#4: My Not-So-First Day of Class

So as you may or may know, I come from a very small town in Wisconsin. The approximate population is 1,200 people. We're tiny, we're happy, it works out. So I went from a tiny little town to living in like..New York City. I'm slowly getting used to it, but as you'll find out, I'm not quite there yet.


So after slaving over my student schedule all night last night, I settled on a few courses and found out I'll have class the next day. So I get myself ready and set out for the train station. With my transportation app, I'm told I'll arrive a few minutes after my class started. It's not ideal, but it's not too bad. I'll just have to be earlier next time!


I got on the train no problems. Now, it's not like this train just goes from Esch to Luxembourg City in one stop, there are a few stops in between. At each stop the intercom will say what town we are stopping at. But when I'm going somewhere for the first time, I tend to second guess myself a lot. So when the train pulled up the last stop, I didn't quite hear right but everyone was getting off. So I took a little leap of faith and got off, low and behold, I was in the right place. Yes! Small victory for me!

From there my app told me to get on the bus at the fourth terminal. (Error, error, wrong!) So I got on the bus and the last stop is supposed to be at my campus. So I rode the bus, and rode, and rode. Then the last stop came and I was the only one left on the bus...I looked out the window and it wasn't right.

"Fin, madam" the bus driver said.

Shit. I took the wrong bus.
I ended up Kirchberg.
And I had no wifi. Great.

I really, really wanted to just break down and cry honestly. But I'm very grateful that my mind kicked into survival mode and I stayed calm. So I got off the bus and walked back straight (the same way the bus came). I passed a few bus stops, but not knowing where they were going made me stay away from them. Finally, after 40 minutes of walking, I found a bus stop with a sign telling me where the buses were going.

The one place I've learned is "Central Gare" which is where the central train station and bus station is. So I got on a bus to the Central Gare. Once there I decided I had enough for the day and took a train back to Esch.

There is some good news though, a friend of mine was in that class and told me all about it. And from what she told me, I won't understand a thing in the class so it is best for me to just not take it..my time was wasted but hey, I made it home!

Moral of the story:
Paige + trains = best friends
Paige + buses = not friends yet

#3: First real day

So when we arrived at Zurich airport, it was about 10:30 am. Back home, it was 4:30 am..but that didn't stop me from texting everyone and letting them know I made it. I was absolutely exhausted because I maybe got about 6 hours of strained sleep on the plane, and I had to try and keep myself awake here. So I sat down at a little airport cafe and ordered a coffee, I don't like coffee but it helped to wake me up a bit.

In a couple hours I was on a smaller plane to Luxembourg City. I went down the baggage claim and out came my giant suitcase. As I was walking out an officer for airport security asked me to step aside, I assume due to the fact that was suitcase was crazy large. He put my bag up on a small table and asked me a few questions. Did I have any fruit in my bag? No, sir. Do you have anything new from the U.S.? No, sir, it's pretty much just clothes. Just clothes? Yes, sir.

Then without opening my bag, he looked me in the eye for a second. I knew I had nothing illegal, so there was no reason for me to be scared. So he told me he believed me, and sent me on my way. Luckily for me, I was met by a student at the university who helped me onto a series of buses that took us to the main university building where I would be. The drive there was so different, everything around me was just so interesting, I couldn't help but space out between questions from the student.

When we arrived, I was given a ton of paperwork and then had to go get my housing key. While waiting to get it, I just about fell over in exhaustion. Soon my key was in hand, and we were fighting the next battle of getting my laptop to connect to the school's wifi (pronounced weefee here, fun fact).

Then we were back out on a combination of buses to take us the the train station. After a train ride, we were at my final stop..Esch. It's really such a lovely place. It's just not like my hometown at all...(I've also resorted to saying I'm from near Chicago to make it easier for everyone else). A few minutes of walking (while dragging my 50 pound suitcase and heavy carry on) we found my apartment and lucky, lucky me I lived on the top floor with no elevator. So up three flights of stairs we went. I met my roommates, did a little unpacking, then back out I went to have dinner with some girls I met at arrival and the student who picked me up before.

After dinner, I felt confident I could find my way back as we had only taken one turn and mostly walked straight. Plus I was jetlagged and a bit of a mess from the plane, so I just wanted to rest for a bit. Well I knew there was a turn, but I forgot where. So my worst fear occurred on the first day, I got lost on my own. So I began walking up and down the streets looking for my street, that was the one thing I knew. In the process, a man tried to flirt with me in French, which made being lost a little better =P

After half an hour of searching, I found my street and followed it back to my apartment. The feeling of relief was like nothing I can even describe. When I walked back up to my apartment, I was greeted by my roommates and a few friends, who invited me in. We then sat around sipping champagne, listening to "trash music", and watching crazy Youtube videos. I was absolutely exhausted, but it was a nice little Valentines Day, where I stayed up until 2 am. That night's sleep was amazing. 

#2: Up in the air

If you're like me and had never flown internationally before, you probably might be in a bit of a panic. But by the time my plane was taxiing down the runway, I was all smiles. It was really exciting! It's like, yes, this is really real now.

The one thing I was worried about was what I was going to do with all this time on my hands. In fact, I went and bought a battery pack that would charge my iPod without being plugged in. But I was pleased to find out that each seat had an individual screen on it and I was able to pick from a list of movies and TV shows to watch. They even had a few games you can play. I then discovered the buttons I had been pushing on my arm rest was actually part of a removable remote (if I saved you that time, you're welcome!)

So I started off watching Gravity (which is not a good movie to watch while flying..why would you let me do this to myself, Swiss airlines??). Then they served a little dinner, which was nice as far as airline food goes. It's not first class, but it was alright.

Well fast forward through Gravity, Madagascar, an episode of The Big Bang Theory, and a failed attempt at playing a game of Soduko, I fell asleep right around Greenland. (I only know that because they broadcasted our location on a little map).

When I woke up I could feel a bit of turbulence that felt more like going through a rain storm. I checked, we were above England..so go figure it was raining. So I fell asleep for another and when I woke up they were serving croissants, yogurt, and orange juice. Within an hour or two, we were landing at my first stop, Zurich airport.

#1: Beginning: 2/13/2014

So I was given the idea to keep a little travel blog for others who would like to read along about my trip. So here goes!

Well this whole journey started on Thursday, February 13th. I knew that day was coming for a while, but when I first woke up, accidentally, at 5:30 am I went into panic mode. Suddenly I was so anxious, nervous, and excited all at the same time. It was crazy and way too much to allow me to fall back asleep. But I somehow managed to stay in bed a little longer and got up a little before 7. From there I began the final stages of packing, which is definitely a chore when you know you are leaving that night.

Double check, triple check, quadruple check. Ok I think everything is in there.

I looked out the window and it was snowing pretty hard, so then I put myself through the stress of trying to look up my flight and make sure it was still on time. I was pouring over a flight app and couldn't find anything. Fine, let's just hope for the best.

One thing went my way though, I discovered it was possible for me to 'check in' online 23 hours before my flight. This meant that I could print off my boarding passes before I even left for the airport. If you're going to travel, I would absolutely look into this. So I printed off my boarding passes, grabbed my temporary stay permit, and my passport and put them into my little lock box. I don't know if I'll really need this lock box, but it provides a little piece of mind.

After one last lunch, at Red Robin (yummm!), and final goodbyes, I was boarding a bus to Chicago airport. Being alone at this airport might be a little frantic to some, but just keep a clear head and you'll be fine. Arriving at the airport was a little rough for me, my bus driver insisted I needed to be at Terminal 1, so after failing to convince him, I got off at Terminal 1. But after the bus left and I showed my boarding pass to am employee I was told I needed to go to Terminal 5.

Being at the wrong terminal wasn't that bad though. I had plenty of time in case something like this would happen anyways, I was there at 3:30 and my flight was at 7:10. So I boarded the airport train and it shipped me off to the right place. With my boarding pass in hand I was able to skip the front of the line (not that there were many people there yet), my papers were checked, my bag was taken, and then all that was left was to wait.

Waiting wasn't all that bad, I thought it would take forever, but somehow it went pretty quickly. It was probably the anxiety mixed with the fact that I could watch TV. Within no time, they were calling us to board. Everyone around me jumped up to get in line, but I just sat back and waited until they died down a bit. That way I didn't have to fight the crowds. Soon enough I was in my seat, crammed next to an older gentleman. I kept my carry on by my feet because I was so worried about it.

Next we were up in the air...