Children, children everywhere is exactly what I thought when I was riding my bike down to the restaurant today. After waking up, doing some cleaning, and some other miscellaneous things around the apartment, I finally headed down to the restaurant at around noon. While I was riding my bike through the residential neighborhood I saw groups of children everywhere. They had just been let out for lunch and there were kids as young as five walking alone from their school home for lunch. It was amazing to see that they walked, took public transportation and returned to school at the proper time. I thought there would be more parents but I was actually shocked to later find out that most schools look down upon parents walking their children to school. I being from the United States thought that it was neat to see so many on their own walking with no supervision. Soon I arrived at the restaurant and since it was closed, as it always is on Mondays, my uncle and I left for CC. When we arrived, we once again filled up two whole large carts full of food and I was as always surprised how much food the restaurant went through the previous week. Later in the evening we went out for dinner at another local restaurant in Stäfa and ended the evening playing Chess. (I won twice but, we were watching Karate Kid so I am not so sure how focused either of us were.)
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Today I slept in a small bit due to the fact that I was up very late last night. When I woke up I went for a walk around Stäfa trying out this new walking app I acquired. When I arrived at the restaurant I ate some lunch as it was around midday and began to head over to the Kiosk. For those of you who do not know, a Kiosk is a shop like a convenience store but much smaller. They can be found all around and the particular one at the Villa Sunneschy only sells food, drinks, and ice cream. This is where I worked for the day. I learned how to make everything, sort out the pricing and for most of the day I was speaking to the customers and taking their money (For the purchases of course). This was the first time that I needed to continuously calculate change in my head while being quick, accurate, and speaking in a different language as well. It was great though and I learned a lot but, finished late in the evening after the UEFA European Cup had concluded.
This morning began with me waking up and asking myself what is that noise? I looked outside and there was a man at one of the brunch tables cranking a handle which was playing a form of music. I got dressed and decided to go down to investigate. I had come to find out that it was a Swiss street organ which the brunch goers had requested. Now that I was closer, I also remembered there was a similar one near The Brandenburg Gate when I was in Germany. As the day progressed I once again began with homework in the morning but, in the afternoon decided to go for a small train ride as I was not due back at work until 16:00. This is where my train geek becomes known. I left Stäfa at around one and rode the trains about twenty minutes south to Rapperswil. After arriving, I took another train about ten minutes to Pfäffikon, SZ. This is where I walked around for a little bit, took some pictures, but never left the train station. I then retraced my steps back to Stäfa. I had done nothing special but go to some new (to me) train stations where I could see some different trains. *Switches Train Geek Off* After returning to Stäfa, I started the evening in service where I brought food to tables, served a banquet and once again stand in the parking lot. It's not as terrible as it is led to be though because if gives me a minor break from the chaos inside the restaurant. Later in the evening I finished cleaning the glasses and headed up the the apartment for the night.
Today was an interesting day. I began the day with, what a surprise, some more AP Summer homework. After finishing that section, I had the afternoon off and took some time to sleep because the night would be a busy one. When I returned in the evening, I first began with setting up the sound equipment for a young girl singing at a party this evening. After the sound system was set up, this twelve year old arrived and I learned who she was. Zoë is girl who loves singing and was on the German television show, The Voice Kids, where she was mentored by none other than German songwriter, Mark Forester. She competed in the American Idol like show which is for children aged 8-14 years old and ended up in third place. This was a large achievement and the song she sang this evening was truly amazing. Later in the evening, the sunset was absolutely stunning and I took a beautiful picture of the dining tables as well as the sunset on its own.
Today I woke up and was able to take it easy in the morning. After I woke up, I worked a little more on my AP Chemistry summer homework. My view on this work is if I can get at least a little done each day, then hopefully by the end of the summer there is very little if any left to be done. In the early afternoon I headed down to the kitchen where I made the beer battered fish used for the Fish & Chips. The long process of de-boning the fish, coating them in flour and batter, and frying them was painstakingly long but resulted in some really good fish. Later in the evening I returned and began with slicing fruit garnishes for all the desserts. I also made some lotus chips and found out how to properly store food pans in the food carts. Today was relatively simple with a few more tedious tasks.
Today I woke up and got ready for work. When I got there I began with the salad once again toady. I also assisted in making the fondant garnish for a carrot cake and starting on potatoes. After helping peel, slice, and cook some potatoes for the mashed potatoes, I was sent outside to begin work there. Once outside I set up fifteen tables for a banquet with chairs and couches for a small lounge area. This marked the end of my morning shift and I decided to go for a quick bike ride around Stäfa. It was very interesting because I found so many small bike trails which were like shortcuts through the city. I returned to the restaurant later in the evening and began work with the meat slicer. Later in the evening I also made several of the desserts, on my own, for dinner service which turned out pretty nice if I do say so myself.
Today I woke up and went for a bike ride around Stäfa. It was nice to bike around for some time. When I returned to the apartment I was informed that one of Beda's friends who has a baby girl was going to Rapperswil and invited me along. I was excited and biked to their house. After playing with the little girl we went into Rapperswil and walked around the old town and a nearby mall. Later we also took the little girl to a playground along Lake Zürich. After returning to the restaurant, I helped make some chips, a cantaloupe soup, and clean up lots and lots of green beans. I ended the evening by making two desserts: Panna Cotta, and Chocolate Mousse.
Today was an interesting day. First off I am in Switzerland so obviously no one here knew that today was the United States' independence day, aka The Fourth of July. After I had woken up, I went to go get my laundry out of the dryer and finish it up. One thing to note is that today is Monday and the restaurant is always closed on Mondays so I went outside and a few of the employees who lived nearby came for a few games. The games were very fun and included ping-pong and bocce ball. After lunch I got my camera out and wanted to test out a new form of photography to me, Hyperlapse Photography. Hyperlapse Photography is an exposure technique in time-lapse photography, in which the position of the camera is being changed between each exposure in order to create a tracking shot in timelapse sequences. In other words I keep the camera facing the same way while moving the tripod or its location after every picture. I felt that it turned out well and I finished with pics for the day. Later I took out the air boat and with one of the employees' daughters (who is three years old), we went for a boat ride. The water was not cold and I also swam for a little bit afterwards. It was beautiful and it was my turn to make dinner. I attempted a Lyonnaise salad with chicken breast and it was pretty good. Later in the evening I was exhausted and ready to go to bed for the night.
Today there was not really much going on. I woke up and started to work on some on some other things. Then after lunch I went for a run and got some exercise done. Later in the afternoon I finished laundry and took a nap outside in the park. It was a very relaxed day and I got my housekeeping finished for the week.
Today I woke up and got ready to go to Züri Fäscht. Züri Fäscht is three day festival, on the first weekend in July, every three years, where the entire city of Zürich becomes like a big party. There are rides, tons of food booths, and above all else endless amounts of people. Today was the second day of the so called "party" and Kevin and I took the train into the city at around twelve after eating lunch. When we arrived we played a few games and ended walking all around. Since most of the city streets are blocked off there are endless amounts of booths and things to see. One thing I saw was wakeboarding where there was a person performing stunts on river Limmat off of Lake Zürich. Kevin and I then returned back to the apartment to rest before returning later in the evening. We rested, ate, and then got on another train to see the firework show. When we returned to Zürich I shot a few pictures of one of the most spectacular firework shows I have ever seen. The show was beautiful and I have been told they spend about 800,000CHF (Swiss Francs) on each show. This show was the highlight of the evening and my Züri Fäscht.
Today I woke up at the crack of dawn to prepare for another busy day. After I had gotten to the bus stop right outside, I realized that the buses did not run this early and I began the mile walk to the nearest train station, Stäfa Bahnhof. Once there, I purchased a day pass to get to Hünenberg Zythus where my godmother lives. When I arrived, she was at the train station waiting for me. We then walked together to her son, Konstantin's school where they had a visitation day type event. I thought it also appropriate since they had a visitation day to bring a piece of my school so I brought my Orange Lutheran drawstring backpack to show my Lancer pride. After the event was over I walked back up to her their house and helped make a wonderful risotto lunch. It was great and I finally had experienced a traditional Swiss family lunch. It was interesting to see how the entire family got home by 12:15 for lunch and back to their respective places, school for the children and work for the father, by the end of their "lunch time" so to speak. After lunch I went for a hike with my godmother and her husband as he did not have work today. It was beautiful and there was a neat forest within a half a mile nearby. We walked for about an hour and returned home and talked for a little bit. I also was able to be a part of their family dinner and once again their entire family came together to make the dinner come together. After dinner, we went to watch Konstantin's fencing match and I took the train home.
Today went very much like yesterday. I woke up and also once again immediately started washing and cleaning the lettuce for the salads. I realized today though that the salad I cleaned yesterday was not for the week but for one day. That made me realize how much food the restaurant actually goes through. After finishing with the salad, I began removing the bones from about thirty fish. It seemed like there was always another fish to be pulled out of the bag and de-bone. In the evening I returned to work and started off in the parking lot. I stood there and waited and once again told people the lot was reserved for guests. After about two hours and about twenty "I am going to the restaurant (Which they obviously were not because most were bringing charcoal and barbecue food)." I began working inside. I started off with garnishing dishes and then was promoted to walking people to their cars with an umbrella. I ended the evening washing the remaining glasses and mentally getting ready to take on my other opportunity in a Swiss school tomorrow.
Today I woke up and head down to to the restaurant. I immediately began washing and cleaning the lettuce for the salads this week. After finishing with the lettuce, I learned how to slice and make crispy bread chips in the oven. By the time lunch ended I had a chance to work on some AP Chemistry homework because I still have a good amount to do. I also called home to my mom because it was her birthday today. Happy Birthday! Later in the afternoon, I began working and made beef skewers. They seemed to take forever to make but it was only about an hour in reality. After I finished the skewers, I went to help barbecue outside. It was nice being in the wind to cool down but unfortunately I ended up standing downwind from the grill so all the smoke blew in my face. When the event was finished I ended washing most of the multiple different types of glasses. It was actually better than it seemed and was not so bad but definitely hot from all the steam in the dishwasher. The night was finally over and I went to bed exhausted awaiting what I would learn tomorrow.
Today I woke up fairly early to get on a train to Adliswil. I arrived at around 7:30 and was greeted by Kevin and my aunt Camilla. We walked a while before splitting from her and heading towards Kevin's school, Primarschule Sonnenberg. Once there we began his usual school day. Today was Tuesday so we began the morning in math. The students were learning about how to calculate L x W x H and estimating objects. After math we stayed put and the same teacher began teaching the German lesson. There was an activity about animals and their estimated sizes so their math and German lessons tied together. It was finally lunch time and Kevin and I walked back to his house for lunch. There was ninety minutes allotted for lunch. Thereafter we returned to school and began with English class with a new teacher. I did fairly well here, as expected, and was actually able to help some of the other students. We continued with this teacher for music as well where the students sang some songs that the teacher chose. This marked the end of the academic day and the beginning of the active one. We then went to gym where we exercised and played a few games. By this time it was 16:10 and the school day was finally over. I returned home with Kevin and then we left for Langnau-Gattikon. It was interesting to see the station finally finished and the place where I had one time lived. We returned back to Adliswil and had a wonderful barbecue dinner. Afterward I returned home to Stäfa for the night.
Editor's Note: There are no pictures of the Schule because pictures were not permitted. Today I woke up fairly early so that we could take Kevin to school. His school is located in Adliswil so we drove to Meilen where a ferry took us across Lake Zürich. After dropping him off, Béda and I went to CC, also known as Cash & Carry. This is the restaurant version of Costco where only restaurant owners can shop. Likewise the prices are also much better than anywhere else due the wholesale prices. The shopping took a while and we ended up filling up 3 flat carts which were about 3' x 7'. It did not take long to return to the restaurant but, the unloading took some time. In the afternoon I got an old bike from the attic and fixed some small things so that it would work again. I plan to take it tomorrow with me to Adliswil when I go to school with Kevin.
Today I woke up at around nine to get ready for church. After getting a Gipfeli (Swiss name for Croissont) for some breakfast Kevin (My cousin) and I walked up to the nearby church. It was about a half mile away and we were both excited but for different reasons. I was excited to see what a typical Swiss service was like and Kevin was excited because it was his second time to church, ever. The service was very similar to mine at home with the omission of the confession and forgiveness, and the communion. After the service we walked back to get some lunch and prepare for the day. We ended up going bowling and relaxing at a nearby park as well. The day ended well with me winning against Beda and Kevin in chess.
Today after waking up, I got on the bus and train to get to Zürich. Once in the city I purchased a tripod, as my other one is at home, to hopefully take some amazing hyper-lapse photography as well as some videos. I ended up staying in the city most of the day. And please don't be mistaken as I spent time walking around the old town, I stood taking videos in the train station for most of the day. When I got back to the apartment, I waited for about 30 minutes until Kevin would arrive. When he arrived I gave him his presents from our family and we decided, even though it was only about seventy degrees fareheit, to go boating. We took the inflatable raft like boat and paddled around the lake for a good hour. When we were finished we went to relax before going to bed for the night.
Today started off as a really relaxing day. After waking up I walked down to the storage, got the boat which I got ready yesterday and brought it down to the lake. After floating through the water for about two hours I made my way back to the shore. When I got back there was some extra Ahi Tuna and I was asked to make some sort of tuna dish. I decided to make a seared Ahi Tuna Lettuce Wrap with cucumber, rice noodles and a wasabi sesame sauce. It turned out pretty well and it tasted amazing. Afterwards I got dressed nicer and took some pictures of the endless amounts of food tonight. There was a wedding and therefore lots of food. The night was busy and I will see Kevin my cousin for the first time this trip tomorrow!
Today was another beautiful day like yesterday. After I got to work, I set up the terrace and the outside tables for lunch. At this time I was finished and went to go find a blow up boat from storage.It must have taken me forever because until about 15:00 I was looking for the boat and all its components. I couldn't get it blown up until about 17:00 when I found a pump at a bike store across the street. The boat was finally finished at 18:00 and I had to go to work. For the first 2 hours I stood in the parking lot directing people away from the limited parking spaces when they were not going to the restaurant. Then I went inside and had a multitude of jobs that bounced back and forth for the next 3 hours. I was washing glasses, bussing tables, serving drinks, making drinks, and helping out in the kitchen as well. I was completely exhausted by the end of the day and went to bed quickly.
Today I woke up and after looking outside decided that this was the most beautiful day I have seen here thus far. There was not a cloud in the sky and sun reflected beautifully off the water. When I got to the restaurant I set up the outside seating for the first time and also set the tables in the terrace. Lunch service was very busy and after I was able to shoot some pictures with the menu off the balcony. In the afternoon I was able to go in for a swim in the lake before getting dressed nicer to yell at people. Literally. I stood at the entrance of the parking area and told the people that were not going to the restaurant that their cars would be towed. After returning to the restaurant and bussing a few tables, I shot some amazing frames of the sunset over Lake Zürich before getting ready for bed.
Today I woke up at the apartment and once again had a refreshing walk down to the restaurant. Once there I began working and learned one of the most important lessons in cooking. DO NOT look away while using the mandoline. I really hope that fingertips grow back because if not.......
Ok, I am just kidding with you. I did not cut myself with the mandoline. Sorry mom, I couldn't resist. I love you. Anyway, after properly learning how to use the mandoline, I made homemade potato chips. They came out pretty well and I also was able to make a carrot cake. The afternoon was pretty dull as the weather was not so good but in the evening the clouds cleared a small bit and there was lots to do. I cut up plenty of vegetables which will probably only last for one day seeing how fast this restaurant goes through food and at the end of the night, I ended up washing down the kitchen. Considering today was the summer solstice and longest day in the year, the light did not appear to stay for long at all. Good news is the weather is looking good for tomorrow so I am keeping my fingers crossed so I can get some good pictures. Today I woke up and had a nice walk down to the restaurant. It was actually sunny out for a change and the blue skies were a nice sight. Once at the restaurant I got changed and helped serve a seminar and even though we were closed, I was also able to serve two additional tables which walked up. Later, I took the train into the city to get an accessory for my camera which happened to fall off in my travels. After I got back, I also shot some beautiful frames of the lake and restaurant before playing a few games of table tennis and badminton. The reflection off the lake was perfect and I hope that it continues like this for the next few days as well.
Today I woke up a little late because I was up late last night for the banquet. I got dressed and downstairs to assist with brunch. After brunch was over and everything was finished at the restaurant, Beda decided that we should go visit his old neighbor and family friend, Vreni Messerli. We drove to Wetzikon and were able to see how she was doing. Her husband who had passed away some time ago also had a large model train set with which I used to play with. It took some time but I managed to get it to work (Kind of… Okay, Not Really…). The set hadn’t been used or maintained in years and I decided that I would go back and help her restore it at a later date as well. We wished her goodbye and went to go get dinner at a local restaurant. We went to a local place in Stäfa and ate Cordon Bleu which was really good and then drove back to the apartment to get some rest for tomorrow
Today I woke up and immediately got up and ready to work in the kitchen. After I got to the kitchen, I prepared the tomato salad (For Brunch Tomorrow Morning) and prepped all the kitchen stations. After each station was full I also prepared some other items for later in the evening. At around 15:oo I was able to get over to the Migros and get some flowers for my Godmother who I would be seeing later today. At about 17:30 we met up and had dinner at the Villa Sunneschy and her entire family was there as well. We spoke and ate for a while before they needed to leave and after dinner I began serving for a birthday party. Later when I had a break I shoot some pictures of the lake at night because it looked beautiful and decided it was probably time to go to bed.
Today I woke up and decided to unpack my things. My school trip was very exhausting so I was still tired and decided to simply work on some homework. I completed a portion of my AP US History although there is still much to be done and when I looked outside the weather would bounce back and forth between sun and rain all day. Sometime in the middle of the day I walked outside and it was raining but there were no clouds overhead. There was just sun and the rain looked like it was blown by the wind from somewhere else. Later I decided to go back to sleep and rest up to begin work tomorrow as I was exhausted.
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Alexander KitanoAlexander Kitano is a talented photographer with a passion for photography. Here are some of his journals he has made throughout his carear. Archives
August 2016
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