and many more to go.
S started at the Swiss, public kindy last Tuesday and she loves it! The students all speak Swiss German, which S does not speak, but she seems open to learning it and is excited to make friends. On Thursday, the class had gymnastics at a center away from the school. The kids all walked to the center with the teacher, participated in gym, and walked back to the school to sing songs until it was time to go home. The next day S had a bit of a fever and leg pain so she stayed at home.
The kindergarten is so different than the kindys in the United States. There aren't any academics. The school is outfitted with a bunch of Waldorf-esque toys to encourage imagination and the teachers have a very independence-minded attitude. It almost borders on a Montessori attitude.
Before the first day, the teacher and I had a chat about S starting school and she encouraged me to prepare S for walking to school by herself. Well, without an adult but with other kids that live in the building. She is only 4.5 years old!
All the kids in school are given large, orange reflective sashes to wear to and from school so drivers will see them and S has been dutifully wearing hers. As soon as I can, I'll get a pic.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
The Poop Button
Switzerland has the. best. thing. ever. Well, the best thing a four year old can ask for. The poop button. The toilets have 2 different flush buttons, one low flow button for pee and a tidal wave for poop. Introduce that to a small kid from the states with our pathetically pedestrian 1 handle toilet and wallah, instant fun!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
Being Pregnant + Living in Zurich =
Being hungry all the time.
Portions are small, protein is expensive, and stores are closed on Sundays.
Portions are small, protein is expensive, and stores are closed on Sundays.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Mommy - I see SMOKE!!!
was how I woke up this morning. S was in the kitchen screaming, Mommy, Daddy get up - I see SMOKE! I jump up, run to the kitchen and sure enough, there was smoke coming from the neighbor's chimney. Is it possible that my child has never seen smoke rising from a chimney before?
I went back to bed and let Daddy dole out the corn flakes.
I went back to bed and let Daddy dole out the corn flakes.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Last Veloboersen of the Year
Hope I got that right. It should translate to mean bike market (used bike sale). Anyway, we went there to look at used bikes. Not much for the kiddo because she really needs a 16" AND training wheels. She cried. Excessively.
The place was packed when we got there at 9:20 and we left with nothing. But we do have a better idea of what kind of used bike to find there and we did see many bikes in the SFr 100-200 range. Nothing to write home about but they'd get you around Zurich.
The place was packed when we got there at 9:20 and we left with nothing. But we do have a better idea of what kind of used bike to find there and we did see many bikes in the SFr 100-200 range. Nothing to write home about but they'd get you around Zurich.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
IKEA - Zurich
Our adventure for today was to the IKEA in the suburbs of Zurich. The IKEA website is somewhat confusing so let me just tell you how to get there.
Go to Zurich Bahnhof Stadelhofen and take the S12 toward Winterthur. The first stop is Stettbach and this is where you want to get off. Next take the 787 bus from upstairs and since Stettbach is the last stop on the line, you can't get on the wrong bus. :) Take this to Industriestrasse and you will see the trademark IKEA blue & yellow. Get off and walk in the front door!
I have to say, this is the messiest IKEA I have ever seen. Usually IKEA makes me want to go home and organize but this one had empty shelves that were hanging incorrectly and the atmosphere was generally unSwiss. heh
More about IKEA later, the kid is demanding attention.
Go to Zurich Bahnhof Stadelhofen and take the S12 toward Winterthur. The first stop is Stettbach and this is where you want to get off. Next take the 787 bus from upstairs and since Stettbach is the last stop on the line, you can't get on the wrong bus. :) Take this to Industriestrasse and you will see the trademark IKEA blue & yellow. Get off and walk in the front door!
I have to say, this is the messiest IKEA I have ever seen. Usually IKEA makes me want to go home and organize but this one had empty shelves that were hanging incorrectly and the atmosphere was generally unSwiss. heh
More about IKEA later, the kid is demanding attention.
Boating around Zurich Lake
Since everything is closed on Sunday, we decided to take a mini boat trip around Zurich Lake. There is a short-ish trip that just goes in a big circle and takes 1.5 hours. The trip is called "Kleine Rundfahrten" and is part of the Zurich public transportation network. That means, with a zone 10 pass, you only need to purchase either a zone 40 or zone 50 pass (depending on direction) for around SFr 4 per adult.
Just because it is public transit doesn't mean beer, wine and food isn't available. The prices are a bit steep but if a glass of white wine is what you need, it is available. :) They also have sparkling apple juice for the pregnant Americans and kids.
I forgot to mention, you can buy zone 40/50 tickets on the boat if you have a zone 10 pass and there is a ticket window at the departure point, Burkliplatz, for complete tickets.
Details (in German) are available at zsg.ch.
Just because it is public transit doesn't mean beer, wine and food isn't available. The prices are a bit steep but if a glass of white wine is what you need, it is available. :) They also have sparkling apple juice for the pregnant Americans and kids.
I forgot to mention, you can buy zone 40/50 tickets on the boat if you have a zone 10 pass and there is a ticket window at the departure point, Burkliplatz, for complete tickets.
Details (in German) are available at zsg.ch.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Stay in English Blogger!
Seemingly randomly, Blogger tries to switch the language to German.
Why Blogger, why?
I am assuming they go off the IP address and decide since I am in the Swiss German speaking part of Switzerland, I should speak German. Well, I guess I should but I've only been here a coupe of weeks. Gimme a break, will ya?
Why Blogger, why?
I am assuming they go off the IP address and decide since I am in the Swiss German speaking part of Switzerland, I should speak German. Well, I guess I should but I've only been here a coupe of weeks. Gimme a break, will ya?
Saturday, September 19, 2009
The flea market at Burkliplatz (Zurich)
Just back from the Saturday flea market at Burkliplatz, in search of English language books. I read on the interwebz that fiction was generally available at the flea market for a few SFr each so I thought it was worth a try. So glad I left the kid at home because I never would have found anything with her being all over the place.
My haul? Four books that I probably wouldn't have bought otherwise for a grand total of SFr 3. I bought:
Agatha Christie: At Bertram's Hotel
The Nanny Diaries
The other books were too awful to buy. There were two books about people being persecuted by oppressive governments, one trashy romance novel and something that was so worthless, it has completely slipped my mind.
Maybe I came too late and all the English books were snapped up by early birds at 6 AM.
Still no camera. :(
My haul? Four books that I probably wouldn't have bought otherwise for a grand total of SFr 3. I bought:
Agatha Christie: At Bertram's Hotel
The Nanny Diaries
The other books were too awful to buy. There were two books about people being persecuted by oppressive governments, one trashy romance novel and something that was so worthless, it has completely slipped my mind.
Maybe I came too late and all the English books were snapped up by early birds at 6 AM.
Still no camera. :(
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