In the begining

Hi friends,

We are starting to blend into the neighborhood here – well, I wouldn’t go that far, I think we still stick out as “Americans,” but we are trying.

Since we have been here, we have done a lot of walking around and getting to know the area. It is very easy to walk places here and there are lots of small shops which are great for window shopping. Chance really likes walking by the boucherie (butcher shops), while Melissa enjoys the patisserie (cake shops) and the Chocolat shops, and I of course, love the boulangerie (bakery shop). Of course, we only indulge every once in a while ;-)

We do a weekly grocery shopping on Saturdays at the big market and bring that home by car; however we still have to carry the bags up to the 4th floor – so we try not to buy too much at one time. During the week, I run to the corner store to buy the little things we might need. Most stores, including the grocery stores are closed here on Sundays. And most stores close at 6:30 or 7pm at night. Shopping takes a long time because it is sometimes hard to figure out what exactly we are purchasing. I stood in the cheese isle looking for cheddar cheese – you would think in the land of cheese that would be easy to find. I think cheddar cheese is below the Swiss culture – there is plenty other cheese options out there, but no cheddar! Then once we get some of the items home, we have to work at figuring out the cooking instructions, which are usually posted in French, German and Italian on most of the items. Every once in a while you luck out with British instructions as well.

This weekend we drove out of Switzerland into France for the afternoon on Saturday. We drove up to le Saleve, which is on top of part of the Alps. When it is clear there is a great view into the valley to see the whole city of Geneva. We took Chance with us, so he has become truly an international dog! It was nice to get out and about and see some of the other towns and villages. It is only about a 15 minute trip from Geneva to the French border.

Saturday morning we walked around a small animal fair just a few blocks from our flat. They were demonstrating shearing sheep and also had cows, ponies, and llamas on display. There were a few vendors selling traditional Swiss cowbells and some Swiss outfits (like Heidi wore). Unfortunately, they didn’t have one small enough for Bean Sprout right now – maybe when she gets a bit older.

Sunday we went on a long walk with Chance and stumbled upon an antique market. It was interesting to look at everything. Chance enjoyed the opportunity to be a hit with the children in the area. Apparently, Dalmatians are just as popular with the young kids over here!

My French lessons start on Wednesday, which is fabulous as we desperately need them. Melissa’s high school French is coming back to her – and I often let her try to decipher signs and conversations with locals. My high school Spanish tends not to be very helpful in this situation – but I have caught myself trying to communicate in Spanish a few times – it really puts a kink in the communication gap.

We have set up our pre-natal classes to start November 11th. It is with a small group of other English speaking folks. We hope that the mid-wife will help us answer questions about our hospital options and length of stay – which we think is longer than provided in the US.

Melissa’s work is keeping her very busy; she usually leaves the flat around 7:30am and returns about 7pm. I guess this time schedule is forcing us to start eating closer to the European dinner hour! She is gearing up for the next stage of this work project which will launch in the next few weeks.

We have found a flat, that won’t be available until late December or early January. It is in a small village, very close to Melissa’s office. She can even ride her bike on nice days. So we will be in this temporary flat at least through the end of December. It is getting a little challenging to walk up all those stairs at 7 and ½ months pregnant – so I plan my trips carefully! Chance has gotten used to waiting for me at each landing … while I trudge up the stairs.

We hope everyone has a nice Halloween!

Love and miss everyone ~ Kathy, Melissa, Chance, and Bean Sprout