I have been the worst blogger ever. A post is in progress over my three week long Herbst Ferein, but I am going to update on my past weekend. Thursday was Halloween, which was a little weird. I remember thinking, "Oh wait, it's Halloween." So many people are interested about it and would ask me about it. Halloween is gaining popularity in Switzerland more and more every year. A few kids  were even trick or treating in the evening! At school, there was a boy that shaved his head and covered his entire body with paint (he was a skeleton). I really appreciated the measures he took to celebrate the American holiday! To other countries, Halloween is a scary holiday. They think the Americans go all out as the scariest creatures, but really all my friends dress up as cute things, like cats, tourists, fairies, celebrities, etc. On Thursday night, my host sister and I watched movies. It was a very nice family evening. The next day I got up early and went for a run. Then, one of my best exchange friends, Ana from Mexico, came over to my house. We helped my mom bake cakes for a party that my host parents were having for Bruno's family. They were having a Heisse Marroni (chestnuts) party. Ana and I were not present because Kira, an exchange student from the US, was having a Halloween costume/dance party. That was a lot of fun! It was great to see all my friends!

There were a lot of cats here

The next day, I went to Rapperswil with Leandra. It was a beautiful, small city. If my host mom hadn't suggested that we should go there, then I probably would never have gone! The weather was perfect. It was a sunny, fall day. I felt like I was in a movie because the leaves were falling all around, but not in a depressing dark way. In a happy, light floating way with warmth--I am not entirely positive that I'm able to articulate things in English as well as before in the States... About two hours after sightseeing, we ran out of things to see, so we decided to head home since we both had plans in the evening.

yes, this is a castle

After Rapperswil, I went to my Swiss friend's, Ellen's, house for a movie night with the girls. I was very tired, because well I'm very busy (this is of course a good thing). But, I met Ellen's family, and the parents are from Germany, so it was nice speaking High German with them! We drank tea and chatted for a while. Then, we watched two movies in the "Keller." This room had a giant couch pull out thing for us to all get comfortable on, and enough blankets for all. I brought popcorn and m&ms with me. When I have movie nights with friends at home, there is always m&ms mixed with popcorn and cookie dough. I introduced them to the dynamic duo of chocolate and popcorn-it was a hit and success!! They were crazy about it which made me feel good! Unfortunately, the movies didn't come with subtitles (films made in Germany), but it was fun and I understood enough. Afterwards, her dad drove us all home which is really nice since we could've hopped on a train. I am really lucky to have formed such amazing friendships, not only with the exchange students, but also with the Swiss people. On Sunday, I had a relaxing rainy day. I worked through paperwork and reports for Rotary-making sure I'm staying on top of everything. I also had a wonderful treat and got to Skype with a friend from home!!

I can't believe it's almost been three months... 4 days until the first three months! Time is flying and I couldn't be happier. I don't understand why not more people do something like this. I am so blessed to have this experience of a lifetime and to have met some of the most amazing people from all over the world. I'm going to try to update more often, but keep it shorter and then keep a more personal handwritten journal.