This week has been very different in
comparison to other weeks in Up with People. We had another split city but this
week it actually was very noticeable that we were only half the cast. Why? Because we had 3 whole days where we did CI, workshops
and internal time without half of the
cast. It was as though a piece of our family was missing. It gave us a chance to get to know some people
better though, which was good, and being reunited was amazing. It felt like
forever and the hugs were just so much sweeter J
Monday was a travel day, like every
other Monday. The only difference was
that is was my birthday! John (our vocal instructor) was my bus date and he
pulled an April Fool’s on me saying he had to ditch me last minute. Goodness I
love my birthday. My best friends in the cast also ignored me the whole first
part of the day and then surprised me with singing one of my favorite songs in
front of the whole cast for me “Ain’t no Mountain High”. It was very sweet.
Also for breakfast my host family had a little pastry with a candle for me. We
traveled to Neuchatel/La-Chaux-de-Fonds Switzerland. I spent my week in
La-Chaux-de-Fonds, which is in the mountains and is known for its watch making.
My roommate for the week was Abbey, so that was nice. We have been good friends
and being roomies just made the friendship stronger and we laughed so much. We
had a wonderful family, but alas they spoke no English and we speak no French,
so there were many charades and Google translate in my world this weekend. Fun
but challenging! We ate well and somehow were able to connect without words and
get to know our family and have some great moments. They gave me a birthday
present and both Abbey and I matching Switzerland t-shirts. They really enjoyed
having us here and I have loved getting to know them.
We lived about a 20min. train ride
from our facility so I got good at public transportation after a little
confusion. I did CI outside in the cold on Tuesday with a group of people that I
haven’t gotten a chance to talk with much. It was wonderful to do lots of
visiting and talking while we cleared a riverbank
of tiny trees! I had study abroad on Wednesday and Thursday we had a regional
learning day where we toured the city. Also throughout the week we had internal
time where we had time to bond and tell embarrassing stories and get to know
each other better. On Friday morning it was so exciting to be back with the
whole cast. People were hugging all day! We had two wonderful shows. I was
assigned a larger singing role at the beginning of the show which was exciting
for me. We had great facilities and a full house in both cities. We also had an
encore for both shows. I swear Switzerland is crazy. They have been our best
crowds without a doubt. They just love it. It was wonderful to perform in Switzerland
and to sing our Swiss song for the last time but I am excited to move on and
explore the new countries.
We had a relaxing host family day
where we slept in and had a delish breakfast
with the host family (Christelle, Sebastian, Rachel and Elliot). We also
had time to regroup and then finally a dinner with some other host families in
the area.
Switzerland has been wonderful and
the people have been great, but tomorrow we take off to Lichtenstein and I am
pumped! It takes about an hour to drive the whole length of that country! So
next time you here from me I will be on my way to the Netherlands (some of my
heritage –The Dutch!). Merci/Danke Switzerland! I will be back I am sure!
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