7/8/10-Venice.

It was bright and sunny in Venice when I opened the curtain of the hotel room. After breakfast, Alex and I set off to St. Mark’s Square because we wanted to see St. Marks Basilica. We only had to wait in line for about 20 minutes, which I thought was kind of shocking. I brought a cover up since I was wearing a sleeveless shirt and Alex and I didn’t have backpacks so we were allowed to enter, I felt so prepared. St. Mark’s Basilica is often referred to as the Chisea d’Oro (church of gold) and the inside of the church was richly decorated. The entire ceiling had figures with a gold background made of individual mosaics, it was phenomenal to even think of how long it took to construct and how they even completed the basilica. Its had a Byzantine style and it is decorated iwith gold or mosaics in every corner. We paid extra to see the Pala d’Oro, a golden altar screen, that is located behind the altar. On the screen it has emeralds, sapphires, garnets, amethysts, rubies and pearls. It was absolutely beautiful; it is a rare treasure in my opinion. We also paid to go into the treasury which houses skulls and bones underneath glass, pkus there is chalices, goblets and Gothic candelabra. The floor of the church was immaculately designed as well. The mosaic combinations were beautifully combined, each very unique and different. Out next stop was Museum Correr that was located just across the square. It was a very diverse museum, it had a Civic/army exhibit, an antique exhibit, an archeological exhibit, a historic exhibit and a contemporary exhibit. It has paintings and the history of Venice from the 14^th and 16^th centuries. There was even a place with sculptures and robes once worn by the doges (chief leader of Venice). The museum was very nice. Next, we rode the ferry over to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. When we arrived at the boat stop, Alex and I got a slice of a coconut and the fruit juice had been dripping on it for hours, it was yummy. The museum was very comprehensive, yet a brilliant modern art museum. I have never been to a museum quite like it. The collection of art was located in the former house of Peggy. She loved contemporary art and was given and collected a number of paintings and sculptures throughout her life.  Once her collection was large enough, she wanted to showcase it and she decided on Venice. My favorite artists were Pollock, Picasso, Dali and Ernst =). We then wandered the streets around the museum. We found a traghetto stop and decided to ride the gondola across the canal, it only cost 50 euro cents. We then wandered our way back through the small alley ways of Venice, we had lunch on the go as we were ‘window shopping.’ It was time to go back to the hotel to get our bags and head to the train station. We got on the infamous ferry boat and 40 minutes later, we arrived to the St. Lucia train station. We grabbed dinner to go, since we were not arriving to Switzerland until after 9pm and train food is very expensive. I got my last piece of pizza before we finally departed from Italy. We made it to our train on time and we were off toward Switzerland. We stopped in Brig and Alex stayed in a hotel their and I went back to the chalet. The chalet was not taking visitors that night because the next day is staff day out. Horray, I made it back to the chalet around midnight and I was so tired I went straight to bed.

6/8/10- Venice =)

I woke up early to take a shower, but our bathtub only had a door for half of it, so taking a shower was interesting. But, none the less it was accomplished, and we even had a bidet in the bathroom. We had complimentary breakfast at the hotel, so that was nice. They served fresh coffee and apricot croissants and nutella! Yum. We then departed for the day. We were going to visit the surrounding islands of Venice, aka be on a boat for a very long time. Our first destination was Murano, an island famous for glass blowing. All of the beautiful Venetian chandeliers and glass pieces are made on this island. We even went to a shop where we got to see real live glass blowing in action. The master that was there was a master in making animal glass pieces. We saw a duck and a fish that was created; it was really cool and mesmerizing. I even got a few glass pieces as well. Next stop, was Torcello, often referred to as the Mother of Venice. It was a very ancient town, with old stone bridges, grassy meadows, and a lagoon that runs right through the island. They even have a ‘Devils Bridge’ in Torcello, which was said to be built in one mysterious night, it has no barrier, it is just a bridge. We walked all the way down to the Cattedral di Torcella, which was founded in AD 639. It was a very old church, but it was also very pretty. There were even vineyards nearby the church, they had very interesting sculptures among the vines, and some sculptures had no heads. Next stop was Burano, we passed this island on the way to Torcello and decided to go since all of the buildings were brightly colored. Burano is world famous as a center for lace-making, but that is not the reason that I wanted to go there. It is a very charming island with houses of cobalt blue, sunset yellow, peach, grass green and barn read. We walked around, ate lunch by the canal and even had a gelato after that. It was a very cute island and I really enjoyed all the colors. Our next stop was Isola di San Michel, which was the former prison island, but is now Venice’s cemetery. It started in the late 1800s when Napoleon demanded that bodies be buried across the water, rather than on the Venetian island. The cemetery was laid out in a very precise manner, some areas were in alphabetical order by last name, the crosses were grouped together as well as the grave stones, there was a religious section and a military section, there were even walls of names with flowers, and it had individual rooms for families too. It had trees, plants and flowers all around and there was even a church, but it was closed by the time we reached that island. The weather could not have been better today, but as we were wandering through the cemetery, the sky starting booming. It was thundering quite loud and it was somewhat scary as we were on an island that was solely for burying the dead. We still were walking around, but it started to rain lightly, so we decided we should head back to the boat station. Thank goodness we started to head back, because in a matter of minutes we were experiencing a torrential downpour. We were under cover on the boat dock and the rain was going sideways. The boat dock was rocking back and forth, it was crazy. We hopped on the 3^rd boat and headed back to the main land. We even saw some crazy Italians that got into a yelling match and an older lady fell as she was trying to get onto the boat as people were pushing each other to get off, it was crazy mad. We walked around northern Venice, we saw a church and the area were Venetian residents reside, so it was cool. It was still sprinkling and the air was getting cooler. Alex and I were some what wet from the crazy wet boat ride to the main island. We decided to take the ‘tourist boat’ back through the Grand Canal, which is basically the main street (well river) of Venice. We passed by the Rialto Bridge, the Academic Bridge, the Ca’ d’Oro (the House of Gold), the city’s market, Ca’Pesaro (beautiful baroque architecture), the Punta della Dogana de Mar (it is an old customs landing stage from goods from the 16^th century onward), museums along the canal and lots of gothic architecture as well. The boat ride was a lot of fun. After we got off at San Marco, we went to the hotel to change for our evening attire, as we were slightly cold and still wet. I was sitting on the bed, and the room started rocking and I still felt like I was on a boat, it was a very weird feeling. But, it was only when I was sitting down or standing still that I felt this way, so I wanted to get walking again. We then road the boat over to the Castello area, we landed at a beautiful garden and watced the sunset and looked at the sky post-storm was phenomenal. We walked along the canal and finally found a street filled with cheap places to eat. We had a nice dinner and I had a yummy pasta dish. We even had a ‘Bacardi beer’ although it was just a sweet mixed drink, but oh well. We then walked along the canal to go back to the square. There are lots of people selling fake bags along the street and as we crossed over a bridge, they all quickly picked up their fake bags and ran off, probably before the police came. It was funny to watch. When we arrived at the square, it was a Friday night so there was lots of live music at all the cafes in the square. We watched three different bands perform and we even watched the bell ring by the statutes at the top. It was fun. It was a long day and we were both very tired and still feeling a little funny from the boat, so we wanted to go back to the hotel. We wanted to wake up early to see the church and some museums, so getting rest was nice. And during the day I got approached multiple times by random tourists asking directions to places or what not, I guess I look like a Venetian and not an American or something.

5/8/10-Venice!!

I departed Switzerland at 7:54am and was due to arrive in Venice around 2:40pm. I went on the same bus as Moushira, as she was departing for Egypt to go home. It was a long train ride, but I enjoyed some sleep, music, reading and eating. Along the way, I saw small Italian towns, vineyards sweeping across the mountain, and numerous lakes along the way. I love traveling on trains by myself, so I really enjoyed it. But, as soon as I landed, the Venice train station was jam packed with tourists from all over the world. I then needed to get Euros and purchase my Rolling VENice pass (the youth transportation pass). Once I purchased that I was on my way to meet Alex. Venice is a city built on about 118 islands, so therefore the only form of transportation is by boat. And, when I arrived, it was raining, so there were umbrellas galore and many people just wanted to get on the boat. The line onto the ferry boat was very long and I finally got on the 3^rd boat that came to the train station stop. It was absolutely crazy, it was as if we were sardines squeezed into a can. But, after a 30-40 minute boat ride, I finally arrived at Piazza San Marco. I took many photos along the way. I walked about 5 minutes over to go meet Alex, we had some difficulties finding each other because there were so many tourists. She told me she was on a bridge, well that was helpful since I crossed about 5 bridges until I finally found her, but anyways it was fun none the less. We met at a more recognizable column instead. We then walked through narrow streets, weaving in and out of people wearing hats, cameras and carrying many shopping bags and suitcases, until we arrived at our hotel. Hotel Anastasia was located in Campo Barozzi, just West of St. Mark’s Square, which is the number one tourist spot in Venice. I was able to put my bags down and change into more appropriate attire. Alex and I then set off to wander the streets, alleyways and canals and search for a place to eat as well. We walked around for about an hour, it was fun kind of getting lost through all of the streets, but we always eventually found water. We stood on a bridge and watched the gondolas pass by, it was a lovely evening, and the rain had stopped. We finally found a restaurant, and all we were in the mood for was some pizza and wine. We ate at a place that was very dark inside, with bricks and black walls. It was really nice and we conversed with our waiter about the Italian language. We were the only ones in there since we were eating kind of early and most people don’t eat till 7-9pm. Alex and I sat and conversed, laughed, told stories and reminisced on the past, and two hours later we finally finished eating and left the restaurant. It was a lot of fun! We then wandered the streets some more, until we ended up at Piazza San Marco. We decided to climb the Campanile di San Marco (the bell tower). It has an interesting story; in 1902 the bell tower tumbled to the ground, so the Venetians had to re-build it in order for it to be safe for people to climb. The view from the top was beautiful; I could see churches, the surrounding islands and red roofs all around. After our adventure to the top, we went and watched the Grand Canal and saw many boats pass by. We did some more wandering until our feet hurt and then we walked back to the hotel to go relax. We watched an episode of ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’, before quickly falling asleep. That was my day in a nutshell. Ciao!

4/8/10

I had another lovely day on guest services. I even had an outdoor picnic in order to earn staff challenge points! Tonight, we are going down to Margeli for Moushira's going away party! I am going to Venice tomorrow and I get to see Alex, horray!

3/8/10

I woke up to the rain this morning, just 25 minutes before my alarm was supposed to go off. So, I decided to just get up instead of lay in bed and wait for the bell of my alarm to ring. I was the only one working the early morning breakfast shift, so I went downstairs and had a nice cup of coffee and ate some breakfast. I even got to the kitchen a few minutes early. I put on the coffee and prepared the hot water, drinks, packed lunch table and breakfast table. And then it was 8am.  After breakfast, I mopped, vacuumed and did the bathrooms in Main Chalet, and it took me the full two hours to complete that task. I listened to my ipod while I was working, so it was not that bad. We then had lunch, indoors, since it was still raining. After lunch, the 5-20% sunshine arrived. I got together some things for Venice (I am going there with Alex for 3 days, I leave on Thursday and I am super excited). I even made photo copies of my passport. I had a very relaxing day. Dinner preparation was alot of fun, since Jenny was not here. We even finished at 8:30! It was amazing. It was just another day at the chalet, and 2 more days until I am off to Venice!! Ciao.

2/8/10

It was a beautiful day to begin with at the chalet, but a few hours later it turned wet, cold and dreary. During morning meeting, Megan and I volunteered to give a tour at 10am. After the tour, we had a pinning ceremony and then opened the shop. But, while I was giving the tour, the girls took so much pictures, it was unreal. And total, the tour spent about 2000 CHF in the shop, it was crazy. We even had a minor crisis with the cash register, since it ran out of paper and no one knew how to fix it. But, I eventually figured it out. We then had a nice relaxing lunch. We cleaned up and then Megan and I were off to town with Christoph. We first went to the relaxing station, and it was a torrential downpour when we were driving there. Moushira came along to the actual town, and when we picked her up, we were literally surrounded by a cloud, it was crazy. I went to town to get my train tickets and some day passes for my parents, when they are here. =) Horray, they had the days I needed! The day passes are a much cheaper traveling route and they are sold in the Adelboden tourist center. I wish I would have known about them in June, but oh well. After town, I had an hour to relax before we were back in the kitchen. We cooked goulash tonight, and I helped Jenny make it. We had some many dietary needs as well, so there were about 8 pots, but only 4 burners. We had guests that are lactose free, vegetarian, tomato allergy, pepper and lactose allergy, so cooking for all of our guests was fun. ha. ha. After dinner wash up, I took a nice hot shower and watched the Unit in bed, until I fell asleep. Goodnight =)

1/8/10

It is Swiss National Day! Today, I started work at 11:30am, thank goodness I finally got to sleep in. I was kitchen coordinator for the day, so I woke up to go make lunch for staff. After lunch, I came back and rested some more and watched more of the Unit. It was nice to have a break. We then got back into the kitchen at 3:30, since dinner was early tonight so we could all go to town. We made Rosti and Ratatouille! It was very yummy. It was fun working in the kitchen. Megan, Jane and I were nearly dying laughing when the trays in the oven started to collapse as we were pulling the Rosti dishes out of the oven to be served. It was great fun. We then cleaned up for dinner. I changed and then we set off for town. Koka gave us a lift to town, so we did not have to walk there =). We went to the central stadium ish area, and watched a band perform a few songs and we saw some yodeling. Next, was the town parade, we were carrying lanterns and flags and firecrackers were going off left and right. The smell reminded me of 4th of July. We walked around town and then there was a 10pm firework show. In all of Switzerland, fireworks were displayed at precisely 10pm. After the show, a few vollies all went out to the pub to have a drink in celebration of Swiss Independence. We walked home and it was already way past my bedtime. But, it was a fun day =)!!