A Day in the Life of a Surval Summer Camper

Surval Summer Camp allows young women from all around the world the opportunity to make life long friends, as well as discovering Switzerland and everything it has to offer. At Surval Summer Camp, we are lucky enough to have many of our Campers stay in touch with us, visit us and even stay on to study at Surval on our Academic year programme, which is exactly what Russian student Anastasiia (2020 A Level Graduate) did after Summer Camp 2016.

The alarm goes off and my roommate and I start to get ready for another exciting day. We open our curtains and the bright sun is already shining outside. Together with my roomie, who is a very nice Mexican girl, we run down for breakfast. We sit at the same table and chat while enjoying the typical Swiss breakfast and the incredible views of Lac Léman from the Dining Room.

Soon after, classes begin. It’s been two weeks since I started learning English and I can already see some progress; I feel such satisfaction at being able to put a few words together and see that people do understand me! Our classroom is very beautiful and, I would even say, cosy because there are a lot of colourful posters on the walls: it is very well decorated, and the teacher also creates a favourable atmosphere. It feels very nice to come to the class and know that you are very welcome here; that the teacher and the girls are all very friendly and willing to help at any moment you need.

It’s time for a little break and all the students together with the teachers come down to the cafeteria to get a drink with a snack. I sit outside because I love watching the awe-inspiring landscape and chatting with my new friends from all over the world in a relaxed atmosphere. The sun is so gorgeous, and it gives us so much energy that it makes us feel inspired and we can’t wait for the next lesson to begin!

We return to our homey classroom ready for new experiences and fresh adventures. A great goal is awaiting us that we are ready to tackle. Today, we are filming a clip on how to take a selfie safely! I feel very excited and am looking forward to start! This is when I realised how lucky we all are for being in an all-girl environment because each one of us was truly herself and did not care about being pretty or attractive in the video; we were the way we are and did not worry about what other people think.

Next, it’s time for lunch! Lunch today is a special day because one of us has a birthday! All the students and the teachers sing “Happy Birthday” for the birthday girl when the birthday cake comes out.

After lunch, we have some free time to get ready for a multi-activity afternoon. My first activity is RealFly experience, which is so cool because you are literally flying in the air!! I was a bit scared at first, but the teachers helped me to just go for it and reassured me that it would be fun. My next activity is going to Montreux, wandering around the pretty, calm town immersing ourselves in Swiss culture... and doing some shopping too!

Dinner time is always very exciting because everybody has worked up an appetite, and we cannot wait for the delicious food the chef with his best team have prepared for us! More than that, it is the time when we make our new friendships stronger with girls we met on our new activities. We sit together around the table and share our experiences, talk about our discoveries and chat about the next day. It actually does feel like having dinner with your family!

After dinner, we have evening activities. Today, we are watching an American film that the girls have chosen. I think it is a fantastic way to end the day because everyone is a bit exhausted after the fruitful lessons and unforgettable experiences, so we all need some rest. I believe that watching films in the foreign language that you are learning helps not only with improving the language itself, but also with having general cultural knowledge and understanding the differences – and similarities! – between us, and appreciating why people are the way they are. Now, it is time to go to bed and I feel very happy for living my best life, having friends who are so different but so dear; I feel very thankful for my teachers’ support and help with improving my English and helping me to overcome challenges outside the classroom; I feel blessed to be here, and to be able to experience all these things that I could not even have dreamed of. I feel so sleepy from a very busy day…my eyes are closing…my roomie is also going to sleep… we wish each other “nighty night” and sweet dreams, and I fall asleep dreaming about tomorrow.