What Megan has to say about her trip to Switzerland:

Every moment of my Switzerland trip was an intriguing and rewarding one. While I was there, I met Denise Bielman and got my picture taken with her. I was also fortunate enough to have watched her new show program and her well-known bielman spin. I also met many new people, including a few Swiss skaters, who amazed me by their ability to speak so many languages. Most people in Switzerland spoke at least Swiss-German, French, and English fluently. My family and I were also fortunate enough to have been able to spend time with a Swiss man, named Rhinehart Shutes.  Rinehart had many fascinating stories to tell and let us experience the Swiss culture by taking us to small family owned Swiss restaurants that we would never have been able to experience on our own.

            I also loved experiencing the open judging system. It was pleasurable to stand and wait for the judges to hold up their marks, and then knowing approximately how well you did compared to the other skaters. However, many of the marks were so close you often couldn't tell exactly in which place you were. The awards ceremony was also a different experience. They did not post the results. When it came to the awards ceremony, you didn't know exactly which place you had received. They just began calling the placements beginning with first and then going down. Also, even if you did not receive first through fourth placement, they still gave everyone else a participant medal. It seemed to be a very nice touch to the whole competition.  The competitors were all very friendly to one another. We enjoyed the two dinners together.  It was a great way to kindle new friendships.  Switzerland was an extremely beautiful country. The views were amazing.  After one of the practices, my family and I went to the highest point in Europe.  Although the views were beautiful everywhere, at the top of the Jungfrau region, the scenery took my breath away. My trip to Switzerland is an experience  I will always cherish.

                                           Meg

Mara Gueli, Denise Bielman,  Megan Gueli

Meg, Dad (Chris), Mara