I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Here's a little update and video about what I've been up to this December.
Right now there's a flurry of snowflakes falling outside my window, and I can't help singing "Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow" over and over again. But anyway, back to December, and what Christmas season is like over here.
The first weekend in December we celebrated the "Fete de St. Nicholas." This is basically a festival where (at least in my village) one person dresses up as St. Nick (robe and all) and then a bunch of other people are "barefautares" (sp?), dressed all in black (they even painted our faces black), who are supposed to "scare" the bad children. I got to be a barefautare with the Jeuness in Sorens, and we went from house to house giving children bags of peanuts and oranges. When we got to the house, usually the parents had presents set out on the porch that St. Nicholas would them give the children, and then a barefautare would give the parents a switch, just in case the children mis-behaved. :) It was a really neat experience!
I also went to the Fete de St. Nicholas in Fribourg with Laura and her family. At this festival they carried St. Nick around the town on a chair and sang, so strange, but fun. :) The pictures do a much better job of explaining.
In Switzerland they have a lot of "Christmas Markets" in the different towns, and I got to visit a couple of different ones. They're basically a bunch of little wooden booths set up selling all sorts of different things (a lot like a craft fair). They're really fun to walk thru, and it's always fun to see all the different little Swiss things.
During second week of December I went to St. Gallen to see Vanessa and take the ACT. Yeah, I couldn't get away from that test even in Switzerland. But on the plus side I got to see Vanessa and we had a lot of fun doing things in St. Gallen. I took the ACT at this boarding school that cost around $70,000 a year, so yeah let's just say there was more Gucci there then in Milan. It was a really pretty school, and the room I took the test in overlooked the city of St. Gallen, so who knows how good I did, but it was definitely a pretty view! Afterwards, I got to eat lunch at Vanessa's school and meet her friends, and then she and I walked around St. Gallen.
On December 12, my Rotary YEO here took me and the other exchange student in my Rotary club to Geneva with his family for the Fete de l'Escalde. It was so fun! Everywhere there were people dressed in period costumes, and marching around playing the drums and fife. I also got to see the Swiss President, who was speaking at a sort of assembly type thing in a park. It's so crazy how different the security is here! In the U.S. you would never be able to just walk into a tent and here the President speak. We walked up to the top of the bell tower in the cathedral, and had a magnificent view of the city. After all that we watched the parade, and broke this cauldron made out of chocolate (apparently it's a tradition). Ah how I love Swiss traditions! :)
For Christmas my family celebrates on the 24 and the 25. On the 24 we got all dressed up, and Sophie did my hair and make-up (it's so fun to have a big sis :) ), and then went to Jacques brother's house to have supper with all of his family. We had a big multi-course meal, and on the wall was a list of the course and who was supposed to help serve it, and I felt so special when they even remembered to put me on there. :) After dinner everyone started singing Christmas carols and then Swiss songs, and then someone got the bright idea to ask me to sing. I, of course, tried my best to get out of it, but to no avail, so I had the express privilege of singing the national anthem a cappella. Yeah, easily one of the most mortifying moments of my life. However, even with my awful rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner," it was still a great night. After that we went to mid-night mass, and then off to bed!
On the 25 Sophie and I prepared Christmas lunch because Francine had had to work the night before. I love how pretty the Swiss make there food, every plate was like a little piece of artwork. A bunch of family came over, and we opened Christmas presents with everyone. Sophie, Julien, and Simon gave me a really pretty pearl drop necklace, and a really sweet card, and Jacques and Francine gave me 2 private ski lessons (SO excited to start!!). Then we ate lunch, and chatted as the snow fell outside the window. All in all a VERY Merry Swiss Christmas!! :)
Here's a video from what I've been up this December:
Click on this link to view my Christmas Movie!
Au revoir,
Becky
I also went to the Fete de St. Nicholas in Fribourg with Laura and her family. At this festival they carried St. Nick around the town on a chair and sang, so strange, but fun. :) The pictures do a much better job of explaining.
In Switzerland they have a lot of "Christmas Markets" in the different towns, and I got to visit a couple of different ones. They're basically a bunch of little wooden booths set up selling all sorts of different things (a lot like a craft fair). They're really fun to walk thru, and it's always fun to see all the different little Swiss things.
During second week of December I went to St. Gallen to see Vanessa and take the ACT. Yeah, I couldn't get away from that test even in Switzerland. But on the plus side I got to see Vanessa and we had a lot of fun doing things in St. Gallen. I took the ACT at this boarding school that cost around $70,000 a year, so yeah let's just say there was more Gucci there then in Milan. It was a really pretty school, and the room I took the test in overlooked the city of St. Gallen, so who knows how good I did, but it was definitely a pretty view! Afterwards, I got to eat lunch at Vanessa's school and meet her friends, and then she and I walked around St. Gallen.
On December 12, my Rotary YEO here took me and the other exchange student in my Rotary club to Geneva with his family for the Fete de l'Escalde. It was so fun! Everywhere there were people dressed in period costumes, and marching around playing the drums and fife. I also got to see the Swiss President, who was speaking at a sort of assembly type thing in a park. It's so crazy how different the security is here! In the U.S. you would never be able to just walk into a tent and here the President speak. We walked up to the top of the bell tower in the cathedral, and had a magnificent view of the city. After all that we watched the parade, and broke this cauldron made out of chocolate (apparently it's a tradition). Ah how I love Swiss traditions! :)
For Christmas my family celebrates on the 24 and the 25. On the 24 we got all dressed up, and Sophie did my hair and make-up (it's so fun to have a big sis :) ), and then went to Jacques brother's house to have supper with all of his family. We had a big multi-course meal, and on the wall was a list of the course and who was supposed to help serve it, and I felt so special when they even remembered to put me on there. :) After dinner everyone started singing Christmas carols and then Swiss songs, and then someone got the bright idea to ask me to sing. I, of course, tried my best to get out of it, but to no avail, so I had the express privilege of singing the national anthem a cappella. Yeah, easily one of the most mortifying moments of my life. However, even with my awful rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner," it was still a great night. After that we went to mid-night mass, and then off to bed!
On the 25 Sophie and I prepared Christmas lunch because Francine had had to work the night before. I love how pretty the Swiss make there food, every plate was like a little piece of artwork. A bunch of family came over, and we opened Christmas presents with everyone. Sophie, Julien, and Simon gave me a really pretty pearl drop necklace, and a really sweet card, and Jacques and Francine gave me 2 private ski lessons (SO excited to start!!). Then we ate lunch, and chatted as the snow fell outside the window. All in all a VERY Merry Swiss Christmas!! :)
Here's a video from what I've been up this December:
Click on this link to view my Christmas Movie!
Au revoir,
Becky
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