I am exactly one month away from being on a flight to America. I am excited to go home and see my friends and family, but also a little sad to be leaving this beautiful country. Things have not really calmed down with Coronavirus here...one of my friends is being sent home by her school next week and the school has been closed as a precaution. Any illness causes a panic and reading the news after a weekend away causes more stress than needed. That being said, I am still not worried about Coronavirus and its affect it may have on the rest of my trip. As of now, Iowa State has made it very clear that we are only required to return home if Greece reaches a Level 3 advisory. Prior to that, we have the option to leave or we can stick around and continue our classes online. Outside of that, there is no reason to panic and change our lives because of this virus...we have to keep living. Wash your hands, friends and family, and please stop freaking out. Even if you buy all the toilet paper...you still need to wash your hands (or you can give everyone Norovirus, too...and that outbreak might be worse).
Wine and Greek Movies?
This week I had the chance to visit another winery. This winery had a higher focus on white wines, using native Greek varieties of course. The wine was delicious and the winery itself was beautiful. It was set on a museum and had art sculptures throughout. The coolest part of the winery was the corkscrew collection that is the largest in the world. There was corkscrews from the very beginning of corking wine to the first automatic ones. The place has a really cool atmosphere and history, and I would definitely recommend the wine to anyone visiting Greece!
Aside from my field trips, classes have been going well. I am working on a project related to re-marketing a product in Greece in order to get international attention, especially from the United States. I will also continue to learn more about Greek culture - including watching My Big Fat American Greek Wedding. Based on everything that I have seen so far in Greece, the depiction is pretty accurate (other than a few exaggerations). I have noticed myself wanting to speak the little Greek that I know when I travel to other countries. I can also read signs that are written in Greek (actually understanding is a different story).
Switzerland, My Love
This past weekend was amazing. I am absolutely obsessed with Switzerland and I cannot wait to go back. There are so many amazing aspects of this beautiful country, but obviously my favorite part is the constant view of the mountains.
We spent the first day exploring Zurich. This city is very beautiful but very expensive. If you are traveling in Europe for archaeological and historical reasons, I'm not sure Zurich is the place for you. The city has several beautiful churches, but outside of that it is a shopping city for the very wealthy bankers. If you love food (especially cheese and chocolate...2 of my favorite C words) you should make your way to Switzerland. Lunch involved cheese and potato soup, with some Lindt truffles to follow. Switzerland is home to Lindor chocolates, so I was in heaven. We visited a chocolate store that actually had a wall and stairs of chocolate!
Our airbnb was outside of the city and had an incredible view of Mount Pilates near Luzern. After settling in, our host offered us some Gluhwein (mulled wine) and blankets to sit outside and enjoy the view. He also cooked us an amazing meal of Raclette Grill. This included grilled meat, sausages, vegetables, potatoes and, of course, the melted Raclette cheese to coat everything. Part of this dinner is the experience. It is known to be eaten for hours over conversation and white wine. You also cook your own meal as you eat - making it hands-on and personalized! This was definitely my favorite meal of the weekend, and possibly of the entire semester.
Hiking in the Snow
The whole reason I wanted to go to Switzerland was to hike the beautiful Swiss Alps. There is something special about these mountains and I can't get enough of them. My love for the mountains grow every time I am in them, and this trip was no exception. I planned to make this trip later in the semester, with hopes to hike the entire weekend. Unfortunately, circumstances brought me there earlier, and hiking most of the trails was impossible. I was so thankful to find an excursion led by an incredible person that involved snowshoeing the mountains. As most of you know, I hate snow more than anything...but here is is so different. The snow is powdery, soft and genuinely beautiful. It was the perfect temperature, and the weather couldn't have been better. Starting the hike, we had snow flurries that left a fresh blanket of snow for us to walk on. By the end, the sun was shining warm and cleared the clouds that covered our view of the other mountains.
This is definitely an experience I will never forget. I was joined by 3 other Americans who were visiting from Germany - all from the Midwest! Rene, the host of the experience, was extremely knowledgeable of the area and could tell us where every stream was along the way. He even showed us a hole that he fell through on a previous hike. He led us uphill through swerving paths and snow covered trees until we reached a cabin where we had lunch. Dehydrated soup, homemade lentil chili, and a fresh baked cookie from his wife quickly warmed us up and refueled us for the trek back.
On the way back, we took a different route, giving us new views and fresh paths. We weaved through the wilderness as Rene told us stories about himself and had the opportunity to try some of the freshest water I have ever had. We filled our water bottles in the stream and stopped to make snow angles and snowmen along the way. We made it back to the bottom about 6 hours after the start, ending our hike with incredible views of the mountains and discovering an igloo! This was absolutely one of my favorite experiences so far this semester, and I am so excited to one day return and spend several weeks exploring the different mountains in Switzerland.
Oh Fondue, I Love You
Following my incredible and tiring day, Rene mentioned that he hosted a Fondue Cooking Class. A few things I can't resist when I travel are: cooking classes and anything involving cheese. I jumped at this opportunity and we made our way back to Rene's home for the class. He taught us about the different cheeses made in Switzerland (not just the one with holes!) and then gave us a tutorial on traditional Swiss Fondue. Some secrets to making this fondue the best it can be is the splash of Cherry Schnapps and a little baking soda to give it some volume. We dipped a variety of vegetables, bread and peaches in the cheese and oooohhhhh it was so good. The flavor was sharp and creamy, but not too heavy that you were full after one or two pieces. I will note that my lactose intolerant stomach was not super impressed, but my taste buds were absolutely thrilled.
Overall, Switzerland has completely won my heart thanks to the incredible mountains, cheese galore, and enough chocolate to make all you heartbreak go away. These next few weeks I will not be having classes, just homework. I hope to keep the week eventful and will likely travel around northern Greece while I have the time. This weekend, I am taking a trip to Crete island to soak up some sun and get away from the troubles of the city. I am looking forward to this trip - especially since it is the last weekend with some of the friends I have made.
Continue to keep us on your minds, but please take care of yourselves and stay conscious of what you are hearing and reading - not everything is true. If you have any concerns about my safety and health, feel free to message me and I can give you more details about my situation.