So here it goes again, a blog about how my days in Geneva fly by and are full of adventures. I cannot believe I have been here for almost a year ! I am so glad I have so many wonderful memories to remember my Ambassadorial year by :)
Last week, I had my last meeting with the Rotaract Club of Geneva. We met at the usual bar in the Old City to discuss the club's next projects over some wine. Even though my experience with this club does not involve hamburgers and strawberry lemonades at a small cafe like they do back home, it will never stop to amaze me how no matter the culture the spirit of Rotary is present everywhere you go. Our fund raisers here do not involve crawfish boils or Rodeo auctions but rather fondue dinners and classical music concerts. Our social events involve going to the theater rather than picnics with water balloon fights. However, many things are the same: more than one language is always spoken, there are members from at least 4 different nationalities, and the willingness to cooperate, to help, to make a difference is always present. The spirit of Rotary is present at every meeting and no matter in what language, the "4 way test" always applies.
I am really glad I was able to be part of Rotaract Geneva. I learned a lot, shared a lot, and was able to extend my Rotaract family far beyond I had ever expected.
What is a "my life in Geneva blog" without some crazy adventure? Of course I had to do something wild and crazy to finish off the year with style. When you feel overwhelmed some might say you should take a deep breath I say " GO JUMP OF A MOUNTAIN!"
Nothing like a nice 30 minute paragliding flight over the beautiful town of Verbier. I am now convinced that Peter Pan had it right when he said flying is the best feeling ever! I want to be a bird so badly! I had never felt lighter, freer, and so small but so great at the same time.
Paragliding is definitely one of the best experience I have had this year and quite possibly my whole life. Definitely a redo!
One of my favorite things about Geneva is that when the sun shines the view by Lake Lemain resembles paradise. As social chair for my class I decided to take advantage of this wonderful phenomena to bring a little "american pop culture" to the institute and give my fellow class mates some time to bond before the end of the semester. This is how the "First annual, MIA Class Favorites Picnic" came to be.
First and second year International Affair Masters students gathered on a sunny Sunday afternoon by Villa Barton, our Institute's main building, and we enjoyed some fun time over delicious snacks. We chatted, played frisbee, took pictures and had some laughs when the 2012 Class Favorite results were revealed. My best friend Tugce and I were honored to receive the "Bilateral Agreement/Best Pair" award. We beat two other real couples that were nominated in this category so we were pretty proud haha. We do indeed make a great pair, it is no wonder they call us "the twinsies." :0)
I have many times talked about Rotary as being like a second family to me and that is true in so many ways. Rotary became my family back home when I realized there are so many people who share my same goals and passions. It extended to other countries when I traveled and visited Rotary Clubs abroad that welcomed me with open arms. It was reassured when I arrived to Switzerland and felt at home thanks to my wonderful Rotary Counselor Ian and the Rotary and Rotaract Clubs of Geneve. Last week, it became that much more clear when I was able to visit my Rotary Exchange student sister Mathilde and her family in Bordeaux.
Mathilde lived with me and my family for several months while my sister Denise was in exchange in Belgium. Having a french sister was a wonderful experience and my family and I were happy to host her entire family in Texas when they came to visit in the Spring that year. I remember my mom trying to speak French and Mathilde's parents trying to speak English while the rest of us giggled. No matter what they always managed to communicate and we spent a lovely couple of weeks sharing our mutual cultures.
One thing that definitely made me smile this month, was receiving wonderful feedback from our participating schools of World Connect, my Rotary project. Seems like the kids are really enjoying being part of the program and learning a lot about other cultures. Receiving such nice comments and wonderful pictures fills me with joy as I see that efforts do make a difference. I really do want to see a better a world. I really want to share what I know and bring to children everywhere the opportunity to learn from one another. If I can make a difference in one school, or one child, if a student in Senegal now knows about where Gruyere cheese comes from and a girl in Argentina understand the significance of an American flag, if a Swiss Boy can re-tell the story of the Taraumara natives, and if a child in Mexico can sing a Senegalian traditional song, then I can say that this project has been a success.
In the middle of so many events and adventures I was able to meet with my counselor and his wife for a hot chocolate and one last rendez-vous before leaving. It was very nice to talk to him about how much I have learned and how much I have grown this year. Walking into his apartment I couldn't believe that it was almost a year ago that I spent my first night in Geneva there. I was so scared, so uncertain, with no idea what to expect and so much ahead of me. Things turned out very differently then I had imagined but from every experience and every moment I learned, I grew, and became a stronger and better person.
I told Ian about my hectic weeks and so many plans to come and right before saying goodbye he looked at me and with a big smile said " Tu bouges Daniella, tu bouges beaucoup. Ca c'est tres bien." ( You move Daniella, you move a lot. That is wonderful.)
Two more weeks to go. Let's keep moving. :)
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