Pack an adapter...

If you go overseas, you are likely to encounter a different power socket from your home country's. It wasn't a big deal for me about 10 years ago (I wouldn't take my hair dryer, for instance; and my sister had given me a battery-operated alarm clock) when I would travel for fun. Now, it's a different story. As I often travel for work, I have to bring my laptop. Plus I am always with my mobile too. Moving to Switzerland meant that we left our electronics in the US and purchased many adapters to take care of our electronics needs.

Before my first visit to Switzerland, I thought European sockets were all the same. Then I took my first business trip there, to Geneva, and discovered that I was completely wrong!

Power socket in Switzerland

So my EU adapter didn't work, of course. I hadn't bought the worldwide adapter at the airport (priced at over $80, I couldn't justify it) and just relied on using the office's power cords.

After moving to Europe, and (I thought) well equipped with both the European and Swiss adapters, I later went onto a business trip to Italy, and encountered a completely different power socket, which made me laugh:

In Italy

 
I think I'm going to have to get the worldwide adapter after all.

A Swiss lunch

We were invited by friends to lunch on a very cold but sunny Saturday. The restaurant was in a nearby canton, just a short drive away from Geneva. We were told that it was known for three things: fondue, Malakoff, and saucisse dishes. We are, of course, familiar with fondue. And big fans! Malakoff is a fried cheese ball, and Ryan loves sausages, so we already knew before stepping in to the restaurant that we'd be in for a treat. The restaurant is near several vineyards.We've made a point to look for local wines when we're in the supermarkets.

A frozen vineyard, Canton Vaud

The restaurant was very cosy and we were quickly seated. Our hosts told us their recommendations, and we started with a Malakoff each, and a bottle of white wine.

Malakoff

The Malakoff is served with a cabbage salad and a gherkin. For history buffs, the name Malakoff is supposed to have come from the soldiers of the French Vaudois army who stormed the fortress of Malakoff during the Crimean war - they named this dish in memory of their victory.

Then it was onto the next course. Being as brave as I am and not afraid of too much cheese, I had fondue. Delicious and simple, we could taste the wine more as we got to the bottom of the pot (we all ate fondue, but alas, could not finish it!).
Ryan had the Saucisse aux choux avec papet Vaudois. Roughly translated, that is a sausage (mixed with cabbage) and a potato / leek dish. He was very smitten. If he's quiet, he likes his food a lot. And he was pretty much silent when eating this!

Finally, we had coffee and I tried the Oriental orange salad with liqueur and lovely vanilla icecream.

The lunch was so decadent. We don't eat like that all the time, so it was a wonderful experience!

Siberian Cold Front

Cold ride

This week, Geneva had a good snowfall. It was so pretty when it happened. And then it got cold. The Siberian Cold Front landed, and it's staying for a while. It's hard to wait at the tram stop for 5+ minutes when the wind chill is cutting through your face!
Amazingly, the weather didn't stop protesters the other morning:

It's interesting to see that the roads and sidewalks are not plowed the same way as in the US:

Braving the commute to work

There's a lot of ice on the roads, at the tram stops, and on the sidewalks. You just have to take it slowly.

Some pretty shots around town: