First Weekend Trip of the Semester!

Hola!

Just hanging out in Geneva

It's been a crazy week/end and I've hardly had anytime to blog! I'll try to catch you up on my life in one post. Last week I had the urge to travel. I didn't know where, but I knew I wanted to explore a place I had never been. None of my roommates had planned any trips, but Taryn, a girl I met on one of my first days in Spain, told me she was going to Interlaken, Switzerland for the weekend. Switzerland was never a place on my list of places to visit, but I thought it could be fun to do something different and a great way to meet new people. So on a whim, I booked a flight to Switzerland.

We left Thursday morning at 8:45 am and arrived in Geneva, Switzerland around 12. There was a group of girls on our same flight and we all ended up hanging out the entire day together. We booked the weekend through a program called Bus2Alps and because of that we weren't set to leave Geneva until 11 pm that night! So, the 6 of us explored Geneva all day long. We got lunch at a local Italian restaurant. Grabbed an espresso and a Nutella/Banana crepe at another café. We visited the Cathedral of St. Peter and attempted to view the archeological site underneath, but tickets were costly. For anyone who's unaware of Switzerland's economy...let me tell you. They are doing very well over there. Everyone's happy all the time. And even though the Swiss Franc and the US dollar is almost 1:1, everything in Switzerland is practically double or even triple the cost of what it would normally be in the states.

Swiss Alps

Anyways, after our fun-filled day in Geneva, we finally left for Interlaken late Thursday night! On Friday, Taryn and I explored Interlaken. The town is so cute and such a snow-bum area. I took a lot of pictures, but honestly, pictures don't do this place justice. Walking around, I felt as if I was in a movie. My surroundings we're unbelievably beautiful. It was so surreal. Later that night, the same girls from Geneva and I went night sledding through the Swiss Alps! It was absolutely freezing, but it was a lot of fun. The mountain is pitch black and there are no lights anywhere. Each person wears a necklace with a glow stick attached to it so sledders can see people in front of them. Sledding lasted about an hour and after a cheese fondue dinner was included! The cheese was so yummy and a great way to end a great day!

Interlaken

For anyone who is not aware or not seen pictures on Facebook...Saturday Taryn and I went canyon jumping. Yes. Let me repeat. I signed up to free-fall through the canyons of Switzerland. It was the craziest experience of my life! Saturday morning a group of us, about 10-12 people, set out on a 20 minute drive to the mountains. Once here, we had to endure a 45 minute hike up the mountain to finally reach the canyons in which we would be soon jumping into. After we signed a bunch of waivers and forms confirming we were all well aware of what we were about to do, the "professionals" set us all up in our harnesses. Once harnessed, we were finally ready to jump. We stepped on the platform and the canyon jumping expert told us everything we needed to know and do before we jumped. And then one by one, people in our group began to jump.

The Jump

The CANYON

I was the 5th person in our group to jump. Pre-jump I was calm. Almost to calm. Once it was my turn and I was hooked up to the bungee cord it finally set in that I was about to jump into a canyon. I remember the guy saying "You ready? 1-2-3.." I looked at the guy then looked in front of me. I could only see the canyon and the massive drop I was about to jump into. And then I went for it. I knew after I signed up for this activity that I was determined to complete it. So as I was on the platform I had no hesitations. I just ran and jumped. The free-fall is about 4-5 seconds and about 250 feet. As I was falling I felt as if I was in a dream, waiting for a jolt to wake me up. After what felt like forever, the bungee cord caught me and I swung through the canyon. I looked up and couldn't believe I had just jumped. I remember feeling so proud of myself as I swung back and forth through the canyon. It was an incredible feeling and I'm so unbelievably happy I did it.

I headed back to Barcelona early Sunday morning. As much fun as Switzerland was, it was a relief to be back in Spain. I can speak the language, I have the correct form of currency, I know my way around (more or less)...and then it really hit me. I'm living in Barcelona, Spain. This place is my new home until April. I don't think I ever took the time to really realize that I'm actually living here and not vacationing here.

On Sunday Shannon, Dani and I explored the Borne District of Barcelona for a little bit. We headed out for a late lunch or early dinner at a restaurant called Pim Pam Plats. It was super yummy and just another place to cross off our super long lists of things to do while in Spain.

Shannon and I - Friends since kindergarten!

Phew. Okay I'm done for now. This Friday I may be headed to Montserrat with a group to explore that area of Barcelona. Even more exciting news -- Saturday I am going to a FC Barcelona fútbol match! We got tickets through our study abroad program...and words cannot describe how unbelievably excited I am!

Ciao!