It is my last Saturday in Lausanne before the wedding. I can't believe the "Big Day" is in TWO WEEKS! Paul is having a nice time with his friends in Amsterdam and I am taking a weekend for myself and my friends here. It is quiet in the house as Matt is in the UK visiting Heather and Andrew and his girlfriend are out somewhere in Lausanne. It is just me in the house. It is very quiet. I have just finished lunch, some so-so sushi, on my balcony while reading a mildly entertaining book. I can hear birds chirping and the sun is warm shining down on me. I feel very lucky right now.
I don't actually like Switzerland very much, or to be more exact, I don't like Swiss people. If it was the same country filled with Brits or Canadiens or even Americans, It would be a much more friendly, easy place. But alas I cannot make all of these Swiss people disappear so I will have to deal with them the best I can. At least the view from my balcony is incredible, and I like my town and my street, Avenue de Cour. I like that I can walk to almost everything I need on my little street. We have the boulangerie, patisserie, fromagerie, chacuterie, grocery stores, a sushi place, a chinese place, a bank, a post office, a flower shop, a hairdresser, little cafes etc. etc. It is very "European" I guess I would say. Sometimes I really miss places like Target, where you can go and get everything you need in one stop. But places like Target are big, impersonal and corporate owned. I like walking into the corner bakery where the same lady is working. The shop can't fit more than 4 people, and even that is a little uncomfortable. I still like it.
My French has also improved since I moved here. I am still nowhere near fluent, but I think I will never be. You really have to talk in French all day everyday to be fluent and I don't. I'm sure, if I really REALLY tried I could get even better, but it takes a lot of time and energy, two things I really don't have at the moment. I can mostly understand what people say and I have even had moments where I know the word in French, but I forget its name in English. I can certainly hold my own when I yell at my students in French. My new favorite term is "Vous n'arrêtez pas de parler, et il est très difficile de vous enseigner!"
So I have been here for almost a year, and it looks like we will be here for several more. Curiously this is okay, because my French is passable, I have some nice friends here, I have an amazing apartment with a great view, and I like my little street. And Paul, I like Paul a lot as well, and he likes it here. I guess we can deal with a few more years of shops closed every day at 7pm (or 6pm on Saturday) and nothing open on Sundays or weekends, and the strange, cold, reserved, conservative Swiss people.
I've been here for almost a year now, Paul for several years, and we have yet to rack up a great number of Swiss friends. He has one truly Swiss friend. I have a friend who has Swiss parents and who grew up in Canada. Another friend who has a mother who is Swiss but who grew up in Madagascar. All my other friends are British, Irish, American, French, Swedish, German, Canadian, Italian, etc. I guess it makes sense because I know people from all over the world who all have interesting and different view points. It certainly makes for some lively conversation. Maybe the worst part is I don't even care that I don't have Swiss friends, because the Swiss have proved that they don't want to be friends. So I stopped trying. Someone last night asked me if I was staying here for good. I laughed and said there was NO WAY I would bring up my children in Switzerland. Maybe that is very selfish of me. Switzerland is a clean, safe, rich country with lots to offer. But I couldn't bear the idea of any kids of mine being anything like the Swiss people here. I want my kids to grow up open and friendly and kind. So no, we will not stay here indefinitely. Maybe just until our permits run out in 2013. We shall see.
It is time to get back to work (I always have work to do), but I guess what I am saying is that I am happy, here, right now. It's not the place I want to stay forever, but right now it is absolutely perfect for me. Just like any place it has its pros and cons, but you have to take the good with the bad. And in 4 days I will be on a plane to America to enjoy a different place. This world has a lot of great places to explore :)
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