Another month in beautiful Switzerland, now the weather is getting much colder, so cycling will get a bit difficult. I had to wear extra layers and a warm jacket with good shoes not to forget the very important gloves. On December 8th Oliver the volunteer's boss took me and Ben to rent our skiing gear and to ski. It was my first time in the snow and I had no idea how to ski. Unfortunately on that day, the ski school was closed so I couldn’t get a teacher to teach me. Because Ben already skied before so he went up the mountain with Oliver to ski while I was trying to stand still and ski down on the flat area without falling but that wasn’t easy as I spent most of my time on my ass. I fell so hard yet I insisted on learning. By the end of the day, I managed to ski down the hill without falling which was a success at that time. 
At the farm, we tried to fix fences and maintain all the damaged stuff before the snow. In the morning I had to feed the cows and the goats then I cleaned the goat place. By the second week all the jobs at the farm were done so I helped Chrigu who is my boss at work with cutting wood and storing it in his basement for winter and later we began emptying all the things in the kitchen to make it empty to start repairing the ceiling and adding all the isolation layers before closing it. 
Three days later after our ski trip, we went again to ski this time I went up the mountain with Ben and Oliver. I managed to ski down the first part but it wasn’t easy, so Oliver came and suggested that I go up to catch the last lift going down. That night I slept in Plaffeien. The next day early in the morning I left the hotel to take the bus to Schwarzsee but this time to meet the ski school staff and the instructor who will be working this winter season. The day went very well and Benedict, my employee, was impressed by my working skill and how I can learn things fast. Later on, I went home to prepare myself as I was meeting Leona my mentor at Bahnhof to go to the rolling shoe disco. It was my first time trying it but I had a good teacher and by the end of the night, I managed to use them without falling. 
As you know December means Christmas. That's why we had many street markets around Bern city center. As I was moving to Schwarzsee soon I decided to spend more time with my mentor, so for three days in a row I met her but each day was for different reasons. First, we cooked Maqlouba which is a Palestinian dish next we had Thai food with her German friend and on the last day we went around the street markets with her friends from Ticino and ended the day by dining in an Italian restaurant, where I had one of the best pizza I ever ate. 

I moved to Schwarzsee and started working with Coumba in the office because I had already plans with my previous host family. I used to work during the week and on weekends I go back to Oberbalm. The first week I went to celebrate Christmas with them. It was a really good atmosphere and I enjoyed every bit of it. Next week I joined them for a small trip to Frankfurt-Germany to celebrate the new year with their friends. We arrived in Frankfurt early in the morning so I decided to have a small tour around to explore it and Sophie my host sister joined me. 
Later on, we went to the friend's home, the men were preparing dinner while the others were spending time either playing some games or reading. After dinner we had a walk around the neighborhood then we waited for the hour to turn 12. Even though fireworks were banned in Germany some of the neighbors had some so we enjoyed the show.

Wir sehen uns nächstes Jahr
Auf Wiedersehen 
Bis Bald

Here we go again, new changes, different things happened in this month that ended in the blink of an eye, it seems that it was November 1St yesterday. After four month in Switzerland I could understand a little bit of German yet talking was so hard and difficult, so with the help of Oliver I decided to join an intensive German course. I had an online placement test to see which level I would be in, then I got enrolled into Alemania Deutschschule. I continued to work with Chrigo in Schwarzenburg but only for the first week of November as from the second week my intensive German courses started and it was very difficult to combine the two. On Thursday afternoon I met Sophie and Oliver (My host sister & her father) in Bern to join them for a short holiday in Walais. Next day I woke up to a magnificent view of the Walais. After breakfast we decided to go for a short hike. We didn’t expect that there would be so much snow, unprepared for that snow we continued our hike aiming to reach one of the mountain peaks on the Italian Border. Unfortunately that didn’t work, yet we ended our hike in a beautiful place reaching 2104 elevation.
The next two days we had some fun activities and quality time. Every morning I went for a walk around, and of course when I say Walais that means the hanging bridge I visited last time, but this time the autumn colors makes it more beautiful.
In Monday morning I had to catch the earlier train from Brig to Bern so I could attend my intensive German course. I never thought that attending two intensive courses would be that tiring and exhausting. So mostly, I would spend 4 hours at school and 4 more hours doing home work.
By the beginning of November I met my new mentor, went out for dinner with her after that we watched the light show on the Parliament House of Bern. Later on she told me about the night of religion and I decided to go with her. On that day I met some of her friends and we spent the night together moving around Bern to attend different sessions in the religious night.

Auf Wiedersehen 
Bis Bald

My working schedule was the same as September except for the first week I was looking after chickens and collecting their eggs in the morning before working in the Café. Some days I used to go to the farm in the afternoon. Not being able to talk to someone my age was super harsh and did not help me as most of the time I’m surrounded by older or younger people. 

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Still not being able to sleep and working without resting, I was not feeling good either physically or mentally and for that reason, I asked my boss for a week off where I can rest and relax and enjoy the hiking season in October. Getting the approval for my week off I text Erika and we agreed to do the sunrises-hike we talked about previously.

On Sunday I packed my racksage then hit the road by bike and before Bern I had a quick stop at Ulmizberg where I had my lunch while enjoying the sun and the beautiful view of the mountains. After that, I continued on my way to Bern to take the train to Biel. There I had a quick tour around the old city and then I met Erika and her boyfriend and had dinner with them. The next hour we were in the car heading to our hiking starting point. While she was driving I was talking all the way long about my life, feelings, family, adapting to difficulty and all the missy thoughts I have. By the time we reached the parking lot, it was already late so we prepared ourselves to bed and guess where we would sleep in the car. Sleeping in a car for the first time was something unbelievable yet being able to watch the stars from the ceiling was so amazing. Around 5 a.m we start hiking to our destination. At that point, I did not know where we were or where we were heading. For the first time, I didn't search or prepare anything, I just went with my friend Erika with full trust and hope that it would be something extraordinary and I'm grateful for that trip as it changed something within me. After returning home from that hike I start sleeping at night. 

I was planning to use my remaining holidays to explore and travel around yet my body has different plans and I spent the next 3 days sleeping as I was very tired.

After the holidays I returned to work with good energy and spirit. On Tuesday night I went with my host family to Monti circus, Even Though it's not a big one yet I enjoyed the spirit and every moment of me there as it was my first time in a circus Wednesday I woke up at 5 a.m cycled to Niederscherli station so I can meet Christian in Schwarzenberg then we went to Kiental to bring the cows back to the farm. That day the sky was so amazing, I could not get my eyes off the window the whole ride. P.S remember to were the right clothing gear as it might be defrosted in the early morning

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Lastly, by the end of this month I have done so many new different tasks starting from changing car tier, fixing my bike, harvesting all the veggies in the field before the cold, picking apples to make apple juice, fertilizing the lands, feeding cows and goats, building new goat-shed, renovating the cow barn. 

“Life is a daring Adventure or nothing at all”

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Auf Wiedersehen 

Bis Bald

Auto-mode sleepless month

Every day is a blessing here in Switzerland, the nature, calm peacefulness that you won’t find anywhere in the world yet you can’t enjoy that if you’re not resting or taking care of your health either physically or mentally. Not being able to sleep and being stubborn to talk about that to anyone was the biggest mistake I made.
 
On Monday morning I took my bags ready for the new chapter in my life. I was heading to Val Mustair to be part of the BWBW project again as a youth leader, yet before doing that I had to take the last bike leeson with Renne. My journey to the avenue wasn’t easy as I had to change 4 trains and one bus and it was the last connection which means if I miss one I will end up in the middle of nowhere. The best thing happened to me during that training was hiking to Piz Umbrail mountain and jumping and swimming in Lai da Rims lake. 
Grubandwen again but this time St. Moritz for the on Arrival and mid term evaluation for all the EVS volunteers in Switzerland. I met Hala, and Ben at Bern train station so we went together. That 4 hours journey was not that long as we spent it talking, laughing and enjoying our time. And of course taking time lapse videos as it became kind of a habit for me to do that .
The Landscapes and scenery  were mesmerizing and breaktaking “I will never get sick of traveling around Switzerland every time there is new thing to watch and do”.

 Hi Again
Another month passed by very quickly. If I could describe it in one word it would be over occupied. By the first week I started working in Aloha Cafe & Bistro in Schwarzenberg, where I helped in the kitchen cutting, peeling and dicing veggies to prepare food for lunch. Plus, on my first day I learned all the different types of coffee drinks and how to prepare them. It was really a dream coming true for a coffee lover. I'm always thrilled and happy while making coffee and serving it to the customers even though at the beginning it was difficult to communicate with them or understand all that they were saying. If you remember, I used a bike to go from home to the nearest train station. The happiness and joy from riding the bike through the amazing landscape of the mountains did not last forever as by the end of the week I had an accident and fell with the bike into a corn field next while heading to work. That fall did not stop me from continuing my way, I stood and started walking while I had the bike next to me and halfway our neighbour Suzan saw me she got out of the car helped me to fix the bike. However, every time I passed the same road, I used to reimagine the accident. Then Oliver got me enrolled in a bike lesson where I can learn the basic and the most efficient way to ride the bike.
The next week I continued working at the cafe during the day and in the afternoon, I was making pizza at Schwarzenberg open air cinema festival. The day before the festival began, me and Chrigo went shopping for groceries to prepare lasagna for all the workers at the festival, then we prepared it at his house. After lunch we hit the road to bring the oven that we will use for baking all the pizza the next day. Schwarzenberg open-air cinema festival passed in blink of an eye they were very fast yet I would not forget any moment the atmosphere and the team spirit were something special and now I have a bigger family there.( Schwarzenberg open-air cinema team)
 
Every Saturday during August you can enter all the museums in Bern for free, so Ben, Hala, and I decided to visit some during this month. The communication museum was the first and best one as it has so many interactive games that suit all ages. Our friend Selina came to the museum with us. We had so much fun that day, we left the museum having our picture on a postcard sticker.
 
Later on, I started working sometimes at Wenger Farm, and preparing the self-serve shop with everything from veggie to dairy products and meats. Changing between the café and the farm was not easy yet for me working outside in nature was the best.
 
My sister came to Switzerland for a project by the end of the month and she spent some days with me one day I took a day off from work and went sightseeing with her to Interlaken and Thun. With all the new things that have changed in the past two month and not being able to speak openly about them and over occupying myself with work wasn’t good for my health and with my sister's visit everything starts going out to the surface as from the day she left I start having insomnia.

Hello,

My name is Danya. A month ago, I left my family, friends and my job in Palestine to join the European Voluntary service “EVS” program for a year in Switzerland. It's a great feeling, encouraging and full of enthusiasm to move to live in a new country with different lifestyle and traditions also where I try new things for the first time that will effect my whole culture and traditions in the future.

Being in a place far away from your family and your people is a very strange feeling, as I miss my family and friends back home. However, with modern technology, I can contact them and this helps me to stay positive. Currently, I'm living with my Swiss host family they have 3 girls, I did not feel alienated, they didn't give me the feeling of being an outsider, they treat me like one of their daughters.

Most of the days I ride my bicycle and enjoy the landscapes, nature and birds in the sky, unlike the way back, it is a little tiring because the road back home requires more effort as you move up the hill, but all the fatigue is forgotten and gone when you see the view of the Gantrich Mountains you may also see part of the Jura Mountain chain. When the weather is good and it's sunny, I go down to the river either to swim or walk beside it, sometimes I sit, enjoy and contemplate the beauty of nature.

On my first days in Switzerland, I watched UEFA EURO football match Switzerland VS. Spain game. We went to the host family's parents house to watch it and spent the day in their farm, after the match was finished, I played a football game with the girls and their cousins.
At my new home, we have 3 cats, 4 goats, 6 chickens, and a small farm next to the house. I used to play with our 3 cats back home in Palestine which is why I love to play with the we have here especially the one called that goes by the name Mimi. She likes to sleep in my bed sometimes and also wakes me up in the morning. They keep playing around me when they are hungry, so I give them food.

In the first month, I and the rest of the EVS volunteers went to the Walop area and Kaiseregg which is a mountain in the Bernese Alps to build and rebuild dry stone walls. The road was long and hard, especially that I'm not used to hiking in the mountains in Palestine but time after time it became easier and faster than the last time. It was not difficult to build drystone walls because I had previously participated in similar projects in Switzerland and Ireland, part of which was rebuilding dry stone walls. Moreover, I used to help my father back home in Palestine to build them on our land too.

The mountains life wasn't easy especially during the 2nd week because it was cold and the river level was high so each time, we had to cross it, we got wet. But the last week, the weather was great and sunny, and the views were fascinating you could spend hours relaxing and meditating the beautiful nature up in the Alps.

On the weekends I usually visit and explore new areas such as Bern, Köniz, Friborg, Biel/Bien, the surrounding cities and villages in Bern canton. Before Eid Al Adha I went on a holiday to Ernen in Valais with my host family. I walked on the "Fürgangen-Mühlebach suspension bridge" it was a little bit scary but a nice experience. Every day I went for a walk to discover the village and the surrounding villages, as a coffee lover I tried coffee in a new place every day. When Eid Al Adha occurred, I was a little bit sad because I couldn't celebrate it with my family.
Next month I'm starting to learn German, which will help me to communicate more with people. I learned a few words and phrases that can be used on daily basis. I also learned to ride the bike in the streets, so sometimes I use the bike to go to the Mediterranean shop in Köniz.

I can't wait to spend more time here to try a lot of new things and experienced them for the first time.