Friday, May 30, 2008

6 Random Things About Me à la Suisse

I was tagged first by Sher, then by Jawahara, and now by Danie. Sorry ladies! Better late than never. I'm following Danie's suggestion to go expat. So, here it is:
  1. Despite being more than reasonably fluent in French, I still don't like speaking on the phone. For instance, I will sooner go in to the salon to make a hair appointment than call. Imagine that...after four years, even!
  2. While I do enjoy the occasional fondue at the Cafe du Soleil, these are my favourite restaurants in Geneva:
    1. Pizzeria da Paolo - 3, rue du lac, +41 22 736 30 49 - This is a great family-friendly Italian eatery. While the pizza is divine, don't be afraid to try anything else from the menu. The Captain swears he's never had a better penne all'arrabiata anywhere else. The girls refuse to order anything but the pizza margherita. I don't blame them. I'm stuck on their pizza piccante with ruccola at the moment.
    2. Cafe Gandhi - 37 rue de Neuchatel, +41 22 731 41 12 - This is the best Indian food we've found and the prices aren't too bad either. Whatever you do, don't miss the lamb madras (lela madras) and naan bread. An elastic waistband is recommended.
    3. Spice's - Hotel President Wilson, 47 Quai Wilson, +41 22 906 66 66 - Definitely in the hoity-toity department, Spice's is known for it's French-Asian fusion cuisine. Get a baby sitter, get a loan, then prepare for an experience you won't soon forget.
  3. The top three things I think I will miss most when we eventually leave here are my friends (both Swiss and expat), shopping at the marchés, and exploring the beautiful countryside.
  4. If Switzerland could be squeezed in somewhere between Algonquin Park and the Laurentians I would never leave.
  5. My favourite day trip out of Geneva is to Gruyères where you can watch the making of the infamous cheese, eat lunch in the medieval village , work it off as you explore the chateau, then finish with a tour of the nearby Cailler chocolate factory. The sugar buzz alone will get you home in a flash. Bring water.
  6. I shop at either ATAC or E. Leclerc in France for beer, milk, cereal, laundry soap, baked beans, tomato soup, and peanut butter. I shop in Switzerland for everything else, mostly at Migros, but occasionally at the Coop--the Coop has better jam. Whenever possible, I buy my vegetables at the neighbourhood marché. It's held every Friday in front of the girls' school. I normally walk. I'm also a regular at the Corsier bakery which sells the bread made in Jussy and the best mille feuilles on the planet.
So there it is, my first meme. I'm not tagging six other bloggers because...well... I don't know that many. If any of the other 'Bloggers Close to My Heart' are up to the challenge, let me know.

6 comments:

  1. 1) I'm all about #5. Hook me up!
    2) It also struck me as funny that your favorite meal at Cafe Ghandi is lamb madras...being as I live in Madras (Chennai).
    3) And...nice label cloud :)

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  2. IBGEEK2! Thanks for the label cloud tip, Danie. If anyone else is curious check out her blog:
    http://earthtodanie.blogspot.com/2008/05/ubgeek2_24.html

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  3. Woo hooo! You finally did the tag....and so very interesting to read.

    Also...I have a minor quibble. May I? It's a bit weird because a few of us were talking about this the other day....its Gandhi, not Ghandi, i.e., the 'h' comes before the 'i', at the end and not right after the 'G' :-)

    And, oh yes, I like the new blog...and proud of myself for finding you.

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  4. Oops! White woman mistake. I've fixed it. I'm glad you've found me and that you aren't stranded in Nigeria.

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  5. Check out the Expat Writer's take on this meme.
    http://theexpatwriter.blogspot.com/2008/05/six-random-things-about-repat.html

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  6. :-) Yes, I've heard these Nigerian vacations really suck! Damn those armed robbers.

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