It is hard to believe that our time in Basel is nearly ending. This morning students had their Swiss "crash course" where they learned a bit about Swiss culture and a few important sayings in Swiss-German. After this, our students met with future exchange students who will be traveling to Reading during the fall of 2018. We then headed to the zoo before having an afternoon free to finish a very important task: shopping! We then met back up for a lovely farewell party. We will see everyone at Logan tomorrow!
Today, we made our way to Zurich...in the snow! While somewhat picturesque, the snow certainly is not what one expects towards the end of April. Nevertheless, we had a pleasant time in the city with a bus tour and some free time to explore in the afternoon. Jess will tell us a little more below:
Today, students took some time to shadow their host students to get the feel of what being a student is like at Gymnasium Leonhard. Jack and Kyle tell us about this below.
After school, we hopped on the trains to head through Germany and, ultimately, back to Switzerland to head to the Rheinfall, a beautiful waterfall along the Rhine River. Rebecca reflects a bit more below.
After a relaxing and fun weekend with host families and friends, we reconvened as a group at Gymnasium Leonhard this morning. We had a brief tour of the school and met the new principal before heading to our official visit at the Rathaus of Basel. Like our State House, the Rathaus is where the canton of Basel meets to conduct official government business. We had a guided tour by the infamous Osi, who created this exchange 13 years ago. We were also met by secretary of middle and secondary education and a representative from the U.S. embassy in Bern, Switzerland. T.J. and Lydia did a great job representing Reading, and you can hear their comments below:
Osi giving us a guided tour.
The symbol of Basel
A gift for Osi.
Reading pride.
After our visit, we headed to the Alps! We traveled to Mt. Titlis. At 10,000 feet, we were met with some of the most beautiful views in all of Switzerland. The pictures can't do it true justice, but Emma and Sydney will try to recapture the day for us.
No visit to Switzerland is complete without devouring some Swiss chocolate. We took this a step further and had our students make some of the chocolate! We visited M. Abeischer's confectionery shop to learn the art of molding chocolate. Brynn and Lydia will tell you more about it below, followed by some pictures of the shop and the process.
Attempting to roll paper for piping chocolate.
Learning about the chocolate recipe.
Working hard!
Starting to pipe the outside of the bunnies with dark chocolate.
Adding some white chocolate accents.
Meticulous work.
Filling the molds with milk chocolate.
Pastry chefs in the making.
The finished product.
Admiring their fine work.
A well-earned treat.
A job well done!
Students are now off with their families for the weekend. Until Monday!
