Even Michigan didn't prepare me for this.

I went to Zurich this weekend and it was heaps of fun. During my trip I realized that I had never explored a city on my own before. There was always a professional travel guide, tour or some sort of program holding your hand. No such thing this past weekend. At first I felt lost and confused, then I decided I was just like my pioneer ancestors boldly discovering new and exciting things! Except I had electricity. And running water. And heat.

HEAT. Praise be to God, science, and that first caveman that decided to rub two sticks together. (Human Ev buddies, bonus question: which branch on the evolution tree would that be?) Because it was cold. Colder than that look old people give you when you burst into gales of laughter at your friend who farted in the middle of the sermon at church.

Oh my.

Still a fantastic place. We stayed in a wonderfully, stereotypically bizarre hostel. You went up 5 flights of stairs to get to the reception, past the kitchen for the restaurant downstairs, and it had the very basic necessities. I knew living in traditional dorms was preparing me for something later in life. (Lee-Beau!) Two other girls and I were put in a mixed room, so that was a new experience. Our roommates were a Korean man and his wife(?) and a Polish guy who was earning his PhD in glaciology. He happened to be in Zurich for an environmental conference. We were in the middle of the city, which looks like it was magically preserved from a distant time. The buildings are old and beautiful, the street cobblestone, and old fountains and statues are peppered throughout the city. We visited all the old churches, an extensive Swiss history museum, and FIFA headquarters as well as just wandering the city enjoying the atmosphere. Despite the biting cold, it was very beautiful and the group I went with was a fun bunch.

Yes, that's me. Mme let me borrow her warmer coat.

The only downside is that the only German I speak is "Deutschmark", which is completely bunk now, so I was useless. While most people did speak some French, all of the signs were in German as were the conversations going on around me. I underestimated how difficult it is to navigate a city when you can't read anything or even guess what that word represents. No one else in our group spoke German either, so it was quite an adventure.

We have a lot of papers and projects coming up, so I'll be staying home this weekend so that I can get them done in time. It's also a wonderful excuse to hide from the cold and drink tea all day. If anything interesting happens though, I'll keep you updated. Ciao! (I can say that here and it's totally acceptable. I love it.)