Paying Bills the Swiss Way

Paying bills in Switzerland is a little different than the United States. First off, the Swiss don't use checks. This surprises a lot of Americans who use checks to pay bills and truthfully, it is kind of a pain in the butt. I still use my American bank account to pay student loans and storage fees in the US and I have to do a wire transfer to send money to that account.

There are some nice things about the system here though. For example, when one receives a bill, the company sends a slip of paper that has the account number, amount, and address of the receiver. It is standardized (and red!) and to pay, you just have to walk down to the post office, hand them the money (or use a bank card), and the post office transfers the money.

In the US, the mere mention of the post office would send shivers down my spine. This is Switzerland though and the post (pronounced: poscht) is much more efficient.

Another benefit: the post office also runs a sort-of bank so you can do all your banking business while paying bills. The only drawback is the post only deals with Swiss Francs and Euros. Oh well, it can't be perfect.

Missing My Neti Pot

I left my neti pot in Dallas. *sniff sniff* Love that thing.

It took me a while to get used to draining water through my nasal passage but once I did, I found that I love it when I am congested. Dallas has a lot of allergens in the air so I needed it once a month or so. Zurich, not so much but the winter means congestion, right?

The Home Stretch

Also known as the last month before birth. The baby is just getting bigger and bigger and not surprisingly, so am I. With my daughter, the last month was somewhat painful as all the indignities of childbirth are being practiced. Bounce is behaving somewhat the same, down to the fact he keeps his hand by his face.

I am so ready to be done. Well, not really. The crib we will probably never use is still in a box. Our mattress is on the floor because we don't have a bed frame yet. We don't have a dresser and since we live in Europe, land of no closets, all of our clothes are still in bags/suitcases.

Still, it would be nice to not be pregnant anymore. Then I could bend over and pick stuff off the floor.

We will be getting a bed frame soon, as soon as the people who are giving us one gets back from holiday. Ditto on the dresser. We just need to wait. Not my best skill.

Happy Boxing Day!

Or in Switzerland, St. Stephen's Day. This is a holiday in Zurich canton and therefore everything is closed. That is fine with me although I ran out of sparkling apple juice and want some more. Maybe I'll run to the store in the train station and pick some up. The train station grocery stores are always open. :)

Magic Tree House - Not a Good Bedtime Story

The kid was gifted the first four Magic Tree House Books because I thought they would make a good introduction to chapter books. The good news? She loves them! The bad news? She couldn't fall asleep because she was busy asking a billion questions about dinosaurs.

One concept she had problem grasping is that dinosaurs do not reanimate at the museum and eat people. I explained that they were just skeletons and not complete dinosaurs but she doesn't yet have the permanence to understand that death is forever.

Another thing. We are atheists so we have told her about evolution but we never related any sort of story that sounds like Adam and Eve. Well. She asked who the first person was if dinos all died before people existed. That one was a bit tougher. In her mind, the first person must have been a baby without a mommy - but where did the mommy go? Good question.

Like I said, good stories, just not good bedtime ones.

No Chimney for Santa

There aren't a lot of chimneys in Switzerland for Santa to slide down. So instead, Santa breaks in through the window like a good thief. At least that is my takeaway from all the windows in Zurich that have Santa hanging outside a window on a rope with presents on his back.

We're back!

We just moved and the internet that I ordered over 3 weeks ago is finally available. There is one lost cable modem wandering around Switzerland somewhere, maybe even in the post. Who knows. Now I just need to get wireless and all will be good.

Zurich Tip of the Day

The McDonalds next to bahnhof Stadelhofen has free wifi if you bring a laptop. There are 2 coin operated computer terminals if you didn't.

Edited to add: Be sure and bring a mobile phone that can receive SMS texts. McDonalds requires you register (for free) with a mobile phone.

Moving, moving, moving

Tomorrow S is starting kindy at her new kindergarten. I didn't find this out until a couple of days ago but her teacher does not speak English at all. Oh boy. There is a little girl who S knows through daddy at her school that does speak English so that is good but I am still a little nervous.

Why are we moving already? We sublet an apartment for 3 months in Zurich proper through a relocation place. I didn't want to sublet for any longer than that because the relocation place charges an increasing percentage depending on the duration of the lease. What I didn't count on was how much this pregnancy would kick my ass. So I didn't have enough time to settle in, let alone get to know the city, before finding a place. The husband's colleague recommended the burb he lives in and it almost seems perfect. We will see, I guess.

If we stayed where we are now, we'd have to buy a car because it takes upwards of 30-40 minutes by bus to get anywhere. The place we are moving to is remote but there are a couple of grocery stores, a post office and bakery within 5 minutes walking.

Hopefully internet will be turned on soon so I can post pics of the Christmas parade we went to tonight.

El Maiz - Mexican Grocery in Zurich

I heard the place to go for Mexican food supplies is El Maiz, near Hauptbahnof so today that was my errand. It is pretty close to HB so I took the 31 bus and then walked to El Maiz on Josefstrasse.

The prices were a little expensive but this is Switzerland and to be expected. Still, I only bought white, distilled vinegar because I needed some for cleaning and I haven't seen it elsewhere. A small bottle was 3,50 CHF.

Other stuff you can find at El Maiz:

* A large variety of Mexican beer
* A larger variety of tequila
* Canned jalapeño peppers - many different kinds
* Fresh jalapeño peppers, tomatillos
* Many different brands of hot sauce, including Dave's Insanity Sauce for 14,40 CHF
* Wood tortilla press
* Piñatas, large ones

It is worth a stop if you are near the main Zurich train station.