There are many things I miss about Switzerland
First and foremost is daughter Julia. To refresh your memory, she pulled a Gilligan. She went to Switzerland on a 3 year tour in 2002.....and is still there. She does speak French well enough to get along with people, shop keepers, border guards, and a host of other lines of work, and has a wide circle of friends from very different cultural backgrounds.
(By the way, Gilligan was the main character in a TV sitcom called Gilligan's Island, which was incredibly stupid and highly entertaining at the same time. Mainly because of the females in the cast, especially Marianne. If you are under age 40 you may not know that.)
Second would be Julia's circle of friends. We went out for drinks one night and there was a representative from England, Portugal, Germany, and Trinidad. We went for fondue and around the table were a Brit, a woman from Ukraine, Irish, Brit, German, Spain, and the United States. George and Monica came for dinner one night. She is Swiss, he is from California. We had dessert with Craig and Yvonne. She is German, he is from England. Kevin (USA) and Christina (Spain) took me hiking and were so patient with me......these two are crazy long and fast hikers, and here they were plugging up the hill, making sure I knew when a slippery place came. Craig and Yvonne and George and Monica have children. The youngest, not even four, and the older ones speak English, German, and French. They are cute as buttons and a heap of fun.
Fresh croissants, and bread, and sweet treats probably would be third. I loved going up to the patisserie in the morning for a croissant and a baguette. A couple of times I bought lovely sweets for dessert or an afternoon snack. No bread in the states compares with the baguette...especially when it is still warm.
Fourth...the view.
Fifth....the town of Chardonne. I just love walking the streets and listening to the people. The houses are pretty cool too.
Sixth....the view. I know, I am repeating myself but it is a great view.
Another thing I miss is British TV. They had a series called Nazi Megastructures which was on Channel 4, not BBC. I watched the first two dealing with Hitler's bunkers and the sub complex in Lorient, France, and would love to see the next four. But according toe the website, Channel 4 is only broadcast in the UK and on authorized satellite providers. There was a show called 4 in a Bed. No, I did not watch it because I thought it was porn, I watched because Jackie was watching it. They get 4 bed and breakfast operators and everyone visits the others' operations and rates them. At the end of the show they explain their ratings and determine the winner. A food show was based on five strangers being put into a group and each night for a week a different person cooks a meal and plans entertainment in their home for the other four. Creativity counts. Restoration shows. Home buying shows. Good TV and not available here.
Nestle ice tea with peach. I have tried the Lipton one, but it is too sweet.
The Swiss recycle almost everything. Seriously, milk cartons? They take it seriously but they don't make it easy on people.
Trying to speak French. My French is lousy. No doubt about it. But it is really neat to be in a place where everything is different and you really have to concentrate on what people say. I know a lot of people think that is annoying and everything should be like it is in the states......but what would be the fun in that?
The lake lights. When a storm or strong wind is coming, yellow beacons start flashing on the docks of the piers in the various towns. I can't explain it, but when I see the lights come on, I look forward to seeing what the storm is going to do. I guess I am a light watcher.
Public transportation. Buses and trains go almost everywhere.,
And tomorrow you may learn about what I don't miss. It's not all roses in the land of chocolate.
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