T̶w̶o̶ One p̶e̶r̶p̶e̶t̶u̶a̶l̶ ̶e̶x̶p̶a̶t̶s̶ immigrant settling into home country number five.
Have I mentioned how very, very excited I am to be moving to a place where they speak REAL GERMAN? Yeah yeah yeah, I know there’s an incomprehensible Bavarian dialect that lurks around, but when you’re not talking to drunk farmers, High German is the default language in Munich. High German, the German I know, … Read more
Munich! Congratulations to Munich for being chosen as the home of our next expat adventure. It was a tough decision, but we are really looking forward to getting to know Bavaria a little more intimately. The beer gardens, Oktoberfest, the drunken tourists, the drunken locals… and I’m sure the city has some non-beer-oriented stuff going … Read more
Our days in Zurich are numbered. What is there left to do before we move? What places do we want to go one more time? What things to do, foods to eat, people to see? What are we forgetting? How much chocolate do we need to buy before heading to the US for the holidays? … Read more
As it turns out, the Swiss are pretty good at it, too. So tonight we went to a Wir Sind Helden concert. Now don’t get me wrong – Wir Sind Helden is definitely one of my all-time favorite German-singing bands. Right up there with Xavier Naidoo and the late great Falco. But I’m not such … Read more
When we weren’t pulling our hair out trying to plan travel this weekend, we were off enjoying some lovely winter-like activities. Zurich is a fabulous place to be in the winter, assuming you like, um, winter. I am sorry we will be leaving before the real winter starts, but at least we are getting a … Read more
Looking for a good time? Try booking a 4-country, 10-flight, 15-city trip using 500 different airlines and a million different travel websites. Around the holidays. I need a personal assistant. Update #1: OMG! For the first time in about 10 years of trying, American Airlines frequent flier miles have proven useful. Direct flights and everything! … Read more
They spread it on sandwiches by the gallon. They slather it on pretzels by the kilo. But apparently, the Swiss are just not consuming enough butter. Their butter levels have become so dangerously low, in fact, that the Swiss Butter Council* has decided to intervene. To increase local butter awareness, the SBC has implemented an … Read more
We spent the day before the cow fights in Sion, a lovely little Valais city not far from Martigny. The main attractions (beyond the charming downtown walking district) are multiple picturesque hilltop castles which overlook the city. Gluttons for punishment that we are, we hiked up to two castles (one of which is technically a … Read more
The New York Times picks up the Swiss Black Sheep story (obviously inspired by me). Also, violence erupted at a protest in Bern over the weekend. Check out the latest edition of the Carnival of Cities. Looking for a fabulous night out in Zurich? I highly recommend this exciting art opening coming up on November … Read more
Ranoma’s victory (in the 500 to 600 pound category) Martigny Cow Fighting – Ranoma’s victory from zurika on Vimeo. Two cows escape the ring Martigny Cow Fighting – the escape from zurika on Vimeo.