HEI Gala

So my school has a big fête every year, and, at the insistence of some friends, I decided to go. In the past, this has backfired for me, but this time I had no date to ditch me.

My good friends from International law class, Sarah and Hannah, invited me over for a little "wine and cheese" get together before the party. Two fellow American friends, Serena and Erzebet, joined us but opted out on coming along for the soirée. From Sarah's place, we caught the tram and then walked to the Noga Hilton. In a fell swoop of unluckiness I was placed at a table of people I had never even seen before (probably undergrads), but thankfully, some other friends had two open spots at their table. Liza and Fanny were nice enough to let me wait at their table in the meanwhile.


With some friends at our table

That second open spot, and the waiter's mistake of serving me wine 2 or 3 times, gave my neighbor, Julien, a bit more wine than he could handle or even cared to drink, in spite of his proud french heritage.

The dinner was superb and then we moved to the dance floor which was soon packed. Again, I missed the last bus, but Liza kindly offered to give me a ride home. It was amusing to see all my classmates in a setting other than the classroom or library and fun to relax and enjoy ourselves for an evening.

Parasailors over Geneva

In stark contrast to my last trip up Saleve, and thanks to the beautiful weather of late, I recently (18 march) ran up in shorts and tennis shoes, rather than boots and multiple layers. And this time, I went for sunset rather than sunrise. Let's just say I was only awake long enough at 4:30 that morning to turn off my alarm clock.

I arrived about 35 minutes before sunset. As I was enjoying the view and some dried apples seated on a rock, I saw a group of people just a bit further up, right below the telepherique (cable car). Noting big bags with ropes, their helmets, and harnesses, I assumed they had just finished climbing up Saleve's cliffs. But then the first few emptied out their bags and started spreading out their parasails. I enjoyed watching them run right off the mountainside into the deep air, suspended by colorful swaths of fabric.



From the telepherique overlook, I also marveled at the sunset over the Jura and admired the alpenglow opposite on the majestic alps. I had to get to my Institute class by 8pm, so I ran like a madman back down the path and got to my place in record time, 27:06, and made it to the Institute just 15 minutes late. Afterwards, I went to a Disco theme party with some church friends. A few folks went all out; we all had a good time.