and then there were three

weeks left, that is. how did this happen? where did all this time go? where do i begin? here goes:

turns out that teaching middle school esl is NOT my cup of tea. i love little ones. but i survived. (some of them almost didn't.)

miguel (spain) made me a woven wall hanging in art, wrapped it and gave it to me at the carnival. best night ever.

my class was in charge of the drink stand at the carnival. at one point, i was convinced my feet were permanently stuck to the floor thanks to the innumerable layers of coke zero and fanta. enes (turkey) mixed drinks like he'd been doing it his whole life...maybe he had...

i ate four nutella crepes that night.

i walked around luzern with only one flip flop.

my camera will not upload pictures to my computer so you just have to imagine all this in your head.

i danced my heart out at semi-formal, as per tradition. and forced my adolescent boyfriend, mehmet (turkey) to dance with me.

my class won the award for *best puppet show. (*not a real award, but it should be.) it had everything: intrigue, comedy, romance, and the occasional plot twist. it was just over four minutes long, but it was a very action packed four minutes.

the final night cry fest was just as emotional as ever. for the kids, that is, not for staff. we just stood around and laughed at them.

summer is the time for romance.

aside from 2 buttheads in my class, these were the best kids we've ever had. hands down.

...but i'm already in love with the new kids. that's just how it goes...

he may be the weirdest kid i know, but he sure is entertaining

i just overheard this in the staff computer lab

"i would so much rather be going to rome than paris this weekend."

(sometimes i think we take for granted that we are located in the middle of wonderland.)

it was kismet

last night, i found out that this very village in which i live (and have spent the last 2 summers) was also the home of GEORGE HARRISON!!!! FORMER BEATLE!!!! WHOM I LOVE!!!!

you might be thinking, sweetpagene, what kind of beatles fan are you, that you didn't even know where george harrison spent his last years? and in my defense, i would like to point out that i was never very interested in what the beatles did by themselves. the magic only happened when they were a group of four. if you don't believe me, have a listen to this:



i am pretty sure paul mccartney regrets that song. and if he doesn't, he should.

but, anyway, I WALK BY GEORGE HARRISON'S HOUSE EVERY SINGLE DAY AND I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IT! i was meant to be here. i already knew that, but this confirms it. and when masa casually mentioned that george harrison had lived nearby and my eyes went big and i gasped, tim summed it up well: "this is going to completely alter the course of her summer." it's true, because now i have to schedule in some clandestine visits. i don't care if he doesn't live there anymore, i'm sure i'll find some remnant beatle magic.

i KNEW all along this place was paradise. now i have proof.

this is why i love my job

yesterday i tried a new gelato flavor: zuppa inglese. pistachio and i may have to start seeing other people.


tonight i taught my dinner table about fry sauce. we ate pounds of potato balls dipped in fry sauce. and as lili (bulgaria) put it, "mystery sauce is not good, it's fantastic!"

i schooled the nigerian boys at "knock-out" today.

watching 14 twelve-year-olds do yoga makes me giggle.

i am constantly surrounded by people i love.

there is nothing like real italian pizza.

katie and i live in the nicest flat in town. this is what i wake up to every morning:


i scored a major victory by tricking leonardo (italy) into speaking english with me.

i still love those russians. (most of them)

i realized that when i grow up, i want to marry a turk, especially if he has eyes like this one:


strolling the medieval streets of italian towns feels like the most natural thing in the world.

on tuesday, i was paid to ride a roller coaster.

i teach for 2.5 hours a day.

the commute to school couldn't get any more picturesque: