Day 5

Early start today. VERY early start. The group of us headed out by bus to the Helsinki airport to the next leg of the trip. Talk about an efficient system - at the airport you do everything yourself - there are kiosks for self- check in much like in Philly, but the machine prints your boarding pass and your luggage tag, you then scan both at the counter, put your bag on the belt, and you're off! One thing I noticed, too, in Europe - security agents are extremely polite - they even ask you if they can check your bags!
After another smooth flight on Finnair to Zurich, we boarded buses and traveled through spectacular scenery for 2 hours to get to our destination, Davos Switzerland. I think the songs from The Sound of Music were running through everyone's as we saw breathtaking scenes of the snow-capped Alps. I was so captivated by the clear running river and gorgeous blue-green lakes (I guess it's the Biologist in me).
We arrived at our Sheraton to a scene that doesn't compare with anything I've ever seen before. There was even a golf course right across the street from our hotel! The weather was great, we spent the afternoon walking the streets of town, which is very well known for its winter skiing and hosting the annual global economic summit. In fact, that is where the conference is being held.
Finally, the conference began in the evening - some 1200 high school students who have been traveling this past week through Europe will be working in groups on a challenge to design an education system for the future. I can't wait to see the 106 projects!