Some spring pinks.

Apero by the Zürisee

My tandem partner and I met for an apero (happy hour) down by the Zürisee today to enjoy the spectacular weather. It is hard to beat Zürich on days like today!

Another spring walk home.

Spring is still alive!

Even after the snow last weekend, there are still signs of spring everywhere. I love this time of year!

Living abroad and creative replacements.

I feel like living abroad has taught me a lot about creative replacements and making due with what you have. When you move somewhere with only two suitcases and are on a tight budget, you just don't have everything that you might normally have. For my first year here, I hiked in tennis shoes and jeans. While I am very happy to have gotten some hiking gear, as it makes the whole experience much more comfortable, I had some really amazing hikes while wearing tennis shoes.

When cooking, I have also run in to the need to make replacements. For example, brown sugar isn't sold here, so I had to track down a sort-of molasses replacement to mix with white sugar to make a quasi-brown sugar. If cornmeal isn't available, polenta can be a satisfactory replacement. Chocolate chips can be replaced with chopped chocolate bars. I just add extra jalapeno peppers when a recipe calls for Rotel. I have no replacement for corn syrup, so I just don't make anything that requires it. And the list could go on and on...

Moving in and furnishing my own flat has also meant that I have tried to make due with as little as possible, especially since I know that I'll be moving in less than a year. This means that I have few pots and pans, and that I often use every pan I own when I cook and/or bake and have to creatively clean things mid-cooking to pull everything together.

I've also given up on attending fitness classes at ETH, because it was just too difficult to keep up with the German while also being coordinated. In general, my strategy of just trying to do what other people were doing worked, except when I watched the wrong person. There was one too many times in which I was called out in front of the whole class in German, didn't understand what was going on, and then was called out for not understanding and for speaking English, and finally I had enough. So, now I do exercise videos (in English) in my living room.

This past week, I added a new video to my routine to change things up a little and was surprised in the middle when the instructor told us to grab our free weights. I have no weights, so I ran into my kitchen and grabbed the first heavy things I could find, which ended up being a bag of oatmeal and a bag of lentils. I felt so ridiculous following along to this video and flailing around my bags of lentils and oatmeal, but I guess it worked! And I'm really happy that the bags didn't explode on me...

I'm so glad to be learning all of these new life skills!

A scene from my Swiss life.

So, last weekend I got super mondo lost while hiking, until I found a bus stop that could tell me where I was. I guess, in theory, I knew where I was because the iPhone could tell me where I was on the map, but when you're in a random farmer's field, the details are a little sketchy.

Anyways, I found this bus stop and waited around for the bus to come and save me/ take me home. The bus pulled up to me (I was at the front door), and then it just sat there. I thought maybe the driver needed a few moments for himself before he picked me up, so I just stood there.

Finally the doors open, and I entered the bus. The driver said something to me in Swiss German that I absolutely could not understand. I have made some progress in understanding Swiss German, but it does not extend to strong small-town dialects in the Bernese Oberland, apparently. I assumed he wanted proof of my ticket, so I showed him my GA and smiled.

Then he said the exact same thing to me. I turned in to a deer in the headlights and asked him to repeat, yet again. Again, absolutely no understanding happened in my sun-addled head.

Finally, I had to tell him (in German) that I just didn't understand very much. He repeated himself in high-ish German, and I finally understood that I should've pushed a button on the outside of the bus to open the door, because he did not want to open it for me from the inside.

Really?

I tried to apologize as best I could and then sat down. I don't know why this was worth 5 minutes of everyone's time to make sure that I knew which button to press to open the bus door, but apparently it was really important. Sometimes the Swiss are really in to rules, and this must've been one of them.

Note to self: bus drivers are not there to open the door for you.

At least he didn't drive away without me!

Spring in Zurich...

...is a tease! This is the view from my balcony today.

Hiking and getting lost by Thun.

Last weekend, I went for this hike near the Thunersee (Lake of Thun). The weather was totally totally amazing, especially in comparison to the total lack of sun that we have suffered for the past 3 months. I don't mind cold, but the lack of sun really gets to me after a while. Anyways, the day was beautiful and sunny, and possibly one of the clearest days I've ever experienced here.

I stayed in the lowlands for my hike, because the mountains are still absolutely covered in snow. It will be quite a while before it melts enough to hike in the high mountains. Especially considering we're getting snow above about 1000m again this weekend!

Anyways, the hike started out by the Thunersee, with really amazing views of the Bernese Alps, and, especially, the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau. It seemed like everyone was out by the lake, and I really couldn't blame them. The view was amazing.

American Pub.

After a while, the hike went away from the lake and into the countryside surrounding. I walked through a beautiful forest and through some quaint towns and farms. I was very thankful for the drinking water fountains that are everywhere in Switzerland, as the day was so hot that I definitely needed more water.

Signs of spring!

These fountains are everywhere and the water is super cold!

At some point, and I'm not actually sure where but after 17 km or so, I got totally lost. I was following the directions and the ubiquitous yellow signs, and even checking with my iPhone, but somehow I managed to get totally and completely lost, and wandering through a random farmer's field. It was still pretty, at least!

Random farmer's field I walked through.

Eventually I found a bus stop and figured out where I was and how to get home. I'm not really sure how I manage to get lost so often, but apparently I just have a special talent. Either way, it was a really beautiful day and an amazing hike. I'm so happy that spring is here!

Kissing is becoming normal. And that's stressful.

I may have mentioned before, but the custom here of kissing three times for greeting and goodbyes can be stressful for an American that really just wants to shake your hand, please.

Finally, after two years, I'm really starting to get used to the whole three air kisses while touching cheeks and maybe or maybe not talking.

I know which side to start on (offer my right cheek).

I know the proper stance (grab at least one of their arms, usually the forearm or elbow region, and then hold on for the duration).

I have discovered that a mix of kissing noises and talking is much less awkward than just kissing kisses. So I always try to think of something to say during these interludes. Since you're normally saying hello or goodbye, it isn't so hard.

However, this does not stop the awkwardness.

Every time I go back to the US, I have this urge to kiss greet and goodbye everyone. I feel like we haven't properly greeted each other unless we've kissed three times, but everyone just wants to shake my hand or give me a hug. There have been a few times that I've been pulled in to a hug and I've automatically started the kissing ritual (touch right cheeks, say something). Thankfully, I've been able to recover before it got awkward, but...

To make matters worse, now I've gotten to know my Swiss friends so well that, instead of greeting with kisses, we've progressed to the next friendship level in which they greet with hugs. So we're back to square one, only the roles are reversed. I go in for kisses, and they just want to hug me. Why do they change the rules on me?

Life is so confusing!

Spring is here!

Spring has finally arrived here (knock on wood). And just in time for Sächsilüüte, the bizarre Zürich holiday during which they blow up a snowman to predict how nice this summer will be...

Hiking in Kanton Bern today.

My second Easter.

Last weekend, I had the chance to celebrate Easter with some friends from work: Melissa and Jonathan and their 3-year-old daughter Ellen, who are recently-arrived transplants from Minnesota (Melissa and I started grad school together), and Paul and Jessica and their two-year-old Jakob, who I've mentioned before. All of us went south to Ticino or Italy for Easter weekend, and Melissa had the good idea to celebrate Easter in a more traditional fashion, just a weekend late. We dyed Easter eggs and also did some crafts that my dear friend Jessi had sent me from London. We had lots of fun doing crafts together!

While we were doing crafts, the Easter bunny was hard at work outside, hiding eggs in the yard, so it was time for an Easter egg hunt afterwards. The kids were so cute and did a good job of finding eggs, although Jakob was just as happy throwing them out of his basket as putting them in.

After the egg hunt, it was time for Easter brunch, complete with cinnamon twists, eggs, sausage, a fruit salad, and mimosas. Yum!

While I totally had a lovely Easter hanging out with Stefanie and her family, it was also really nice to get to dye some eggs and participate in some other Easter traditions with other friends. I rather like this rhythm of celebrating holidays twice: I've had two Thanksgivings, and now two Easters! Not too shabby...