Follow Matthew's travels around the world…
A little bit more good news to report on our move to Switzerland. I have just had a phone call from my employer confirming that my residence permit has been approved. There was never really any doubt, as there are no longer quotas for EU citizens, but it’s nice to know that I won’t have any problems when I arrive.
I am back in Paris after a weekend in Basel, helping Aude to get settled into our new place. They’ve put us in a nice apartment, very close to the main train station and right behind the zoo. Our very friendly relocation agent even came to the station to meet us and gave us a detailed rundown of the flat…including the infamous rules for the shared washing room!
We arrived on Saturday, which was the Swiss National Day holiday. The fireworks in Basel are supposed to be spectacular, but they also take place at midnight on the day before, so we missed them. From what I could tell, celebrations on the day itself were limited to all the shops being closed and a few children setting off small fireworks in the neighbourhood. I expected bands, costumes, and flag-waving, but it wasn’t to be…
We were lucky with the weather on Saturday – a glorious day of sunshine and temperatures of 29C. Our luck wasn’t to last, though – Sunday was overcast and drizzly all day. We took the chance to grab a tram to some of the neighbourhoods that we’re considering for a permanent place, but given the weather, we decided to explore from the tram rather than on foot.
Aude is settled in, and I packed her off to work on Monday morning for her first day, then caught the train back home. She’s been home before 7pm each evening (a real change from Paris!) and reports that the other children are playing nicely with her. I’m back in Paris trying to get the flat ready and tying up loose ends, plus looking after our little four-legged friends…
We’re off to the south of France for Jerome’s wedding this weekend – and crossing our fingers for some sunshine for a change!
After another long absence, it’s time to update the blog again. As many of you may know, we have decided that it’s time for another change of location, this time to Basel, Switzerland. It’s goodbye to croissants, velibs, Gitanes and dog poop and hello to fondue, trams, yodelling and cows. We have been looking forward to the move for some time now, and we are both excited that it’s finally happening.
The last few weeks have been taken up with all of the administration required to get ready for an international move. I am busy tying up the last loose ends at work, and looking forward to taking the month of August as holiday. The movers have been to inspect the apartment (and concluded what we already knew – that we have a lot of stuff!). The cats have their passports, complete with photographs, although disappointingly not with little paw-prints. Work permits have been applied for and the efficient Swiss administration machine has swung into action.
Aude starts her new job at the beginning of August, so we will travel out to Basel this weekend to get settled into our temporary accommodation. We will arrive just in time to celebrate Swiss National Day, a fitting introduction to our new home.
We have both taken jobs with pharmaceutical companies. For Aude, the work is largely the same as what she was doing in Paris, but for me the role is quite a departure. I will still be working in Finance, but this time I will be sitting on the other side of the fence, as advisee instead of advisor. My responsibilities include all of Asia (except Japan) so I will be spending a lot of time on planes. Still, it brings me back to the original mission of this blog from four years ago – to let friends and family know where I am in the world.
Despite taking August as holiday, there is a lot going on this month. I will be shuttling back-and-forth between Paris and Basel, and Aude’s brother is getting married in the middle of August in the south of France. We have the house to pack, I have vaccinations that need to be updated before I hit Asia again, and doctor / dentist / optometrist appoints to attend to. I intend to squeeze every penny I can out of the French medical system – it seems only fair, given the amount I’ve paid into the system!
September and October look like busy travel months for me, with trips already scheduled to India, Thailand, China, the Philippines and Australia. I have at least one weekend in Asia, so I may try either to visit friends or find a beach where I can relax for a few days. Otherwise, it is a lot of back-and-forth travel between Europe and Asia.
Turns out there isn’t really much to photograph around Geneva. Oh well, here is some evidence that I was there…
Another week, another set of stamps in my passport. This week was actually reasonably calm. I spent Monday and Tuesday in Paris, then headed off to Zurich for the remainder of the week. It was nice to spend a few nights in my own bed for a change.
Zurich is still in the full swing of Euro 2008, although it isn’t quite so much of a party atmosphere now that Switzerland has been eliminated from the competition. There is still a big party along the Limmatquai, but the seas of red shirts that were apparent last week are no longer present.
They have been replaced by seas of orange shirts, the colour of the Dutch supporters. Only it turns out there is a small problem. SBB, the national Swiss railway, also dresses its track workers in bright orange suits so they don’t get hit by a train as they work on the tracks.
They have had to change them into yellow uniforms in the past week or two. Apparently, the Dutch have a habit of getting drunk, and in a moment of drunken confusion, following the SBB staffers onto the rail lines, thinking that they are going to some sort of party.
Here are a few more pictures of the Euro 2008 celebrations this week…
With all the lead up to the Euro2008 matches being hosted in Switzerland, I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me that the towns might put on some sort of special events. But I arrived in Zurich on Wednesday night to find the entire Limmatquai blocked off to traffic for an enormous street party. There were bands, hundreds of street vendors selling all sorts of food, beer tents and lots of big-screen TVs.
And fans. Lots and lots of patriotic fans, all decked out in red and white. So I decided to grab my camera and walk down the street, grabbing a few pictures as I went along.
And then it hit me. This was the quietest, most well behaved crowd I have ever seen at a sporting event. Despite the large numbers of people (certainly numbering into the tens of thousands), the police presence was incredibly limited. People were well-behaved. No one was staggering along drunk. There was no litter on the ground. Not in Switzerland!
Crowds along the Limmatquai for Euro 2008. Without a doubt the most well-behaved football crowd I have ever witnessed.
Crowds along the Limmatquai for Euro 2008
Crowds along the Limmatquai for Euro 2008
Everyone is watching the game — TVs are in every shop window!
Patriotism was on high display
Football…what else?
Getting into the spirit of things
One-man fan club.
Amazing. Thousands and thousands of spectators lined the Limmatquai for the match. Absolutely no litter dropped on the ground, not even a cigarette butt. Only in Switzerland.
In England, this would be followed by an arrest for drunken assault. In Switzerland, it’s a couple saying hello to their neighbour
Turkey vs. Switzerland compete in Euro 2008
The only thing more embarrassing than having a weiner is having to admit that you can only handle a weinerli. Particularly when you then lose the match to Turkey as well…
PS – I have also modified my blog a little bit to accomodate slightly larger photos. Hopefully these are easier to see than the old 400×300 pictures that I have been including until now…
