Here's where I get sappy.

Well, here's my itinerary. I'm leaving the Chalet on Monday morning early, flying out of Geneva, staying in London Monday night and then off to Omaha on Tuesday Morning. I'm spending Christmas in Sioux Falls, and then flying back to Idaho on the 26th. Laura will join me there on the 30th. We're leaving for Miami by the 10th of January.

I've been trying not to think about this, or deal with it. But the time has come. I am going to miss this place. I'm going to miss our summer days like these:

Day 3 of 4 on guest this week so with 4 of us on guest and no lunches breakfast went pretty smoothly with no extra helpers still. Although the tiredness and delirium was ever present- its been getting worse with us all recently. My second day on Monday guest and for another 100 people- the salad prep is ever big, the amount of sausages is always high but no writing on bananas like last week (maybe this week we're more awake and less delirious- or we couldn't be bothered). Kat did fire as last week it was too hot and she doesn't want to risk getting burnt again. I was on with Magdalena, Katie and Rachel today. So after lunch for the masses and what seemed like a bottle of ketchup left on every plate (peoples eyes can be far bigger than their stomachs), Rachel and I were in the kitchen. Mondays are always staff meetings so Rachel and I were alone cleaning ('anything you can think of') then it was time for turkey rolls.

Turkey rolls are always a joke at the chalet (between staff of course). I remember not liking them at the beginning and after 3 months they haven't improved. They're great in the fact they need little prep but they are terrible to cut up. Last week the game became more interesting with points for your 'hidden treasures'. I think I won this week as I found a bone + joint (with marrow) the others found amusing but luckily staff didn't have to eat it, we had 'staff turkey roll'- left over veggie patties from the BBQ. Clear up finished at 8.15.

(courtesy of Ruthie's Switzerland and Beyond Mon 11).

And I'm going to miss our Autumn days like this:

We were greeted by your typical Swiss elderly couple, with lines on their face reflecting the harsh climbing and cold winds they had weathered their whole life. And bless their hearts, they had hot chocolate waiting for us - made with raw milk. As in they had just pulled some cow's tit, got milk in a bucket, and used it to make our drinks with. And it was delicious. So with the warmth of the chocolate in our bellies we headed upstairs to sleep.

By upstairs I mean the attic of a barn. And it smelled like one. And we were crammed side by side. And although I've done some pretty amazing things with these people, it's still hard to sleep between two "practical" strangers in a stinky barn knowing you need to get up at 3am. That's right, we got to the cheesemaker's hut at 9pm, and were to get up at 3am
(from Jena's Switzerland or bust: My first summit).

Mostly I'm going to miss my big Chalet Family. Here's a more specific list:

• Morning coffee with Jen in her nightgown. Her grumpy face and the way she runs into my house and burrows under my three covers while I make coffee.
• Ski-bocking to work.
• The dirty looks I get from the coop cashiers when I try to buy beer.
• The Alpenrose, and late night talks with Jen and friends.
• Easily accessible and cheap train travel to anywhere I can imagine.
• Ringing the dinner bell for as long as it takes for someone to wave at me from the office.
• Meal times with crazy themes, or crazy conversations. I've learned so much about how people live in other countries--and have learned just how much I like my own.
• Cooking in a cauldron.
• Learning German. Speaking German in public and getting a pity laugh.
• Cheap toilet paper, cheap chocolate and the most ridiculously delicious mustard in the world--it comes in a tube.

There are things I will NOT miss about Switzerland:

• The insanely dense population (give me wilderness!)
• The cows, the distinct smell of cow every time we gather in large numbers.
• Expensive everything else (anything not listed on the above list as cheap)
• You must lock your door from the inside with your key, and you can't get out of your house if you've lost your key. How is this safe in the event of a fire?

These are the things I'm excited for in the future:

• Seeing my dog (and you too, Mom).
  
• Driving across country.
• Getting on with my real-life.
• Learning Spanish (try again, might work next time).
  

My last few days of work have been slow. Today I'm preparing tons of lasagnas for the freezer and typing up notes that I think may be useful for my successor. Oh, and tons of arts and crafts.