The land of chocolate, cheese and Heidi

Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.
                                                                          Terry Pratchett, A Hat Full of Sky

Traveling anywhere in the world, even to a small town in your own country, is always a unique experience. We can never come back from a trip without becoming more independent, smarter or without building a new friendship. It is sometimes hard to leave our hometown because of some reasonable fears each of us have. Every travel is a new experience, and therefore, we are also starting to change and to realize various things about life. Even though that change is usually positive, it helps us see the world through different eyes. Given this, the reason why we are occasionally afraid is that we are not sure what are we going to see. Nonetheless, we should not be anxious about it. Traveling is our window to the world and each of us should at least take a peek.




The land I wanted to write about is, as you may already guessed, Switzerland. This beautiful country was my home for almost four months. I lived with host parents and two little host brothers in a small city called Uster, near Zurich. Not only did my new family helped me learn Swiss customs and even more complicated Swiss version of German, they also managed to show me the most astonishing places in Switzerland with a help of a little card called GA. For those who do not know what this card is, GA is a transportation card with which you can travel for free with bus, tram, train or a boat in the entire Switzerland. It is normally pretty expensive, so I wanted to use this opportunity and visit as much of Switzerland as I could. I usually traveled with my host family and friends, but sometimes also by myself. This is the travel map of places I visited in Switzerland:

https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=zS13oSmBoTpg.kF3jOU0FIXnc

And these are some of my favourite experiences:

ZURICH

Zurich is the largest city in the Switzerland and one of the most expensive cities in the world. It took me only about fifteen minutes with the train to come to this amazing city, so I was there nearly each day. Being in Zurich felt like being home. I was fascinated by the Limmat river and its bridges, churches, beautiful green parks and long Bahnhofstrasse which leads to the shimmering Zurich Lake. It was never boring to walk around the city. Even though Zurich is not so big comparing to other famous cities in Europe, there was always something new to see. Zurich's Must Do's are definitely to visit Lindenhof park with its outstanding view of the city, to get wonderfully lost in winding Old Town alleys while looking at medieval towers, picturesque bay windows, small stores and restaurants and recognizable Great Church, eat delicious Luxemburgerli from the Confiserie Sprüngli or Lindt chocolate and take a boat cruise on Lake Zurich. 

y medieval residential towers, past houses surrounded by legends, picturesque bay windows, ruins of Roman baths and much more.
Read more at http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/travel/best/9734/0/things-to-see-and-do-in-z-rich.html#iVmPJ7sLve4LEKh2.9

he well preserved Old Town can look back on a history spanning 2,000 years. Stroll through narrow and winding Old Town alleys, over cobblestone streets and by medieval residential towers, past houses surrounded by legends, picturesque bay windows, ruins of Roman baths and much more.
Read more at http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/travel/best/9734/0/things-to-see-and-do-in-z-rich.html#iVmPJ7sLve4LEKh2.99

On Top of the World

While living in Switzerland I visited some of the its highest mountaintops. The feeling was absolutely amazing. Seeing snow in Septembar was a completely new experience for me. Although I did not ski or rode a snowboard, hiking in Switzerland left me breathless. I was never a big fan of hitch-hiking, but after seeing magnificent landscapes I could not complain. It really does look like in pictures! Almost incredible.

Since my host family is really adventurous and do all kinds of sports, I have even tried climbing. I am not really much of a sports person. At that time, I danced and, now and then, jogged, so I was in a pretty good condition. However, they were all in better physical condition than me. Anyway, I was not really sure if I wanted to climb with them, but I decided to try. The main reason why I was so hesitant was that we were about to climb the mountain which was surrounding a lake. You are probably guessing why was I so indecisive! I was afraid I would fall down into the lake. Luckily, I did not and I actually had fun. On the picture below is one of my host brothers and me. Behind us is the lake I was writing about. It has a really strange colour. Anyway, we were the clumsy ones, so we did not went climbing with the rest of the family anymore. My host dad always stayed with us because he was in general afraid of mountain climbing.

A Face to Call Home

Big part of everyone's exchange experience is meeting people from all over the world. Your classmates, exchange students, like you, and members of your host family become important part of your life. It does not matter how far away from each other you live, if you have memories together, there is always going to be a place for those friendships inside your heart.

I could write about Switzerland and its stunning landscapes for ages, but I think you have heard enough. This country is truly something special. With its multilingual society, majestic mountains, spacious lakes, delightful chocolate and cheese, unmistakable punctuality, sharp knives and breathtaking environment, Switzerland is a country you must love. Just remember the story of Heidi and you will certainly decide to come!