A Hike to See the Cows in Charmey

Today we all loaded up into a 70 passenger, double decker, rented bus and drove an hour to the city of Charmey. Its a huge deal here because today is the celebration when all the cows who have been dinning across the mountains-walk 40 kilos down the hillside. As they make their way home and through the little villages, everyone gathers to watch. Parades are in full process, stands of cheese and hot soup and little crafted wood cows. We watched the cows march through the town and their huge bells around their necks swung noisily as they clamped through the streets. It was freezing rain and I brought Converse. I won't do that again in the rain. We then hiked for 2 1/2 hours through the woods on a trail headed to the next town. The bus picked up a chilly group of dirty people and dumped them a few hours later back at the YWAM chalet. The base made us hot chocolate. And Jesus bless them for that. It was fun but I'll only ever do it again if its guaranteed no rain and  a sunny day! My socks were soaked through and I squashed about. But it was beautiful. And quite and exhausting Saturday.

If it hadn't been raining the whole time it would have been way more fun and not so slippery

The hike. And my stupid shoes.

Lovely village of Charmey

Swiss singers, traditional costumes!

Cows coming home!

Church History Tour.

Yesterday, which was Friday-we spent the afternoon class time in downtown Lausanne. A speaker, Tom Bloomer, walked us all around the city and told the church history of Lausanne. It was fascinating-and Lausanne was one of the cities deeply impacted by the Reformation. Truly fascinating. And then a picture of dishes that night. My "Practical Ministry" or chore-is dinner clean up. Its actually super fun.

Dish pit peeps.

Lausanne Cathedral.

Lausanne Cathedral-Church history tour of the city. In the rain.

Worshiping in downtown Lausanne, and then praying for the nations at the base

Bambi.

Today was fairly full. I woke up 10 until breakfast and showered quickly. Ate some jelly toast and had quiet time in a little corner. Class that morning-mainly more explanation on the purpose of the DTS itself, their mission statement, what University of the Nations is, and requirements of me as a student. The evening classes were spent hearing the staffs testimonies. Below are pictures of groups of four-drawing their mission statement. Fairly well done if I do say so myself! Our group did the globe and heart picture.

Later we were assigned practical ministries-ie work. My job is dinner clean up crew! Yay. But I had fun actually and did dishes mainly. With a power hose. Which is. Interesting. And wet. And working with other people who don't speak English is so much fun. Its a challenge to teach/help them understand you. And the same for them too! There's also a Swiss DTS 10 month program running-and there's a bunch of younger, 15.16 year old boys and girls from here in Switzerland/Germany who don't speak English at all but are obviously missing their homes. 

Went on a walk in the gorgeous swiss forest today with a few girls. And had a blast tramping through mossy misty glades with tall pines and a quiet, Lord of the Rings feel. Its so peaceful. Different from any forest I've ever been in somehow. The two girls didn't speak English well so it was fun to fill in blank words they were trying to match to their German words. Like she called the deer Bambies. And I died laughing she was so adorably cute.

We also found a lady in the forest picking wild mushrooms. We communicated to her in our basic French that we wanted her to take our picture. I showed her how but she took my iphone and flipped it over and took a picture of herself on accident! I just said magnific and she took one more. Blurry but a good memory. 

The French lady who took our picture. And her own picture.

Friends on a walk in the woods! Rachel, Deborah, Alex and I!

A tree fort I found in the woods. For Alissa to see ;)

Some Pics!

Arrived.

Zurich is like a doll house. All the buildings look like they’re Victorian cupcakes with pastel stained window shutters and the streets are paved in hand-made cobblestones. And its all draped along a pristine lake with white swans dozing on the surface. The people are soft spoken in their high German and I feel like half the population there is retired. The spikes of centuries old church towers gaze over the sleepy city and if you walk along the hilly streets you feel the intense desire to whisper and tip toe with your umbrellas past shop windows. Bells chime the hour day and night.

Ok so yeah you need to go there. It was like a fairy tale. Smaller then I expected and the Bourne movies do not capture all the details I saw in 24 hours there. I landed around 11 in the morning and found my friend Eliza really easily. We spent the day scouring the city-comparing different phone providers, sorting out my train ticket and pass, and exchanging money. Alfredo gnocchi for lunch, German sausage and potato salad for dinner, yogurt for breakfast the following morning and then some Chinese to run on for lunch before I caught my train from platform 17 to Lausanne. It took 2 hours, and I passed through Berne, and like 3 other stops I couldn’t pronounce. The landscape began to stretch out more beautifully and the hills rolled over like a map, dotted with cows with bells.

I love cows with bells. They look nicer then American cows somehow. More mellow. Yummy.

I got picked up at the rain station in Lausanne around 7 and came back to the base just in time to grab the last serving of Kailua brisket, mashed potatoes, and green beans. Shuffled with my duffles up to my room on the top floor! 3 bunk beds, 3 desks, a sink, and practically no drawers or floor space. But its working so far. My roomates are Julia and Son from South Korea, and Taylor from San Fran, and Kristen from Vancouver. Taylor, Kristen and I became friends on sight and we all wear the exact same clothes size and shoes. So yeah we’re automatically bonded. My calves are sore from the stupid stairs. The language barrier is pretty tough this school, there are people from 6 nations in just my school! And there’s only twelve of us!

This morning as one of the leaders explained each school, it was translated: English to French to German to Korean. That was a long introduction! The rest of the afternoon was registration, and then a tour of the base itself. Singing in French is awkward. I need to go into town and buy a towel. And laundry detergent. I’ll probably do that tomorrow. But so far its been interesting-out of your comfort zone with the languages all flying around like bumble bees in a crowded room. I skyped my parents, the my little sisters, and then my boyfriend. That was a highlight to the day. Now off for evening lecture. I dunno many details or schedules yet but so far its been delightful.

Until next time.

Love&Blessings,

Bri

Day in Chicago!

I had a safe flight to O'Hare and my incredible parents got on the same flight on their way to Seattle- so I got to sit with them the first leg and chat. I miss them already <3 As the first "baby to fly the nest," Mom did cry. I was not embarrassed. I did too. But sniffle- were all good!

Arrived safety- and after saying my goodbyes, Ben met me just outside of the doors to pick me up for an afternoon on the city! And as a gentleman- carried my heavy backpack. We went straight to the Swiss Consulate and GOT MY VISA. I smiled in the picture. The Chinese girl at Walgreens forgot to tell me not too. And goodness I know better. Guess I was excited. So guys I'm grinning like a moron in that student visa. Ben and I had lunch and walked and shopped :) parking is not cheap on Michigan Avenue. But it was a blast!!!
I got to my gate safety and they packed us on quickly and efficiently as the Swiss should. We pulled out to the runway- and then went back twice to unload a drunk passenger. And then to have his cargo bags searched. But hey we're flying over Paris as I type this and were right on schedule to touch down in 40 minutes!
My little sisters drew me pictures. And hid them in my carry on. Of a beach and a horse in a stable. And I teared up.
Airplane food is....well it's airplane food and there's no better way to describe it folks. I'm hungry. And people keep speaking German to me. At least I think its German...Once I land- I'll find my dear friend Eliza and I'll be in good hands :)
I'll report to y'all again soon!
Oh my they just gave me chocolate. This may end up being a good trip...;)

The Lovely Visa.

"Dear October DTS!
Greetings from YWAM Lausanne!  We are very excited that all of you will be joining us very soon for the October DTS here in Switzerland.  We have loved getting to know you a little through reading your applications and really believe that God has called each of you to be here for this special time. 
This year’s Fall DTS will include all the content of a classic DTS, with a special focus on God’s heart of Compassion. Throughout the DTS we will explore God’s heart, be inspired by his priorities, and respond by reaching out into nations to bring God’s compassion to this world!  The school will run in two languages (French and English) and there will be plenty of opportunity to get to know classmates from all over the world.  There are 12 students in your DTS from 6 nations of the world!"

I got this in an email this morning from the base in Lausanne! I leave in just another day! 

God is faithful. I also got this email right when I woke up:

Hi Bri,
Great news! We've just received notice that your student visa application has been approved. This means that you can pick up your visa before you arrive in Switzerland. Please contact your consulate to see which method is possible for you to pick up the visa. If you have any questions, please let us know!Looking forward to meeting you very soon!Blessings,--Sarah YWAM Lausanne Admissions 

________________________________

I got this email and called the LA  Swiss Consulate. They said to mail them my passport right away. I told them, um no I have a flight in a day and a half and don't think it will come back in time...My passport is precious folks-and unlike my million miler Dad, I do not have multiple ones. I said I was in NY and gave him my flight itinerary. The agent said I would need to go immediately to Manhattan. I said Manhattan was as close as Los Angeles practically. (8 hour drive, currently $400 flight) He then said, "Ohhh....that is a problem." I was like yeah no kidding!

I called Andrea, our amazing travel agent and explained what was up. She was brilliant. I mean very brilliant. There's a Swiss Consulate in Chicago! Not far at all from O'hare! And she sends clients there all the time! Duh. And I have a 7 hour layover there! BiNgO!

So now I'll go standby for a morning flight to Chicago to make my appointment at the Consulate to get this stupid visa. But hey, at least I can. And the agent in LA was very helpful in arranging it too. His name is Michel, ask for him. His extension is 213 btw.

The reason I say that whole goose chase is this: I wasn't going to fly through Chicago in the first place, but it worked out that I could-and when I fly though I'm meeting up with my boyfriend Ben. I was freaking out last week because he thought he wasn't going to get time off from work for that day because he works at At&t and this friday is the launch of the iphone5! Thus....it isn't the best day for him to be driving 6 hours away to meet me on my layover. But God really did move stuff around for me to be able to see him before I go away for so long-PLUS for me to get this visa. 

Just goes to show that I guess worrying and flipping out as much as we all do isn't the only option... and I sure bet'cha that God smirks when we do because He sees what's before us even if it looks impossible.

Well. That built my faith. And what a way to get started on this adventure He laid out before me.

Oh and in case you wondered how it goes with the French vocabulary...my pronunciation has an alarming Spanish twang to it. Yesterday I made ginger snaps with Hana (9) and Mikayla (5). We listened to a Pandora Christmas channel and lighted harvest smelly candles and pretended it was the height of the holidays, because I explained I wouldn't be home for Christmas :-/ The ginger snaps turned out into ginger bark that everyone is raving over but totally decimated my domestic pride. Oh and tomorrow I'm taking my little sisters on to pick out a perfect pumpkin. 

I think I'm almost ready to go. Please be praying for a safe journey, and a peace about leaving home.

Love&Blessings,

Bri