Kissing is stressful.

Kissing is one of those things that makes life for me (as an American) a little more stressful here in Europe.

Here in Zürich, it is normal to kiss people to greet them and to say goodbye. However, I find that I still don't have all of the rules down for this kissing game. Based on extensive observation, these are my findings:

1) Normally you kiss three times. I am still unclear how you know which side on which to start. Starting on the wrong side = awkward!

2) If you're kissing someone from other places in Europe, you can kiss one, two or three times. I have no idea how you're supposed to know people's kissing number before you go for it, but going in for that third kiss when they aren't used to kissing three times = awkward!

3) The actual event of kissing usually involves cheeks touching and air kissing noises. But some people just keep talking to you during the kissing ritual. Other people don't talk and just do the cheek touching thing. Making kissing noises while other people are silently touching your cheek = awkward!

4) If you are an American, people are unsure whether or not to kiss you on the first meeting. Having someone go to kiss you while you are trying to shake their hands = awkward!

5) Depending on the demographics of the group, you can attend a party or function where you have to kiss everyone in the room, which means that you can have doled out a minimum 30 kisses for a small party before the party even starts!

6) Even if people don't kiss you hello, they will almost surely kiss you goodbye. Kissing everyone three times while saying goodbye to everyone means invariably that you end up missing your tram. Missing the last tram of the night = stressful! (This is why I start saying goodbye at least one tram before the last tram. With all of this kissing business, you've got to be strategic!)

I have to say, I don't think that I'm alone in finding all of this a little stressful. However, I think that the worst can be Americans kissing Americans for greeting. Since neither party is a pro, disasters can and do occur.

I recently had an experience in which I was meeting an American (who was fresh off the plane) for the first time. As he was introduced to me, I extended my hand to greet him, but he just kept on coming at me! It took a second before it registered that we were going to have a kissing greeting. And then he landed a big wet kiss on my cheek! I about had a heart-attack! Actual kissing of someone's cheek is not okay in this whole kissing thing, and definitely not a slobbery kiss! I proceed to embarrass myself by totally wigging out- I jumped back and said that we didn't need to kiss for greeting since I was American, I haven't been here long enough to kiss people for greeting, I'm just not used to it, etc. Ooops. But it was just a gut reaction when I saw that he was settling in for two more wet kisses on my poor, defenseless cheeks.

I guess I still have some more to learn about this European kissing thing...

Zürich hearts pedestrians!

Today there was a really interesting New York Times article about how car-unfriendly European cities are becoming, and Zürich was one of the major case studies. I have to admit that being a pedestrian in Zürich is pretty great! You can easily get anywhere you want by walking or on public transportation. If you even look like you might want to cross the street, car will screech to a halt for you. Yet another reason that living here is pretty great!

You can check the article out here.

Hiking between time points.

Things have been a little wild and woolly here since my dear friend Jessi's visit. For several reasons, including the fact that I can now measure the time to my thesis defense in months rather than years, work has been a little insane. There have been a couple of weeks here where I have been in the lab on the weekends, working holidays and also putting in at least 12 hours days during the week. Sometimes chemistry is just really demanding, I guess. Of course, I enjoy the work (for the most part), so it's not so bad. However, it also means that I haven't been able to get out into the mountains that much, and, when I do, I have to fit the hike in between being back at the lab to take samples.

Yesterday I took this hike, which was a shorter hike that I could fit into an afternoon. It was along the Walensee, further up the lake from where Kara and Georgie and I took a hike a few weekends ago. The weather was quite overcast and even a little rainy, but it was just nice to be out. I took the opportunity to attempt to break in my hiking boots. Of course, they ended up breaking me in- I have a nice blister to prove it- but the process is started now!

Today I was going to go for another hike, but I just don't have the time to get to the mountains, hike and return before I have to be back in the lab. Thankfully I still have lots of summer left to be in the mountains, and the end to the lab insanity is in sight (knock on wood!).

Jessi and I do Zürich-y Activities.

Jessi and I returned to Zürich on Sunday evening because I had to get back to work. However, on Monday I was able to take the afternoon off so that we could do some Zürich-y things together.

Jessi met me at my office so that I could show her around ETH.

From there, we had tea at the Sprüngli cafe, which is really the place to see and be seen in Zürich, right on the expensive shopping street. Apparently we did a good job of being seen, as an older German gentleman commenced to have a 45-minute conversation with us.

We finished off our afternoon with an Irish-Roman ritual at the Thermalbad and Spa in Zürich, which just so happened to be down the street from the Google Zürich office where Brian was working the week before! I had won two gift certificates for this spa for a research talk that I had given at a conference late this spring, and so I thought that it would be fun to go with Jessi. We had fun trying to figure out what we were supposed to do- the German that I have learned thus far definitely has not extended into spa lingo. However, we made it through all of the stations and (mostly) followed the rules. I really don't like steam room, though. I feel like I can't breathe in them. But we were relaxed and exfoliated and sufficiently water-logged by the time we finished our ritual. I felt so Zürich-y between the afternoon tea at Sprüngli and also an afternoon spa visit!

That evening we came back to my flat and made pizza with copious amounts of basil from my little balcony garden. I love cooking with basil! And visits from friends!

I went to Vevey!

On our last day in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, Jessi and I took about a bajillion modes of public transportation: bus to a train to a metro to a ferry to a train to a train to a train to a tram. I really am a fan of how easy it is to get around here! (If you haven't noticed...) And I have really enjoyed seeing both the Italian-speaking and French-speaking regions of Switzerland. It is so interesting to me how different these regions are from the German-speaking area. Switzerland is such a unique country!

Our goal on Sunday was to see Lausanne and Vevey. I have always wanted to go to Vevey. For some reason, it captured my fancy when I read about it in Little Women, which is and was one of my favorite books.

We started out in Lausanne, which is very beautiful, looking out over Lake Geneva towards France.

Yay for trains!

Lausanne.

Art museum?

You can drink out of public fountains everywhere in Switzerland!

We didn't have much time there before we caught a ferry that would take us to Vevey. The weather was looking a little iffy, but it didn't start raining until we landed in Vevey. The boat ride was quite beautiful. There were vineyards everywhere- the area around Lake Geneva is Switzerland's most productive wine-growing region.

Leaving the harbor.

Vineyards by the lake.

Since it basically started pouring when we got to Vevey, Jessi and I quickly found our way to a place for lunch, which was made a little more difficult since it was Sunday and many places were closed. We enjoyed a delicious lunch and then wandered around the old town, which was super picturesque, with cute little shops.

The sun actually came out and the weather became super nice, so we sallied forth to promenade along Lake Geneva. It was super gorgeous, and I'd definitely go back. There is something about going to places that you grew up reading about (like going to England and seeing places that Jane Austen wrote about) that is really special. And, of course, being with one of my favorite people in the world makes it even better!

Lakeside promenade.

A fork. In the lake.

Charlie Chaplin.