Category Archives: Summer

Canadienne Buffet: USA Style

by

Post by Lauren

This week, we had a patriotic Canadienne Buffet. Not to celebrate Canada Day which was Friday I think, but a potluck picnic to celebrate the Fourth of July. If you are just catching up with our blog, my French teacher taught me that the best way to say potluck in French is “Canadienne Buffet”. We love the phrase and I plan to use it until you are tired of hearing about it. Sorry in advance.

And here is the birth story of the CB: In Switzerland, we read in our Swiss Rulebook that if you make plans for dinner with people in a restaurant, the tradition is that you should always pay — the concept of “dutch” on anything simply doesn’t exist. This wouldn’t be a big deal back in the US. To treat friends to dinner at our favorite restaurants – Alexander Michaels, The Penguin, Big Daddy’s, etc. – would be no big deal and could cost us 50, 75 bucks – maybe $100.

However, when the average decent meal out with friends in Geneva could be 250-350 CHF (300-400 USD), we found that the “potluck” allows for the social aspect of a dinner out with friends but without having to refinance the house to enjoy a night out. Plus, we think the food our friends make is better than 95% of the restaurants in Geneva.

This weekend, in honor of the holiday, we decided to grill out in the park beside the lake. We are pretty sure we aren’t supposed to grill out, but we figured it was 4th of July and that could be our excuse if we were apprehended – in our country, it is actually ILLEGAL not to grill out on 4th of July. Also, we had our friend Henry Birmingham visiting from the US, so if all else failed, we planned to blame on him and act as innocent Swiss bystanders to these crazy American ways of lighting fire to food.

It was a pretty lovely evening spent with fun folks. Happy Birthday, America!! And thanks to Henry for the fabulous photography!

My first Swiss Painting

by

Post by Lauren

So, you may have noticed on our post about our new home that our water closets have an “interesting” tile color.

I took some inspiration from the Friday hikes I do with the American International Women’s Club to try to improve the situation. Two weeks ago, we hiked through some wheat fields from Jussy to Vesenaz and some of the natural yellows in the wheat fields and paths were similar to our the bathroom. So, I figured it might help our visitors not concentrate on the tile-work. Let me know what you think on the “match”.

Also, I thought you might want to check out a few photos from the hike that provided this inspiration and also see the faces of some of the wonderful women who have helped me feel more at home here in Geneva.

A splendid Canadienne Buffet

by

After a vicious weekend of assembling IKEA furniture and hanging pictures, we were very excited to have Sunday dinner plans at A & A’s place.

In my French lessons, my teacher (who doesn’t speak a word of English to me), has me talk about daily life in Geneva. I talk about the house, Gabe’s job, and things I do during the day.

Last week, I was attempting to tell her in French that “we met some nice people on the bus, and we went over to their house for potluck,” describing our delicious American BBQ at their place.

“Comment dites-vous ‘potluck’ en français?” I asked.

She replied, “ahhh….Canadienne buffet”.

Really? That’s awesome.

The funny part of a Canadienne buffet is taking your items on the public transit. Below, Gabe captured a shot of me toting the caprese salad while waiting for the bus. Apparently, it is not normal to carry a platter of food on the bus in Switzerland. Oh well, I am not a stranger to odd looks from the Swiss.

This Sunday, the theme was Mini Pizzas. A had whipped up an amazing selection of toppings. From everything to homemade sauce, to all the workings of a BBQ chicken pizza, it was incredible. Gabe and I think this is best pizza we have ever had!

In addition to the delicious Italian fare, it was just a very enjoyable evening spent with great people.

Gabe and I are excited that we are finally almost done settling so we can host next time at our new place. I am thinking ours will be a Mexican themed Canadienne Buffet….we’ll see…you’ll have to keep reading for all the updates! Also, share any of your best potluck ideas for us – we’d love to hear some suggestions!

Fete de la Musique

by

This weekend Geneva hosted the 20th annual Fete de la Musique in Old Town – three days of non-stop music, ranging from classical, to jazz, to reggae, to rock. It was only a 5 minute walk from our house, so really close.

We tried to go Saturday, but were rained out after about 45 minutes. We returned home rain drenched but happy as we got delicious “to-go” fair food from the Madagascar tent and sausage tent.

We returned Sunday in the better weather and enjoyed the different artists and venues they had set up in 30 different locations, all over Vielle Ville. Here are a few photos below.

What a great weekend! Those wanting to come visit next Summer, should definitely try to come for the Fete de la Musique.

A rainy regatta

by

This weekend was the Bol d’Or Mirabaud on Lake Geneva. It is the largest regatta in Europe, and we had planned to go out, bright and early and picnic to watch the sailboats set off for their journey to the other side of the lake.

Mother Nature had other plans.

As we approached the shore from our 10 minute rain-soaked walk from home, we saw this scene:

At one point, the sun sneaked out a wee bit and we could see a more beautiful kaleidoscope of sails that was originally hidden by the grey sky. There were so many!

The ducks enjoyed watching the faint images of sails on the skyline as well.

Maybe next year we’ll get to enjoy this beautiful scene in the sunshine!

Nous avons des velos! (We have bikes!)

by

So its official – we have moved into our new permament apartment. Since our stuff has been on an ocean liner for the past two months, every time I opened a box, it was like receiving treasure.

Some of my treasures were:
-food storage ( I had been saving tin foil & baggies and reusing them to Gabe’s disgust)
-our own silverware
-the rest of my clothes since I’d been wearing the same thing for 8 weeks solid

Some of Gabe’s treasures were:
-the Apple TV
-the wireless router (yes, a treasure for me too!)
-our bikes

In fact, when they pulled the bikes off the truck, he went for a ride before they could take into into our apartment. And, on Monday, it was a Swiss holiday for Pentacost, so his office was closed and he worked from home. We went on a bike ride mid-morning for a break.

One of the coolest things we saw was a windsurfer park his car, assemble his apparatus, and then set sail on Lake Geneva. It was pretty chilly this day although you can’t tell from Gabe’s attire.



We look forward to many great rides and me hopefully not getting hit by a car, since I am not the most graceful on a velo!

Loving London

by

Our London weekend was quite lovely. Here are a few highlights from our trip that we wanted to share:

The Tower of London

We really enjoyed seeing the Crown Jewels and the Beefeater Tour

Pubs & Pub Fare

We loved Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese – it was rebuilt the year after the great fire, in 1667. We happily noshed on fish & chips in the 700 year old wine cellar, and tried to imagine what it was like when Dickens, Mark Twain, Alfred Tennyson, Sir Arthur Conon Doyle were there.

We also hit up a few pubs in Mayfair and I got to try a Pimms.

Evensong service at Westminister Abbey

This was a really cool experience.  We sat and enjoyed the Evensong Service and the magnificent choir of Westminster Abbey.  We sat right next to the altar where William & Kate were married just a month before. 

Shakespeare’s Globe

We thoroughly enjoyed Alls Well that Ends Well in the replica of Shakespeare’s Globe, as he intended his shows to be displayed – open air (yes, it was raining) and without acoustics.  We imagined what is was like in the original, just yards from the new version.

General Site-seeing

It was nice just to see some of the beautiful landmarks of London and true to form against the stony grey sky!

Lauren ventured off on her own on Monday when Gabe’s conference began and here is the quick recap:

Buckingham Palace (Guard rainout!!)

The Tate Modern Art Museum ( I was in heaven and I think Gabe was too that he didn’t have to stay 4 hours with me here)

 Abbey Road (Beatles studio site and scene from their famous photo.  Quite funny to watch all the tourists almost get hit by cars and buses not amused by the traffic hold-up.

 Regent Park & Queen Mary Rose Garden, recommended by friend Andreas who went to school in the park

The British Museum – I saw the parts of the Parthenon that were “saved”.  We heard in Athens last year that the British stole these artifacts from them in a bailout and refused to give them back. Quite interesting to hear both sides of the story.  Also, the Rosetta Stone was a highlight.

 

Thanks to all our friends for the great tips!

Bern Means Bear

by

All I know about Bern comes from my friend Randi. As we were considering the move and prior to our final departure she mentioned that one of her two cities she’d been to in Switzerland was Bern and she colorfully added both times she mentioned it, “Bern means bear”.

So today, as S (who is in town for house-hunting) and I walked around beautiful Bern, all I kept hearing was Randi’s voice saying “Bern means bear”. And I am pretty sure its stuck in S’s head as well based on how many times I repeated it to her.

But, nonetheless, the fact is true and this capital city of Switzerland was named for the bear. We were able to see a few walking through the city:

Bern was so beautiful – I loved the architecture and charm. For a 90 minute train ride, it was a nice treat and great way to spend the holiday (Ascension Day is a national holiday and all groceries & stores were closed all over Switzerland). Also, S was a great tour guide as she had been to Bern before and knew all the great things to check out. In fact, one of her favorite activities was the Bern River Float. However, with 40 degree temps, we decided to postpone this until a future trip.

Here are a few photos from today’s adventures:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Caves Ouvert!!!

by


Caves Ouvert means – the cellars are open! And open for free tastings all day.

Since Gabe had traveled all week, it was a perfect Saturday activity that required no planning and we were ensured to not have to book a plane/boat/train and be able to sleep in our own beds that night (at least hopefully, if we didn’t have too much wine!).

Plus, it gave us an opportunity to try some local wines and learn a bit more about this region’s viniculture. So armed with a baguette and prosciutto in tow, we hopped on the bus full of anticipation.

We were lucky to meet a few Americans on our adventure – D and A & A (who had all been residents of Geneva less than 3 months), and thank goodness, they had actually done their homework with the route and best wines so we happily tagged along with them.

Trying chardonnay and pinot gris at Cave de la Chena

Gabe checking out the scene at Cave de la Chena. We bought some yummy olive spread here.

Next stop: Chambet – awesome band, great looking food, and friendly owners

Gabe and A, inspecting the grapes

A great day in the vineyards

One way to get around was the free TPG bus for Caves Ouverts. Woo hoo!

Happily enjoying wine at biofarm, Domaine Château L’Evêque

More cowbell!

This way to Château du Crest with petting zoo and tons of wine tasting

Loving the Swiss countryside

Our other mode of transportation…..

Overall this day gets a…


Date Night on the Lake

by


When we announced we were moving to Geneva, people usually had a word in mind that they associated with the city. I’d say the most common ones were related to its role in humanitarian and worldwide efforts – “The Geneva Convention” or “Red Cross headquarters”. What followed next was “expensive”.

And the expensive part is true. Geneva always ranks somewhere in the top 5 most expensive cities to live in the world, far more so that New York, Paris or London. However, for that expense, the Swiss enjoy the highest standard of living than anywhere in the world – Zurich being #1 and Geneva #2. Gabe and I are trying to learn the balance of this – to embrace the high quality of life available here, without going broke!!

In the US, there were so many restaurants that we loved that had entrees in the $10-$20 range. So we could frequently go out, have drinks with dinner and have a bill under $50 for the both of us. However, inexpensive dinners like this simply don’t exist in Switzerland. A hot dog on the street is about $10 CHF and lunch side salads average about $20 CHF. Thus, a mid-range dinner would cost about $100 CHF and a nice one around $200CHF, for two. Prior to moving, we planned 1-2 meals mid-range meals in order to manage our budget.

Our entire first week, I have made all our meals at home and we had our one budgeted meal for the week for Saturday lunch. We needed to get out of our little 1 BR flat and decided to get a bit creative and make a picnic to take and watch the sunset. We sat on the rocks by the baby beach to eat.

Later we moved up to the grass for a softer spot to watch the sunset.

We enjoyed the evening so much, we were questioning why we never picnicked in the park in the US since our home was so close to the largest park in Charlotte. We concluded it was because eating out didn’t seem so expensive enough to drive us to be creative. Thanks Switzerland for this lesson!