“The opportunities are endless.” Erasmus Programme (2010)
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| Us at the top of Santis Mountains |
The opportunities
available to us in Switzerland, like the quote states, are in fact
endless. Within our ‘Eye on Switzerland’
class with the Bolivian students, we were brought to two well-known towns in
Switzerland this week. Firstly we made a
trip to Appenzell. This is a town known
for their traditional approaches to the way of living and is also the home of
the beautiful Sӓntis Mountains. When we
arrived at the bottom of the mountain the views were amazing. Little did we know they were just about to
get better. As we climbed in the cable
car the views began to unfold – the scene at the top explains completely why
Switzerland is known as the beautiful country.
In order to mark three Northern Irish girls being at the top of the
mountain it was only fitting we performed a little jig and sing the well-known
song “Tell me ma’”! Yip, crazy we
know!
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| With the amazing view |
On Tuesday our
second stop was the capital city of Berne.
On this trip we made a visit to Parliament and the well-known fountains
throughout the city and of course to the bear sanctuary. We also went on an historical tour of The Cathedral of Berne and were allowed
to climb to the top of the 100 metre high spire – this climb was soon one that
we regretted. After being told to go
through a small door into a dark entrance we were then faced with nearly 400
small, spiral steps with no going back down.
After many moans and complaints we finally made it to the top. Here we were able to enjoy some magnificent
views across the city into the Bernese Mittelland and the snow topped mountains
of Bernese.
Upon initial
arrival in Switzerland we all were allocated a ‘study buddy’. My study buddies, Bea and Tracy, happen to be
the girls who are coming to Stranmillis in September through the Erasmus
Programme. This week they kindly invited
Ashleigh, Sarah and I for some traditional food called ‘Raclette’. This dish involves using a ‘raclette grill’,
you put some chopped up ingredients into a tray and cheese on top and place it
under the heat for it all to cook. It is
a well-known dinner party food as it is seen as a sociable way of eating and
cooking together. Since being here it
has been wonderful how welcoming everyone has been especially my study buddies
with nothing too much bother, which is very reassuring. So the pressure will really be on when they
come to visit as the standard has been set high.
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| This is us with Bea and Tracy |
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| Just about to head down the mountain on our sledges! |
It is fair to say that the above quote is most
certainly true with the weekend that we experienced. On Saturday we went to the nearest ski resort
– Flumersberg - to go snow
sledging. Before I left I rang my dad
asking would I need to get insurance for this activity, to which he replied “No
sure you will only be going down a small hill!”
If only he had known what was coming! After reaching the top of the
mountain we were taken to the starting point and told the sledge to the bottom
was between 2 and 3 kilometres long, full of huge bumps and tight slippery
corners. Even writing this now I have a
huge smile at how much fun it was. From
flying in the air over the bumps and not making it round the corners, to going
a little too fast over a bump resulting in the sledge going one way and me the
other and ending up with my face buried in the snow with those behind having to
crash to avoid me was typical of my skill level. No major injuries were encountered
thankfully, just a couple of bruises and a sore throat from the screaming and
shouting. Easily my favourite activity
here yet!
This week also brought Saint Patricks day and since
we are known as the ‘Three Irish Girls’ there was pressure on us to put on a
party to show everyone what the Irish culture is really like. After a full day of decorating the house,
making the well-known Irish stew and instructing everyone to wear green we were
ready. With more renditions of ‘Tell me ma’ and Ashleigh showing off
some Irish dancing I think we really pulled it off and everyone seemed to truly
have a great night.
Being here is also
making us aware of our language and the way we speak English as we have been
told a quite a few times to either speak in ‘neutral English’ or ‘Oxford
English’. Although we laugh when people
ask us to either speak slower or in ‘proper English’ it is something that I
have realised is important when teaching in schools, as Burns, A. (2003)
states:
“As English increasingly becomes the language
used for international communication, it is vital that speakers of English are
clear in pronunciation…it is essential in spoken communication”
Until next time - Tschüss,
Stephanie
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