Time flies

I can't believe how fast time is flying by! It almost seems like yesterday I was packing up my stuff to move to another country and now my time here is running away. In a mere two weeks I'll be back at home, enjoying my mums food and watching daytime TV, but for now I'm cramming stuff into every spare moment. 

On Wednesday, Kevin had his Year 6 Exhibition at school. The entire year group spent seven weeks working hard to create presentations on what they're most passionate about. Needless to say, Kev chose the subject 'Sport and Health', where he extensively researched facts and figures on everything from recommended bedtimes to ideal exercises. He and a friend even organised a football match as their 'action', which went well and they were pretty happy with it. We were all super proud of him, especially for talking to people so confidently (in French and English!) Good job Kevlar.

The following day, a few people from the French classes visited the Château in Ferney Voltaire. We had a guided tour of the castle, which seemed to go on forever, and were free to explore the grounds a bit afterwards. Most of us had brought food to share for our picnic afterwards, so we parked up in a suitable spot and tucked in. It was unfortunate that a lot of people couldn't make it, as it was probably our last chance to get together before people leave. Never mind!

Voltaire

Sylvie's homemade pie

Later that day, we had Fête de la musique in the centre of Divonne. A few of us wandered around, listening to different types of music and watching some dances. We grabbed some cocktails, which weren't great, and sat by the DJ outside Full Moon for a while. Someone started the most depressing dance circle I've ever seen, there was only one woman doing it with a bunch of children. When Brenda came later, we spent the whole night dancing and singing along to Waitlist (the band of Krisztina's host dad). God knows why they had it on a Thursday, but I suppose it's only once a year and we're all sleep deprived anyway!

Saturday = Chamonix.
My god, what an absolutely stunning place! All three of us were in awe of the views and were super pleased with the weather. After filling our stomachs, we headed towards the train station. Seeing the Ice Cave was at the absolute top of my list, so I was happy to pay for the train up. That was one hell of a train journey. You're literally ascending up a huge mountain, until you get to the top and have to descend into the cave. 
The ice cave was more than a little cold and you have to be careful of the droplets coming from the ceiling. There are some fantastic sculptures in there and there's even some that you can sit on. It was well worth the drive, that's for sure. I only wish we had more time to explore...

That evening, we were supposed to have a BBQ, but the first place we went wasn't ideal and when we got to Nyon I was already exhausted. I stayed for a little while and wandered around the music festival there. There was a heavy metal band playing near us and they were actually really good. It took me back to my Year 9 days, when I had very diverse tastes in music. Those were the days!

I spent most of the day at Isa's house on Sunday. We ate and laughed and played Uno, until it was time to watch the Columbia vs Poland match. That's an interesting experience when you're sat with a bunch of Columbians! There was only one Polish guy in the pub, so he must've felt quite outnumbered. The game left me emotionally exhausted (I was praying that Poland would get at least one goal), so I got back and completely crashed. I still woke up half-dead, obviously, but nothing a good, strong cup of tea couldn't help. 

Now that I don't have French, I'm not sure what to do with myself, apart from writing. Hopefully I'll find some things to fill the remaining days up so they go a little quicker!

Szia, Kriszti

Life is a funny thing.
It brings fantastic experiences and wonderful people to you, then tears them away with no regard for your heart or mind.
This weekend has supplied its fair share of heartbreak. We've ridden an unpredictable, violent roller coaster over the past three days and it's safe to say I'm exhausted. 

On Friday, I was tasked with babysitting the brood. It was a 2:1 vote to watch High School Musical, with Kevin failing to convince his sisters to watch the World Cup. It was hard sitting there knowing that my best friends were having fun at the lake, but thankfully the parents didn't come back too late and I scurried out at 10:30pm. I was met with deliciously coconutty Hungarian snacks and some particularly potent homemade wine, which I didn't drink too much of so as to not induce violent vomiting. We talked and laughed until the early hours, with time passing all too quickly as we realised that it was the last time, at least for a while, that all four of us would be together. When people this incredible wander into your life, you make a conscious decision to make your friendship work, no matter how hard it is. I know that we will see each other again, I just don't know when.

A mere five hours later, I was up and at it again. 
Kriszti, her parents and I made our way sleepily towards Zermatt, which is pretty far away from Divonne. We stopped off at a village called Randa, where we did a 2-hour uphill hike towards the Charles Kuonen Suspension Bridge. There were multiple times that we asked ourselves "is it worth it?", but my god it was utterly breathtaking. The bridge is set in the middle of a handful of mountains, passing over a little waterfall that trickles down the mountain towards the village. No photograph could ever do it justice, but here are some futile attempts.

After a tricky descent, where I ended up flat on my derriere thanks to a misjudgement on my part, we made a short trip to Zermatt. You can't drive all the way up, so we just dumped the car on a side street to avoid paying the extortionate parking and taxi fees. Instead, we took the shuttle train up and wandered around for a bit. I have to admit, if I had just gone for Zermatt, I'd have been more than a little disappointed. It was lucky that we had made other plans to fill up the day, because there's not much to see in a ski town when it's not ski season. Don't get me wrong, the Matterhorn is definitely a sight to see, but is probably where my interest in Zermatt ends (sorry to any fans I've offended with that comment). 

The journey back to Divonne was spent desperately trying to not fall asleep, although I think I squeezed in about 10 minutes of shuteye. As Kriszti's dad drove, we all admired the magnificent sunset over the lake. Despite the woman in the next street warbling into a microphone and butchering some of my favourite songs, I slept pretty well on Saturday night (I was probably still recovering from the wine!)
I got to recharge my batteries a bit, as there was no need for me to wake up early on Sunday. Our plans to go to Chamonix were cancelled because of the diabolical weather forecast, which was a shame but probably for the best. It's an awfully long way to go and not very enjoyable if it rains all day. Instead, Krisztina's family went to the market and bought some goodies to take back to Hungary with them. We then went to Lausanne for the day, just walking around, taking pictures and enjoying the weather (we even managed to get a 'family' ticket for a 40-minute boat ride), all the while snacking on yummy treats. Afterwards, we made a quick stop in Nyon so that they could see the castle and the stunning view across the lake, before they had to go back for a barbeque. 

I'm telling you, I've never shot out of a car that fast in my life. As I recall, I told Krisztina not to look at me, said thank you and see you in August. And then I was gone. I just wanted to get in the house, lock myself in my room and have a little sniffle to myself. Of course, the family went out and put the alarm on, so I couldn't do that. Luckily, I just hopped on my bike to meet Jason at the lake and eat my feelings. I can't say it fixed me completely, but having a hug and a listening ear put me on the right tracks. Just under three weeks left, I've got this!

The Final Month!

My week certainly did NOT get off to a good start! The weather has been a little crazy for the past couple of weeks, with hot and humid days, then thunderstorms and torrential rain in the afternoons. Of course, that meant that as soon as Marilie and I set foot outside at 5:15pm it started pouring down with rain. Fan-bloody-tastic! I had to, yet again, haul my waterproof boots up from the basement, where I've been stashing all of the warm, winter clothes that I 'don't need' anymore. As an English person the rain doesn't phase me at all, I've spent most of my life outside in the rain. However, what I really hate is morons driving past at ridiculous speeds and absolutely soaking me (Marilie escaped most of the blast because I basically shielded her - yay). It wouldn't have been as bad if I'd have been going back to the house, but I wasn't and I ended up sitting through Marilie's ballet lesson very,very slowly drying out. Oh the joy's of au pair life!

When we got back and ate, I barricaded myself in my room and watched Love, Simon...again. Yes, I did cry as much as I did the first time I watched and yes, I will probably do the same every time I watch it. Even when you know what's coming next, you can't help but feel totally gripped, on the edge of your seat with your heart racing. So, there's another recommendation. Watch it!

I didn't regret watching it until Tuesday morning. At breakfast, I think everyone wondered if I was even breathing because I just sat there silently like a zombie. Somehow I still managed to go for a 'run', although none of my limbs wanted to work and I ended up barely doing it at all. Never mind, I tried...kind of.
Later in the day, after dropping Marilie off at school and being rejected by Krisztina, I finally booked my ferry. At long last I have an official leaving date and it doesn't feel so distant. Thank god. It's been a long old journey and I will sure as hell be glad to be home.
Wednesday is normally my semi-chilled day. Not this week, not at all. It's probably easier if I just list my tasks for that day. Here goes;

• Washed and dried up multiple times
• Baked banana bread
• Precooked dinner
• Did a load of my own washing
• Hung out three lots of washing 
• Hoovered the entire ground floor (the cleaning lady told us she wasn't coming when she was already 15 minutes late. She had a fall apparently.)
• Cleaned my room
• Cleaned the bathroom
• Made Marilie's 'dinner' and drove to take it to her
• Went grocery shopping
• Stripped and made two beds
• Rearranged the games cupboard in my room (god knows why. I must be crazy!)

Kevin had his secondary school induction on Thursday. He seemed to enjoyed it, minus his crazy history teacher who threw his notebook in the bin because he was writing in it. I think he's hoping and praying that he doesn't actually have her as a teacher in September! They had four lessons, music (arguably Kev's favourite), maths, history and science (which he also really enjoyed). His friend, also called Kevin, nearly set the whole school on fire, which amused Kevin 1 a bit too much. Basically, they were using Bunsen burners and learning how to use them properly and safely. Kevin 2 used one of the flammable sticks to, I assume, help a friend light their Bunsen burner, but somehow the flame got super big and Kevin 2 panicked, screamed and threw the lit stick across the classroom. I think he'll be hearing about that for a while and maybe he should avoid flames for the foreseeable future.
I cried laughing at this masterpiece Kevin put in the history section and in the questions section he just asked about lunch. Classic Kev. 

Marilie passed her swimming test and couldn't wait to tell me when she got back. She was a little more reluctant to tell her mum, who knows why. Next year she can move up to 'Kids 2', whatever that means and I told her that I expect to see her at the next Olympics. 
Essentially, I made rice to feed the whole town. This picture shows a deep pan that four people have already eaten from. Yeah, there was a LOT of rice...

After spending the entirety of Friday morning laying in bed (oh the agony of being a female), I forced myself to go for a much-needed walk, otherwise I'd have been inside all day. I decided to sport shorts, despite my slightly hairy legs which have the most bizarre tan. I felt infinitely better by getting out and about, but soon regretted it when the painkillers wore off. Getting back to the house was a struggle to say the least!

Krisztina's request for the weekend was basically to do nothing. Well, wish granted. We grabbed some food and a bottle of wine, then made our way to Chambésy. Basically, we spent the whole day eating and drinking by the lake, perfect! The only downside/life experience was when I had to use the toilet, which was no more than a glorified hole in the ground. It was interesting to use, that's for sure! Potentially an experience I'll try to avoid in the foreseeable future.

What you can't see very clearly in the picture below is that I got a bit frazzled in the sun. I have a very sexy white patch where my hair was, then under that I'm essentially a lobster. 

In the evening, Marilie had her dance show at L'esplanade in Divonne. It was overwhelmingly hot in there, even though they clearly had air conditioning. Foolishly, we assumed that there would be a break, considering that the show was two hours long. Not the case, not at all. We had to sit there for the whole time, sitting in our own sweat with no water and no air, to the point where I genuinely thought Kevin was going to pass out. He did NOT look good at all. We were all beyond relieved when it finally ended and we could go outside to breathe! Criticisms aside, some of those dances were absolutely incredible and I don't know how on earth people can dance like that, I'm so jealous. 

On Sunday, Krisztina and I decided to tick something off our bucket list; a boat ride across Lac Léman. Granted, it was on the smallest scale possible. At only 3CHF, you can ride the little yellow boats (and potentially buses too - who knows?) an unlimited amount of times for one hour. It did the trick, our thirst for a boat trip was somewhat quenched. It wasn't always plain sailing (forgive the pun). A child, who must've been 3 at most, got stuck in between the boat and the platform, narrowly avoiding getting his legs crushed. Thankfully, his quick-thinking dad and the sailor helped him back up and all was well (minus the fact he wailed for the whole journey). I was desperately trying to avoided getting burned further, so had to spend the day in a jacket. Not so easy when it was 27 degrees! I was absolutely sweating when I got back in the car and somehow lost one of my socks in the whole process, who knows how. 

In the evening, Jason and I bought a pizza and some fries to eat at the lake. I hadn't eaten properly all weekend, so I was glad to have actual food! We had a good old chat while the hours passed, before heading home to get ready for yet another Monday. Where on earth does the weekend go?

Monday morning came all too soon. I made it to French, which is becoming harder and harder to do every week, so big points to me! Unfortunately, given the weather the previous day, I thought I'd wear something nice and light and summery. Bad idea! When I left French, it was absolutely pouring down and, of course, I had no jacket nor an umbrella. Hooray. As you can see, I was less than impressed.

I ended up coming back looking like a sad, wet dog and had to change immediately. I seem to be having shaky starts to my week recently, but hopefully it won't continue. 
Keep your fingers crossed for me!