Walks around Geneva

Swans is Lake Léman

     In order to take advantage of the weather while it is still decent here in Geneva, I have been taking walks with my friend Michelle. The first walk we went on was one that Michelle found in a book called the "Two Rivers Walk" where the River Rhône and the River L'Arve meet. It is interesting because the two rivers have a different look to them. One is clean, clear, and turquoise blue, and the other is dirty, cloudy and light gray. After we reached that point we crossed a bridge and went up a hill toward Bois-de-la-Bâtie. This is also the place where they have a free zoo. Most of the animals are in cages, but they let some birds roam free and my shoes were pecked at by some chickens who thought they were food.
     On another day, we took a walk around the center of Geneva with a walking tour focused on the watch industry in Switzerland. It was interested to be able to see buildings where the top floors were made specifically for watch making. We walked around and looked at not only older clocks dating back to 18th century, but also to different shops that showcased the many varieties of watches here as well as equipment for how watches used to be made. We ended our tour at the famous Flour Clock. The clock is made up of some 6,500 flowers, and the clock's second hand is more than 2.5 metres long - reportedly the longest in the world.
     Our most recent walk was around the area of Carouge. The center of Carouge is made up of small boutiques, which often had locally made products. We ended up going to the Museum of Carouge that had a exhibition of old toys, some from the 1890's like paper puppet stages using light to create shadows of the characters on the stage. The walk was cut short because it began to rain. That is what I come to expect here in Geneva, you never know what the weather will be like. I am mentally preparing for the winter weather.

Local graffiti

The point where the rivers meet

Aggressive duck at the zoo

The top of this building is the typical old style of the region

The flour clock

An interesting sculpture in Carouge

Mini-Adventures in Switzerland

A flag that includes all the cantons in Switzerland.

     The weather has been beautiful in Geneva lately, and so it is a cause for adventures outdoors. On this past Friday, Nuno and I went to go walk around an outside park area and this place had archery so we decided to give it a try. As many of you know archery has been a popular pastime in some recent movies: The Hunger Games and Brave. I turned out not to be so good at it and the cord injured my arm in the process. Nuno was pretty natural at it (I blame video games).
     During the weekend, Nuno, his best friend Fred, and Fred's girlfriend Claudine visited a place called The Grottos of Vallorbe, which is about an hour-and-a-half away from Geneva. It is a beautiful cave formation that is filled partly with water. It was 10 degrees Celcius inside, but the natural beauty of the inside of the caves was worth it. My favorite part was at the very end of the tour which includes a light show accompanied by music.
     Our last mini-adventure was an a 1940's bunker not to far away from the Grottos. It was 8 degrees inside and it was interested to see, unfortunately the tour guide spoke rapid French so I did not understand much. The tour was interesting because those kind of military places are often off limits in the United States. The more I see in Switzerland, the more I realize I have barely covered much ground in Europe, but the future deems itself open to more traveling possibilities.

Me and the target were not friends.

Nuno showing off.

I shot this arrow!

In the grotto, no flash was allowed.

The rock formations inside the grotto

The outside of the bunker, notice the US flag.

A map of the locations of the other bunkers.

School Begins

     Language school started last week. I am attending a school called ELFI (Ecole de Langue Française et d'Informatique). It is a small school with only four classrooms and a common lounge. I am in the middle of the level A1, and then I will continue to A2, B1 and finally B2. My class consists of about 12 people, all girls, but not everyone comes every day. Everyone is from different parts of the world: South Korea, Thailand, Columbia, Spain, Russia, Brazil, etc. so our common language is French. However, each person seems to have a partner who can speak their mother tongue. My partner is a young girl from Idaho.
     I like my teacher, she effectively teaches the many facets of learning a language. Sadly, she is 7 months pregnant due in November, so she will be going on maternity leave. Here in Geneva, mothers get 4 months off so there will obviously be a replacement.
     I walk every day to school, which takes me about 20 minutes (I walk slow). School is from 9 to 12, and we get a break in the middle. During break some of us have coffee or tea and socialize a bit. My french is improving each day and I really try to practice at home with Nuno. Ryder understands some French now too.
     I really enjoy being a student, but a part of me misses the classroom from the other perspective. I am still on a job hunt, so we will see what is in store for me. A tout à l'heure! (See you later!).

The front door of the school

The entrance of the school

My cute little man

Inside the classroom