I did not write as much as I wanted. Even if I had time… What can I say ? I enjoyed pretty much doing nothing, I did get bored sometimes too, especially during the last week but to be honest, I cherish it because I know, further time will be tough.

The second week end in Altaï, we drove until the desert. It was that damn amazing, the landscapes and the sunset after all. We had fun and troubles with the cars, had some beers, too many vodka and a lot of meat. We met a guy who was able to speak mas o menos español and I have not much more to say about ! It is just so random to stop in the middle of nowhere for having a break, streaching our legs and playing volleyball. 🙂

We arrived in the capital today and did check in in the airbnb appartment. True shower, true bathroom, true bed. It is good to be back in the civilisation. Which also means… we left our host families and the school yesterday. First of all you have to know we went to the restaurant on thursday evening and then we went to a night club. We had too many vodka and we danced way too much; I had to go back home and the day after we had our last day school: I arrived too late and I was absolutely hangover. The kids played with me, they… hidden me in the school for preparing me a little surprise and.. surprise ! They offered me some gifts, … I almost cried if I wasnt too drunk… We met the 4 volunteers of us in a room, they danced, sang for us and and and.. I had a walk in the city with my class before the goodbyes. My family picked me up, we had a lunch and already it was time to leave.

It is too less words for too many impressions and I know that I may come back in a few days for telling you more about the culture, more about my connection with the kids, more about the little beautiful devil Martjla, however right now, I just need a break, I need a deep breathe and peace around me. 24 hours in this appartment will not be that bad. 🙂

Because I am from Switzerland, I always valued the nature around. We got such beautiful landscapes !!! A weekend in the mountains would remain me Valis, the tight roads and the fresh air; the simplicity of a breakfast outside and the wood’s walls of the house of a friend over there ! Since my host family told me we would go to the mountains, I knew I could except something totally different !
So on friday after school, I went to the « alos » place, the public showers, and then I came back home, ate something and packed my stuffs. Just my only one cashmeere shirt and my camera, actually. The other volunteers and their host families arrived, so we started to get in the mood ! We packed beers with, chips and food and finally we left for the aunt’s place ! Such a place… such a road… I would never have tried to drive here by my own and one of us had some troubles to make it ! The two others host fathers (obviously they are driving) did manage pretty well ! After some crazy curves, patience and a lot of fun, we arrived in the middle of nowhere. A peacefull place, a little river, a lot of sheeps and the typical mongolian yourte and ooooh ! Lets strech my legs!

By the way, safety is definitely not priority over here; my 2-years-old-kid had not belt and was just playing in the car while we were almost dying because of the stones of our ways.

So we enjoyed the nature, we ate so much… a sheep expressely sacrified for all of us, we cooked, I did ride a horse, took pictures, laughed, played volley ball, poker… I have not much to say except that we truly were there and adapted ourselves to the culture, to the place, learnt a lot ! We even had a campfire in the evening ! Sometimes it is just good to take the time, not to do much and being a bit bored. 🙂

Toilets are outside and it is basically a hole. For showering, I have to walk 15 minutes and it will be at public showers; I have no drinkable water at home, neither a tap so I can not proprely wash my hands or my teeths.

Livings standards are different and you have to do with; I do with and by now I am wondering if it is comfort to have a shower everyday ? They are not the cleanest persons I met on earth. Do I have to judge them for that ? Definitely not. Are they unhealthy because of not having such an hygiene like ours ? No. We are all living in the living room, which is actually not such one. A home here is more a one-room place. We sleep close to each other and my family is taking the floor while I am on the couch. I was surely pretty ashame to get the couch, so we talked and actually, is does not matter to them.

We are living way too comfy in europa and I hope you are aware of; it does not mean to me that I have to change my way of life. I do love my everyday-shower and the cleaness of a bed ! … Easier acommodation do not mean poverty tho’. We all do live different and we have to think about it.

I was really afraid, because I did not know how it will go. How good I would be. If they would like me. If my english good enough was. So I prepared my lesson, minute after minute in making sure I would have enough exercices. I fixed myself some goals, ones for the week and ones for my stay here: I want them to be able to introduce themselves in english, to be able to write proprely this language, to know the numbers, to have a certain vocabulary and to explain about their family, their hobbies. We started wih the alphabet and I decided to be a clown. To make it over fun, because that is how was my english teacher with me and he was right about: they memorize better.
So I arrived late and we already sang, played a lot ! It went pretty well.
During the week I had some downs as well, they are still kids afterall. However we kind of get a feeling for each others and somehow, it works. I make fun all the time, I make the repeat thousand times and more and sometimes I have to call for order but once again: it somehow works. I am optimist about how much english they will have learnt and hey… I already got attached to some of them.

So the morning we all have one class and we teach. Then we come back in the afternoon for play and games and believe me or not but damn, it asks a lot of energy ! Ahaha. The rest I will surely let you know.

What for a trip !

After we (the 4 volunteers) met at the café, we bought some groceries and took the bus. 20 hours. Here we are. The landscapes were magnificients and so differents from each other ! I saw many sheeps, CAMELS and couldnt wait to arrive in Altaï !.. But I had to. So after we stopped … 3 times, all peed in the countryside and so on, we finally arrived. Our hosts picked us up, we went to our places and to the restaurant and then to a festival, in which men have to compete each other in riding horse, archering and.. and .. and each of us finally hit her place.

My host family, like many here, is living in a one-room-house. It does include the kitchen, a table for eating and a living room with a tv. Uuree and Hishee and their two daughters are really, really lovely and nice; they make sure I have everything I need and even if Hishee can not speak english, he is pretty fun ! So now. Where are toilets and shower right ? SURPRISE

Toilet is outside. A little wooden hut, if the name sounds sweet, the reality is not. Basically there is no paper, so I always have to take it with and is it a hole on the floor. For the shower I have to walk.. 17 minutes from home and to pay 2’000 turgrik (so less than 1 swiss franc) in the public showers. There, I will be in a cabin by my own and a clean person (usually a woman) will lock the door behind me. As soon as I am done, I have to knock on the door and she will come to open it up. Such fun.

Seriously, without sarcasm, it is ok. I realize how much I like my west-european comfort and how I.. somehow.. always did visit cities, even though I am from a little village. I would not describe me as scornful tho’. I do like nature, I do like camping and I would not die if I do not take a shower for 4 days (the all way from Moscow-Ulan-Ude, remember?) and I do not need to wash my hands everytime I touched something. However, I can see how I consider my hygiene and how I am used to cleaness around me. I do pretend I want to discover the whole world and make something good here around even in remote area; it is true ? Could I really do that ? Are we open-minded enough for trying to understand others cultures, others needs ? My host is taking a shower once a week and when I see the hair or just the hands of her little baby, when I can not wash my teeth because there is not really a sink, do I judge the hygiene and lifestyle of a mongolian person ? Or do I try to think they got other priorities than mine ?

I wanted to explain you my first day of school as well but I guess there is enough to think for the moment and so, tomorrow I will write you down how I chose to be a clown for teaching to my little kids !

I took the train from Ulan Ude after I rested well enough. In the train I met a girl from Mongolia, living in America and a girl from Züri. Hoi zsäme! They were different from each other but both really nice. We chilled in the cabin, the three of us and for a few hours, I felt like being with friends in a living room.

6.58, I arrived in Ulan Bator, someone picked Juliette up and drove me to the Café I am currently at… waiting to meet the other volunteers. I still read some exercises to do with my futures students and everything is gonna be alright, she says with a american-french accent.

It has not been easy. First you have to make sure about the train station you’ve to be at ! There are 5-7 in Moscow… Then, be patient. See the train. Show your ticket. Your visa. And lets go for no shower and a lot of Russian for few days !

I have been with a russian family first. The teenager spoke with me a little in english and Irena and Pasha, the parents.. well.. they showed me their whole family on their phone. We stayed only 24hours together as they had to get out the next station; Irena huged me as a mother does and Pasha used some french words for me. Then I met two women from France/Switzerland and we quite talked a lot, for 2 days. It has been nice and I know more about virus and biométhane ! We should all turn into new energies… I also used a poco de español with people from Sevilla/Madrid y Valencia! and finally a .. mongolian man has not give any effort to communicate with me in english so we did not understand each other but shared some food. It was the second class and it seems I met many people but to be honest, you can not truly meet people even in the third class, except if you speak russian.

So I will come back, in knowing russian. 🙂 Спасибо!

Mostly I read, wrote. I finally read Joël Dicker and Im almost at the end of 1984. I took some german books as well and oh. I thought. A lot. The night. All day. I am glad my 4 days in a train went well and I AM EVEN MORE GLAD of the shoooooooower I took as soon as I got in the appartment in Ulan-Ude. Yes, I wanted a stop in between. Tomorrow I take the train again until Ulan Bator and from there I will meet the others volunteers and we will drive until Altaï 🙂 I needed some time for myself and I think it did work, I have some more plausible thoughts and reached kind of serenity… as well as doubts. Am I really ready for teaching in english ? When I read 1984 of Orwell I reconfort myself in thinking I am able to speak english; then I also remember every of my aupairs experiences and all kids I helped…. But is that enough ? Will I be fun to them ? Will they like me ? How should I get their attention ? Where do I start ? I begin to be scared… and it is even a reason more to go for it. Maybe I will crash the first day and it will be awfull… But then I will do better. And better. And first of all: I will love them. No matter what. I will love bringing them anything. So, it is gonna be ok. We are never really ready for challenges, are we ? And it is exactly the point a challenge, isn’t it ? 😉

So, here some sleep on a mattress and tomorrow Im fit again !

I arrived a bit later than planed, I messed up with transportations and spent 2 hours in the bus for getting until the city, I was upset and almost missed the couchsurfing’s guy I was about meeting, I did not find the hostel, had not battery left anymore. Oh, in addition of that I forgot my diary at the airport.

However, my diary was new and I had not written a line inside. A young girl and her mother helped me to find the place I was looking for and the guy met me and offered me russian pancakes. There is always a way to look at that you’re living. 🙂
I am such surprised; Russians did kill every of my clichés about them. Not only they were easy to approach but they always tried to help me, whatever the language. I asked my way at least 120’476’023 times and only once a forty-guy showed me he could not communicate in english at all. Every of the others were nice to me. So I met in the morning with a couple and they took the time to speak with me in…. french ! And showed me all around. How does it work ? Well, couchsurfing is the best place to find my people since I am traveling alone. Not only I find people who invite me to sleep over for free but most of the time, I meet new friends I do not know yet ; ) It is just about communication and of course they are bad people here around; I already had bad experiences in life, I do manage to learn about and to improve my instinct in people tho’. Here is the thing: if you think people will hurt you in someway, if you do not give them a chance to do something good for you, how could they do so ?
So I did visit … many things in Moscow and as I did not except anything from there, I really enjoyed it ! I will study more about their history and architecture in the further time.
In the evening I went back to the hostel, a guy from Iran and one for South Korea talked to me, the german girl joined us, I planed to meet an other Russian, he picked me up and we finally… all went out in the city together ! Even with his brother. What a night.
Here I am, woke up in the morning, went to buy a new diary, did some groceries, finished to pack my stuffs (because yes I did that the evening before. I do not know how it works for others but as soon as I can, I take care of my stuffs, I pack, otherwhile I am way too much stressed later), had a breakfast and here I am. Crying because I will never succeed to bring ALL my stuffs in the train. Ah. Traveling is such a thing ! Wish to me and to my 11 instants-noodles good luck for the trip ! I will post the texts, which I will have written in the train, on thursday eve’, after I take the keys of the airbnb appartment and dive into the bathtub. Yes, selfcare matters.

First stop: Moscow.

I may be used to travel. However for the first time, I may be stressed that anything goes wrong. Which is lovely because, isn’t the essence self of travelling ? I mean: to be ready for anything.

We are on the 1st august 2019. Happy birtday dear Switzerland ! I packed my bags and am about going to sleep because tomorrow is the day. I will fly to Moscow.

It does mean the begining of my trip with Pieces. Everything began last year when a bunch of my friends were into the committee and I got involved as an activ member. I had get to know better the club and slowly started to fund raising with them, told about to my surrounding and wished to go abroad myself. It took one year and it was a good one; people of pieces are above great, they are awesome and I laughed so hard with them. Hopefully we did some good work together and by now, I am going to teach english in Mongolia. However fireworks are explosing outside, am exhausted of a long and great day with friends&family around Blausee and and and… I will go to sleep. Kind of need to be fit if I want to discover Moscow tomorrow night with some Russians ! 😉

You are with me ? Let’s go!