easyjet easyjet

From the same snow topic.

Of course let it snow, let it snow, let snow. For almost 36h the airport was closed. Hundreds of people had to sleep on hotel rooms that didnt exist anymore, so they had to create a 'protection civile', like a shelter for poor-people-without-airplane. Geez, I should have offered my extra room for a nice price...

After the snow storm comes, not the calm, but the ice. City of Geneva still not cleaning well the streets and not even the sidewalks, where the elder slips all the time and the walking speed is reduced to extremely slow...sometimes cars and buses also slip....NOT SWITZERLAND!

Friday afternoon, before my crazy working morning and meanwhile getting dressed my boss was still giving me 'orders' when the snow started again. I thought with myself: nooooooo. Everybody told me, don't worry, there won't be annnnnny problem.

I had to wait 3h30 for my flight to Budapest....this is tooooooo much love. I arrived at 13h and we left at 18h probably because the plane was coming from a far snowy place, the reason, they didn't really say.

Well, still better than what happened to my boyfriend one day before. Everybody was already sitting in the plane when the commandant says there is a technical problem with the craft and he comes out of the cabine with a bag on the hand and goes to repair the problem...go figure this so nice wood-bank company...

Geneva x Switzerland...

Just heard from a Swiss that Geneva does not behave like part of Switzerland...
At this point I have to admit I missed the Hungarian snow cleaning.
Saturday we had a kind of snow fall, just 10-15cm. What the city of Budapest starts to clean even before the snow starts to fall.
Well again, in Geneva at 13h in the afternoon we had not seen any track of any snow remover truck, not even in the city center. During most of the day people simply couldn't catch a bus or a tram because there was such an amount of snow everywhere that they just couldn't drive. The same happened for foreigner who don't know driving, they stuck in the middle of the streets and the highway!

When we come to a country whose half of it is about alps and snow, we expect to be able to walk on a sidewalk without slipping, well, this was not possible in Geneva. The government excuse was that the fall was too heavy, I think russians and who are used to this were laughing. Even the tram system stopped for half day.

Hope next time will be better and we won't have to do what most genevois do, they just stay home eating swiss Chocolate and fondue, that I can't do every time it snows...

I don't really like this doll, but I gotta admit I just loved this version...This is called imagination...

Les Champs-Elysées...

As I mentioned before, one of the things we like the most about living here is the proximity to other great cities.

Two weekends ago we decided (of course after a nice friend living there allowed): let's go to Paris!

Big questions of life: airplane or train? what you mean train? Well, Geneva is one of the final stations of the famous French TGV (train a grande vitesse), the very fast train! It is not so fast if you compare that with an Easyjet flight you are there in 1h30min, and by train we make in 3:30 with no connection, but why not trying it?

Of course prices also matter. In a not business time (and playing with weekend/no weekend flights with Easyjet), one needs around 70 euros (back and forth ticket!!!). By train we couldn't find for less than 300 Swiss francs, although with good sales, you can find for 200 francs or less. Also, one should consider that arrivals by airplane are, at least, 10 km far from the city center, whenever train arrivals are practically IN the center and from there is just choose one of the many metro, bus, or bike lines. I was always 'afraid' of the many metro lines, I counted 14 of them, I could get lost and never find my way out of it, ever again; there is even one without driver!

And then, of course, it is just get lost (in the good meaning) in the many small and large streets, sightseeing, important places and shops and restaurants (they are everywhere).

Monmartre, great view from the city

We were very lucky on Friday with good weather. We started our walk from Monmartre, down to the Opera, with our first visit to the Galerie Lafayette (astonishing too many useless expensive craps, but an outstanding architecture), following to the Madeleine and down to the Concorde, with the view of the Tuillerie/Louvre to the back and going towards the Champs-Elysées (with a pit stop for a crepe and panini) we arrived to the Arc du Triomphe. How I love this street, it is so funny to see these boutiques with very 'cheap' prices, people from all over the world walking around, and suddenly facing a big picture of George with a cup of Nespresso (I doubt he drinks those with the Italian cafés giving where he lives), waiting 20min at a Starbucks to get that watered café (no way), and see a line of 100 Chineses waiting to see the insides of the Maison Louis Vitton (maybe to copy for selling at the black market?) and finishing in a lovely walk to the Eiffel Tower, I just love to sit and look up at that amaaaaaazing structure.

Bonjour la Dame de Fer!

Xmas deco at the Lafayette

Saturday was just rain, but a delicious breakfast at one of the restos at the Louvre, how I love those croissants, gateaux au chocolat and so many of them. Inside the Louvre of course we had to stop to check what, according to Krisz is one of the best works of art there, which you can find in the pic bellow:

(could you find it?)

Then walked to Les Halles (interesting mall), small streets of the Marais and on our way to the Luxembourg garden we went around the quartier latin, just love it! and back we met Orsi in the Notre-Dame under the pouring rain.

Sunday was also lucky because although it was raining we could get for free (first sunday of the month) inside the Musee d'Orsay. Beautiful building, nice pics and the impressionism really leaves you impressed, though I prefer statues...

And then, back home. This time the TGC was more modern, I forgot to mention that the one we took to go to Paris was the latest fashion of the 70s, but still it reached the promised 296 km/h (which I wouldn't try at home).

Besides you are never alone, have to travel in the packed metro, and strikes, Paris is indeed a city like no other...

not easy...

hi there,

Not easy to keep posting after I have to run up and down and manage some programs for others...

Well, I have been doing a lot of things, not only related to job after all! And job it is, since I spent more time there (minimum 11 hours a day) than at home. After having lunch with the natives from here and there I realized that Brazilians are not really strong in one area: wishing things to others, or at least my family!

In the morning they already start with bonjour!ok, no problem there because some brazilians really say that do each other, but as I remember most of them do say it. But Francophones do go a little bit more ahead saying "bonne journée), like have a nice day in the morning.
Then lunch time comes and with it something that I really didn't enjoy in Gödöllő and they kind of obligated foreigners to say: the famous "bon appetit"! and not only they have to answer thanks, the same for you too (merci, parreillement) but we have to say it for every 10 people who get into the room. It really slows down my eating (how boring I am).

After lunch is finished and dishes washed they wish each other "bon ap" but this time not the short for bon apetit, but the short for "bon apres-midi", meaning have a nice afternoon! and then again: merci, parreillement.

And by leaving the job, they say (not all of them) "bonne soirrée!, wishing a good night. Even to the bus driver, poor one, he arrives very thirsty at the end of the driving.
C'mon that is too much! Don't you think? I don't think Germans or Spanishes have this all the time. Or maybe I am just putting into practice what Swiss romande people say that French people do a lot: "raler", to complain a lot.

alors, c'est ça, bonne journée a tous!

It is so hard to write when you pass the entire day jumping from one lab to the other and so on...
2-3 weeks ago we succeeded to take a time off and go somewhere in Switzerland, because after all, the French region around here we already know...

We went to one of the most famous ski cities in the country (at least we think so), we went to Zermatt!!!
I 've never been to place where you go on vacation just to ski or just to walk walk walk, or as my colleague who was also there says, hike!

It is a super über nice place. The city is car free (sg that an American or a Brazilian can imagine). It means, you leave your car in one of the cities before Zermatt and go up by train (15 CHF round trip without the demi-tarif). We got a good hotel, but you can also run for lodges, albergues, apartments or expensive hotels (up in the klein Matterhorn). Our hotel had a view to the Matterhorn, but not our room, which had a view to the city.

Well, so what you do on a place like this? climb to the mountains by walk (not my style) or take the cable car (a bit overpriced), but when you have your ski stuff, you have to use it. The funny is to see people around in 25 degrees with the ski coats and trousers.

We opted to go for the walking. As totally out of ideas about what to do, we took a huge breakfast (delicious) and out for the mountains! But where? we got a map and decided: Gornergrat it is. after all it is just 3km and that I do all the time...but...

Yeah, but...I didn't count the inclination of the mountain...when you are not prepared that can be a pain in the leg, literally speaking...so we went up one km and found the GornergratBahn, I was never so happy to find a train and up we went. Walked around, saw amazing views, interesting people, a glacier (or a mer de glace), something like a sea of ice...I wanted to walk in that one, but maybe it wouldnt be what I expect it to be. Than we walked down a bit more, and took the train to the hotel. As I said this is not exactly the kind of vacation I am used to which is go to a paradise beach, drink coconut water and drinks meanwhile staring at the beach, walk in the sand and that's all for some days. THis is what most Brazilians do I think. From now on I decided to change this vacation style and go more to these other type of paradise places.
Zermatt is said to be expensive, after all, hotels and trains are, but food is exactly like in Geneva.



A good place to spend some quality time. Ah, this is funny to say: I got a little sunburned! I really thought that wouldn't be possible for me, as I am used to Brazilian sun. Guess what, up in the Gornergrat observatory there was a station for measuring cosmic radiation...well, you can imagine how our faces were after walking around the entire day 3100m high...

THis will be out target next time, up to the Toblerone chocolate symbol mountain...

costumer treatment...

One thing that never stops amazing me here in general, in Europe (and I thought it was a particularity of Hungary but I was wrong) is how a seller or a person who works in a shop whichever it is 'serves' the client.

You all know that I mention how are things in Brazil and Hungary all the time, because these are the two countries where I have lived the most and I don't want to always present this Brazilian vainglory, but there the job of a seller/waiter depends on how he deals with the client. Brazilian like to be well treated and are used to a friendly service. I always call the waiter by their names and talk and ask opinions and they always give feedback, specially in the sea shore kiosks.

In Hungary, waiters are so impersonal, make an unfriendly face if you don't choose your meal fast and are, sometimes, impolite. Or who never received a not-nice-face from sellers in Salamander or this type of shop?

In Switzerland, they are protected. Yes, they can do anything they want. I already saw sellers in shops make an extreme ugly face because they came to ask if they can help and we said 'no, we are just checking around'. Or when the waiter came and we still didn't choose the plate...
Yesterday it was the top of the top. We arrived at Manor restaurant to eat a pizza 30min before the restaurant closes (at 19:30), and, we were choosing our pizza when the seller looked at our face and made the gesture of closing plus said 'closed', pluuuus the manager came and started installing the separation line that we should not advance. Com'n we were already there inside...I can understand that he might be tired of working the entire day in front of the oven, but I think that was not nice at all.

So we decided to go to the market and the same money we would use to eat the pizza, we bought special pieces of cheese, ham, and bread and had fun with it.

To hell with this behavior, they should know it better in this country, a place where as I have seen money speaks more than all the languages together...

no time...

I started working 2 months ago.
Still didn't receive my first salary (in science is like this), but I happen to be having lots of fun in the new labs!
People are nice (I was afraid of not finding nice colleagues I have to admit) and the place is new and modern.
Some friends ask me, why didn't you start working after the summer is over, like this you can enjoy the sun and the warm for the last time before you get immersed in all that +"!%/+! and never be able to come out of it again.
Yeah, I realized that I have no time for nothing now, even for the flat which became a mess. But it is worth, I really like the place and the warm outside the lab is so unbearable (35 degrees one of these days) that I just can thank for the wise decision of some department of having a 4 degrees room close to our labs!



have a nice summer...

again world cup?

Yeah, did you realize that nowadays every second topic in a conversation is about football? The funny is that in certain countries, after the Cup is over, they won't talk about it for the next 4 years...

I realized something interesting these last weeks here in Switzerland, probably in other places it also happened. All electro-eletronics newspapers have been advertising which equipment the most? TVs! It is amazing! And compared to a newspaper from 3 months ago the prices aren't cheaper, they are the same, just a few really worth, but now the 'new' TVs have a men playing football in it, and not necessarily a Swiss one.

Why? marketing department thinks people have the rush to buy a new TV? or that the ones that never haven't got a TV at home (like we after a year) will need to buy a TV now in order to watch it? pretty dull, ahn?

But the best thing on the week, to go deep into the subject, was the game Switzerland X Spain. All my Swiss colleagues (rare to find) were saying: we will be very sad after the game because Spain is gonna eat us alive. At the end of the game, going home, the city looked like after a big wedding (here in Europe). All cars in the street (I believe the Swiss ones) were horning to each other, even the buses! In the bus my friend was the bus driver informed in the loud speaker 'Switzerland won!!!', and he got no reaction, then he said it is not a joke, and then people start to make noise, so unexpected victory it was.

This is happiness! I hope they will be good on the next one too! congrats!

world cup is here!

As a Brazilian, I have to admit that this is the most waited sports competition for us. Awaited for four years, we always have the hope of winning, specially over France! And as I see ad listen, Swisses and we share the same thought as seen in a T-shirt in the streets in the French Switzerland:

'je supporte deux équipes: la Suisse et n'importe quelle autre qui battra la France!'

Meaning that: " I am a fan of two teams: Switzerland and the other who is gonna win over France!. Not that I think they have any chance, but at least they do their best.

Also on the streets around Geneva, you can see the Brazilians and other teams supporters moving around already with the team T-shirts! The city is gonna deploy big screens for the 'people' to watch the games. And this years world cup has an advantage for who is in Europe: as South Africa is in the same meridian this means the time of the games won't be like when it was in Japan or Australia.



So, this is it. Good luck to all teams, but mostly to Brazil, I think they will need it since I have heard around here that our team is not the best as our coach has done some bad choices. SO we might say may the best team win! (or the one who has a good financing company, not to mention the happening in the cup of 1998, when Ronaldinho (or Ronaldo as Hungarians say) 'pretended' to be sick and had to give up the match and let France win... well...nobody ever could explain that...

FYI, this is the google's Easter egg for the 'world cup' research...

So, as we say in Portuguese: I hope my poor Brazilian fan heart won't suffer that much...

new species discovered in Geneva...

This week at 8 AM as I leave the little train (RER) and walking around the city center (not that Geneva has a large one) I saw something I have never seen until now: Geneva is really a business center. THe amount of people I saw wearing suits was amazing. I felt like I was among several penguins...I was feeling very bad wearing my jeans, my Merrel shoes, and my sweatshirt, plus carrying my laptop backpack. Here people in suit carry their laptops (if they carry anything besides their Louis Vitton, Armani or Donatella bags (including man), in highly fashioned laptop bags. They are cool and expensive (around 3000 francs a cheap one), but I bet not as comfortable as mine.

Meanwhile waiting for my bus, I realized I found out where this species so abundant in Geneva (the Homo insuits) forages in the earlier part of the day (to forage is best translated from the scientific vocabulary to everyday words as eat/feed), I found myself in front of a very fancy and modern 'juice shop' with bio products. They leave up to 25 francs for a breakfast. How healthy this species is! After this dangerous search for food they go to another spot to finish foraging, a so called coffee shop, where they have a espresso or a liter cup of coffee and smoke their cigarette.

I finish the appointments of my species discovery (I will write more about the behavior of this species during different parts of the day later) wondering if one day I will ever introduce myself among this species to better understand their behavior like the famous Jane Goodall did...

Is it worth?

Well, a tourada (or the bull fight) is not one of the reasons why I would go to Spain. It makes the animal suffer, doesn't prove anything and does not add anything to our lives. What the person who deals with the animal think she will win with that? is it really necessary? Maybe if they would eat the meat after all, but this end does not justify the means...

This 41-year-old toreador in Sevilha learned his lesson, maybe. He is alive and stable, though he had to pass through a tracheostomy and he is in the ICU in case you want to visit him.

Why is it difficult to follow rules?

How guests have to behave?
When you visit somebody else, how do you behave at their house? Do you do everything they ask, like don't do this don't do that, don't do it like this, do like that? I certainly do.

Why some people are so difficult to understand what you want them to do, or not?

Older people are even more difficult to accept the rules, maybe because they already lost part of the brain or because they might think they don't have to obey anybody.

Our flat is almost or a little bit more than a 100 years old, when you walk on the floor we kindly ask people to step on certain parts of the flat because it makes a loud creak. So you just have to walk in the side of the corridor, close to the wall and not step on the door treshold.

I don't understand how difficult this is because I can walk without a noise, maybe it has something to do with the anorexic 40 kilos I weight. We kindly ask for people not to throw hairs on the shower box, because it is bad for the pipes and our foot, since the dirty water can't follow her way down. We kindly ask people to throw the toothpaste dejects in the sink, and not on the side or on the wall or on the mirror.

Please don't get me wrong, I really like to have guests, we always used to have some. But why is it difficult to follow the rules?

Am I too picky or am I just rude?

French or Swiss expressions?

Yes, in the last year I became something I was afraid of: a housewife. I was at home full time, didn't have to wake up early, run to the job, run the entire day against the clock, find/invent something to eat, then come back home in a full bus God only knows at what time of the night. I even learned how to cook beans, rice, steak and others (just Brazilians and their connections know how this is important for a Brazilian!). I read a lot, even the weekly newspapers from the supermarkets. Where, in these, I met a funny expression that Swisses use to refer to their kids: 'les blonds' or 'les têtes blondes'! Which literally means 'the blonds' or 'the blond heads'.

I wonder if this expression exists in the other cantons of the country. And yes it is 'funny' because mostly in the German region there can be 90% of blond kids, but Geneva, no, not at all...maybe the blond kids are approximately 10% of the phenotype we can see in the kinder garden?

How come? Simply, since the population of the canton genevois is composed of 40% of foreigners and lots of them come from not really nordic countries, so you understand how 'funny' or not real this expression can be.

And this is one of the reasons why I like it here. The melange or the so called mixture between the couples of different cultures. Something we do not see in many other countries.

So next time the columnists of the newspapers write about the kids I wish they took a look around, because the least hair color they will see around is blond, but a lot of brown, black, and lots of red! Even though, OMG, all of them are so cute, aren't they???



OMG now for me, one says that when a woman starts to think other kids are cute is because their time to produce one is coming...is that true? noooooooo

why is it...?

Switzerland, a country where you can do almost everything you want. You can see several different tribes (really tribes) in the same street, or the meeting of an Ayatollah with a Rambam, without them bombing each other.

So, why is it that in Switzerland, at least in this French part of the country people have to work on May 1st?

Nobody really knows, I even asked one of the 5 Swisses I know, they said it was always like that, as they can remember. Although, if you want to make a manifestation, you just have to make your requirement...

Let's make one against working on May first? See you at the Nations next year?

why this question---

Now I can count I've been to 3 job interviews...
In all of them they ask a probably very famous question: Where do you picture yourself in the next 6 years?

What is it with this question, why is it so important where do you want to see yourself, do you see yourself in 6 years? I don't even know where I want to be in the next weekend. I don't even know if I want to have kids in the next 6 years. Of course It is important for a woman to decide this because as old you get more difficult it is, less hormones, less oocyte production or even less healthy oocytes. It is bad I took a PhD in this area, now I know all these problems......

So job interview it is! Biology area is different from IT, economics, management and so on...the salary is bad, work and things to study we have a lot, and you have to always keep a good mood even though your experiment doesn't work for months.
So I know where I want to be in the next years: maybe doing an experiment that will always work....or not!
Have a nice weekend with this question as food for thought: where you want to be in 6 years?

no flights...

The Iceland volcano ashes in the air. This is a hot topic.

But I bet it isn't a hot topic the fact that around my house the environment is much cleaner and quiet. Since we live besides (10 min by car) form the airport, I wake up everyday at 6h with the first flight landing or taking off from Geneva (never opened the window to check).

Since Saturday I can sleep well and so can our neighbors! They are really happy. ON the other hand, I bet people who are 'arrested' at the other cities where they don't belong are unhappy. Who pay for their extra days of hotel, does the travel insurance covers this.

Also, the big companies have been accusing the European governments of taking the no-air traffic decree as an overdose, but do you think you would get on a flight knowing that there is some chance your airplane can have problems because of volcano 'dust'? I don't think so.

Poor airline companies, or not...

imagine what happens when...

A Swiss moves to another country? Poor one will be worried about when is he/she/or other will receive the checks to be payed.

Last week, we received a brand new invoice! At least the government remembers we exist! I am happy for that! It is a new type of tax, one I had never seen before and we have to pay it because we live in Geneva. It is a common tax for me and my beloved husband. At least it is not like the one for utilizing TV/radio and so on, it has a meaning! (which is... if somebody knows, please, tell me???) We have to pay it because we leave here...I wonder if other cantons have the same.

At least this is not an expensive one, it is just 25 CHF, meaning 12,5 for me and 12,5 for him. And who is not married, pay how much?

ahhhhhhhhhh

Sometimes I realize I forgot how is it to be part of the glamorous group of people: the ones who work.


Since I moved to Suisse, I didn't experience any of the activities this select group perform on a everyday basis like wake up early; travel/or just walk to the office; have the stress of your boss in your back asking about this or that experiment or result he asked 2 days ago and you are late with it; making presentations for a sleepy bunch of people right after lunch; looking for what to lunch unless you brought that one-day-old tasty chicken. Besides having to go for a fixed time to the office; take a full bus or train, or a traffic jam in your way. Almost picking a fight with that colleague you know that should never have been hired, how the hell did he get in? Seating on your train/bus/car you think of buying that amazingly cool TV/computer/house appliance you saw on the advertisements. Or, if you are a little bit more geek you think whether you should or not spend the extra money in those iGadgets you see at the iCornershop with such a nice colours (white is also good, after all style is what counts). HAving to run at the end of the day to shop because you had to leave late from the job and almost couldn't get the market opened and thinking what the hell am I going to dinner?

OMG, all these advantages that you guys have....But making up for all of these obstacles you have to battle comes the so sacred end of the month. That fantastic period when your bank account is filled again to mamixum (or close to it) and you forget about the +!%/'" colleague/boss, traffic jams and lack of freshly-prepared lunch and full-till-door-trains and buses and a new one month period comes again.

How much I miss this! Wait a minute, do I? This week I was in 2 job interviews in 2 different labs, with people who work from 9h till 19h, smell bad smells the entire day, travel 1 hour to go (in Hungary I traveled 4h a day), and receive a few money...

The question is, do I want all this stress back?

Have them or not have them? that is the question.

Yeah, maybe salaries are not that bad in Switzerland. Maybe better than in a lot of countries in Europe or in the world.

Funny thing is you also spend a lot. Besides the overpriced rents and food nowadays we heard about another thing: a tax you pay because you use TV or radio. Weird isn't it? Where that money goes to? To support the poor TV/radio people. How much is it? Well, I didn't check it out, but I think it is something like 100 CHF per year for both of them, I don't know.

Since we are not much of French speakers and not even German (though I am on the way to it) and we don't have a TV (nor a radio at home), we don't pay it. I just heard from my neighbor, who has been living here for a nice while mentioned that you even have to pay for it if you have a radio in your CAR! Now that is absurd!



She also mentioned that back on the other city she lived before Geneva, something funny happened. She was at home in the early morning (I always listen it happens in the morning), when she listens to somebody knocking on the door. She answers and guess who was it? It was the guy from the TV/radio tax company just making a normal surveillance if people have or not these equipments (they have to be declared to the company, as she explained me) and in case they do, if they are up to date with their payments. Since she had a TV, but the cable of the antenna was far away from it and cut out (she was explaining him that this way he can she does not use the TV), after some problematic understanding, he accepted and left.

I heard the fine you have to pay if they discover you use them and don't pay is quite high, to assure you feel bad for not paying it before. There is a program you use to watch TV online in your computer. Yes, you know which one I am talking about. They also want to make a tax for it or for the computer, because not only you can also watch TV, but also listen to radio. Maybe soon it will be voted...

It can be fun to live here, isn't it? oh, all the things you pay because you just live in Switzerland---

car trips around Europe...and Brazil...

I think after we moved to Switzerland, this was our third trip to Hungary by car. Some places in the road are becoming already familiar to us and now the trip even seemed faster and less tiring than the others, although it is a 12-14 hours travel depending on the traffic situation.

One example in Suisse, as we live in the French area we see a lot, at least two lakes (Neuchatel, Leman and the Bodensee), the MontBlanc, the other Swiss alps, plus all the big Swiss cities that maybe we will never really get to know because we just pass there in out trips to Hungary. A place we got amazed by is the Nespresso factory that produces the cartridges for the famous 'new' Nespresso coffee, the small pods that are now exported for almost entire Europe and world. And what a good feeling for our noses to pass there, a fantastic coffee smell, even if car windows are up. As all terrain here are well utilized even for agriculture, right besides this factory some cows go grass eating. I bet these cows are hyperactive because of the great coffee smells!

Germany is one of the most developed countries in our way and since it is localized in the center of Europe, car and truck traffic is heavy. All highways are of superb quality, not to mention the speed freedom in several places, this is where Swisses bring their Maseratis and Ferraris and Lotus and so on to see how their engines really work. All this quality has a price, German roads are also known for their famous STAUS. We never passed there without having one or not listening to at least one in the Radio: ...2, 4, 1 km stau (traffic jam). Sometimes they are there because of no apparent reason, though most of the times they are there because of road reform or constructions.

STAU!!! no!!!!!

I can't deny the existence of staus in Austria (specially in ski season), but this country has the most beautiful views of the entire trip. Insbruck, Salzburg, Mondsee and the tirolean alps are breathtaking. By March/April when the snow at the mountaintops are melting, gorgeous waterfalls are formed all over the Alps area. Also, one of the cities close to the highway has a shop that we call the provider for the Nations square here in Geneva, if you have been there you will understand why, if not, it is because of the huge chair (maybe 4-6 meters high?) this shop has in front of it.

The Mondsee lake
The shop's chair, almost identical to the one in the Nations in Geneva

After you pass Vienna, the trip becomes funny...the highway looses its quality, although you are still in Austria, even the good bathrooms installed all through the Austrian highway loose their quality. You can feel you are arriving to Hungary not only in the amount of advertisement along the road (I realized this is not allowed here in Switzerland), but also in the driving style. Exactly like in Brazil! We were overtaken on the right (in the city too), people accelerate to not let you enter in front of them among other types of juggling.

Hungarian driving style (in my husband's view and who is Hungarian...)

Besides this, highway quality is really good (though the roads in the city are full of holes) and I can't even compare to Brazil, where sometimes we have some pieces of road inside a hole!

Not only small roads are like these in Brazil...

I want it, and not for Xmas...

I know, I know. You are there telling yourself, what a geek!

But right now this is the only kit I would like to buy (scientist joke).


I haven't read much about the iPad, and I know it looks like a giant iPhone, but i think surface matters, after all we all learned in physics that as bigger the surface, faster will happen the reaction...

SO, since April 4th it is available in the US, in Europe I still don't know. You can watch already videos in the internet with tests, even coffee/water and fall resistant...Amazing, they make you cry.

allure, poison, one, organza, 5, what these names have in common?

Today's Index article about fake-real perfumes is outstanding.

they are so nice and smell so goooood...

Yes, in Hungary you can buy last fashion perfumes for less then the half of the price of the one you buy in the shop. They mention how these "Chinese" sellers can sell them so cheap: one, or they are fake and produced by a company with cheap ingredients that smell close to the original ones, or they are the original ones sold by the wholesale shops to these small shops. Of course if you ask your Chinese seller why his product is cheaper than in the big shop they say the reason is simple as they don't have to pay expensive shopping centres rent, but I can be sure it is the original. How can it be?

Well, we're talking scents. Smelling good is big business - the perfume industry makes around 24 billion Swiss francs a year. Yet we don't know how highly profitable and even secretive industry this is.

Consider the price of the perfume. The liquid in the bottle represents only 3 per cent of the total cost of producing it.

The other 97 per cent goes to marketing, packaging and advertising. And the selling price allows for a 95 per cent profit margin. There's a lot of money to be made in making the rest of us smell better.

This is what happens with the apprehended 'fake' perfumes...

Science is partly to blame. Today, your favourite scents are not coming to you from the garden, but rather straight from a laboratory - they are created from synthetic molecules, not from flowers. Techniques like chromatography are dominating this area.

Discovered in 1876, the use of synthetic scents revolutionized the world of perfumery. Suddenly, scents lingered longer and could be produced in large quantities. The creative possibilities increased dramatically and at a fraction of the cost of the real thing.

It is like did you know it takes 750kg of jasmine flowers to create 1kg of essential oil, which is base of perfumes? As it is not enough, in France, jasmine blooms only from August to October, and must be picked by hand during the few hours of the day that the petals are open!

The rose doesn't make life any easier. It must be picked by hand, flower by flower, at sunrise. When a kilo of rose absolute can cost up to 6 000 Swiss francs. Its synthetic equivalent costs only 600 CHF, it's not hard to see why the perfume industry has embraced synthetic scents.

And you say, but what about those perfumes advertised by the famous actresses? They are much cheaper...yeah, and the fact that they also use cheaper ingredients is the reason why they are more affordable and easy to get to more people.

When I buy a perfume I usually try it on later I come back if I decided to buy, because I like to check for long it stays on me, which basic and heart scents it will free up later on and so on. It is in fact very confusing going up to a department store counter, who was never pushed to buy this or that perfume? More dangerous is to buy them online (of course if you never tried or just because they smell good in your friend. In my experience, these are the people who won't like what they are buying.

So, take care with shiny-bright-glimmering advertisements, you should buy what smells good to you, regardless of anything else. Why? because what perfume you wear is the equivalent of reflecting our personality in the scent that we choose.

The sense for smell is the most closely tied to emotion, do you remember when you were little the smell of that cake or sweet your grandma prepared just for you? Also, people often have powerful responses to specific odours. What you choose will have an effect on you and those around you. So, we should be careful in every instance.

Medicine time

So after one year, it was time for some routine exam. IN the last months I have been listening how difficult is to get a consult with a doctor, that mostly you have to wait 2-3 months to get an appointment. So I went to the doctor I found in the newspaper and asked for an appointment, the secretary said sorry but this doctor does not receive any more clients because she is full (wow). Called another person, and got an appointment for the next day. I am still thinking about the difference that might exist between them.

Well, I have been once to a clinic in Geneva center as an emergency. I was sick, we went to the pharmacy just to ask the medicine because I know what I should take in some cases and I understand a bit about medicine. But, as in the rest of Europe they don't do that. (I prefer Brazil, even if we go to the pharmacy you can ask anything, they give and cases of death because of this is very rare, and you still go to the doctor).

Anyway, back to the topic. This emergency was last year, I had a consult and an exam and still I payed 120 CHF for the doctor's visit. Back to the pharmacy I payed 67 CHF, 40 from the antibiotics, 17 for using the pharmacy out of the time (it was Saturday at 20h) and the rest for the validation of doctor's paper. Unbelievable no?



Ok, now back to the doctor visit last month. I went to the doc. Had all the exams and the appointment for some extra exam he asked. I left his office just after saying where I live and in which company I am assured. Wow, amazing system. How he knows I am not lying? But I want the results right? So of course they trust. 2-3 weeks after I received the result of this adventure:

1. The doctor's visit costed me 215 CHF!?!"!?? I was sad, but I heard this might be the price (anyway, more expensive than the emergency exam????how come?)

2. The extra exam he asked costed 295 CHF, a simple ultrasound!

3. the lab results costed 39 CHF. And I received the results together with the bill. The results came within a nice closed paper, folded and written with nice letters saying congratulations all results are negative! (imagine when it is written positive!)

4. I am happy my health insurance (HI) prime (franchise) is 500 CHF, because from now on I just pay 10% of everything, in most cases.

5. Now I am waiting whether HI company will accept my papers (you have to send them the bills) this way I can expect number 4 to happen for this year.

6. Basically I pay about 360 CHF per month for the HI. WHat a prrrrrrice! I think it is very expensive if you still have to pay these prices for doctors.

7. I hope none of you have to visit doctors and if you have, even if it is not a fashion here, you should ask how much is this going to cost.

Now I dont think it is healthy to do what some people do here. They choose a very high prime and never do any routine exams, now this is dangerous!

Living and learning.

Is it for real???

I can't say for sure, but the earthworms and I think spring is coming!

In my daily walks I already saw several of them leaving the earth, even a ladybug I saw around.

Some flowers I saw, though not these ones yet.

Also that funny bug called in Hungarian bodobácsi I saw today! It is just strange there is no gradual change, since I am in Europe one day the temperature is 0 degree and in the other it is already 12!

Bodobácsi bug!

Fortunately (or unfortunately?) in my hometown the entire year's temperature is practically 24 degrees, even in winter.

I can believe we are close to spring. Even people's mood is changing. Yesterday during horse walk some runners passed by us and some other people are also greeting in the streets. In Budapest people's behavior in the metro was remarkably changed when the temperature started to raise!

So get ready for more sun radiation, more happiness and less ski time...

Been there, done that!

Now I can say I have been to one of the world's most famous event: the 80th Geneva motor show!

As we all know Switzerland is not necessarily associated with engines and motor vehicles, yet the country is a must for the automotive industry. The Geneva Motor Show is now the only European motor show to be held every year – even though Switzerland is a country with no significant car production of its own. Or perhaps that is reason enough: after all, it is neutral ground where no manufacturer has a home advantage.

In 1905, there was hardly any mention of the automobile, only elite business circles in Geneva were enthusiastic about this ten year-old invention. Around 400 vehicles were to be seen on the roads of Geneva – as many as all the other Swiss cantons put together could muster, as an advantage to the city!


The Swiss were able to admire the first horseless carriages at the national exhibition in Geneva in 1896 and from 1898 the Swiss Automobile Club (ACS) looked after the interests of the small number of Swiss car drivers. The idea of organizing a motor show in Geneva also came from this association. In February 1905, and despite a number of financing problems, the ACS decided to hold the first national exhibition in a polling station on the Boulevard Georges Favon (City center, let's say). On an area of 1,200 square meters, 37 stands were distributed, and the décor of the hall was in violet and gold. After 2 weeks opened, the visitor number was counted in 17,500.

In 1906 the exposition area was augmented and 59 exhibitors came. The visitors number, this time, was 25 600! I just couldn't find any advertising poster from these motor shows.

In 1907, the show was relocated to Zürich! Who would say that? Why? Well, because the automobile was not yet famous and media was not paying too much attention to it. Also the "smell of gasoline all around the polling station" was criticized, as were the "murderous machines which mow down unsuspecting pedestrians like stray mongrels" in 1906. I read that even during the course of the 20th century it regularly claimed the right to host the motor show.

The third national exhibition held in Zurich occupied twice the display area, featured 90 cars and six motor boats and attracted 32,000 visitors.

In 1908 as enthusiasm for the automobile wasn't very high, it was canceled and it restarted only in 1911, but in a small scale. As the shortcoming of the World War I, shows were canceled for a while.

It was only in 1921 that the Swiss made another attempt to organize a motor show, and this time it was going to take place in Basel (Bale or Basle) when it was canceled again due to the lack of exhibitors! Who would mention that today!

Since Europe was in the grip of an economic and financial crisis shortly after the end of World War I, Switzerland did not host another national motor show until 1923. Meanwhile, Geneva became the headquarters of the League of Nations, and had the Cointrin airport was already operating. For the first time, it started to be called "Salon de l’Automobile"and brands like Maybach and Rolls-Royce were shown.

Poster for the 1924 Motor show and...

...a picture of the Benz and Alpha Romeo stands at that Show.

After 1923, with 30 000 visitors in a 3 000 square meters, Geneva shared the fate of many host cities: not enough exhibition space. A temporary solution was found for the show in 1924, for example erecting tents outside the hall and connecting the polling station with an adjacent meadow by means of a bridge with a moving walkway. The press not only criticized the crowded conditions, but also the poor presentation and restrictions which e.g. stipulated only green plants as decorations.

I believe this year's Show was interesting. Then he next poster I could fin was only in 1949, probably because of the World War II.

By the end of the 1960s both the exhibitors and visitors had become increasingly dissatisfied with the conditions prevailing at this still prestigious event: no space yet. The construction of an exhibition site with significantly more space, easier access and better parking facilities was urgently necessary if the Geneva Motor Show was to retain its high reputation.

In 1968 the canton of Geneva acquired a site covering 18 hectares near the airport in Grand-Saconnex for the construction of "Palexpo" as the new show venue but nothing more happened for a while. Work could not be started until 1977, as various protest groups raised objections to the new facility. Also in the 70s came the oil crisis, saturated western markets and industrial restructuring. Rolls-Royce was even obliged to call in the receivers, for example. Where the manufacturers were concerned, the golden age was over for the present. Sensible cars were in great demand in view of scarce, expensive resources, and environmental pollution became a topic of discussion. The result was something of a diesel boom. Imagine if they would have thought about today's conditions, maybe today's car would be less polluting.

In the 1980s the world economy was rocked by a second oil crisis. Exhaust emission standards became more stringent, and Japanese manufacturers became more and more of a threat to their European and American competitors.

In 1982 the Geneva Motor Show overcame its greatest handicap, namely lack of space. Built at a cost of 145 million Swiss Francs, the new Palexpo site was inaugurated with an area of over 38,000 square meters.

Ah, the amazing is that after 3 years, the parking space was already insufficient, especially at weekends. By 1985 the new Palexpo was already too small for both the passenger car and commercial vehicle shows; therefore it was decided to build an additional hall with an area of 16,000 square meters. The addition of the new Hall 5 in 1987 led the journalists at “Équipe” to make the somewhat exaggerated claim that Geneva had now relegated Paris and Frankfurt to provincial shows and Tokyo to a communal event. But it was only when further halls were added in 1995 and 2003, finally giving Geneva an exhibition area of just under 77,000 square meters, that the Geneva Motor Show offered space comparable to that of other shows. Its only concurrent is in Frankfurt though, the available display area in 2005 was around 225,000 square meters.

In 2005, the Show completed its 100th anniversary. And Exotic supercars often steal the spotlight during their debuts at the show. Prototypes, new equipment, technical breakthroughs, international partnerships, as well as political and social debates, are announced at the exhibition.

This year 2010, the big problem the automobile industry is facing is pollution. Most of the companies present hybrid cars, even a Ferrari or the darlings of the new families, the SUVs have their hybrid version.

THis is today's poster and this...

...is 2010 venue view with only one third of the exposition salon.

You can enter in most of the cars, seat and know how does it feel in it, but:

entrance is not allowed in this green Ferrari with this new painting style lots of car had: a not shining one.

or nor in this very prototype Subaru whose seats look very comfi! But think of the space you need in the parking lot to open this door! Not fitting with the space we find in a Swiss parking.

nor in this beautiful red car, in which I could not find a mirror or door handle.But check the lights, it looks like this is their new style. And it is gorgeous.

nor this little green car. At first view, don't you miss something in it, sg that we need for driving? Hell yeah, this is a very electric car (as a lot of the others) but this one is controlled by joystick. I would like to have one, but I am sure it will be difficult to drive it since I didn't play enough video game.

Some things are remarkable about the fair:
1. The parking places and the traffic are a mess, specially at weekends, Geneva's traffic and hotel availability do change a lot by this time, so consider a lot before you come,
2. The ticket gives the right to some public transportation discount, get informed it is worth not to spend time sitting in a traffic jam or loosing time and money with parking.
3. It is very warm inside the venu, I couldn't believe!
4. it is interesting, entire families from all over Europe come here for the Show, it is very nice to see.
5. this one I wonder if it existed 100 years ago: everytime you touch car a beautiful nicely dressed person comes to remove the possible fatty fingerprints you might have left. Come on! Isn't this too much?

how we learn things....

You are probably bored of reading about ski posts, but this is an interesting one.
This was the first time I used the telepheric. Also the first time I fell and it didn't hurt that bad!

The first time I skied I was very angry, saying to myself how can someone enjoy this, it is very boring, just slide down form the mountain, I hate it and blablabla went ahead moaning.

But this time I was very ashamed of myself saying I was not able to do that. Up there in a not easy part of the court, this is what we see:


Found out what it is? Yes, a wheelchaired skier! And he did it very nice. Of course this is not the one we saw cause we thought it wouldn't be very polite to ask if we could take a picture. Though this made me think and admit that I should stop complaining.

Guess what, it worked, I love it now!
So see you around the ski courts, I will be the one in the orange coat that looks like it is shines in the dark.

education in boards

Short walking around in the Valley La Joux, still in Switzerland!
It is a nice one in the middle of the Jura. Kilometers of ski de fond areas and some small but cozy alpine ski courts, and probably not so expensive like the big ones.

On the way to the lake there was the base of the Piguet Swiss watches. So nicely organized.

The little duck fishing in the only region of the lake that is not frozen. You can actually ice skate there when weather allows.

MAybe as humans are very unexpected, even Swisses are, they distributed interesting boards at the shore of the L'Abbey city.
This one:

...is quite funny because it looks like the little person is walking over the water. What does it mean? It is not allowed to walk over the water.

This is also funny. Poor little horses...they were ruled out.

Funnier than these one were placed in Tokyo, as I heard sometimes in the metro or train station you see a board of a man picking up his hat in the train tracks and of course this pic is inside the red circle. Thanks God!

Who doesn't like music??!!??

Today I post in favor of a Hungarian super friend of mine who is defending his PhD right now.
I am sure he loves this music as he's also a good musician.

Congrats Balazszinho!



As a cheesy moment, the lyrics are also here:
Well you done done me and you bet I felt it
I tried to be chill but you're so hot that I melted
I fell right through the cracks
Now I'm trying to get back
Before the cool done run out
I'll be giving it my bestest
And nothing's going to stop me but divine intervention
I reckon it's again my turn to win some or learn some

I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait, I'm yours

Well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you're free
Look into your heart and you'll find love love love love
Listen to the music of the moment babay sing with me
I love peace for melody
And It's our God-forsaken right to be loved love loved love loved

So I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait I'm sure
There's no need to complicate
Our time is short
This is our fate, I'm yours

Scooch on over closer dear
And i will nibble your ear

I've been spending way too long checking my tongue in the mirror
And bending over backwards just to try to see it clearer
But my breath fogged up the glass
And so I drew a new face and laughed
I guess what I'm be saying is there ain't no better reason
To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons
It's what we aim to do
Our name is our virtue

But I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait I'm sure

Well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you're free
Look into your heart and you'll find that the sky is yours
Please don't, please don't, please don't
There's no need to complicate
Cause our time is short
This oh this this is out fate, I'm yours!

Carnaval!

Well, this is one of the most awaited moments for millions of Brazilians. Some of them even say that the year just really starts after Carnival.

It takes place everywhere in the world, but I believe Brazil's is the most famous. And mostly Rio de Janeiro is visited by foreigners.

But what is this 'party' all about?

Believe it or not Carnival began in Europe long ago as a kind of religious party, to celebrate the beginning of the Lent (the forty days of fasting before Easter, something like a Catholic version of Ramadan). So, it was a last chance to party! The thing started growing in some places and losing any religious meaning, but it is still always 40 days before Easter, anywhere in the World: London, Cologne, New Orleans, Brazil or Caribbean. It happens from Friday to Ash Wednesday.

Probably you already saw maaaaany pictures or videos about Carnaval, lots of confetti (the small colorful round paper used in it) but you are not sure...
Not only Rio de Janeiro but in small scale other cities have the so-called Samba schools that every year come with a different topic and accompanying it comes new music (samba de enredo), decorations and, of course, the famous clothes (or the lack of them). For an entire year they plan this 40 min parade in the Sapucai avenue that closes for the parade and its dancers. WHich type of music? Samba of course, a strong and long one, for the dancers to shake (I mean dance) the entire night! It is for sure sg that's worth a while to see at least once in the life.

This girl is the called the 'Flag keeper' and her clothes are generally very rich in details and beautiful. Here they present themselves and the school to the juries.

THis is the baiana (from Bahia part of the school), they are generally composed of old ladies who can be already old, but as we say in Brazil, they have samba in their feet!

In the first photo is one o the Samba schools called Beija-Flor, which honored my city (Brasilia) this year. Under it, a photo of the venue: in the back we can see one of the Arch, symbol of Sapucai. On the left side, we can see the place where we can pass the night dancing, depending on the price of your ticket of course.



The other carnivals, which started in northeast Brazil (I guess in Salvador in Bahia state), is the Trio elétrico carnival, when a giant sound car with a famous good singer sings for some hours meanwhile the sound car moves in a predefined trajectory. THe music played is generally Axé music, a different type of music you ever heard. THis one's also worth to see once, it is so strong you have the impression that your heart is pounding with the music. Ah, this one is for free unless you want to stay very close to the car, like this you have to buy the T-shirt of the 'group' and jump inside (I mean around) the human rope that moves with the car wherever it goes.

Can you see how big is the car (the trio elétrico)? And the amount of people around? Wearing green is the 'human rope' separating the payers from the non-payers.


There are other types of Carnival that never loose their style with frevo dancing in Olinda (PE), old music (marchinhas) in Ouro Preto (MG).
The Frevo dance. A very difficult one, no wonder it is taught in gyms. It is danced with the little umbrella and it is very nice to see.

I myself am not a big fan of the Rio de Janeiro style or any of the others...as a rock fan I used to go to rock campings or to the beach for the weekend and just come back on the Wed of Ashes, when the home sweet home is awaiting for you and the year is just starting...



Sources: uol, moma, http://www.rio-carnival.net/