04-NOV-2006
Old and New.
The very central part of town has not been tainted by modern architecture. Unfortunately, as you move away from the lake area, this type of view becomes more common. Nice, old-fashioned buildings attached to plain, (and mostly boring), modern complexes. I'm not sure yet if this creates a bit of synergy between the old and new. I'll have to explore more so that I can formulate my opinion. There are many great looking modern buildings; just not sure how well they all fit with old Geneva...
03-NOV-2006
City Streets.
More views of the city around the lake... Bet you're getting curious as to what my neighborhood looks like....
02-NOV-2006
Old and New.
I'm surprised to see a car such as this (The light green) sitting on the streets of Genève. It is actually illegal to have rust on your car, and all of the cars that you see here are new and very rust-free. There aren't any junkers with noisy, old exhaust or any banged-up, dented and ugly cars here in Switzerland. Don't ever complain about going through NJ inspection; this is effortless compared to the Swiss inspection!
01-NOV-2006
Cold on the left.
Hmm - Not really sure if this was a plumbing faux pas (wow, check out how well the French fits here..!), or if people in Switzerland prefer their cold water on the left (I think the former is true, given that my bathroom has the cold water on the proper side). This is the kitchen sink faucet.
31-OCT-2006
Heat.
This place is pretty old, over 100 years. And because of this, it has a good amount of charm - and also hot-water radiator heat. Each room has one of these units, controlled by little thermostats on the water feed. The apartment is surprisingly warm, even with the heaters barely turned on. So, I'm happy it is a cozy place, although I've heard the winters here are fairly mild, rarely dropping below freezing.
30-OCT-2006
Balcony door.
The one in the kitchen. I have another large wooden door in the bedroom that also leads to the balcony. Bet you can't wait to see what this place looks like...
29-OCT-2006
Switch.
As you can see, if you look closely, the last paint job wasn't up to the standards I prefer. One of the main reasons I want to paint is not only to add some color, but also to make the walls and trim as clean and perfect as possible. This particular switch lives right by my front door, and is used to activate the light in the hallway.
28-OCT-2006
Color.
As I mentioned, I don't have much of anything right now. So last week I went to a 'home store' and treated myself to some exciting new purchases: A hand towel, shower towel, shower curtain... Wow, how exciting, huh? I decided to go with a 'blue hue' theme in the bathroom and so, this towel captures the various shades I'm using. Maybe one day I'll take a pic of the entire bathroom!!!
27-OCT-2006
Looking out.
So, the pictures this week will be a bit "short-sighted"; and given this fact, I thought a shot of my "peephole" would be appropriate. I've been very busy this past week (as you might have noticed by the lack of PODs). Since my car and bike arrived, I've had a fun time working with my insurance agent to get things ironed out with making both vehicles legal here in Switzerland. That, coupled to a million other bureaucratic circus acts, topped off by unending lab-work (and a few social outings), has whittled my "alone time" away quite efficiently. Now that things are starting to settle down a bit, I'll grab the camera and actually take it outside of my apartment this week to show you all more of Genève.
But, getting some of the detail of my new place, I feel, is worthwhile too - Since you all want to see this place through my eyes anyway. I'll eventually show you what my apartment looks like farther than 2 inches away from the wall - But good things are worth waiting for... I want to paint and get the place cleaned up a bit first, and then I'll post up some 'before and after' pics... Keep checking back often :-)
26-OCT-2006
Dryer?
..who needs a machine to dry clothes?! Actually, it would be a nice luxury to have a dryer at my place, but at least I have a decent washing machine in the basement of the building - and the laundry is free. My balcony is wide enough to accommodate my nifty new clothes-drying rack (10 CHF at Carrefour), so I use mother nature to help with my laundry.
25-OCT-2006
Connected.
I don't have that many things yet, but at least now I'm connected to the outside world. I have a home phone line, as well as a DSL connection. (I'll send an email this week to give you all of my latest contact information.) Don't really have any furniture yet, but this will come with time.
24-OCT-2006
ANOTHER Reunion!
FINALLY after so much grief with paperwork and customs and shipping companies and delivery mistakes, my HONDAS are here in Europe with me!!!!!! I'm too excited for words.... And a BIG Thank You to my friend Lorenzo, who had to put up with an angry German truck driver for an hour until I finally found where they were (Long story.. more to come on that later)... Important part, the car and the bike are safe and sound. Currently working on getting them registered and insured (let the paperwork continue!!!)