About Me
- Kristi
- The Boy, 2 Muttleys and I have finally realized our dream of living 1 mile from the Lindt Chocolate Factory. Leaving Atlanta (the World of Coke) for Zurich (the World of Chocolate) hasn't come without challenges, incredible fun or giggles. Follow along as I chronicle our adventures as we acclimate to this new Swiss lifestyle.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
The Catalyst
A catalyst is a substance that can speed up or slow down a reaction. A reaction doesn't require a catalyst, but it sure is nice to have if you are impatient like the Remicks. Last December as the Boy and I discussed for the umpteenth time how amazing it would be to live in Europe, we quickly realized that the global recession was likely going to be the catalyst that slowed down our dream. Hey Globe, way to be recessed.
Art, a former colleague of the Boy's in Atlanta, was on a two year rotation in Geneva and could at the very least provide us with some guidance. So the Boy sent him an email asking general questions about the rotation program and if he had any insight to share with us on how to get over the pond. Art and the Boy belong to the "Mutual Admiration Society", so immediately he shared with the Boy some important contacts that could potentially be valuable as he thought the Boy could make an immediate and positive impact.
These contacts were proven fruitful and without them or one Mr. Arthur Noll, there is a good chance we wouldn't be in Zurich. Now don't get me wrong, the Boy has skillz and I have no doubt we would have gotten to Europe on our own, but not this fast and possibly not in such a great place. So thank you Mr. Noll, you are good peeps and it was only logical that a visit to Geneva was in order so we could thank you properly. On October 9th, we hopped on a train and within three hours the "thank you weekend" began.
Geneva is located in the French speaking portion of Switzerland and is the second largest city behind Zurich. It is home to many international organizations, most notably the UN and Red Cross, so as a result it has a very international feel and diverse population. Like Zurich, it is situated on a beautiful lake and on a clear day it is rumored to have excellent views of the Alps, but unfortunately our weather didn't afford us any. Swiss Germans call Geneva "Genf" which sounds like the noise you would make if you were punched in the gut, but I digress.
When we arrived late Friday night, Art brought us to an excellent Italian eatery and we stuffed ourselves silly on yummy pizza. Swear, the pizza was actually good. Discovering good pizza in Switzerland is like discovering Bigfoot in Delaware. I checked the BFRO, or the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization, and Delaware has had the fewest sightings in the Continental US: http://www.bfro.net/GDB/. Maybe Delaware is where you should enroll your children in school (hint: PARENTS, STAY AWAY FROM WASHINGTON STATE).
The following morning we woke up early and suited up for a hike although it was raining. We were hopeful the rain would subside by the time we reached our hiking point. Unfortunately the weather only got worse once we reached our destination, but we were there so we decided to give it a go. 20 minutes in we decided it was no fun for us or the dogs and that "giving it a go" was totally over-rated thus we turned back, heads held high. Due to the weather, no pictures were snapped but I can tell you it was a beautiful spot and would have taken a pretty picture on a clear day.
Later that afternoon when it cleared up a bit, we took in some of the city sights and historic old town district of Geneva. Here are some shots:
This is a view of Geneva's Jet d'Eau which runs constantly unless there are strong winds or severe low temps. Do not put your face over this bad boy, not that I tried or anything.
Once we toured Geneva, we cleaned up nice and headed east via train to Montreux and Sierre. My favorite part of our visit to Geneva was exploring these two towns full of wine (duh), cheese (double duh) and beauty. Montreux was our first stop and is home to the world famous Montreux Jazz Fest. I can't even imagine going to a jazz fest in this location as it is at the foot of the Alps and was just stunning:
Now why couldn't they have gone one step further and actually make this avenue out of chocolate? Let's use a little ingenuity here.
Next stop on our journey was the town of Sierre which hosts Art's favorite restaurant in all of Switzerland: Chateau de Villa "Le Temple de Raclette". The restaurant itself was a beautiful chateau (looked like a small castle, wait...is that an oxymoron?) with a wine tasting cellar and restaurant upstairs. I think it was safe to say we were all pretty giddy to go to a place that specialized in melted pieces of cheese or what the Swiss call "Raclette". The cheese itself is a semi firm salted cheese made from Cow's milk. A Raclette dude or dudette takes a heat lamp, heats the top layer of the cheese wheel until a yummy crust forms and then scrapes it on to your plate. You can choose from all sorts of sides where most contain an acid to cut the fat that you are about to consume. We chose an option where you sample 5 cheeses, then you can continue to order your favorite once you have tried all 5. Each cheese was from a different region and had its own distinct flavor. Art and I agreed number 2 was the winner winner chicken dinner, however the Boy thought number 4 was. Here are some pics from the gorge fest:
We had such a special time with Art. Not only was he responsible for us landing in Switzerland, he fed us lumps of melted cheese. The dude should be sainted...or Obama'd. Speaking of Obama, they love him Geneva too. When I spotted this sign, the sun came out and a butterfly landed on my nose:
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2 comments:
Agree with your Genf comment. What a word. I always thought it sounded like a disease. Got a case of the Genfs?
Kristi,
The photo of the mountains and lake with the flowers in the foreground is my favorite yet. The food looked awesome too.
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