I studied for the GRE (not pictured because it was horribly boring. I mean, just the math part... I liked the verbal! I'm quite erudite with my ameliorable vocabulary these days.)
And I had some quality friend time.
And I broke the Dayton Marriott. I was the Gene to the innocent Phineas-esque clock and I'll live with regret/shame until I die.
And I said a lot of goodbyes.
And I shed some rather intense Tim's tears. So, feel free to judge me.
And then, exhausted and possibly a little too emotional, with Kevin and Greg's assistance, I boarded the plane from Dayton International to DC.
(Pictured: All things special and familiar).And at DC, I'm pretty sure my giddy/frantic behavior freaked out my new friend AJ, also a volunteer with BVS in Northern Ireland. Then we had an eight hour flight, where I slept like an hour-ish. Good.
When we finally landed in Geneva, we met up with Kristin, the wonderful BVS Europe director. And my "met up," I mean I shouted a lot and bear hugged her, attracting a bit of attention.
Whoops. With Cori and Adam (and, later, Mike), the other BVS NI volunteers, we utilized Geneva's classy public transportation system and heavily denied that we were jet lagged. I mean, it had only been 24-ish hours since I'd slept. No big.
After we checked in at our super-swank hostel,
Kristin forced us to march. "Forced" here means gently suggested in an attempt to ease our transition from time zone to time zone and "march" means "see the sights/hear the sounds/smell the smells/take embarrassing photos", so it wasn't all bad!
We saw crazy trees,
beautiful monuments/architecture,
hotels that were the site of many-a-murder,
a colorful take on the world,
upsetting political advertisements against guns,
buildings that fit together like puzzle pieces,
really important churches in the world of the Protestant Reformation,
the chair of one John Calvin,
the contrast between post-Reformation
and pre-Reformation churches
the slightly-scary stars of the Reformation,
the picture-esque Lake Geneva/Lac Leman,
ladies Geneva and Switzerland agreeing to hang out more,
and memorials to children fighting them,
murderous birds of prey,
and memorials to children fighting them, 
the coolest/weirdest looking Catholic church I've seen,
a monument to cuddlers everywhere,
a gorgeous nature reserve,
the absolutely amazing lake again,
and again (and I loved that tree - good to climb!)
the absolutely amazing lake again,
and again (and I loved that tree - good to climb!)
about a billion watch advertisement,
this slightly-awkward chapstick advertisement, 
the awe-inspiring Alps,
the best elevator in the world at the World Council of Churches,
and a chunk of the Berlin wall that was perfect for an awkward lean (also at the WCC). 
And despite warnings from my wonderful European friends, I neglected to buy some clothes in neutral colors, and instead looked like this.
Yep, I blended in just fine.
After our whirlwind tour of Geneva (and after a much-needed sleep), Kristin continued to be awesome by teaching us more about BVS and our projects and cooking us a lovely meal of veggie chili...
... which I decided to eat the "European way" with a fork and knife. I'm classy that way, you know.
Other good, non-embarrassing news...
THAT was the photo sent to my project so they knew what I looked like. Oh, weather appropriate clothing...
The next day, we learned lots about Northern Irish history from the comfort of Kristin's home. Wow. There is more than enough to dedicate twelve blogs to, so just let me know if you have a question/comment/concern. Or, google it.
That night, we did a cursory trip to a fondue restaurant, like pretty much every European BVSer before us. The Swiss do cheese pretty well, I must say.
After some laughs, more sage wisdom from Kristin, and some ridiculously giddy questions from yours truly, it was time to back up and get in one last sleep before we left the continent for our new homes.
And here we are, all packed and ready to explore.
Off to the next grand adventure...
(Pictured: too many colors, yet again)
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