: Back to the states!!

Thanks for all the birthday facebook messages, texts, calls, bbms, and skypes!  Miss you guys!! Lots of love!! xoxo

Top of Europe!

Brace yourself..I have a lot to report! So, Friday after class I met my new friend from work, Aurelie, at the train station.  I bought my ½ pass Swiss card (I get ½ off all trains within Switzerland) and my ticket to Interlaken for Saturday!  Aurelie showed me all around Geneva.  WE went to the Old Town, Lac Leman, downtown, ect.  She showed we the good bars, parks, restaurants, and shops!  WE ate lunch overlooking Lac Leman (Lake Geneva) and went shopping downtown.  We stopped for coffee after.  IT was so nice, we really get along well and I think she will become one of my good friends while I am here!  After I went with Aurelie to get her nose pierced! It was a great, fun, exciting afternoon.  On my way back from our touring afternoon I stopped at the grocery store and got some more food for dinner.  We had a low-key night since we were getting up really early for Interlaken the next morning.

5:45am 10 of us were up, dressed, and ready for an exciting day to Interlaken.  I walked out wearing a tee shirt and a sweater and everyone else was in parkas and boots…needless to say, I turned around and changed.  We caught the 6:45am train to Bern, and from Bern we transferred to the train to Interlaken; from Interlaken we got on the train to Grindelwald and finally, from Grindelwald we took the train to the “top of Europe”, Jungfrau.  Jungfrau is 4,158 meters, or 13,642 FT!  From the train from Grindelwald to Jungfrau you stop 4 times to see different views from different heights.  Once at the top we first went to the Ice Palace.  The Ice Palace is carved out of a glacier and there are ice sculptures and ice tunnels everywhere.  Through the ice palace went out to the outside on the top of the mountain.  I cannot even describe the view.  It was the most beautiful, amazing, majestic sights I have EVER seen.  (Look at my pics in Picasso to see).  It is just rolling ice-capped hills as far as the eye can see.  I could not take enough pictures.  The sky was clear and the air was wonderfully crisp.  After enjoying and photographing the view we made our way back down the mountain, this time stopping in different cute little villages along the way.  Once we arrived in Interlaken we went out to dinner at a delicious funky restaurant called, Wine Art.  From Interlaken we went back home via Bern.  WE finally arrived at Le Cenacle at around midnight.  It was an incredible, exhausting fun filled day!!!

Beautiful Sunday afternoon spent at the neighborhood park!

My last day of being 20 arrived today!  I can’t believe it!  I woke up this morning with a bunch of the other people on my program at around 8:30am to grab breakfast; it’s only open 7-9am.  After eating I proceeded to go back to bed and sleep until 2:30pm!  I woke up, made myself some lunch, and after stepping outside realized it was one of the most beautiful days of the year and I better not waste it!  Mid-70’s, clear blue sky, where else to go but the Park!  I grabbed my map and decided to go off on my own and explore.  I walked around my neighborhood and eventually made it to the park.  The Swiss are very into their family life and Sunday most places close down and the day is for spending time with family and friends.  There were little kids, families, and couples everywhere.  It was adorable.  I read, took some pictures, people watched, and enjoyed the day!  I got home and was hanging out in the lobby when some of the kids in my group told me I needed to go downstairs to the kitchen “right away”.  I walked downstairs and they had a cake with candles for my birthday!!!!  We sang and ate!  It was so thoughtful and nice!  Tomorrow we are going out to dinner for Bryan’s and my birthday; his is on the 6^th.  If you want to see more pictures check out my picassa page!  Miss you all!!

View from Interlaken at night--absolutely magical. (courtesy of Alison Curtis)

TGIF!

 YEAH…it’s finally the weekend!!  Work has kept me vary busy.  I have been doing a variety of tasks and have really been enjoying it.  I am given a lot of responsibilities and many of the jobs I have to do are things I have never done before.  I am required to figure things out on my own by researching and using the resources available in the office.  We have a big symposium to celebrate Defence (yes, it’s spelled with a “c”) for Children’s International’s 30^th anniversary so I have been filling out requests for grants to the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, different foundations, etc.  I have also been designing and formatting brochures for the symposium.  The other interns and I are becoming good friends!  We eat lunch together everyday…its been so nice out we have been packing lunch and eating in the park next to our office.  I am not used to having an hour for lunch, it’s so nice!  I am getting accosted to my work life, except for the instant coffee…. I don’t think I will ever get used to it!!  Many of the other interns work near me so sometimes we also meet for lunch!  I get home around 7, and everyone makes their own dinner and we all eat together.  After that we hang out and go to bed…we all are so tired after a full day of work!  Wednesday I was running late and got to the tram stop and realized I forgot my lunch bag in my room…I went back to get my lunch and (our doors automatically lock) my key was with my lunch, locked in my room!!  What a morning!  I figured it all out and ended up getting to work, just a few minutes late!

            Last night, Thursday we all decided to go out for dinner and drinks after work.  A whole bunch of us met at Le Brasserie, downtown, near the main train station and had beer and famous Swiss pizza, it was DELICIOUS and nice not to have to cook!!! We hung out, talked, caught up and relaxed.  After dinner we walked over to Mr. Pickwick Pub.  I couldn’t believe it, Pikesville in Switzerland! J  The pub is an English pub that was filled with lots of ex-pats, Germans, Sweden’s, and Americans.  It was so much fun!!  Thursday is Karaoke night and we sang lots of songs ranging from Spice Girls to Shania Twain!  It was a blast!!!  I can’t wait to go back next week!!! 

            Today was our first day of class.  Class is located in Le Cenacle, where we are staying so it is very convenient!  We have class from 9-12.  We have 3 essays, journals due each week, and a final exam.  The teacher is nice and reminds me of Mrs. Sternheimer. (GFS girls! J)  We all are assigned an “expert topic” in which we are required to research and become an “expert” in that field.  That is also the topic of our final essay.  My topic is the international aspect of Switzerland.  It should be a very interesting topic. 

I am leaving in a few minutes to walk around Geneva with one of the other interns from my office who is originally from Geneva!  I am really excited to see Geneva from a local’s perspective!! I think I am going to Interlaken tomorrow with some of the girls so I am going to go get a train ticket.  There is a pass you can buy for $150 that gives you ½ off all tickets within Switzerland; I am trying to decide if I should get that???  Anyway, off to meet Aurelie at the train station!!  Have a good weekend!!!!

I have created a website for my pictures if you are interested, I have not uploaded since Munich but I will this weekend... http://picasaweb.google.com/samanthaebloom