Catching up... A November to remember
So as my loyal readers have noticed I haven't been current with my blog in quite a while. This summer & fall were crazy with visitors and traveling and even when I was in town I've been out and about hanging out with friends and trying to experience all that Geneva has to offer. After getting back home from the US almost five weeks ago we have been busy as usual:
I started having weekly lunches with a great group of gals who have moved to Geneva with their husbands and currently aren't working, so we have named ourselves "The Non-Desperate Housewives of Geneva". It is mostly made up of gals from the US, but we have some international members as well. We have had some good laughs, swapped stories, and shared advice while discovering some great restaurants in Geneva.
I'm still active with my book club, Toastmasters, my netball team, and have been attending the GoL curry club & Tuesday Night drinks regularly. This month I was Toastmaster of the evening for the first time (a big step for me!) and even won an award for "Best Table Topic of the Evening" for an impromptu speech I did. This month I also hosted a book club meeting at our flat, much to G's uneasiness since last time he claimed to be there "just for the free food" which didn't go over too well until I introduced him as my husband! ;)
On the 15th G took the day off so we could day trip down to Milan to see "The Last Supper" by Da Vinci which is painted on the wall of The Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie. Tickets are very hard to get and it has taken us almost two years to sort it out and get a reservation (no thanks to the old website of the church that kept canceling our reservations). It was totally worth the wait though! It was breathtaking and a bit surreal after trying to see it for so long.
We have been traveling too, despite the train strikes in France and Germany. G had taken the 16th & 17th off so we could take a nice four day weekend to Provence, but surprise... the French rail workers went on strike and no trains were running to France from Geneva. No mind, we decided to go to Bavaria to see the German Christmas Markets instead. Oh, the German rail workers were on strike too!! Well, we figured maybe we would go on the scenic train called "The Glacier Express" that crosses Switzerland, but after waiting a half hour to buy tickets we were told that it was not running until December 10th. We couldn't catch a break! So we stayed relatively close to home and spent a lovely day in Gruyères, famous for it's cheese, castle, and the H.R. Giger museum (who is best known for his design work on the film Alien). Scary stuff!!
Thanksgiving was good this year with not one but TWO dinners. One with the GoL crowd on the proper day, and one a week later with a really fantastic group of people hosted by my friend, C. The first dinner was at a restaurant with some strange courses, including green clam chowder. I sat next to a French gal who was at her first Thanksgiving dinner and wanted to know the significance of every course, including the "Pudding from the Indians" we had for desert - how old do you think that was?!? After dinner she declared Thanksgiving a rather "exotic" holiday. :) The next dinner was better with great company and food that was absolutely fantastic... I dare say it was the most delicious Thanksgiving meal I've ever had (sorry mom!)
The last weekend of November we did finally get to Provence which was really nice, but really cold! We visited the towns of Avignon (famous for it's nursery rhyme and medieval bridge) and Arles (with lots of Roman sights, including a huge Roman arena).
The last big event of the month was the Bern Onion Market(Zibelemärit), which I visited on my own since it is always held on a Monday. As usual it was great, with kids throwing confetti, live music, and lots and lots of onions. Of course I had to buy some, along with some other crafty things for sale. It was my third time to the market and I think it is going to be one of those things I will really miss when we move back to the US... there just isn't anything like it!
So that was our November, full of the usual hustle and bustle that is our life here in Geneva. :)
The snow in Gruyères
Listening to the audio guide at the Palace of the Popes (Palais des Papes) in Avignon
On the St. Benezet Bridge overlooking the Rhone in Avignon
Warming up at the Roman arena in Arles
I started having weekly lunches with a great group of gals who have moved to Geneva with their husbands and currently aren't working, so we have named ourselves "The Non-Desperate Housewives of Geneva". It is mostly made up of gals from the US, but we have some international members as well. We have had some good laughs, swapped stories, and shared advice while discovering some great restaurants in Geneva.
I'm still active with my book club, Toastmasters, my netball team, and have been attending the GoL curry club & Tuesday Night drinks regularly. This month I was Toastmaster of the evening for the first time (a big step for me!) and even won an award for "Best Table Topic of the Evening" for an impromptu speech I did. This month I also hosted a book club meeting at our flat, much to G's uneasiness since last time he claimed to be there "just for the free food" which didn't go over too well until I introduced him as my husband! ;)
On the 15th G took the day off so we could day trip down to Milan to see "The Last Supper" by Da Vinci which is painted on the wall of The Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie. Tickets are very hard to get and it has taken us almost two years to sort it out and get a reservation (no thanks to the old website of the church that kept canceling our reservations). It was totally worth the wait though! It was breathtaking and a bit surreal after trying to see it for so long.
We have been traveling too, despite the train strikes in France and Germany. G had taken the 16th & 17th off so we could take a nice four day weekend to Provence, but surprise... the French rail workers went on strike and no trains were running to France from Geneva. No mind, we decided to go to Bavaria to see the German Christmas Markets instead. Oh, the German rail workers were on strike too!! Well, we figured maybe we would go on the scenic train called "The Glacier Express" that crosses Switzerland, but after waiting a half hour to buy tickets we were told that it was not running until December 10th. We couldn't catch a break! So we stayed relatively close to home and spent a lovely day in Gruyères, famous for it's cheese, castle, and the H.R. Giger museum (who is best known for his design work on the film Alien). Scary stuff!!
Thanksgiving was good this year with not one but TWO dinners. One with the GoL crowd on the proper day, and one a week later with a really fantastic group of people hosted by my friend, C. The first dinner was at a restaurant with some strange courses, including green clam chowder. I sat next to a French gal who was at her first Thanksgiving dinner and wanted to know the significance of every course, including the "Pudding from the Indians" we had for desert - how old do you think that was?!? After dinner she declared Thanksgiving a rather "exotic" holiday. :) The next dinner was better with great company and food that was absolutely fantastic... I dare say it was the most delicious Thanksgiving meal I've ever had (sorry mom!)
The last weekend of November we did finally get to Provence which was really nice, but really cold! We visited the towns of Avignon (famous for it's nursery rhyme and medieval bridge) and Arles (with lots of Roman sights, including a huge Roman arena).
The last big event of the month was the Bern Onion Market(Zibelemärit), which I visited on my own since it is always held on a Monday. As usual it was great, with kids throwing confetti, live music, and lots and lots of onions. Of course I had to buy some, along with some other crafty things for sale. It was my third time to the market and I think it is going to be one of those things I will really miss when we move back to the US... there just isn't anything like it!
So that was our November, full of the usual hustle and bustle that is our life here in Geneva. :)
The snow in Gruyères
Listening to the audio guide at the Palace of the Popes (Palais des Papes) in Avignon
On the St. Benezet Bridge overlooking the Rhone in Avignon
Warming up at the Roman arena in Arles
posted by Swiss Miss | 17:11
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