I have a lot to catch up on as far as blogging about our adventures here. Right now, though, I want to write about a different kind of adventure, the adventure that is our apartment search. The housing market in this part of Switzerland is crazy. There are many more people looking for apartments than there are apartments available. That means that when we look at an apartment, we have to decide on the spot if we want to apply for it. Usually, there is more than one person who applies for each apartment, so we just have to wait to see if the owners choose us.
I saw an apartment that I loved last week. It was in a new building, so everything in the apartment was shiny and new and beautiful. The location was great. It was close to the train station, close to Gordon's office, and walking distance to grocery stores. We applied for this apartment, but we haven't heard the answer yet. We do know that there were other people who worked at Nestle who applied for this apartment before we did, so our chances are not good.
Today, we went out searching again. Today was the first time Gordon was able to go with me on the "housing tour" as it's called here. We saw 5 places and we loved one of them. It's in an even better location than the place we saw last week and it's about 600 dollars less per month. We are definitely putting in an application for this one and I really hope we get it. If not, we will continue with our search. The good news is that there are places in good locations that are not only affordable, but very nice. I feel better after today's search than I have after any of the other times we had gone.
In other news, I bought my ticket yesterday for Claire and me to fly home in October. We'll be there for FOUR whole weeks and we'll be home for Halloween! Claire and I will fly to Washington to visit Gordon's mom while we're in the states. As an added bonus, we'll get to see Roxy and Indy (our dogs) at Gordon's mom's house!
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Wednesday
Yesterday was Tuesday, which used to be known as laundry day. Because we have our own washing machine now, any day can be laundry day! To celebrate, I did not do any laundry yesterday. Instead, Claire and I went to the beach. It was a hot day yesterday, so this was just what we needed. We packed up the beach blanket and toys and walked over to the beach in La-Tour-de-Peilz, which is about a 10 minute walk. The beach was pretty crowded when we got there because there were a bunch of school kids there for their lunch break. School doesn't let out till next week here! After the kids left, we pretty much had the beach to ourselves. Claire had a blast digging in the pebbles (no sand on these beaches) and splashing in the water. I don't have any photos this time because I was in the water with her!
This weekend, we have booked a hotel in Italy! About 3 hours away from us is Verbania, Italy. It's on Lake Maggiore. Our hotel is right on the lake and has a pool and a beach, so I hope the weather is good. I'm looking forward to exploring a new town and, of course, to eating some real Italian food.
Last weekend was awesome. On Saturday, we drove to Gimmelwald, just outside of Interlaken. We took a cable car/funicular up to the town of Gimmelwald and explored this little mountain town. Rick Steves (google him) said it was a must-do and he was right. We had our lunch at picnic tables that had a magnificent view of the Alps. Then, we walked through the little village. I can't even think of the words to describe this town. All I know is that I loved it and its charm. Next, we hiked up to Murren, another mountain town. Charming and adorable, but bigger and more touristy than Gimmelwald. We explored Murren and enjoyed relaxing here before we got the funicular back down to our car.
On Sunday, we walked over to the beach and let Claire splash around while we dipped our feet in the water. Then, we set out to find some lunch in Vevey. We grabbed some "kebab" and fruit from a little shop and walked over to the lakeside path to eat it. Then, in the evening, we headed over to our friends' house for a barbeque. It was awesome. Great food, great company, and a great time had by all.
Monday, we both began our French lessons. Gordon has one-on-one lessons. Because I am a spouse of an employee, I am entitled to semi-private, rather than private, lessons. I have a partner for my lessons. He is a stay-at-home dad from Mexico and his wife also works for Nestle. It is very interesting to have French lessons with someone who speaks a different language! After 1.5 hours, I already felt like I had re-learned quite a bit, so I am confident that by the end of these lessons, I will have improved enormously.
Although I miss my family, friends, and dogs terribly, I am truly enjoying our time here. I occasionally have a homesick day, but that tends to be on the days where something goes wrong (like the laundry!). Most days, though, I just can not believe that we are so lucky to be here, doing this.
This weekend, we have booked a hotel in Italy! About 3 hours away from us is Verbania, Italy. It's on Lake Maggiore. Our hotel is right on the lake and has a pool and a beach, so I hope the weather is good. I'm looking forward to exploring a new town and, of course, to eating some real Italian food.
Last weekend was awesome. On Saturday, we drove to Gimmelwald, just outside of Interlaken. We took a cable car/funicular up to the town of Gimmelwald and explored this little mountain town. Rick Steves (google him) said it was a must-do and he was right. We had our lunch at picnic tables that had a magnificent view of the Alps. Then, we walked through the little village. I can't even think of the words to describe this town. All I know is that I loved it and its charm. Next, we hiked up to Murren, another mountain town. Charming and adorable, but bigger and more touristy than Gimmelwald. We explored Murren and enjoyed relaxing here before we got the funicular back down to our car.
On Sunday, we walked over to the beach and let Claire splash around while we dipped our feet in the water. Then, we set out to find some lunch in Vevey. We grabbed some "kebab" and fruit from a little shop and walked over to the lakeside path to eat it. Then, in the evening, we headed over to our friends' house for a barbeque. It was awesome. Great food, great company, and a great time had by all.
Monday, we both began our French lessons. Gordon has one-on-one lessons. Because I am a spouse of an employee, I am entitled to semi-private, rather than private, lessons. I have a partner for my lessons. He is a stay-at-home dad from Mexico and his wife also works for Nestle. It is very interesting to have French lessons with someone who speaks a different language! After 1.5 hours, I already felt like I had re-learned quite a bit, so I am confident that by the end of these lessons, I will have improved enormously.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Craigslist
For some reason, Gordon and I decided that we would not need our pack and play (portable crib/playpen) in Switzerland. Therefore, we did not bring it with us. Nor did we ship it with our other belongings. As we make plans to travel on the weekends, it has become evident that we will in fact need our pack and play. If you know me well, you know that I love Craigslist. Fortunately for me, Switzerland has a Craigslist. After searching the Swiss Craigslist, which is all in French, I found a nice pack and play and went to pick it up today. Getting there was a harrowing experience as I had to drive through vineyards on teeny, tiny roads with hairpin turns. However, when I arrived, a very nice French woman was there in the driveway to greet me. She showed me the pack and play, I agreed to buy it, we chatted a bit about where we were from and found that both of our husbands work for Nestle. I left her house with a pack and play and an invitation to come back to their house with Gordon soon for drinks and appetizers (aperitifs, as she called them). I love Craigslist!
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Oh happy day!
Today, my knight in shining armor came home with the answer to many of the problems I've had since we arrived in Switzerland. He came home with a washing machine!
After he gets a connector or something tomorrow, I will be able to do laundry in the privacy of my own apartment. No cash card needed!
And the best part...it came with instructions in ENGLISH!!! I'll actually know how to wash my clothes!
Isn't it beautiful?
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
After he gets a connector or something tomorrow, I will be able to do laundry in the privacy of my own apartment. No cash card needed!
And the best part...it came with instructions in ENGLISH!!! I'll actually know how to wash my clothes!
Isn't it beautiful?
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Figuring it out
Tuesday has come and gone again. The dreaded laundry day was awful again this week. Because the laundry card we were given with our apartment was about to expire, I was unable to fill it with money. I was also unable to get a new card on short notice. Therefore, I was unable to do my laundry on Tuesday. My one day of week to do laundry was not to be this week. That pretty much ruined my day. I moped around most of the day, snuggling with Claire in the apartment and longing for my own washing machine.
Today, I woke up with a better attitude, ready for a big play date at my friend's house. There were 5 moms and 8 kids and it was great. All of the kids had fun, as did all of us moms! I am extremely fortunate to have quickly found some wonderful friends here in Switzerland. So wonderful, in fact, that one of those friends, the host of the play date, said I could bring my laundry over to her house and do it while everyone played. Problem solved! I drove home with a sleeping toddler in the back seat and a huge basket full of wet laundry waiting to be hung all over the apartment.
Making these new friends in Switzerland has gotten me to thinking about all of the friends in my life and just how fortunate I have been in this respect. In every stage of my life, in every place that I have been, I have met amazing people who have become dear friends. I cherish these friendships and I can only hope that I have been a good friend to those who've been so good to me. So, to my friends who are reading this, I love you and I cherish you. And I want you to come visit me in Switzerland.
Today, I woke up with a better attitude, ready for a big play date at my friend's house. There were 5 moms and 8 kids and it was great. All of the kids had fun, as did all of us moms! I am extremely fortunate to have quickly found some wonderful friends here in Switzerland. So wonderful, in fact, that one of those friends, the host of the play date, said I could bring my laundry over to her house and do it while everyone played. Problem solved! I drove home with a sleeping toddler in the back seat and a huge basket full of wet laundry waiting to be hung all over the apartment.
Making these new friends in Switzerland has gotten me to thinking about all of the friends in my life and just how fortunate I have been in this respect. In every stage of my life, in every place that I have been, I have met amazing people who have become dear friends. I cherish these friendships and I can only hope that I have been a good friend to those who've been so good to me. So, to my friends who are reading this, I love you and I cherish you. And I want you to come visit me in Switzerland.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Things I cannot seem adjust to in Switzerland
There are several things that I can't seem to get used to in Switzerland.
1. In the grocery store, eggs are not refrigerated. They sit in their cartons on the shelf.
2. In the grocery store, a lot of the milk is not refrigerated. It sits in its cartons on the shelf.
3. Cars stop for pedestrians at all crosswalks, whether there is a light or not. I always wait to make sure the car will stop before I begin to cross. I think the drivers get annoyed with me because it takes me forever to get across this way!
4. The money. It still seems like play money to me.
5. The love of rules in Switzerland. The Swiss love to make and follow rules. Just yesterday in the grocery store, there was a man who got into the "12 items or less" line and proceeded to count the amount of items that each person in front of him had in their baskets. He gave them so much grief if they had more than 12. It was amusing to Gordon and me. I was happy that we had not chosen to get into that line as we definitely had more than 12 items.
1. In the grocery store, eggs are not refrigerated. They sit in their cartons on the shelf.
2. In the grocery store, a lot of the milk is not refrigerated. It sits in its cartons on the shelf.
3. Cars stop for pedestrians at all crosswalks, whether there is a light or not. I always wait to make sure the car will stop before I begin to cross. I think the drivers get annoyed with me because it takes me forever to get across this way!
4. The money. It still seems like play money to me.
5. The love of rules in Switzerland. The Swiss love to make and follow rules. Just yesterday in the grocery store, there was a man who got into the "12 items or less" line and proceeded to count the amount of items that each person in front of him had in their baskets. He gave them so much grief if they had more than 12. It was amusing to Gordon and me. I was happy that we had not chosen to get into that line as we definitely had more than 12 items.
Lazy day
Today is Sunday, Father's Day, and a very lazy day for us. We had a slow start to the morning, just playing around the apartment. After lunch, we headed out to a brocante, or flea market, in a neighboring town. We were hoping to find some things with which to furnish our apartment, but it was mostly antiques. Very expensive antiques. We did find some little books for Claire, all written in French. After we walked around the flea market, it was time to play at the park. All of the kids at the park were bigger than Claire, but she did her best to keep up.
Now she is napping and I'm reflecting on the past week. It was mostly a good week.
Laundry day was, of course, a huge pain. My clothes got stuck in one of the washing machines and after trying to open the door for about 10 minutes, I looked in the manual that was given to us with this apartment. The manual said that if the door doesn't open, I should pull on the yellow cord at the bottom of the machine. To me, the yellow cord looked like exposed wire. But I pulled on it and alas, the door popped open and my clothes were free at last. Our apartment looked crazy again with clothes hanging on every available surface. Gordon came home from work that night with drying racks and saved the day.
On Wednesday, Claire and I met up with some new friends at a beach/park nearby. I didn't bring Claire's swimsuit because I thought she wouldn't be interested in going in the water, but I was wrong. She wanted in as soon as we arrived. One of the other moms gave us an extra swim diaper and I let Claire go in with her t-shirt on. Here she is, testing the water.
The kids enjoyed the water and the park while the other 3 moms and I enjoyed some good conversation. We shared a picnic lunch and took advantage of a beautiful day.
After a fun day at the beach, I had a meeting at the language school to discuss my French lessons. Gordon's company is paying for us to each have French lessons. Gordon will have private lessons and I'll have lessons with one other student who is around the same level. I look forward to beginning these lessons as I have forgotten so much of what I had learned! I am able to have conversations with people in French, but I often struggle to think of a word. And my grammar is awful! My French teachers/professors would be horrified! Soon, I hope that will all change.
On Thursday, one of the other moms and I met up again at a park in Vevey (the town in which we live). The park has a big kiddie pool right in the middle. This time, I remembered Claire's swimsuit and she had a blast in the water.
On Friday, I went to a playgroup that is run by wives of men who work at the company where Gordon works. For some reason, this playgroup left me feeling very homesick. The other moms were all very nice, so I'm not sure why I was so sad afterwards.
Fortunately, Gordon came home from work early that day. And he came home with our new (to us) car! Yep, we only lasted just shy of 3 weeks without a car. Living here is definitely doable without a car, but it is so much easier with a car. We will still walk almost everywhere we need to go, but it will be nice to have the car when we need it. We got a great deal on the car from a family who was moving back to the USA.
Here's our car, a big silver station wagon. Good luck to me trying to parallel park that thing. Thankfully, it has those back-up sensors to yell at me when I'm getting too close to another car.
Friday evening, we took advantage of having a car by going out to dinner and doing a bunch of errands. We came home with full bellies, a rain cover for our umbrella stroller, a GPS for the car, and some delicious Swiss ice cream. If you have access to Movenpick ice cream, try it. It's awesome.
Here's a photo of our drive home.
Saturday morning, we woke up to rain. We had arranged to buy a crib from a family who is moving to London, and we got the car just in time to go pick it up. Can you imagine bringing a crib home on a train? Me neither. On the way home from picking up the crib, I decided that it was time for me to try my hand at driving in Switzerland. I was nervous because there are roundabouts everywhere here and the stoplights can be very confusing. It went much better than I had anticipated, though, and I feel like I will be fine to drive by myself.
Today, I'm looking forward at the week ahead. My mom friends and I have talked about taking a boat across Lake Geneva to France on Friday if the weather is nice. Claire and I will not be returning to the playgroup this week. Maybe when I've adjusted more. Tuesday is, of course, laundry day, which I dread. Wednesday, Gordon will have a meeting with a relocation agent who will help us find our permanent apartment. I can not wait to start looking!
Now she is napping and I'm reflecting on the past week. It was mostly a good week.
Laundry day was, of course, a huge pain. My clothes got stuck in one of the washing machines and after trying to open the door for about 10 minutes, I looked in the manual that was given to us with this apartment. The manual said that if the door doesn't open, I should pull on the yellow cord at the bottom of the machine. To me, the yellow cord looked like exposed wire. But I pulled on it and alas, the door popped open and my clothes were free at last. Our apartment looked crazy again with clothes hanging on every available surface. Gordon came home from work that night with drying racks and saved the day.
On Wednesday, Claire and I met up with some new friends at a beach/park nearby. I didn't bring Claire's swimsuit because I thought she wouldn't be interested in going in the water, but I was wrong. She wanted in as soon as we arrived. One of the other moms gave us an extra swim diaper and I let Claire go in with her t-shirt on. Here she is, testing the water.
The kids enjoyed the water and the park while the other 3 moms and I enjoyed some good conversation. We shared a picnic lunch and took advantage of a beautiful day.
After a fun day at the beach, I had a meeting at the language school to discuss my French lessons. Gordon's company is paying for us to each have French lessons. Gordon will have private lessons and I'll have lessons with one other student who is around the same level. I look forward to beginning these lessons as I have forgotten so much of what I had learned! I am able to have conversations with people in French, but I often struggle to think of a word. And my grammar is awful! My French teachers/professors would be horrified! Soon, I hope that will all change.
On Thursday, one of the other moms and I met up again at a park in Vevey (the town in which we live). The park has a big kiddie pool right in the middle. This time, I remembered Claire's swimsuit and she had a blast in the water.
Playing at the park after swimming.
On Friday, I went to a playgroup that is run by wives of men who work at the company where Gordon works. For some reason, this playgroup left me feeling very homesick. The other moms were all very nice, so I'm not sure why I was so sad afterwards.
Fortunately, Gordon came home from work early that day. And he came home with our new (to us) car! Yep, we only lasted just shy of 3 weeks without a car. Living here is definitely doable without a car, but it is so much easier with a car. We will still walk almost everywhere we need to go, but it will be nice to have the car when we need it. We got a great deal on the car from a family who was moving back to the USA.
Here's our car, a big silver station wagon. Good luck to me trying to parallel park that thing. Thankfully, it has those back-up sensors to yell at me when I'm getting too close to another car.
Friday evening, we took advantage of having a car by going out to dinner and doing a bunch of errands. We came home with full bellies, a rain cover for our umbrella stroller, a GPS for the car, and some delicious Swiss ice cream. If you have access to Movenpick ice cream, try it. It's awesome.
Here's a photo of our drive home.
Saturday morning, we woke up to rain. We had arranged to buy a crib from a family who is moving to London, and we got the car just in time to go pick it up. Can you imagine bringing a crib home on a train? Me neither. On the way home from picking up the crib, I decided that it was time for me to try my hand at driving in Switzerland. I was nervous because there are roundabouts everywhere here and the stoplights can be very confusing. It went much better than I had anticipated, though, and I feel like I will be fine to drive by myself.
Today, I'm looking forward at the week ahead. My mom friends and I have talked about taking a boat across Lake Geneva to France on Friday if the weather is nice. Claire and I will not be returning to the playgroup this week. Maybe when I've adjusted more. Tuesday is, of course, laundry day, which I dread. Wednesday, Gordon will have a meeting with a relocation agent who will help us find our permanent apartment. I can not wait to start looking!
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