In der Schweiz

New Posts

2008-02-24T22:29:00.002+01:00

For those of you who are checking up on us here instead of here, go there to find some new posts.

New Post

2008-01-26T16:39:00.000+01:00

Check out our new post here.

8 Tage bis unsere Abfahrt - Ready or Not St. John, Here We Come

2008-01-07T12:15:00.000+01:00

Well, we depart Zurich for St. John next Monday, the 14th. These photos of our place were taken by our friend Hilarie at American Paradise Realty last Wednesday, Jan 2, so things don't look like they're quite ready for us, but nevertheless we will be there, along with Casey, in eight short days. As long as there's one working toilet, I'm good to go. A fridge full of beer...heck, who am I kidding....just a fridge, would be nice too.

Not sure if we'll be posting on this Zurich blog while we're on St. John (through late April) so check out our old new St. John blog site, created...like...four years ago by Matt, but severely neglected since then (kinda tough to write about things St. John when you're living 4500 miles away in Zurich): www.stjohntalk.com/blog We hope to rekindle our St. John Talk website as well, http://www.stjohntalk.com/.

In the meantime, we've been thoroughly enjoying and will continue to faithfully follow the blogs of other Virgin Islanders whom we've yet to meet in person: Frank Barnako's News of St. John, http://barnako.typepad.com/ and Jeff and Russ's On St. John, http://www.on-stjohn.com/

The Stupid Round-Up

2008-01-01T00:54:00.000+01:00

As this year ends - well, in Zurich, it's already ended; it's 2008 - I love the Washington Post's round-up of 2007's biggest idiots. Though I agree with number one, definitely read through them all. They're funny.

Link

Enjoy! Happy New Year!

And Now...in it's First Zurich Appearance Since December 5, it's......

2007-12-29T20:18:00.000+01:00

THE SUN!!!!!!!!!

Colmar, Better Late than Never

2007-12-27T18:37:00.001+01:00

Just got around to having a look at our photos from Colmar, a beautiful Alsatian town we visited when Matt's parents were here back in the beginning of October. Although it's in France, Colmar is less than two hour's drive from Zurich. German architecture, great white wines and the French language. What can be bad?

Follow the link to Colmar http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157603557227692/

Hochnebel be damned

2007-12-24T17:31:00.001+01:00

I was so freakin' sick and tired of waking up to the same milky overcast every damn day this month that on my last day off, we went up to our local mountain, Uetliberg, the one you see from our apartment window, about 20 minutes by train from the main station, approximately 2500 feet above sea level. It's high enough to be over the hochnebel, where the skies are crisp clear blue much of the winter and the views of the Alps spectacular. Of course, it wasn't any warmer than down in soupy Zurich, but at least the sun felt good and the views of the sea-like cloud layer down below phenomenal.

Check it out: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157603537462457/

Hochnebel, defined

2007-12-18T16:01:00.000+01:00

The German word Hochnebel refers to the depressingly featureless blanket of overcast that drapes Zurich and other regions north of the Alps for much of the winter. It must explain in part the high suicide rate in Switzerland.

What's crazy is that you can take a 45 minute train ride up into the mountains, where the sky is deep blue and cloudless and look DOWN on the crappy Hochnebel that's making all us citydwellers miserable.

Sunshine on a Cloudy Day

2007-12-16T16:11:00.000+01:00

One nice thing about living in a place that is overcast so often is that when the sun DOES decide to peek through, it often results in dramatic colors on the buildings and sky. These were taken from my office window at 8 AM, shortly after sunrise this morning (yeah, the sun doesn't come up until really late this time of year). Of course, the rest of the day so far is completely overcast.

Out Our Window #3

2007-12-05T11:23:00.000+01:00

It's been a while since the last installment of "Out Our Window" so it seemed about time to put in another one.

This is one of my favorite views, looking west-northwest across the other side of the lake to the area called Enge. This is the Enge Church in the center, my favorite church in all of Zürich. I find it to be the most beautifully designed.

There is a nice Wikipedia summary of Enge Church, called Kirche Enge in German. Check out http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirche_Enge

The text is in German, but it's not a particularly difficult language, so we believe you should have no problem understanding the web page, even if you don't speak German...not.

This pic was taken this morning. Yes, I know it's sunny. That happens here every now and again.

I Awoke Today and Found the Frost Perched on the Town

2007-11-28T19:37:00.001+01:00

The title above is from a Joni Mitchell song, just so you don't think I'm poetic or creative or anything like that.

I took Casey for a walk yesterday morning to find frost all over the cars on the street as well as on our outdoor patio table. It's pretty unusual to get frost here. The main reason (from my science geek background) is that frost usually requires a clear sky overnight to allow the surfaces to give their heat back into outer space. I can count on one hand the number of clear mornings we'll wake up to in the colder months here. But as you can see above, this morning was one of them. It was a pretty refreshing change from the dull grey.

Get Your Mind out of the Gutter - They're Croissants

2007-11-27T13:26:00.001+01:00

And I have no idea why our local bakery decided to make them in this shape, but there they were, peeking out at us from behind the glass window.

Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-22T22:47:00.000+01:00

We wish all of our American friends and family a Happy Thanksgiving. We celebrated here in Zurich with some ex-pat friends and a stuffed turkey which cost about $80. Don't even get me started on the currency rates at the moment.

Matt and I apologize for the lack of posts lately. We were away for nearly three weeks of November, traveling to New York, St. John (the house is coming along great!!), Miami then back to Zurich. Hopefuly we'll have some pictures to share soon.

We Have Foliage Too, You Know!

2007-11-03T09:37:00.001+01:00

Everyone thinks about the Northeastern US, particularly New England, when foliage comes up in conversation. Sometimes, I think people neglect to realize that leaves change colors in all temperate zones throughout the world, including here in Switzerland. Now I will admit that the fall colors in most of Europe are not nearly as varied and vivid as in New England but they're still darn pretty.

Here is a shot I grabbed this morning with the crap-o cameraphone (I think the pictures it takes are becoming lousier - good thing my contract is up in January and I can get a new phone with a new built in crappy camera) a block away from our apartment. Pretty, huh?

Hike up Mount Rigi

2007-10-21T15:51:00.001+02:00

Yes, I know it's already October (and there were SNOW flakes this morning), but Matt, Rachael (co-worker Doug's wife from Australia), Casey and I went hiking up Mt. Rigi back at the end of August. I forgot to post the photos until yesterday, so here is the link to them: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157602470700402/

Rigi is between Zug and Luzern in North-Central Switzerland and is 5,895 feet above sea level. Pretty friggin high.

Have You Seen This Before?

2007-10-20T17:46:00.000+02:00

Matt very excitedly made me take a left down the street away from our apartment when we got off the tram this afternoon to show me this Mini Cooper-a version we had never seen before. It's stretched in the back and has twin swing-out doors in the rear instead of a hatch.

We wondered whether they are new and if they are available yet in the USA. Anybody?

This Year's Oktoberfest in Munich

2007-10-19T19:05:00.000+02:00

A couple of weeks ago, we took a four hour train ride to Munich for Oktoberfest for a day of unadulterated drinking and general craziness. You gotta love a city where all the men are wearing leather pants (lederhosen) despite summer-like weather.

Here are the unedited pics from the event as well as some other random shots of Munich,

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157602529895651/

Swiss Graffiti

2007-10-17T17:31:00.000+02:00

There is a LOT of graffiti in Zurich, something that takes most people who haven't been here before by surprise. I think the Swiss see it as a (relatively) harmless and healthy way for the otherwise oppressed younger generation to express themselves.

Here is one of my favorites, the Zurich "ghetto" equivalent of "yo sista." I like the proper use of the colon punctuation here.

Like the Travelocity Gnome...

2007-10-13T12:59:00.001+02:00

Casey is making her way around the world, and we're documenting it. Here she is in Zermatt at the Matterhorn:

Unfortunately, she wouldn't stay put for the picture alone...so you're stuck with me in the picture with her! ;-)

Did We Tell You Casey Can Do Impressions?

2007-10-11T23:17:00.000+02:00

Here's her impression of a moray eel:

Momma's got New Shoes

2007-09-28T21:20:00.000+02:00

Well, new shoe to be more exact. Poor little Casey had a visit to the vet today because of an infection on her left rear paw. They gave us some Betadine cleanser, some antibiotics, anti-inflammatories and this cute little boot to prevent her from licking the wound.

She asked for a pink suede pump but this is all they had.

Congratulations, Tom and Stephanie

2007-09-22T18:48:00.000+02:00

We are broadcasting to you live from the Connecticut shore, where we are about to attend this afternoon the wedding of our Zurich friends, Tom and Stephanie.

Weather forecast calls for dry conditions and temps near 80. Sounds perfect. Congratulations to the soon-to-be newlyweds!!!

Link to the photos from the Greek Isles

2007-09-22T18:41:00.000+02:00

Here is a link to photos from our latest trip, Santorini and Mykonos, Sept 5-12.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157602113075710/

Yiasou

Pardon our Hiatus

2007-09-16T12:14:00.000+02:00

After our recent trip to Mykonos and Santorini, we are waaay too relaxed to think about posting to the blog, so please be patient while our tans fade. When we come back from hiatus, we'll have a link to the Greek Isles pictures ready for you.

Racism at its Finest, just like during WW II

2007-09-01T13:26:00.000+02:00

See the article here:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070901/ap_on_re_eu/switzerland_deportation_campaign

And This is Why Zurich Sometimes Sucks

2007-08-27T12:02:00.001+02:00

The weather forecast for today was supposed to be for mostly sunny skies, an uncommon (well, certainly less common than anywhere else we've ever lived) event here in Zurich. Well, wouldn't you know it that after awakening to overcast skies (as usual), we noticed rain shortly before 11 AM. A quick check at the radar (shown above) on http://www.meteoswiss.ch/ shows that most of this tiny little country is indeed enjoying a sunny morning while this pesky little patch of cloud sits squarely on top of Zurich and Zurich only. Where does it come from? How is it that it decides to materialize just over this place and piss all over what would have otherwise been a nice morning? And I had the day off from work, to boot. And that, my friends, is why Zurich sometime sucks.

Now You Know

2007-08-21T20:42:00.000+02:00

So, did you ever wonder what happened to those Kerry-Edwards supporters and other self-respecting democrats after the election?

We all moved to Switzerland. And took our cars with us. This one, about two blocks from our apartment, still has the New Jersey state inspection sticker on its windshield.

Switzerland....a kinder, gentler America.

A Strange Concept

2007-08-20T20:37:00.000+02:00

When one mentions surfing, you think of California, Hawaii, or maybe Australia. You think of The Beach Boys or Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. You do NOT however think of a landlocked country in the middle of Europe the size of some Texas backyards.

Having said that, there is apparently a Swiss Surfing Championship, held on the Bay of Biscay, France. Lord knows where they practice.

Now THAT'S a Big Chair

2007-08-17T16:26:00.000+02:00

IKEA has put up what is now the largest billboard I have ever seen outside of Times Square just in front of my office building. It would be neat to see a before and after billboard showing how the chair will look in two years after it has fallen apart.

The 69 Store

2007-08-14T17:45:00.001+02:00

This is a shop along the Niederdorf in the old town. I don't think you actually buy 69 at the store, which is really the trendy "De Puta Madre" clothing shop. Just thought the sign was funny, particularly to the unassuming naive tourist.

The Story of Bitch

2007-08-13T18:11:00.000+02:00

Well, we actually don't know Bitch's story but she (he) was one of the revelers at last weekend's Zurich Street Parade, the annual city-wide festival dedicated largely to drinking, dressing in outlandish outfits, eating and dancing to blaring techno music, not necessarily in that order.

Photolink to Burgundy trip last month

2007-08-11T14:59:00.000+02:00

Sorry for the delay, but lots of working hours this summer have meant fewer postings. Finally, the photos from our trip to Burgundy, France July 23-26 are available for the viewing.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157601371514763/

Too Much Wine, Not Enough Blogging

2007-07-31T17:54:00.000+02:00

Having spent too much time in Burgundy last week, we've been a bit remiss in posting to the blog.

As soon as the pics are ready for viewing, we'll post the link to them.

In the meantime, back to that bottle of 1997 Chateau Pommard.

Funny Sign

2007-07-31T12:57:00.000+02:00

While we were in Burgundy last week, we took Casey for a hike up the little hill near our hotel. While walking to the hill, we saw the sign below:

For those who don't speak French, it translates as:

ATTENTION
BEES

It struck me as very funny. Like "Beware of Dog"...."Beware of Bees".

What a Waste!

2007-07-27T23:55:00.001+02:00

Oh...the varied (well, the Top 5) ways that governments can waste their taxpayers' money.

Can You Guess What These Faces are for?

2007-07-19T17:57:00.000+02:00

Check out these faces... Can you guess what they are for?

That would be the I-know-you're-eating-ice-cream-and-I-would-really-like-some face.

Don't worry, she got some in the end...

I Knew There Was a Reason...

2007-07-18T14:31:00.001+02:00

I never played rugby. One of my best friends in law school is a U.S. Marine. We went to law school together. At one point he asked me whether I wanted to join the law school's rugby team (yes, we had one). In fact, because of my soccer background, he wanted me to be the kicker. It ultimately never happened - between school and my job during law school, etc.

Perhaps that was a good thing.

Which Alcohol Icon is Your Favorite?

2007-07-12T17:13:00.000+02:00

Check out this article here. Now take our poll, please.

Pizza Pizza

2007-07-11T20:42:00.001+02:00

Back in New York, it was a Sunday evening tradition for us to make our own pizza, then eat it while watching "Cold Case" on CBS usually followed by "Six Feet Under" on HBO (may it rest in peace).

Fortunately, the cast iron pizza pan, the wooden pizza peel and the cork board hot plate made it safely in the moving container way back when and we have been able to continue our pizza legacy (after learning the German words for yeast, flour, etc). Of course, we're not watching CBS and HBO anymore (sniff sniff) but we've got all those TV series on DVD to keep us going. The photo above was our latest creation. Pretty simple: mushroom, red pepper and onion.

A Guy Can Dream...

2007-07-11T16:57:00.000+02:00

Last weekend, Kent Couch settled down in his lawn chair with some snacks -- and a parachute. Attached to his lawn chair were 105 large helium balloons. He was flying from Bend, Oregon to Idaho.

With instruments to measure his altitude and speed, a global positioning system device in his pocket, and about four plastic bags holding five gallons of water each to act as ballast -- he could turn a spigot, release water and rise -- Couch headed into the Oregon sky.

Nearly nine hours later, the 47-year-old gas station owner came back to earth in a farmer's field near Union, short of Idaho but about 193 miles from home.

What a great story. Maybe I'll try to go from Zurich to Geneva...

Conflict in Switzerland

2007-07-10T22:07:00.000+02:00

It can't be. But apparently it is.

Liberal Catholics in Switzerland have expressed misgivings about the appointment of Bishop-elect Vitus Huonder to head the Diocese of Chur, the SwissInfo news service reports. The Vatican announced on July 8 that Pope Benedict XVI had chosen Father Huonder, the former vicar general of the Chur diocese, to succeed Bishop Amédé Grab, who retired in February at the age of 77.

The Chur diocese, which includes the city of Zurich, has been badly torn by dissension in recent years, with lay activist groups questioning Church teaching and authority. Christine Bucher, a representative of one such group, the Union of Critical Catholics, told SwissInfo that the appointment of Bishop-elect Huonder was unsettling because of the "problematic characters" he had appointed to Church posts during his tenure as vicar general. The group also complained that its members had not been given an adequate voice in the selection of the new bishop.

The reference to "problematic" appointments was an allusion to heated conflicts that arose in Chur under Bishop Wolfgang Haas in the 1990s. The bishop's conservative views and remote management style lead to an open rebellion among the clergy of the diocese. In a highly unusual step, the Vatican resolved the conflict in 1997 by appointing Haas to a newly created position as Archbishop of Vaduz in Liechtenstein, replacing him in Chur with the more diplomatic Bishop Grab.

The concerns among liberal Catholics about the appointment of Bishop-elect Huonder reflect the fact that Huonder was vicar general under Bishop Haas, and thus instrumental in carrying out many of the policies of the former bishop.

Go figure.

[Since few things in Switzerland make global news, I had to mention this one (original link came from CNN).]

Zürifäscht Fireworks Extravaganza

2007-07-08T17:15:00.000+02:00

Well, the festival weekend is coming to a close and the crappy weather managed to take a 36 hour respite to give us a magnificent Friday night through Sunday morning (and now it's raining again). The party went on Fri night/Sat morning and Sat night/Sun morning until 5 AM with thumping house music and hundreds of thousands of people if not more coursing through every street of the old city. There was more food and drink than one could ever consume and two amazing fireworks displays: one Friday night set to classical music and one on Saturday night coordinated to pop music. Check out my set of photos taken from the roof of my office building last night (Saturday). Unfortunately you'll have to enjoy them without the pop music score in the background.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157600714179741/

Zürifäscht Weekend

2007-07-05T17:15:00.000+02:00

No, that's not Zurich's answer to the London Eye (Millennium Wheel). Preparations are well underway for the big Zuerifaescht weekend (spelled the Swiss way without the umlauts here), a huge lakeside party (expecting two million visitors - to the city, not to our apartment, but that would be interesting to try sometime) that happens only once every three years. Thankfully the weather forecast calls for sunshine and temps in the 80s. As Matt has previously posted, the weather has been absolute shit since late Sunday. Rain and temps in the 50s. I think it was warmer this past January. If you want to learn more about the celebration and speak a modicum of German, go here:

http://www.zuerifaescht.ch/2007/

Brrr...

2007-07-05T12:48:00.000+02:00

It's hard to believe it's July here in Zurich. It has been rainy and chilly for the last four days. In fact, it's barely 60 degrees today at 1 in the afternoon.

Brrr...

Happy 4th!

2007-07-04T19:01:00.001+02:00

Happy Fourth of July to Everyone!

Can You Say, "Brave New World"?

2007-07-02T00:38:00.000+02:00

This is a little frightening.

I Found This Funny

2007-07-01T23:38:00.001+02:00

I think it says it all...

Bill Mitchell

Shameless Plug #2

2007-07-01T23:34:00.000+02:00

(Not for me...)

This is a plug for our friend Ilona. She's a great photographer. Check out her sites:

Ilona Lieberman Photography

Ilona Lieberman Blog

We put her links in the sidebar so you can always get back to them.

Here's My Map

2007-07-01T22:18:00.001+02:00

Yes, it's frighteningly similar to Howard's.

create your own visited countries map
or vertaling Duits Nederlands

Our Fair City

2007-07-01T17:30:00.000+02:00

Here is a beautiful view of Zurich, taken on Saturday, from high above the city, on Uetliberg - one of the mountains sort of within or just outside the city, 800 meters (~2600 feet) above sea level. One can take a train up there in about 25 minutes from Zurich's main station. Once up there, many walking trails are available. We chose the 2 hour trail to another mountaintop point called Felsenegg where there is an outdoor restaurant with pretty reasonably priced beer and food. Then one can stumble to the nearby cablecar down to the town of Adliswil where another train is taken back to the main station.

A Slightly New Look

2007-07-01T00:49:00.001+02:00

Those of you who visit this site regularly - and can retain such things more than momentarily - will notice a slight redesign of this site.

Blogger offered some new "templates" (as they call them) which make managing the blog much, much easier. So, we've selected one of those to move forward with.

Same color palette. And you can still check the weather to the right (---->).

Enjoy!

Our View

2007-07-01T00:41:00.000+02:00

We have been asked whether Zurich has nice sunsets. The pictures below were taken from our apartment and/or terrace:

What do you think? Does Zurich get good sunsets?

Tomorrow...

2007-06-30T23:43:00.000+02:00

We're going here.

How Proud His Parents Must Be!

2007-06-26T00:31:00.001+02:00

Please, Don't Throw Wine Bottles

2007-06-24T07:15:00.000+02:00

This past week, June 18-21, Matt and I were in Florence, Italy, doing research for an article we'll call "Countries with Endless Strikes: The Previously Undescribed yet Disastrous Effects on Swiss-American Tourists".

Actually, we were there for a cooking class, which was phenomenal. The train strike we just barely avoided (yet still were inconvenienced by) on the way home, allowed us to witness this curious sticker on the filthy second class train window (despite our having purchased a very expensive first class ticket to avoid said filth) in a train cabin whose temperature was higher than the ovens we were cooking in earlier in the week.

You gotta love a country that has to have a "No throwing wine bottles out the window" sticker posted on their trains. Trust me, after experiencing such chaotic pre-strike train conditions, one immediately understands the urge and feels the need to throw an entire CASE of wine bottles out the window.

Links of pre disaster-ride-home photos to follow soon, unless we decide to go on strike.

Caliente Festival last weekend, June 16/17

2007-06-23T11:23:00.000+02:00

Here is a photo (extremely poor quality courtesy of the Motorola Razr CameraPhone) from the Caliente Festival the weekend of June 16. The annual Zurich festival celebrates the cultures of South and Latin America as well as the Caribbean.

That must explain why there was an incredible variety of food stalls specific to the Latino culture: Tandoori, Thai curry, Bratwurst and Swiss Raclette. To be fair, there was a fair bit of Latino food, like Mexican food cooked by Swiss people, and lots and lots of Caipirinha bars (yes, that is a "Caipirinha Bus" in the left center of photo)

A Different Shit Altogether

2007-06-22T11:14:00.001+02:00

Well, a while back we had the Monatshit (http://inderschweiz.blogspot.com/2007/03/mmmsounds-tempting.html)

Now, a new shit has been unveiled in Zurich, the Tageshit. It changes more frequently than the previous shit (it means Daily Special as opposed to Monthly Special) but nevertheless, it remains a shit.

Fun with Body Chalk

2007-06-14T15:35:00.000+02:00

Well, at least I hope this was all in good fun. Stumbled upon this while walking to a restaurant last night. At least it's much easier to tell yourself that it's a teenage prank than the real deal, especially just before filling your stomach with Pad Thai.

Out Our Window #2

2007-06-09T21:23:00.000+02:00

The second shot in the Out Our Window series is a panorama-style view from the master bedroom window. This faces west-southwest across the other side of the lake. All the hillside homes in the distance are across the lake south of the Zurich city line, probably Kilchberg. The massive storm cell looming above is actually over the Bernese Alps, at least 50 miles away as the crow flies. Since it's a Swiss crow, it can only fly between 6 AM and 10 PM and NEVER on Sundays. (P.S. Click on the image itself for the larger version)

The Cassette Deck Building

2007-06-08T22:45:00.000+02:00

Here is a building that we pass while taking Casey on one of her usual afternoon walks. I affectionately refer to it as the "Cassette Deck Building." Can you see why? (hint: you can click on the image for a larger view of the balcony designs if you need to)

The Countries I've Visited

2007-05-30T07:27:00.000+02:00

Friends are always telling me that I'm always travelling. However, if you look at this world map with the countries I've visited highlighted in red, you will see that I've really not been to too many places. Keep in mind though that all those tiny little island nations I've been to in the Caribbean and the Maldives are not clearly visible on this map.

create your own visited countries map

Come Mr. Tally Man

2007-05-29T19:08:00.000+02:00

No doubt, most of Europe has a romantic exotic obsession with the tropics, and Switzerland is no exception. Zurich has taken it one step further recently by planting these banana trees in Stadelhoferplatz, between our apartment and my office.

That's all well and good, but I think it will be a very long time before Switzerland becomes a leading supplier of tropical produce. It's May 29 and the last two days have been rainy and in the 40s, so Costa Rica and Ecuador really have nothing to worry about.

Gstaad photos

2007-05-23T13:12:00.000+02:00

Here is a link to photos from our aforementioned long weekend trip(just this past weekend) to the beautiful Swiss mountain resort of Gstaad (pronounced Gstaad), less than 3 hours from Zurich. I haven't had time to go through the pics and touch up the good ones and weed out the bad ones so there are quite a few and what you see is what I got. If I ever have time to work on touch-ups, I'll send a new link.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157600239896738/

What Do You Think?

2007-05-22T07:21:00.000+02:00

We went to Gstaad this weekend. Casey came with us and the weather was nearly perfect. We'll post pictures of the trip shortly. However, in the parking lot of our hotel, we saw a small VW Golf with the license plate below (we of course had to take a picture!):

Who said the Swiss don't have a sense of humor? Oh, you're right, this is a German license plate. In any event, we were debating whether the car owner did this intentionally or whether the German department of motor vehicles issued this randomly.

So, we put it to you, what do you think?

Frolicking

2007-05-21T21:56:00.000+02:00

Oh to be so carefree again...

Casey was running and bouncing through the buttercup field. I leaned over the fence quickly to get this shot.

I like how it came out.

Chicago Pics

2007-05-20T19:25:00.000+02:00

Here is a link to the Chicago pics from May 2-5. Not much in the way of people in these pics. Just views from the top of Sears Tower and from Millennium Park.

Enjoy!!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/72157600239352443/

The Rainbow, as Promised

2007-05-17T21:28:00.000+02:00

Herewith is the double rainbow as seen from our roofdeck the other evening. No pot of gold at the end of it, just a neighbor's house. Maybe they're hiding the gold in their apartment. It is Switzerland, after all.

Wacky Weather

2007-05-15T20:45:00.000+02:00

This was the evening of schizophrenic weather. This is a view looking northwest out our living room window at about 8 PM tonight. That is not haze in the sky. It is rainshowers backlit by the evening sun. A short while later, the storm passed over our place, leaving us with a very vivid double rainbow which we'll publish tomorrow. It also dropped the temp to 51F (it was 81F a few days ago).

Keeping with the Apartment View Theme

2007-05-12T09:30:00.000+02:00

Here is the view from Vicki's living room in New York. I stayed at her place most of the nights I was in New York. This was taken at sunrise, which reflects nicely off the building on the left, about 5:30 AM (jetlag is good for getting up to see the sunrise).

Stay tuned for Chicago pics, soon to come.

Sorry for the lack of recent posts. We've been home less than a week and both of us have been dealing with a bad cold.

Shameless Self-Promotion

2007-05-11T18:08:00.000+02:00

Okay. We haven't posted in a while. So, this entry serves a couple purposes.

1) It gives us a new posting on the blog, and

2) I tend to post rather frequently on my "office" web site. And I could, of course, always use more traffic there. The site generally focuses on trademark and copyright matters (though I try to select topics and stories of more general interest; for example who doesn't like beer?). However, I also discuss technology, internet and other similar issues.

So, in order to put up a new post and in a shameless act of self-promotion, I invite you to take a look at my work web site every now and again:

Law Offices of G. Mathew Lombard

Thanks!

You've Come a Long Way, Baby

2007-04-27T14:54:00.000+02:00

Here is the view from my childhood bedroom window in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. I am sitting in it as I write this.

Pretty, huh? Why did I ever decide to leave?

White House Correspondents Dinner

2007-04-23T09:41:00.000+02:00

David Letterman presented the Top 10 Favorite Bush moments. Here it is:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IBWFL5-K8aU

Here's an older Top 10 on the same topic (some clips are repetitive):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8ujuggH6jc

Typo: Update

2007-04-22T10:10:00.000+02:00

As Howard kindly pointed out, there is in fact another typo in the customs form:

I can only imagine how many people employed by the federal government wrote, reviewed and proofread this document before it was approved by the OMB and actually printed. Scary!

Only in America...

2007-04-21T14:23:00.000+02:00

Will you find a typo on an official customs declaration form:

(Click the image to see the larger version.)

This form was distributed on our recent flight to New York (on our way to St. John) last month.

Out Our Window #1

2007-04-20T20:11:00.000+02:00

OK. A new series of images called Out Our Window. Each image will focus on a small view out one of our apartment windows. Living on the top floor allows for a panoramic view of the city. But sometimes we lose focus of the small areas of detail and try to absorb the entire view at once, kinda like gulping down a feast.

This is a photo facing Northwest towards old town Zurich (obscured by the trees in the background). The street is Forchstrasse and you can see tram tracks running down it. The traffic stopped ahead is at Kreuzplatz, a fairly busy intersection with restaurants, supermarkets, and shops. Sometimes (well, at least once), I will stand at Kreuzplatz and call Matt at home from my mobile phone. I'll ask him to look out the living room window towards Kreuzplatz and I'll wave.

Unsere Dachterrasse

2007-04-19T17:54:00.000+02:00

This is our roofdeck after today's gardening adventure. We rented a Mobility car (like a Zipcar in the US) for two hours this afternoon and drove down the lake to Küsnacht (where Tina Turner lives) to the nearest Coop Bau & Hobby (like Home Depot but not as big nor cheap) to stock up on plants - flowers, shrubs and herbs and round-the-railing lighting which you can't appreciate during the day (nor can we) but hopefully we'll take a photo tonight showing how it looks. And yes, the weather continues to be gorgeous, at least 15-25 degrees warmer than NYC.

The World's Smallest Dumpster

2007-04-18T19:32:00.000+02:00

Everything in Europe, and Switzerland in particular, is smaller than back home. This goes for the cars, the elevators, the apartments, the refrigerators, the egg holders for the fridge (see the posting of February 11, 2006 http://inderschweiz.blogspot.com/2006/02/eior-oy.html). So, when one of our neighbors recently moved out (she went to the old folks home), we found it amusing that the dumpster used to dispose of the apartment construction debris (the management company is renovating the apartment so they can rent it again at market rate - the woman probably lived there since before the Declaration of Independence) was no bigger than our kitchen garbage can in our last house in New York.

Enjoy the Sunset

2007-04-17T20:27:00.000+02:00

Today's post is a simple one. Just the sunset tonight from our living room window. Enjoy!

Sächsilüüte

2007-04-14T18:28:00.000+02:00

Preparations are well underway for the annual Sechseläuten (in Swiss German, it's Sächsilüüte) festival tomorrow and Monday. This is a uniquely Zurich holiday celebration. When Matt and I came to Zurich for the first time to check out the job, Sechseläuten 2005, it was cold, grey and depressing. This weekend, with temperatures around 77 (F) and nothing but deep blue skies, is a perfect time for it. To learn more about the celebration, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sechsel%C3%A4uten

Amsterdam Photos

2007-04-12T11:10:00.000+02:00

Without further delay, I am pleased to provide you with a link to the photos of our Amsterdam trip, March 30-April 3. The trip was in celebration of my 27th birthday (no snickering, please).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets

Almost Famous

2007-04-11T17:54:00.000+02:00

Today we received the new 2007 Zurich phone books. I was pleased to see that I have made the grade. It's official. Now I can say, "Call me. I'm in the book." In English, not German, of course. (Honestly, I can probably say that in German, too).

Mind you, if someone did call that number we probably wouldn't pick up since no-one calls us on our Swiss land line. It's either the mobile phone or our U.S. VOIP phone. I'm not even sure why we have one. Actually, we have three.

Beating a Dead Horse

2007-04-10T17:00:00.000+02:00

I know I have mentioned this numerous times in these posts, but I do take a certain perverse please when the weather is spectacular here (and when this is the case, there is no better place on earth to be than in Switzerland- seriously!!) and less than optimal back in New York.

Today was one of my random days off and the skies were crystal clear with temperatures of about 68-70 F degrees. The photo does not do justice to the view I enjoyed while taking a break from my lakeside biking trip this afternoon. Unfortunately, my camera (even the tiny little Canon Powershot) couldn't fit in my bike frame storage bag, so I had to use the camera-phone. You can't see the snow capped jagged mountains looming above and behind the rolling green hills in the near field and the sky does not look as uniformly deep blue as it really was.

To give an idea of the size of the lake - this is not some lake you crossed in 10 minutes in Upstate New York sleepaway camp when you were 12 years old. The width of the lake is about the distance between Brooklyn and Staten Island (as wide as 2 miles at some points) and its length is about 25 miles. A round trip bike ride, taking a short cut about 2/3 down the lake, crossing a bridge, is about 41 miles.

High temps this week forecast for New York (We, Th, Fr, Sa): 52, 47, 52, 53

High temps this week forcast for Zurich (all sunny days): 70, 72, 74, 75

NYA, nya, nya, NYA, nya

Huh???

2007-04-09T22:01:00.000+02:00

OK. Which one of these is not like the other? I understand the need for a U.S. office for an international company, but that usually means New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles. But Lexington, Kentucky???? Maybe they insure horses and bluegrass musicians. The Zurich office is about 5 minutes from our house. Maybe I'll go in and ask them someday.

Switzerland is still EVERYWHERE!!

2007-04-08T15:39:00.000+02:00

Once again, we can't avoid Switzerland, or at least things Swiss, when we travel abroad. This is a photo taken during our four-day trip to Amsterdam last week. We knew, however, that we were not in Switzerland as EVERYONE EVERYWHERE was speaking English.

Stay tuned for a link to our Amsterdam photos, coming soon.

Honesty is the Best Policy

2007-04-07T19:25:00.000+02:00

One really cool thing about Switzerland is that you can lose your wallet, full of money, on the street, and it will invariably get returned to you (provided you've got some identifying information inside the wallet) without any of its contents disturbed. We actually had a friend who lost her wallet on a train and was later called by the people who found her wallet asking her permission to use a small amount of money in the wallet to cover the postage costs to mail the wallet back to her in Zurich.

Usually if one comes across a lost item on the street, he or she places it to one side so as not to disturb the flow of sidewalk traffic but conspicuous enough so that when the unfortunate party returns to search for his lost item, it will be obvious enough to see. The picture above is the latest lost item I've encountered on the street: someone's data organizer or planner, nicely propped up against the fence as if it were on display in a store window.

We're # 1!!!

2007-04-06T15:19:00.000+02:00

Well, according to the 2007 Mercer Human Resource Consulting Worldwide Quality of Living Survey, Zurich once again (for at least six years in a row!!!!!) tops the list.

I must say, Zurich is a pretty great place to live. Not having lived in all the other cities (don't think I'll ever make it to Brazzaville, Congo) I can't say it is unquestionably the best. I suppose, however, they didn't take "availability of quality authentic Mexican food" into account in their survey.

The top 50 cities and their scores can be viewed at:

http://www.mercerhr.com/knowledgecenter/reportsummary.jhtml/dynamic/idContent/1128060#top50all

Racism???? In Switzerland

2007-03-28T14:35:00.000+02:00

The hottest toy in Zurich this spring is the slave doll pictured to the left. The package reads, "Works without pay," "Sleeps at night in shackles," and "Doesn't escape."

Just kidding...I'm not sure what the heck this is, but this is a photo of a poster I've seen around town, probably decrying racism or slavery. Better late than never, Switzerland.

MMM...sounds tempting

2007-03-23T11:07:00.000+01:00

Nothing like a good old monatshit to satisfy your sweet-tooth. What is a monat anyway and do we really want to eat its shit?

Seriously, this is the German (or at least Swiss German) way of saying "Special of the Month".

I think I'll pass on this one.

Photo courtesy of my equally silly colleague, Dr. Guy Ross.

Links to London Photos

2007-03-21T18:12:00.000+01:00

Here is the link to the remainder of our London weekend photos. Before you get too excited, there's only about a dozen shots. We were too drunk most of the time to take pictures.....just kidding, mom.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hthphoto/sets/

I Spoke Too Soon

2007-03-20T14:55:00.000+01:00

Just when I started to brag about our mild non-existent winter, she comes in with a "YOU don't know me" vengeance. Photo on the left (or top, depending upon your browser) is our usually sun-filled roof deck and right (or bottom) is the view out my office window, both taken this morning by Matt and me respectively. The whole week is expected to be 10-15 degrees colder than last week. The daffodils are pissed off or at least confused.

Switzerland is EVERYWHERE!!

2007-03-19T17:35:00.000+01:00

Just when y'all were getting used to daily postings on the blog, we up and fly off to London for the weekend to visit our friends David and John (we owed them a visit since last March; see blog posting of March 2006 http://inderschweiz.blogspot.com/2006_03_01_archive.html), leaving the blog site unmanned for a few days. So, even though we left Switzerland to visit old Blighty, our country of residence seemed to follow us into Leicester Square, where the Swiss Centre is located. Just can't seem to get away.

Out With the Old and in With the New

2007-03-14T18:07:00.000+01:00

There are many beautiful old homes in our neighborhood, most constructed in the 19th century. The majority of these grand old villas, previously owned by wealthy Zurich families, have been purchased by organizations and corporations and now house businesses, private schools, or have been converted to condos. Sadly from time to time one of these homes gets torn down to make room for some hideous new residential project.

Here is a perfect example. On the right is a typical home in our neighborhood, not the most beautiful, but typical. On the left is a still-under-construction monstrosity just across the street from us. No, that obnoxious charcoal color is not a primer; it is the final color. The cheapest apartment will rent for approximately 3750 US Dollars.

Casey's Roofdeck

2007-03-13T20:24:00.000+01:00

The nice thing about a roofdeck here in Zurich, or maybe it's just the clarity of the air when it's sunny, is that once the temperature goes above 50 F, it might as well be summer. You can sit out with just a short-sleeve shirt on, or with a coat of fur as Casey likes to do, and soak up the rays.

Engrish is Everywhere

2007-03-12T19:56:00.000+01:00

The use of the English language is commonplace throughout Zurich, as it is in most non-native-English speaking cities throughout the world. Unfortunately, things don't always go exactly according to Merriam-Webster. Here are two recent examples. Well, one recent (top image of a first aid KIT in a rental Mercedes-Benz) and one from last spring celebrating an upcoming June 1ST festival.

In the Land of Rules and Order

2007-03-11T18:51:00.000+01:00

Leave it to Switzerland to actually place registration numbers on tree trunks that have been recently chopped down. Must have been adopted from some Zurich bank accounting procedure. Heaven knows we don't want any illegal immigrant tree trunks making their way into Zurich's urban forests.

Who ARE these people?!??

2007-03-10T15:58:00.000+01:00

One of the few, if any, benefits of working weekends in the center of the city is that I become aware of every festival, event, parade and other sort of happening in Zurich, even if I can't always participate. Today's event presents me with a mystery. My streaming online audio experience was interrupted by Middle Eastern music and a gathering crowd of people outside my building in a square known as Hechtplatz. My German isn't good enough to fully read any of the banners that were being displayed, but I surmised that it had to do with women's rights...not in Switzerland of course, but the Middle East. It seemed like a pretty animated crowd. They hung around for about 30 minutes then cleared out. Had they put up a falafel stand, I would have been down there in a flash.

Tired of the chilly USA? Come to Switzerland

2007-03-09T20:26:00.000+01:00

While most of the US, at least the part of the country that we hail from, the Northeast, has been in a relatively deep freeze for a couple of months now, it has been positively spring-like here in Zurich.

I can count on one hand the number of days this winter that the temperature did not go above the freezing mark. In fact, it has been near or over 50 F for well over a month now. It has been so warm that the flowers have been in bloom for several weeks. Here is a shot I snapped today with the camera-phone while taking Casey for her evening walk. I could easily have snapped this shot weeks ago, in mid February.

Who needs the Caribbean for a winter escape when you can thaw and bronze in the land of chocolate and cheese!!

Hmm...

2007-03-05T22:48:00.000+01:00

We've all heard of speed dating. Well, it seems St. John has taken it one step further:

The Green Flash

2007-01-28T17:06:00.000+01:00

Green flash
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Green flashes and green rays are rare optical phenomena that occur shortly after sunset or before sunrise, when a green spot is visible for a short period of time above the sun, or a green ray shoots up from the sunset point. It is usually observed from a low altitude where there is an unobstructed view of the horizon, such as on the ocean.

Here is our Green flash taken last week on Bonaire:

Happy New Year

2006-12-31T16:21:00.000+01:00

Happy New Year to all of our friends and family. We hope 2007 brings you all much success and happiness.

Here is a photo from this afternoon in Zurich, a beautiful sunny final day of 2006 with thousands of people taking to the streets to bask in the unusally warm winter air (about 54 F/12 C).