One Last Weekend..Sort of

Note: There were people dearly missed this weekend. 

After a week of 7am-9pm, 5 day work week, filled with a few play dates including bowling and glass blowing, the time had come to have our “Final Week” as the fierce and ridiculous wolf pack was spreading out around the world. While some of the wolves had left, it was the end of the road for the people who have been here since last August. Our year was up. And it has been one for the record books.  So we started off on Friday night at good ol’ Twists. As many (one could say too many) of our Friday and Saturday nights were spent over the last year. After saying hello to a few of our favorite bartenders, we headed off to a few places we have liked.  Then Nicole and I finished the night with some dancing and a sleep over at Rachel’s.

The rain washed away the idea for a hike and a few of us wondered the city and did some shopping. All along reminiscing about our favorite trips, weekends, moments. It is a bitter sweet ending. Being the “help” is coming to an end to some of us but it means that gallivanting around Europe is also coming to an end.

Saturday night was the big night out! We started with a few hours of getting ready and making a delicious dinner (which I might mention had to be gluten free, lactose free, and meat-free).  After some pictures and laughs we headed into Zurich. One last time as a wolf pack. Even though our goal was to branch out, we followed a very similar path of the night before, which is not surprising at all!

Another late night of dancing led to a slow morning and then a final day at the spa. A lovely Irish-Roman spa of cleansing and being oh so very Sex in the City, gossiping from room to room and being told to “shhhhh” each time!  I was also finally able to see the Google Building where we took pictures! Next time, the goal will be to get inside the building!

Now to get a little sentimental.  It was just one weekend; there have been dozens. There have been new girls and friends who have come and gone throughout the year. But this weekend, was the fearsome 6 that started and ended the year together. It was the last time we as a group would take on Zurich as a gang of aupairs.  I have always had a lot of girlfriends in my life and I cherish each one of the past just as I do the ones in the present. Each of these ladies are special. I was able to spend a year gallivanting around Europe, with few worries, and insignificant complaints (our first-world problems..where should we travel this week? etc).

This year is special. I look forward to thinking back on my year living in Switzerland! I look forward to thinking about our group running the streets of Europe, meeting new people, and discussing the countless cultural similarities and differences.  You ladies are absolutely amazing.  We were so lucky to have been able to have each other this year. We all brought something different to a group.  There is a closeness between us, a bond, that will never break. We will be able to call each other when we are thinking about  Not many can fall in love with their children and put up with the endless piles of laundry, tears, and lies.  We complained a bit, but our friendship blossomed and it is about so much more than that. I love each one of you so much and will never forget anyone of you. I hope to keep in touch and that just maybe, one of those reunions we have talked about will happen. And when we forget how much work children are, and how many times we contemplating not having them, I hope we can call each other when we end up with one of our own. We can laugh about the times that we had taking care of other peoples’ and then really plan that spa getaway!

I love you ladies. I am so lucky to have met you! Xoxo Sincerely yours, Wolf pack member for life.  

Baptized - Barcelona Style

Last weekend, eight women ventured to spend a three/four day weekend in Barcelona! That should be enough said about our trip but I will explain a little more! We skipped the Picasso and much of the Gaudi and instead focused on the nightlife, beach, and food! 

After a short flight, we landed and met up with Shelly at the Market.  It was a wonderful place that we visited the following day. Tapas, fresh fruit, and smoothie! So much meat and seafood (much of which was still moving). 

As you will notice, there is a large gap in my pictures! I didn't carry my camera with me most of the time so I have pictures when we first arrived and then sitting on the beach on Sunday! It was raining when we got to Barcelona so we spent some time in our apartment drinking some wine and getting ready to go out. 

We wandered the city and came across some great Tapas, Sangria, and weird old men.  Then met up with a friend of a friend and all of his friends for a drink and then finally grabbed dinner. We ended up at a club called CatWalk.  The music was awesome and we danced the night away! 

After a late night we slept in and made some eggs and bacon for breakfast while we waited for Nicole to arrive. Once she got there we wandered the city a bit more, returned the the market, and enjoyed the sunshine. Anna and I headed to the police station, as we were baptized in Barcelona by being robbed.  And once we arrived at the police station we discovered that it is a great place to meet other tourists! 

After getting ready, having a fabulous birthday dinner for Anna's BIG 2-0! We surprised her with a cake and some Cava! Then we were ready for our second night out.  This time we were going to see a DJ of some sort with that friend of a friend. Instead of the DJ, we ended up seeing an AWESOME Ramones coverband. As it turned out the original drummer from the Ramones was playing and the lead singer was from the Misfits. It was another amazing night of dancing!

Sunday we headed to the beach. There was napping, some Swedish cider (absolutely delicious!), and some time in the sea. It was wonderful to be on a beach. There were people constantly wondering around selling everything from body shawls (which sounded like body shots) and my favorite man who was saying co-co-co--coa-nut. In a way that you couldn't figure it out until you saw what he was actually selling. We also decided to get some matching henna tattoos so we could remember our wonderful weekend until it is washed away!

The Birthday Girl!

We ended the weekend with a delicious meal and some more sangria.  We walked back and chatted in the apartment for the rest of the night. It was really a great weekend with some great girls! I am so glad we got to get in a big trip together before we all start to head off in different directions! 

EXTREME Weekend

This weekend will go down as one of my favorite of the year. My friend Maggie from university (I am soo European now) came down from Germany to explore Zurich a bit and most importantly head up to Interlaken for the weekend. After a wonderful Canadian dinner, filled with too much sugar and a game of charades about Canada, Maggie (friend from university..again sooo European), Kathryn, Anna, and I took a train to Interlaken, a popular destination for outdoor adventures in Switzerland.

Shortly after arriving and getting to our hostel, we were on our way to go paragliding! A little terrified and really excited we were giggling our way up the mountain in a car full of people. We pick our guides and headed to our take off spot, seen above. 

After finding a few ways to release our nervous feelings, we were strapped in. My guide asked me if I can run and I said yes, but I usually don't start flying after running for a little while so I am not sure how this will go. He laughed and we started running. And by running a mean we jogged a few steps and then couldn't touch the ground any more. It was simple and absolutely amazing!

View from the sky

The entire experience was absolutely amazing! I am so glad we did it! I really want to do it again all over the world! We were proud of ourselves and headed off to have a delicious wrap and a beer in celebration! 

After we finished the first attempt of being outdoorsy of the day, we headed off to some waterfalls. Along the hike we saw a few here and there.  It was another gorgeous view in the utopia which is known as Switzerland. 

Now, we arrived at the waterfalls and were a little annoyed we had to pay to get in. However, after go up the caves that have been cut next to these waterfalls. It was unbelievable. There was talk of negative ions creating positive vibes. It is totally true. The feel in the caves was amazing and beautiful.  I also felt like it was the environment that Disneyland tries to recreate, and let me say, their effort is appreciated but it just can't compete with the real thing. 

Maggie hanging out in the "weeds"

Kathryn wanted to befriend a cow on our hike.

In the caves!

Double Rainbow

Despite the positive energy we were all experiencing, Kathryn took a little fall. There was blood but she is slowly recovering. Luckily, that was the only real injury for the weekend!

After our big day, we headed back to our tent hostel and ran into some people from Zurich (really small world). We headed out to dinner with them for some delicious Mexican food! Soooo good! I wouldn't have guessed it! Margaritas and a burrito so it was the perfect meal to end the day. We headed to the hostel's party afterwards! 

After a late night, we got up for our last sport of the weekend.  Whitewater rafting. I was more nervous about this than I was for paragliding. This time, we were a key part of the process of surviving. They kept talking about people falling off and what to do and not to panic and watch out for rocks because they can really hurt you. All the things you know but still scary to hear about. 

As it turns out, this is also not as scary as you think it is going to be.  We swam in the 5 degree water and ended in a gorgeous lake.  I am so lucky to have such amazing friends and absolutely loved this weekend...

But wait, it isn't over! After getting back into Zurich, we met up with some of the other girls (and one guy) to experience blind dining. There are a few restaurants around the world, the first one was in Zurich. It is an experience worth having if you have one by you.  You lock up your belongings when you get to the restaurant, look at the menu, and then are guided into the restaurant by your waiter.  Our waitress, Rita, was blind and they employ a mostly blind wait staff.  

After being directed to your seat, you order your drinks and food.  There were 8 of us there so we established where everyone was sitting and how far away from one another you are.  Usually your eyes will find something to focus on, but there was no way to see anything at all. You have to feel for your cup, plate, knife, and fork.  We found ourselves continuing to talk with our hands. I started to close my eyes at times just because it was easier than trying to focus. The food was okay, but it is the experience that made the dinner! 

We ended the weekend at our favorite bar, Oliver Twists with some darts and a few games of giant Jenga. It was hands down one of my favorite weekends full of overcoming fears, too many laughs, and some of the most amazing people I know!

More Spain; More Tapas

In between exploring Madrid, Rachel and I left for a few days to explore some other cities in Spain. I have a long time friend, Ellen, who has lived in Malaga (aka by the beach) for two years. (PS. By long time friend, I mean we have known each other since we were 4!). So after staying up all night on Friday night, we ventured to the bus station to take a 6 hour night bus ride to Malaga. 

After wondering the streets and finding Ellen's apartment and a short nap we were off to the BEACH! That is right, THE BEACH! It was a perfect day outside. We sat in the sun for 7 hours! It was GLORIOUS and ended with a few uneven sunburns. Ellen lives with a few people from the area who speak very little (no) English. Ellen did a lot of translating, but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I could understand of their conversation. 

After our wonderful beach day, we explored the city on Monday.  It is a really cute city.  It was Semana Santa (Holy Week) so there were people everywhere and several parades throughout the day.  It was an interesting to watch their celebrations and traditional attire.  These robes came in all sorts of colors, including white. It was slightly creepy.  These men and children were dressed and walked down the street followed by a large statue of the Virgin Mary.  We found this in Malaga, Sevilla, and Toledo, however the rain put a bit of a damper (pun intended) on the festivities after Monday.

While wondering the city, I spotted legitimate frozen yogurt! The rainy week had begun and this made up for it! There are two things I miss a lot from home, (food-wise), frozen yogurt (tart with strawberries) and Mexican food. Spain succeeded in giving me both. It was GLORIOUS. 

After Malaga, we took a morning bus to Sevilla, where we explored the city. I highly recommend this city as well.  It was an adorable city situated on a river (as most European cities are).  The Cathedral looked massive from the outside, but since there were so many festivities, we couldn't go inside.  

We did explore the Palace and took some obligatory jumping pictures (in the rain). It was a very pretty area. You could even rent a boat and go around in the water in the center of the bug square. Due to rain we abstained. 

Between Italy and Spain, I just keep finding my name written everywhere. I have also decided that taking constant pictures of these moments is also necessary! 

The Cathedral. After lunch and finding some food for the bus ride back we headed back to Madrid because it was POURING! This was the rest of Spain, however, I still loved the country. Considering my dislike for any weather other than hot and sunny, this says a lot! 

Pictures to Say it All

or most of it... Here's a photo blog of what I've been up to the last couple of months!

A beautiful day in Luzurn 

Emily came to visit from Dublin!

I went glass blowing

Playing around in the afternoon

Hiking in Falera during ski week

I had a beer at the highest bar in Europe (10,000 feet)

Making birthday cupcakes with G

Hanging out in a glacier (after having my beer at the highest bar in Europe)

Became regular at Oliver Twist's with these ladies

Road a camel

Emily and I preparing for our elephant ride

I never thought I would ride an elephant in Switzerland..but it happened!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

More confetti at Fasnacht!

 It has been an amazing couple of months.  I have had 2 visitors from home. Kristina (an old aupair) came visit and I met Jill, the aupair I replaced.  The months here are coming to a close (more to come on that later) and I have so much more to do before it is over!

Good-bye Thanksgiving, Hello Christmas

My Thanksgiving dinner was wonderful.  While it was more like a massive dinner party, it had a 27 pound turkey, mashed potatoes, greens beans, and apple pie so I couldn't have asked for anything more being 9,000 miles away from home.  It was a fun experience because, in addition to the Americans, there were people from all over the world.  I know we had Brazil, Italy, India, Iran, Denmark, South Africa, and several other countries represented.

Our turkey chef!

Our turkey carver!

It was great to share our traditions with people from all over the world! Someone had never had gravy before and another had never had an apple pie! I think everyone had a really great time! It was a unique Thanksgiving! I was able to talk to the family in San Diego for awhile when I got back to my dungeon which made it a successful day of giving thanks!

My apple pie was a success =) 

When I left the apartment where dinner was, I walked outside and it was snowing. As I made my way to Bahnhofstrasse (the main street in Zurich) where they had their Christmas lighting ceremony earlier that night. So I really did walk out of Thanksgiving into Christmas. It was such a crazy experience to see such an obvious visual of the holidays changing.

(Sorry about those pictures, they don't capture how pretty the street actually looked but I will work on getting something better)

Then I woke up in the next morning to this in our backyard... 

So winter is here and Christmas is just around the corner! It is time to embrace winter and what it has to offer!