SwissNatter
Monday, February 24, 2003
I'm still here in another dreamland...in der Schweiz (dreamland for me,that is!) It was freezing here…ranging between +2C and -7C! Brrr ! It was snowing very much! I already went to the mountains, in Langmattley and tried SKIING! For me it was more of FALLING ON MY BUTT, or SITTING on the snow, rather than skiing! It was so beautiful up there, almost near the peak of Mt. Pilatus. It is like being "on top of the world". With the mountain ranges all in white, the panoramic view of the lake, the sun's golden rays, the freezing air, the biting cold, it was such a cosmic experience!
Anyway, my first week of SCHOOL was great! I started last Feb.5th. I walk to the train station from the house, about 15 minutes then I take the 8:08 train going to Luzern, for about 20 minutes. Then in Luzern, I take the bus for about a minute. The school is quite near the train station, but it is just too cold for me to walk across the bridge. But when it is sunny I would walk for about 10 minutes.
Luzern is very much a tourist city, just like San Francisco. Everyday I see big buses with lots of tourists taking pictures, mostly Chinese or Japanese. (I got very lucky...second time now...to be actually "living in dream places" like this). The streets and shopping district around the area in Luzern reminds me so much of Market Street and Fisherman's wharf in San Francisco, California.
There's a big lake called Vierwaldstätter See in Luzern. I pass by this lake everyday. It is breathtaking to see the mountain ranges surrounding the lake. The Vierwaldstätter See" is so vast that I can still see it outside my bedroom window in Hergiswil. It is very beautiful. There are also colorful ducks, majestic swans, swift albatross and other birds, swimming, flying or just feasting around those breadcrumbs, onlookers throw at them.
My school is called "Klubschule Migros." They offer other languages as well like French, Italian, Spanish, etc. My class starts at 9 am and ends at 11:50 am. I have 11 classmates. 2 guys, Hugo from Portugal, Urbano from Havana, Cuba, and 9 girls/women (some are older than I am.) Valerie from Dublin, Ireland, Julie from London, England, Eva from Madrid, Spain, Natasha from Yugoslavia, Lilia and Serli from Brazil, Kelly from Lima, Peru, Miyuki from Japan, and Alma from Bosnia.
My seatmate is Alma...a very funny girl. First day of school we already got close because she is very crazy also. She doesn't speak much English so we communicate through the limited German that we know. And if it doesn't work, a little sign language would do. I ask her to teach me also some Bosnian language and she is much delighted to do that. I also found out that she lives in Hergiswil, but she rides the train in Hergiswil Matt, one station before my stop. During the first day, I rode the train with her and Eva, who is from Madrid but now lives in Horw, one train station from Luzern. She is 28 years old, married to a Swiss born-Spanish guy. She is very talkative and talks to me in Spanish because sometimes she forgets that I am a Filipina. But if I am lucky, I do get to understand, bits and pieces of her Spanish, as it is very much embedded in the Hiligaynon dialect--my mother tongue (i.e. kutsara, tinidor, harina, ensayo, etc. etc.) I had fun discovering for myself that some "Ilonggo" words are actually Spanish. Eva and I became quite close, with our frequent train rides together and the conversations in between. I sat beside her now in class, as we try to do advance studying when sometimes the class gets so dragging, slow and boring.
Once, I also got the chance to sit beside Miyuki, my Japanese classmate. During the first day of school, I greeted her in Japanese--"Konnichiwa, Hajime mashite". She was so happy somebody else in the class can speak Japanese. She is about 30+ years old. I sat beside her during break time. She talked to me in Japanese and I was so glad I could still understand most of it. And if I don't, I would ask her what that would be in English. I also liked the company of Natasha (Yugoslavian) and Julie (British). When I arrive at school at around 8:30 a.m. they were already there waiting in the school's cafe. While waiting for our other classmates and for the class to start, we spend our time comparing assignments, talk about many stuff, including "The Weakest Link", Julie's cat, her nephew, Teletubbies, Craig David, etc. I am especially fascinated with Julie's English accent. I wish I could talk like that!
The class would sometimes be fun, exciting, entertaining, but sometimes, it would just be too overwhelming. During the 20-minute break we all sit together in one long table in the Cafe. Our teacher, her name is Sylvia Zahren, about early 30's, she is very kind and very nice. She can speak English very well, but as much as possible, she talks to us all in German when inside the classroom. Tempting for her to explain in English to some of my classmates who doesn't really get it, but she still speaks German when explaining, using a lot of examples and contextual clues.
During the first day of class, we played catch ball, and pass it on to someone else with those basic German sentences, questions and so on. Next day we learned alphabet, numbers, a little arithmetic and then we played LOTTO! The winners got some Swiss chocolates. I and my partner Miyuki didn't win. Hugo and Urbano won the Swiss chocolates. Eva told Natasha that we can kill them now, so that we could have the chocolates. Another time, we also played Bingo---I and my seatmate Miyuki won this time....and twice at that! We had our chocolates as well! Yipee!
Classes are getting tougher each day! We were already overwhelmed by the Sie (formal YOU)-sie (she) and another sie (they), and another one sie-(it).Then comes the verb conjugations, and more complications to come with “der,die,das”... As what my Lehrerin says "Das ist problem!" One time we had to say where we came from. I was so curious why my answer would have be "Ich komme aus "den Philippinen"...and all the rest of my classmates would just have to say "ich komme aus Spanien, Brasilien...so and so! At home, I just asked my uncle, and with some clear explanation, I understood. "den Philippinen--THE PHILIPPINES....the "den" is an article indicating the plural form. It is because Philippines is composed of so many islands, not just one, as would the case for Brazil, or Portugal or other countries.
One time, we had a grueling quiz. It was a struggle memorizing which nominative article “der, die, das” goes with what thing….Is this thing, a masculine, feminine or neuter? Out of the 82 quiz items, I got a tadaaaaa….. 81!!! And my mistake….”Die Telefonnummer.” When it is only Telefon, it is a neuter gender--- Das Telefon. And when it is Nummer (number) that would be a feminine...Die Nummer. That I know. But when those two becomes a compound word? What becomes of it? Is it a he or a she? That I didn’t know during the test. Hehe…Now I know, it takes the gender of the second word….Die Telefonummer! Ach schade!!! (saying!). We all learn from our mistakes. I’d remember the “Die Telefonummer” more than those other quiz items!
It is one thing when you're learning German language at school, and it is another thing, when you're communicating in Schweiz-German at home or with other people. A good comparison would be my language situation while I was still in the Philippines. At home in Iloilo city, I speak very fluent 'Ilonggo/Hiligaynon', but I don't study it at school, I don't write in "Ilonggo" and it will take me a long time to read an "Ilonggo" article or literature. At school, I studied "English" and "Filipino". We have our country's major newspaper in English, our television shows/movies in Filipino or English. I think that's more or less the situation here in Switzerland, as what I have observed. There is that certain "Schweiz-Deutsch"--- a kind of German, only Swiss people understand, and Germans would not comprehend if they have not lived here in Switzerland. But Swiss people would be able to understand anything German (TV shows, movies, German people.) I get fascinated learning those day-to-day expressions, like "Gau?" (it means "isn't it? or "di ba? in Filipino) Gruetzi! (Hello--used when greeting strangers. I already got the hang of it, now I initiate greeting "Gruetzi!" to those I meet on the street when I'd walk home from the train station) "wieso?” –read as ‘vi-so’ -- it means "why?" In Deutsch, "why" is "warum" a neutral kind of way. But when one says "wieso?" it has this "why do I have to do that?" connotation.
Being here in Switzerland, is not only about being confined in the four corners of the classroom and learn German language. There is so much to do and so many places to explore. I do get that chance whenever my aunt and her family would visit some friends or relatives. One time we went to the grandparents of my cousins in Bern. Berne is Switzerland's enchanting Federal City, the nation's capital. It is the seat of government and the home of the Houses of Parliament.
While in Bern, I visited "THE" places to go to when one is in Bern. We went to "Old town Bern" (it is included in the UNESCO's World Heritage List), with the river Aare, old town facades, an array of urban apartments and houses built side my side. It has an enormous number of fountains, mostly in the middle of the streets and squares of the City.
Münster--it is a Gothic Cathedral of St. Vincent. Work on the edifice began in 1421, the interior completed in 1573. The spire in its present form was completed in 1893; it measures 100 meters and is the highest in Switzerland. There is a sculpture above the main portal by the entrance. It is a masterly representation of the Last Judgment, composed of 171 individual figures, created by the Westphalian sculpture Erhart Küng.
The Zeitglockenturm -- Clock Tower, it has a clock face 6 meters in diameter. Every hour there is mechanical pantomime that occurs in the Clock Tower. The cock first crows four minutes before the hourly spectacle commences. Then the fool rings the bell above him while swinging his legs and the bear carousel begins to turn. Shortly afterwards the cock crows a second time. Exactly on the hour Cronus reverses his hour glass and counts the hours with his sceptre as they are struck. Beside him the lion also marks the hours by turning its head each time. "Hans von Thann" --high up in the tower, above the roof, --strikes the bell with his hammer. This hourly drama ends with a third cock crow. The astronomical clock indicates the hour, date, month, day of the week, the position of the sun in the Zodiac, the sign of the Zodiac, the phases of the moon and its position in the Zodiac.
Bundeshaus (Parliament Building) -- the main Parliament building with the three cupolas was designed by Hans Auer; inaugurated in 1902. Alongside is the quieter Quatrocento style of the two wings, the early Renaissance heaviness of the central Parliament building. Every Tuesday and Saturday, the Parliament Square is enlivened by the fruit, vegetable and flower market.
The Bärengraben (Bear Pit)--- has been in it present location since 1857. It had been moved several times from its original location in 1513 where the first bears were discovered in that pit. There were baby bears, timid and wobbly, affectionately chivvied into the open by their mother. Startled by the light and the unaccustomed sight of many people, their reaction is to scuttle back into their familiar quarters. But they soon discover that the pit is an ideal playground. Everything is first carefully sniffed and suspiciously eyed. Their innate playfulness soon wins, the spectacle commences and their antics are indescribably droll. This is a most heartwarming experience. (Source: Bern)
After watching the bears, my aunt and I went inside the tourist shop/museum and watched this high-tech BERN SHOW...a mini display of imagery, lights, and effects about Bern, it’s history, culture, and people.
We got back to Hergiswil around 7 pm and went to our next door neighbor, Madeline invited us for dinner with another friend from Australia (an au pair).Madeline was in West Virginia as an exchange student before. After dinner, Natalie (the one from Australia) had some extra tickets for the Fasnacht...some Swiss carnival of sorts... celebrating the coming of Spring. With all their costumes, it reminded me of the Halloween in Castro.SF ;-). We had fun dancing, We had to leave soon because I really couldn't stand the congested room full of smoke! Phew!
February 22---We went to the Yacht Club Luzern, and delivered the sumptuous “Pancit Sotanghon”, “Fried Lumpia” and fruit salad that my aunt and I prepared for the participants of the training on Regatta rules and officiating conducted by Uncle Peter. Yacht Club Luzern, is this posh club house with a bar, kitchen, and seminar room. It is situated near the lake, with all the yachts, and sailboats docked by the lakeside. After preparing and serving lunch for them, we had our share as well. I ate as if, I've been starved for days! Ich habe Hunger! Hehe!
While waiting for my uncle to finish the training, my aunt took me my cousin Mike and Mark, a family friend, to a beautiful drive around the long stretch by the Vierwaldstatter See. We drove all the way to Küssnacht-- a town at the foot of Mt. Rigi, at the other side of Vierwaldstatter See. It was a picturesque town very much like Hergiswil. After some strolling and picture taking, we got back to Luzern but first dropped by the Swiss Museum of Transport and Communication. It was amazing to see those miniature trains going in and around tunnels, railway tracks, up and down St. Gotthard peaks. It also featured the most comprehensive traffic museum in Europe, an experience-oriented show which unfolds the story of the development of all forms of traffic and communication. Hundreds of nostalgic original vehicles, with a show, dealing with the construction of the railway tunnel through the Gotthard, the Cosmorama and Nautirama Lake Lucerne. It also has the IMAX theater, the world's most breathtaking sights in needlesharp focus on a gigantic 19x25m screen, with a seating capacity of 400.
