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| swiss travels through the eyes of a paper boy. |
February 1, 2013
Bonjour Travelers,
I know that it’s been awhile since I’ve
last written to you but now I have found myself in the home of cheese and
chocolate—Switzerland! Here in Geneva people primarily speak French so I’m
going to use the little French that I know to get as much chocolate and cheese
that I can get my very thin hands on. This time I’m not only traveling with my
Ate Clarisse but I’m also traveling with her two friends from Minnesota and New
York. Not only am I meeting people from other countries, I’m meeting people
from other states! The first thing we did was walk around Geneva’s old town. In
the old town I got to sit on the longest wooden bench in the whole entire world
and possibly the universe! The bench is called La Treille and it has been the
longest wooden bench since the 19th century. Next we went to St.
Pierre’s Cathedral, which became the home church of the Protestant Reformation
leader, John Calvin. We climbed the towers in the cathedral to get a really
good view of the entire city of Geneva. I just didn’t realize how many steps there
were but lucky for me I am as light as a feather so Ate Clarisse just carried
me up the steps while I rested in my little bag. After all that walking we
treated ourselves to some chocolate and I even met the lady who made the
delicious and pretty chocolate! After exploring the old town we went to the
United Nations Office, which was first built for the League of Nations towards
the end of World War I. It was just really cool to see all the different colors
and flags waving around at the entrance. Later on I got to watch Ate Clarisse
and her friend play a game of chess in La Parc des Bastions. I wanted to play
chess too but it was too difficult because the chess pieces were bigger than
me! La Parc des Bastions also had the Reformation Wall, which celebrates the
people and events of the Protestant Reformation. A very informative way to end
our first day here in Switzerland!
Au demain,
Flat Jacob
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| geneva, switzerland |
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February 2. 2013
Salut Travelers,
Since there wasn’t too much more to see in
Geneva we hopped onto a train to Gruyere. I think I can say Gruyere was made
just for me because it has both a cheese and chocolate factory! Even the train
ride was amazing as we passed by the country and the snow-covered mountains of
Switzerland. Our first stop in Gruyere was the chocolate factory of Maison
Cailler. The factory our included a funny story about how chocolate became
popular. We even got to see how the chocolate was made and packaged with the
help of a lot of machines. My most favorite part of the tour was the end
because we got to try as much chocolate as wanted! I think I had a little too
much because my shirt began to rip. This was a little embarrassing for me so I
didn’t want to get into any of the pictures. After the chocolate factory we
went straight to the next factory—La Maison Du Gruyere. Have you ever heard of
Gruyere cheese? Well, if you haven’t guessed it yet, Gruyere is the home of
this delicious cheese. La Maison Du Gruyere is the cheese factory that produces
and sells the cheese in big, heavy wheels. We were arrived at the factory just
in time to see the cheese men pour the liquid cheese into molds so it can
become the cheese we eat. Even though I had too much chocolate in Maison
Cailler I allowed myself to nibble on some 8-month old cheese. I’m so full!
A tout a l’heure,
Flat Jacob
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| la maison cailler et la maison du gruyere |
February 3, 2013
Bonjour Travelers,
I had so much to write about the chocolate
and cheese factories that I had to just give it it’s own letter. Now I want to
tell you a little bit about the actual village of Gruyere. First, if you like
at the pictures you’ll notice that it is absolutely white from the snow. You’ll
also notice the snow isn’t dirty and that is because Gruyere is completely a
pedestrian village with no cars allowed on the premises. Having no cars made
everything so much prettier than it already was and I was able to breathe in
freshest air! There was some snow falling too and I got to see my very first
snowflakes. Some snowflakes we’re as big as my eye! Granted, my eyes are not
that big, but still, I saw real snowflakes! We explored the grounds of the
Chateau de Gruyere, a medieval castle built between 1270 and 1282. While we
walked around we were tempted to yodel as loud as we could and we did yodel until our
throats started to hurt. After our visit to Gruyere we went back to Geneva and
had dinner in a restaurant that served everyone ½ a chicken with salad and
fries. It was so much food but it was so good. Once we finished dinner we spent
our last night at the Central Perk, a coffee shop named after my Ate Clarisse’s
favorite television show, Friends. I ordered a Swiss hot chocolate and it
warmed my belly so much that I was ready to sleep. Talk to you soon than later
my fellow travelers!
A bientot,
Flat Jacob
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| gruyere village, switzerland |
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Part 4 Coming Soon!
