Luzern life ... the first week

Well, for those of you who don't know ... I'm in Switzerland! (hence the title of my blog). And for those of you who already knew, here are the details you have been waiting for. :)

I live in the city of Luzern. www.luzern.org Population roughly around 70K. It really feels like a small town though. Probably because you can walk from one side of the town to the other in about 30 minutes. It's really a beautiful city - picturesque and quite charming. The city is divided by the River Reuss which flows out of Lake Luzern. The buildings that flank the river are out of sight. They are medieval in nature, gothic looking, if you will. There are so many gorgeous houses and churches. Even the streets in "Old Town" are sweet. They are made from cobblestones, that at some points are large public squares, and at other points they are winding little alley ways. While walking, the roads seem to meander into little hidden areas, and then pop you back out on to another cobblestone road again. There is no grid system road network here. The roads all curve and end into another road named something entirely different with its own little winding alleys. I'm learning - very slowly, I think. All I ever hope when I'm walking is that the road I'm on will eventually lead me to one of the four bridges; so, that I can cross the river bringing me to the other side of town.

Which brings me to getting around town ... Walking is the way of life here. Although their public transportation system is tight. Super efficient and decently affordable. They actually follow a time table here, and are rarely late. From my flat, public trans is not really an option; So, I walk, and I walk, and I walk. You may be asking - why is public trans not an option? Well, let me tell you a little bit about where I live ...

My address is >>>> [email me if you want it] <<<<. A little bit about where I live ... If you would like to see it from above, go to google maps, and put in the street and number and city, then once the pic pops up, click on Satellite - and that's where I live. It's cool! Anyhow, I live on a mountain. I'm not kiddding. Ok - maybe I'm exaggerating slightly, but I live above the city, and my view is crazy! (see the pic to the left) But if you want a view (and don't live in a highrise), then you must give up something else - and, here, I had to give up an easy walk to town. I take a trail down the mountain in order to get to the street below. It's hard to describe, but I'll put up pics to explain. It's quite the hike. I'll just say this - within a month, I will have tight calves and gluts. haha. However, right now, I'm still panting all the way up and wishing that I would just fall down dead so that I could stop climbing the mountain. (pic of my trail to the down and to the right here)

I started classes this week. It should be interesting. The classes here are a bit different that at my law school in Chicago. They're very interactive, unlike a lot of law classes which are just lecture, lecture, freaking lecture. Here, every person has to be an active participant. We have group exercises. In one of my classes we will be given a fictitious human rights case, which we will take through the international human rights court avenues, write complaints, mock trial, judgment, etc. I was thrown in the "judge" group, meaning I am not a lawyer for the petitioner (the person whose rights were allegedly violated, for you non law people), nor am I a lawyer for the state. I will read complaints from both sides regarding issues of admissibility - write a judgment on that; then we will put on a mock trial, and I will question the attorneys, and give my judgement at the end. Seem like a cinch? Well, it's not. I'm scared shitless. oh well. We'll see. School stuff is boring to most normal peeps, so I'll switch courses here ...

I have made a few friends. Mostly international kids. There's 10 of us from all over: 3 from Chicago, 2 from Turkey, 2 from China, 1 from Israel, 1 from Czech Republic, and 1 from Austria. I've also made a couple Swiss friends, which is great. Last night all us international kids went out ... all I can say is German bier is potent as a mother *^*$#! haha. I had to take a cab home because there was no way I was making it back up the mountain in my condition. :) The bar life in Luzern is interesting. The clubs are very European. There's techno music everywhere - makes me want to shoot myself in the head, but whatever - ha. And the Swiss love their cigarettes unfortunately - in bars, restaurants, cafes, bathrooms, everywhere. I guess I'll just have to get use to smoke again. oh well.

Today was the first day of Fasnacht! Carnival for all you Americans. The Swiss dress up and party their generally-reserved-asses off during Fasnacht, which lasts from today until Ash Wednesday. Although the first parades were today, the main parade is Tuesday night (I hear). It's the Monster Parade! The tale is that the Swiss dress as monsters to scare off winter and bring on the spring. So, I'm all about it! Granted, it's colder in Chicago than here, but you

all know I freaking hate being cold. So, I say 'monster monster monster'!!

Ok. So I'm tired of writing. And you're tired of reading. More later ... post monster parade... ooh ooh ooh ooh ahh ahh ahh ahh ... Scared aren't you? What movie are those famous sounds from? Come on! I expect at least one of you (in particular) to know the answer. Don't let me down!!!

MY LUZERN PICS: www.picasaweb.google.com/kddickens