Red Bull

Red Bull is an "energy drink" that is not sold in Canada. I believe it's actually illegal. My only exposure to it before coming to Europe was hearing that some pop stars from the States take it on the road with them and love the stuff.
Red Bull is very accessible here. I finally tried drinking the stuff last night. It's very medicinal tasting. Cough syrup-esque.
My favorite is the fact that on the can there is a warning that states that Red Bull must not be mixed with alcohol. Good thing that Vodka-Red Bull is one of the most popular drinks in the area.
I don't know how much of an effect it had on me. I felt pretty awake all night, but I also didn't wake up that day until 11:30am. I didn't necessarily feel more hyper or anything, but maybe I was and just couldn't tell.
It was ok though...I'd drink the stuff again.

Happy Halloween

I hope everyone's having a wonderful Halloween however you're spending it.
Here in Switzerland, they don't really do much. Only recently have businesses realized that it's yet another way they can make excessive amounts of money for almost no good of a reason. Right now they're at the "decorating" phase. That's the extent of how they celebrate Halloween. Trick or treating is basically unheard of.
I went to a Halloween party last night. So much fun. We ended the night out at a local extablishment and danced the night away. It was my first time out to a Neuch club. It was really small, but fun. A nice atmosphere with an older crowd. I guess that's what you get when you're not in a University town eh? Luckily one of the people I was out with had a car, because the bus I needed to get home stops running after a certain time, and cabs are very expensive here. Part of me wishes I lived closer to downtown (sort of like University days). Alas.

A fancy outing

Friday night, we were invited by some local collegues out to dinner. This was a 6 hour affair. That's right, a dinner party for 6 hours.
It started out as a visit to a museum, where we learned about the history of Neuchatel and were introduced to the archives of the city. I think it would have been more interesting if it wasn't friday, and I wasn't exhausted from a long week. My French is so-so, but it still takes effort to listen to someone talking at you for 2 hours. Effort wasn't something I had on a Friday evening. I tuned out rather quickly, because I decided it was worth the minimal effort that was left in my body to focus on staying upright because I could feel my body swaying from fatigue. Also, I'm not very good at standing still for long periods of time, so it took effort to ensure that I wouldn't break out in a song and dance from boredom. I tried though...I really did.
Next was a tour of the city wine cellar. And a 2 hour wine tasting session. I feel exhausted just thinking about it. You'd be proud, I did taste two wines. The first was some random white wine that they served us first. Tastes even worse than I remember wine being. I really felt like puking after a small sip. Luckily there was bread near by to get rid of the puking sensation. On the tour of the cellar, we were offered some 2004 white wine. I know nothing about wine, and how to appreciate it, so the next part will be expremely funny to those who actually know what they're talking about. I like young wine better. Let me explain. First, I was thrown off by the fact the wine was so cloudy, but was told that it just hadn't been filtered yet. I prepared myself with a Tic Tac for afterwards, and took the smallest sip you could imagine. I was darn scared that I'd puke in the middle of our fancy affair. I was prewarned that it would taste acidic. Whatever. So it wasn't as bad as the other wine...I think this is because my brain registered sour (which it can stand) before the aftershock of wine flavour. So my body could accept this wine a little bit more because there was a first sensation that it was willing to deal with. I'm still very thankful that I had that Tic Tac handy. After two hours of small talk and being amazed at the amount of wine consumed, we finally got some dinner.
This is the fanciest restaurant in town aparently. Hotel du Payrou. Does it strike you as odd that the meal only cost 35CHF (taken care of) and a bottle of water with the meal cost 10CHF (not included)? All courses were absolutely delicous. If it was served 4 hours earlier, I'm sure I would have appreciated it that much more. It was still a nice evening and a good chance to work on my French listening and speaking ability.
It was also yet another day that I didn't have to cook dinner, but along with that, not get home until the wee hours of the next day. Being an adult is tiring.

Attempt at happiness foiled...again

I was really looking forward to starting to skate at the local club. Monday and Wednesday nights of this week were my chance at happiness. Foiled!
Monday...I was so excited that I was giddy. It's hard to explain how much I am obsessed with this sport. It also has to do with the fact that I need to be active or else I will go crazy. Equate it to the weirdo people who are addicted to going running or to the gym. I'm a weirdo person who needs to skate (or dance - stay tuned for this installment next week). Anyway, I was ready to go skating, when a 1h45min staff meeting foiled my plans. Alas, 'tis the destiny of a teacher.
Wednesday...keeping my fingers crossed. Getting really antsy. Looking forward to going. Ate McDonalds. Go to the rink half and hour early, only to learn that I'm actually half an hour late. So I missed the session. Darn 24hour time. It's just too confusing. Miss Jao was a slightly annoyed girl.
Some redemption. Today, at the rink skating on the Jr. Synchro Worlds ice surface. Fab. Up until now, I've been skating on the rink in the adjoining building. So I guess the Jr. Synchro Worlds practice rink. Almost better than the big rink beacuse it has a big window wall that looks out at the lake and the alps, but the rink is reminiscent of the Galaxy and big 'ole drippy speed bumps. Oh how I miss the Galaxy.
The plan from now on: skate three days a week. Monday and Wednesday nights as well as Fridays at lunch.

I'm so ashamed

I finally succumbed. I bought McDonalds.
A Big Mac Meal.
I had good reason too. I stayed at school because I'm going skating (more details about that tomorrow, after the fact) later tonight, so I needed to eat a little something, and the bakery that I usually go to ran out of dinner-ish food, so I turned to McDonalds as my only other close-to-school alternative.
I'm trying to take something positive out of it. Now I can say what Swiss McDonalds tastes like. It's actually different. The sauce is more mustardy or something and the veggies are fresher.
I do enjoy McDonald's food though, so it wasn't hard to eat. I just didn't want to come to Switzerland to eat McDonalds.
Oh, the fact I paid 10.90CHF for the meal makes it even worse.

Munich/Salzburg

Let me say that the trip was FAB-u-lous.

Bringing a pillow on the bus was definetely one of the smartest moves I made in my life. 9 hours in a stuffy bus is deadly. I was lucky enough to get two seats to myself, so I could stretch out every so often.

First touristic stop:
Neuchwanstein Castle. For the original "Sleeping Beauty Castle", it was a little disapointing. Only becuase it's not complete, so the tour seemed pretty weak. The parts that were complete though were so overly ornate. I guess much like all of castles I've seen in my life (the ultimate being Versailles, so no comparison there). King Ludwig sure liked his swans. Each room had a Wagner opera in it somehow. In the carvings, in the paintings...it was pretty cool. I wish Music History taught me more about them. Grade 4 right? Meh, it was too long ago.

We arrive in Munich in time for dinner at a traditional German restaurant. Props go out to the waitresses who can hold 4 or 5 full one-litre beer mugs (in each hand) without breaking their wrists. (At the Hofbrauhaus some wore wrist braces.) Dinner was a soup, pork and a baseball of doughy stuff, and apple strudel. How are German people not 5-gazillion pounds? The pork and baseball was the best. The pork was much like roast porc you can buy at a Chinese BBQ shop where the skin was all crunchy and stuff and the baseball was like eating a sticky rice pyramid wrapped up in leaves. If was weird. Two completely different cultures, but the same-ish food. The baseball really did look like a baseball. Except it didn't have red stiches.

The next morning, we headed to Dachau. I wondered how I or the others around me would react to it. It was a grey and rainy day which added to the vibe of what I was expecting it to be like. It was quite powerful, and I wasn't too surprised by anything I saw, but it really hit me when I was standing in the "shower room". Dachau was a work camp, as opposed to an execution camp although people did die there. It is thought that the shower room was not used for mass extermination, but instead for testing of substances. It wasn't a surprise, I mean, it was just like I'd imagined it would be. The white walls, dark. The low ceiling really added to " ". I walked through by myself, and there were a couple others around me, but it still felt " ". Seeing the German words for "shower room" above the door and looking up and seeing no pipes. It was really interesting though. The pictures, the words. Hearing the tour guide talk. Just seeing the buildings themselves was a good experience. I don't consider myself outwardly emotional, so it didn't hit me in that sense, but like with how I take everything else in my life, I'm glad I experienced it and all the thoughts that came with it. I guess I'm very internal. Schindler's List is an amazing movie, and since I don't really study history, maybe I don't know as much about the subject as I would have liked, but I still feel like I saw and learned a lot of things, and I'd actually like to get back again to spend more time reading every single placard/graphic/text thingy. I'm not sure if I'm getting my point across, but I really enjoyed the experience and having seen Schindler's List, what I was expecting Dachau to be like turned out to be very much what I saw.
I'm finding it hard to put into words what I experienced, because...well, I don't know. It's just one of those things in life that you can't put into words.

In the afternoon, we took a walking tour of the city. I was so exhausted by this point that I didnm't really have the attention span to take everything in. Also the fact that the streets were SO crowded completely threw me off. I don't know if it's always like that in Munich, or just becuase it was a Saturday afternoon. I felt very bewildered and lost because I hadn't been in a crowded area in such a long time (remember, Neuch is pretty small - I'm predicting a little bit of shock upon return to Toronto). Munich has some amazing buildings. Old European buildings, that I can't relate to history (sort of wish I could) but are amazing on their own to look at in awe. It seemed like such a contrast that in a city full of culture, I was also surrounded by so many modern and FAB shopping!!! It was mayhem. I didn't really get time to shop very much, but imagine my excitment/happiness/smiling on Bloor St. magnified by 10. FAB.

That night, after another dinner of traditional German fare (same as yesterday, plus pigs feet and duck - although mine came with chicken for some reason) we head to the Hofbrauhaus. It was FAB. It made me wish I enjoyed beer, just so that I could partake in the fun-ness. Lots of happy (often drunk) people. So friendly, so much enthusiasm, so much energy. I love that if you were a regular, you had a special beer stein that was locked in a personal locker for you to use whenever you were there. Live music, lots of people, FAB. I was ready to order a beer so that I could say that I did so in the Hofbrauhaus, but there was no point. I just don't like the stuff. I like the fact that the most famous German beer hall is right across the street from the Hard Rock Cafe. Leave it to the American to invade a cultural gem's space.

Sunday morning, we get back on the bus and head to Salzburg. I couldn't believe it...I'm sitting on the bus heading towards snow covered mountains. Is this for real? It was absolutely ______. Speechless...you're all missing out. As with most of Europe, things are pretty dead on Sundays, but luckily, there's some stuff going on, because Salzburg is maxing on its tourist stronghold. I, Miss Jao have now skipped (yes, skipped) down the vine covered arched tunnel-y thing that was used in the filming of the Sound of Music (forgive me, for I haven't seen the movie in over a year, I don't quite remember if it's the part where Maria's skipping with her bag singing "I have confidence" or when Maria and the Von Trapp kids are riding their bikes singing "Do Re Mi". I think it's the former). I didn't have time to see Mozart's house though. So I need to go back there at some point. Salzburg is totally maxing out on the Mozart factor. And I happily jumped on the bandwagon and purchased multiple Mozart-something brand chocolates. Souvenirs, check. At night we went to a concert. For some reason, I was under the impression that Eine Kline would be on the programme, but I was wrong. One piano four hands was on tap. Of course there was the one obligatory Mozart piece, and a couple other composers that I canm't quite remember off of the top of my head. Bach, Dvorjak, some others. 5 pieces in total. The small concert was held in a hall that Mozart once performed in, so that was quite special. The room was rediculously ornate. Lots of bling. I was in Salzburg and attended a concert. FAB.

Monday, we're on the bus and stop at the "Eagle's Nest" on the way home to Switzerland. I had so much fun. We were worried that we wouldn't get to go, because the day before it had snowed (yes, I said snowed) so much that they couldn't clear the roads sufficiently. Since the Eagle's Next is so high up, you have to take a bus up a winding road (with yet another breathtaking view) up to a point from which you get into a huge brass elevator that finally takes you up to the actual lookout point. Anyway, the roads were cleared, and we were given the go ahead to visit the place. It was sprinkling snow. FAB. I tossed snow in the air, climbed around rocks, was jealous of the birds who soared above, I was so happy. I wanted to make snow angels, but wasn't brave enough when I saw everyone rolling their eyes at me. I was still satified with the whole experience.

Sidebar: I still can't comprehend how I've gone from being SO upset one year to where I am now. And it takes me A LOT to get that upset. I feel like a bird.

Finally, back on the bus and 7-ish hours later, we arrive in Neuch.

In just two weeks, I will be in Belgium. Jealous? =)

More on pants

Another thing I forgot to mention is that when I buy pants in stores, they're often too long (short legs disproportional to waist/bum/thigh ratio!).
In Europe it's been even worse though, becuase not only is my bum too big for European standards, but I don't wear pointy toed stilettos on a regular basis needing my pants to be longer to look appropriate for the footwear. (Don't even get me started on how happy I am that ballet flats with rounded toes and comfy for teaching are coming back with avengence.)
Props to the Neuch ladies who have super strong ankles and can walk in their stilettos on cobblestone roads.

Interactive art

In front of the building across the street from school is a piece of interactive art. Well, today, they’re taking it down. The day that I had my camera ready to take a picture of it. Darn.
I don’t really GET art…I just make up what I think it means, so this could all just be nonsense.
It’s a big metal crate that you find on transport trucks or on trains with rectangular holes cut into the sides. So the crate is sitting on the pavement, and the sides (not the top or bottom) have these rectangles. In the rectangles, you can reach in with your hand and touch a roll of packing tape that’s fixed to the inside. About 5-10 paces (depending on which side you’re at) is a metal grid fence.
The art was prepared during the weekend I was in Munich, so I’m not sure how it started. I just remember that before I left, there was a big, blue metal box, and I just thought is was there because they were doing construction in the area (which they are doing). After my return from the trip I saw the “art”.
Basically, you’re invited to take the tape, pull it out (still attached to the roll) and tape it to anything. The fence, the ground, the box, a tree and/or other pieces of tape.
It looks like a metal box in the middle of a web of packing tape. That’s fenced in.
I participated twice. On time I lost the end of a roll of tape…I thought I ruined the art, but the next day when I walked by, someone must have found the end because a long piece came out and was attached to a pole. Attached to each rectangular opening is an edge that you can cut the tape on, so you can cut off the piece that’s already been used and repull your own piece. Kind of sucks that the “art” you created could just as easier be ripped off by someone else and be replaced with their own. Maybe that’s part of the “message”?!?
I read/heard something about how it’s supposed to symbolize immigrants or something like that? My French is far from perfect, and the billboard wasn’t too descriptive.
There’s another crate about 20 paces away from the original one, but there’s nothing special about it. There’s just an advert/billboard sitting on top of it for Migros grocery stores.
A lot of the teachers don’t like it. They think it looks like garbage and is environmentally friendly. I, of course being me, think it was cool and as mentioned, participated in the project.

Clothes and body shapes

Don’t think that I’m going to rant about me being too fat here, too fat there…I just tell things as I see them.
European sizing is still a little bit of a mystery to me. Here in Switzerland, I’ve been anywhere from a 36 to a 38 to even at 40. Sometimes I’m an 6 or 8. Sometimes I’m a S or M. When I crossed the border to France, I was a 1 or 2.
I’m finding buying tops is pretty much the same. In other words I seem to have a pretty standard upper body.
Bottoms are different. I have a skater’s bum and thighs. My bum and thighs are disproportionate to my waist. I also have a long torso in comparison to my leg length. It’s hard for me to buy pants that fit well in Canada as well. Some stores fit alright. Jacob’s pretty good for my body type. Club Monaco’s sometimes ok. It used to be the reverse. That Club fit me and Jacob didn’t…obviously my body’s been changing. Capri pants are a nightmare. They're always too long for my legs, so they just look like weird, short, pants. For capris to look semi-flattering, they need to cut off just below my knee (which gives the semi-impression that I have legs for days). Anyway, I wasn’t sure of how European cut pants would fit me. I’m finding I’ve still got the butt/thigh problem. I’m saying, someone out there would make a fortune if they made pants for skaters. Let me give a crude description…I don’t have a bubble butt, but a long butt. Laugh if you want, girls, you may sympathize. I find that a lot of the pants here go for short, flat bums. Like, they cut in again halfway down my bum. The tight pants syndrome is in full effect here in Neuch though, so maybe I’m just not used to (nor will I embrace) the act of wearing skintight pants. As always, if you look hard enough, you will eventually find a pair that fit. Or at least I hope(d) so. I did find a pair of pants that are ok though. Nice fall teachery looking pants.

Weather

Neuch has been pretty on and off recently. Two weeks ago, it seemed that fall had arrived as all of a sudden, from 20 degrees Celsius, it dropped to around 5 degrees, complete with wind and some rain. Last week was beautiful. Cooler at dawn and dusk, during midday, temperatures would reach 15-20 degrees. On Sunday, I soaked up some rays on my balcony.
The days seem short here. I always wake up between 6:30-8:00am on weekdays and it’s always pitch black outside. So hard (for someone like me who needs a lot of sleep) to wake up to a dark sky. Reminds me of early morning Varsity practices. I’m used to waking up to the bright sun outside my Scarborough home. When leaving my apartment, I seem to always be walking into a fog. I arrive to school in darkness, and when I leave the building for lunch, it’s bright sunshine and warm rays. Night time settles pretty normally.
Apparently, since Neuch is in a valley, and on the water’s edge, we get weird weather. Similar to Kingston actually. Often cloudy, rainy and windy. Similar to Leysin, being in a fog, is more like being in a middle of a cloud. If you take the funiculaire up, it’s clear and sunny skies since you’re above the clouds. Those were some of my greatest memories from Leysin. Standing in a cloud, and being able to look down on them.
Today, (at around 1:10pm) there was a short thunderstorm. It came from the West. It was incredible. You could see it coming, and you could see it move along the water. Looking south, you could see the grey mass of clouds move towards the East, and faintly see the rain coming down in sheets. Weather’s a pretty wonderful thing.

Joy

I’m very content with my life.

On Saturday, I went downtown to the hussle and bussle of the market. Bought fresh produce, and smiled.
I continued my day by discovering different stores in the area. Wandered into the unknown, picked up catalogues (which I love to flip through), pondered, and smiled.
I tried on clothes, modeled, and smiled.
Walked through the narrow alleys, on the cobblestone roads, hopped over the stream in Rue de Seyon, and smiled.
Looked at the sky, breathed in the wonderful air, soaked up the sun, and smiled.

Who's a big shot now?

It's taking me awhile to recouperate from the trip last weekend, but I have to say it was absolutely amazing!

Anyway, the point of this post to say that I, Miss Jao am a serious big shot. Who knew, I'm a Department Head!

Head of Mathematics.

I'm special.

A serious trip

This weekend, we're going to Munich and Salsburg. We leave tomorrow morning at 7am to sit on a bus for 6-ish hours. Why not a train you ask? Because some of the places we're visiting aren't easily accessible by train, so instead of taking the train and then renting a bus when we arrive, we're taking a bus the whole time. I'm planning on biding my time by doing my marking.
It will be an eye opening trip as we are visiting Dachau. We are also visiting the Eagle's Nest.
On a happier note, we are also visiting Neuschwanstein and of course will stop at the Hofbrauhause. We will also be attending a concert in Salsburg. How perfect would it be if it was Mozart?
I'm looking forward to the trip. I'm sure it'll be one I won't forget for the rest of my life.

Milk

I like to drink milk. Skim milk. It is good for you.
I planned on drinking a lot of milk here in Switzerland to maintain healthy bones. I have now given up on this plan.
Let me explain.
I vaguely remember milk in Switzerland tasting weird in '97.
I came, drank so milk and found it really really creamy. I thought it was just the fact it wasn't skim, so I didn't relaly think too much of it.
I went to the store and bought "lait ecreme" (skim). It tasted like mothballs.
I bought more skim milk, but a different brand that someone mentionned that they drink. It still tasted pooey.

I've decided to give up and eat lots of yogurt (Z was right afterall...it's really good) and try to get used to eating cheese (at Hyper U I bought some BabyBels and La Vache Qui Rit - they're both pretty tame, and honestly, who could say no to the "laughing cow"?).

I've noticed a couple little white spots on my fingernails (why does that happen), so I'm worried about my calcium consumption. I'm still plotting my next move.

Grocery stores

Grocery stores are a BIG deal here. Not just a place to buy your groceries, but also a place to purchase clothes, appliances, furniture, games, sporting equipment...everything. They also have restaurants and run schools.
There are a couple major grocery stores in Switzerland.
Co-op and Migros are the main two.
Co-op is more expensive than Migros and also runs the Walmart-esque store EPA.
Migros is enjoyable. I like to purchase things for cheap. Migros offers pilates, language, art, dance, sporting classes and more. With a Migros card, you can accumulate points which can get you gift certificates for the store. There are three levels of Migros stores. M, MM and MMM. (Small to big)
There's also Denners. The Denners near the school doesn't have any fresh produce, but they're dirt cheap for alcohol, bulk packages and meat.
It is key to keep your eyes peeled for "Action" signs. Action = Sale! Denners has amazing sales on meat products.

Across the border shopping

Much like Canadians near the border flocked to Buffalo to go shopping, the Swiss near the border go to little towns in France to do their shopping.
It works both ways I've been told. The French come to gas up their cars, and the Swiss go to do their grocery shopping.
This past weekend I took the half-hour car ride across the border. There was no toll-booth, and they did not ask for my passport (good thing because another border hopper had forgotten hers at home).
We visited a small town called Pontalier. It was nice to not have to worry about switching to yet another language (a day trip to Bern was confusing - German part of the country, but everyone there spoke every language). Clothes were reasonably priced, especially since for the whole trip I was confused about the exchange rate of the Euro (I thought the reverse of what it was - I've always had a problem with this. My parents will attest to this fact.) So I went a little shoping crazy. I deserved it though, and in retrospect, sure I wouldn't have bought everything that I did (maybe just one or two items), but I'm happy with my purchases and I came to Europe to let loose and enjoy myself. Spending a little more money than I'm used to (which, as most people know, I'm TOTALLY a cheapskate) is fine. And honestly, the prices were still very affordable.
"Moules et frites" are my new "calamari". Calamari is my test food. I order it to determine how good the overall restaurant is. I like to call myself a calamari snob. So now that I'm in Europe, I've switched to "moules et frites". For the French challenged, that's mussels and fries. Yum! The only catch is that for the most part, mussels are cooked in wine sauce, and I'm not big a fan of that taste. I'll have to work on that.

I think I'll also become a "water snob". People don't tend to drink tap water here (or at least don't serve it at restaurants. One reason for that is that people tend to drink bubbly water. "Avec gaz" (or gazeuse). In Canada I hated that frou frou San Pelligrino stuff. But it's really growing on me.
They also sell "sirops" here. Syrups I guess. Like, flavourings. Red orange, strawberry, pear, grapefruit, etc etc. You can add the syrups to bubbly water. I guess it's similar to "italian sodas" that they sell in Second Cup and stuff. I guess I was thrown off by bubbly water because everything tasted like pop, and my mom has brainwashed me into thinking that pop is bad because it's full of sugar. So then I'm thinking that I'm just drinking sugar all the time instead of realising that it's just fancy water. The syrups are sugary though. Still, the bubbly water cause some mental issues.
There is the option of getting non-bubbly (sans gas/non-gazeuse) water, but most people get the bubbly. Often non-bubbly is more expensive, and if I'm already paying a whole bunch of Francs for water, I might as well get the bubbly stuff. Makes me think I'm at least getting something extra for my money.

As usual, I've gotten off topic.

Back to France. Shopping was great. I bought a bag! A good sized purse that's brown (not usually a staple colour for me, but good for fall) boucle type material.
Bags are FAB. I'm looking forward to buying more.
Lunch was moules and frites at a cafe that didn't want to serve hot food outside (it was a beautiful day) for fear that we'd complain the food was cold. We promised that we wouldn't. And yes, the frites were cold, but only because the pot of moules was so huge, it took so long to get through.
Then we make the trek to the grocery store (the main point of most Swiss' trip). Hyper U. HUGE!!!! Like, bigger than the huge Loblaws' that have been popping up all over Toronto (and in Kingston). It was actually overwhelming. (Perhaps because I haven't been to anything big since I left home?) Stuff wasn't too much cheaper, but of course the selection was tremendous. I stocked up on heavy stuff because I had a car. It's horrible walking up the hill home after grocery shopping. Reminds me of the 88 Wellington days when the trek home (on the weeks when it was my turn to buy the milk) was painful.
Bottom line is that it was a beautiful day, a beautiful little town, a fun trip, new clothes, a new bag, yummy moules, fun times, being in France, grocery selection overload...good times.

I hope to go again soon.

Dancing boys

I gotta say, I love boys who can dance. Da-amn.
One of the 4 English channels I get on my tv is MTV Europe. On weekdays at 7pm (repeats on weekends) is the Wade Robson Project (I'd create some kind of link, but I'm afraid I'll ruin my suspense in who wins. You can look it up yourself, just don't tell me who wins/won if you find out).
I know that is was on the US MTV sometime last year, but I think it's showing here for the first time.
Anyway, it's a dance contest. Right now they've gone through the prelims, quarters, and now we're at the semis. They've had to freestyle, dance to contrasting genres of music, create routines and learn quick choreography.
Boys who can dance sure look good.

-- bus is coming. head is hurting. time for bed.

Report cards

If you're a teacher or know any teachers, they always complain around report card time.
By my Flik Flak, it's now 10:29pm and I have just finished writing report cards for my three classes.
Sure, I had to be here at school to supervise the kiddie's movie night (they watched "Old School"), but it's still late and it look a lot more effort than I was expecting. All that was needed for this set was a letter grade and a short comment.
It was brain-numbing and having a headache during the day didn't help matters.
I'm fried so I want to go home, however my bus doesn't come for another 15 minutes (late night service) so I'm going to post more.

More smells

At the beginning of this week, the city gave the official "go ahead" for the Vendanges to begin.
As the local school students have last week and this week off from school, some get jobs picking grapes to make some extra pocket money. Many families end up going on vacation for the two weeks.
It's interesting...the fact that in the newspaper (and I'm sure somewhere else) it was formally announced that the Vandanges could begin. Makes it sound so...I don't know, like there should be a town crier walking through the streets ringing a bells and shouting "Hear ye, hear ye!" I like it.
Anyway, before this week, on the trek from the bus stop to my apartment, there's this one little moment where you get a whiff of grapes. It's such a nice smell. Smell association: my first piano teacher's Thornhill house. Wine grapevines in the backyard and a little pond with big fish.
This week however the smell a little more wine-esque. I don't like the smell of wine. It's just not as fresh smelling or something. Like, more acidic? Maybe it's just a too concentrated of a smell this week and it's throwing me off.
On the walk/bus ride home I'd see people in the fields picking grapes. I felt like asking if I could volunteer to pick grapes for a little bit, just to say I've done it during the Vendanges. I never ended up doing it.

Cars in Neuch

Cars are tiny here...and people are fab at parallel parking. Obviously SUV-itis is a North American disease.
There's the standard VW Jetta-ish car, and then Alfa Romeos and Peugeots.
I noticed that the area where the license plate goes is long and narrow to fit the European sized license plate. I can't seem to recall if the license plate area in Canada is the same shape? I mean, I know that car companies make different North American and European models, but does the license plate area differ? Some license plates are the same size as Canadian ones however.
Most cars that I've seen are hatchback-esque with small bums.
I've also seen a lot of Smart cars which are super small. For some reason I was impressed because I thought it meant the Swiss were all up on the enviro-healthy cars, but I've been told that I'm thinking of the wrong thing. What's the one that runs on electricity or something?
Anyway, I still think Smart cars are cool. With a name like "Smart" you can't go wrong.
Last friday I saw an Amelie pedal-bike (can't wait to go to Paris in November and search out the "Cafe de deux Moulins").
The coolest thing I've seen in Neuch is the BMW C1. Canadians have to jump on that bandwagon. You'd be fab in my books if you got one.

Thanksgiving

The Swiss do not celebrate Thanksgiving, however there was a specially dinner for us "Canadiens".
Kids look fab all dolled up. Mature. Confident. Makes a teacher happy to see them this way.
We did have turkey, however is was only two small slices. It came with mashed potatoes (which I find revolting due to experiences of last year), a delish sweet potato puree and chestnuts in a wonderful glaze sauce. Dessert was a more-ginger-than-pumpkin pie.
I think the Swiss just don't get the "eat until you have to unbutton your pants" idea.
Even still it was a fabulous meal at a lovely venue.

Happy long weekend to those in Canada.

Math is fun

When your students enthusiastically ask to decorate your classroom by sticking a sign that says ZY (they didn't do it alphabetical) and then a picture of an airplane (ZY Air) breaking the sound barrier on the front wall (along with the corresponding XZ one and the X, Y and Z axes), you know you've done a good job.
We started 3-space in Geometry today.

Fete

Fete was FAB. It was one heck of a street party. Very crowded with music blaring. I was still really sick that weekend, but I was told that there were lots of great smelling things too (food stands were everywhere).
I tried eating a deep-fried Indian thing. The funniest was that I could feel the texture and consistency in my mouth (it was crunchy), but I couldn't taste a thing. So I experienced what it was like to lose one of my senses. I mean, I couldn't taste ANYTHING. Usually when you're sick you can taste a little something, but I coudlnt' taste anything at all. I found it funny because I knew it was supposed to be spicy, but I couldn't taste any spicy flavours. All of a sudden though my mouth started to burn, but it was weird because my brian wasn't recieving the usual signals that my mouth feels that way because I ate/tasted something spicy. Anyway, it was a weird experience, and yet another one of those things that most people wouldnm't care about, but I found completely interesting.
There was a whole amusement park with games and rides set up by the water too. So fab.
Many cultural groups were represented. Food and craft stands from Brazil, China, Thailand, India, Mexico. Musicians and street performers. I ate kebabs, roasted chestnuts, Indian food, Portugese food, crepes, mmmmmmmmmmmm! And of course drinks were flowing freely.
The whole city was out having a great time. Lots of non-Neuch people too. From Switzerland...other countries too. My bus was packed going home at midnight. Even at the last stop. This NEVER happens. What a great time.
It's too bad Fete is only once a year. Neuch is pretty quiet the rest of the time. Every city needs a good raucous party every so often. I guess that's why the Neuchateloise party so hard the one weekend they can.

Desalpes

The same weekend as the Fete, was the Desalpes in a nearby town just east of Neuch.
Desalpes is the descending of the cows to lower altitudes after they have been grazing at higher altitudes during the spring/summer months.
There was a little parade with floats, bands and other entertainers as well as of course the cows and other animals (sheep, goats). Along the main road, booths selling food, drinks and hand-made goods were set up. There was some fab lemon pie and even a "Canadian booth" set up by a Quebecker. (He was selling maple syrup products.)
You may know that cows here wear cowbells (I bought quite a few as souvenirs last time I was here).
Cows enter contests. The "Best in Show" cow gets a MAMMOTH cowbell as a prize. It seems sort of backwards though. You're great Mr. Cow, but now you have to lug around a heavy bell all the time. And it's so huge that you can't pick your front feet up because it'll hit the bell.
I guess it's more bragging rights for the farmer. Or maybe we underestimate cows and they like parading around all-macho and stuff moo-ing about how great they are with their big bells.
Anyway, basically, the cows in the parade had some big bells. Some had little ones though. I guess they didn't win any contests.
Some of the cows also had branches of fir trees (with ribbons tied on the little branches) tied to their heads. Decoration? I don't know.

The real raclette

In a previous comment, I mentionned that a fondue where you dunk potatoes instead of bread is called a raclette. I was wrong.
Apparently that's still a fondue, just with potatoes instead of bread. No other special name for it.

A raclette machine however, may be the contraption that W was refering to in a comment in the same thread.

Imagine a grill. Under the grill is a heating element. Under the heating element is a tray that you can put little spatula/spoons on. On the grill you put pasta, potatoes, veggies, meat and anything else to keep warm (directly on the grill or in pots to put on the grill). In the spatula/spoons you put a slab of cheese. The cheese melts in the spatula/spoon, you remove the spatula/spoon and pour the melted cheese onto the food that you have put onto your plate from the grill.

This is raclette. (Which I experienced this past friday night)

Swiss watch

On September 18th, I purchased a Swiss watch. It's my second Swiss watch bought in Switzerland (last time was a Swatch - 1996 Atlanta Games special edition by Katarina Witt with an alarm and random skating stuff on the face and bands - purchase in 1997 in Leysin).
Surprisingly for me, it was a complete impulse buy. I wasn't planning on buying a watch that day...I knew that I'd be buying a watch here in Switzerland at some point. I'd actually been considering (and still am) buying a nice "professional looking" Tissot.
Anyway, it's a Flik Flak. In other words, the children's equivalent of Swatch. It's fab.

It's called "Dancing Mouse" and it's under the "Pre-school" section. Yes, I have a pre-schooler's watch. I am also on the second last hole on the band, so I can't get any fatter (although I do wear it a little loose).
Notice the rhinestones on the band and face and how perfect this watch is for me. The buckle part is sparkly as well. It's pink, it's got ballet slippers, it's sparkly...what more could a Limin want?
I guess I need to find a piano-ish watch so that I'll have a watch for each hobby.

Also, did you know that Swatch made a special ICQ watch? Like, it has the little flower, yellow message icon, etc etc on it.

And this season, Swatch has a Karma Sutra watch with rabbits demonstrating, well, you know on it? Appropriately named "Bunnysutra".

Smells

Does anyone else associate smells with events in life?

Anytime a moped/scooter.whatever they're called thing drives by here, you get a lovely whiff of a gasoline-ish substance.

I associate that smell with the bumper boats @ Ontario Place circa 1997/1998 (Symphony of Fire days).