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After 2 months of camping in my tiny 6 m2 apartment, I was happy to move to my new place this weekend. From now on I'll be living in a little palace at the Place Chauderon. As you can see, the interior is still a bit minimalistic:
The location in the middle of the city center and the view of the lake compensates a lot though:
And this moving keeps my body in shape too! When biking home from work, I have to climb up the hill an additional 100m. Maybe I should consider joining the Tour de France next year...
This weekend I visited my good friend Judith in Paris. Not surprisingly I had a very good time; Paris is a beautiful city after all. And the good thing of having someone who knows the city, is that you get to see the not so standard things. Take for instance this beautiful view of the Notre Dame from roof of the Institute du Monde Arabe (that's Institute of the Arab World):
Knowing the city has more advantages: knowing what's happening! So suddenly I had a chance encounter with great Dutch band De Kift. The Wageningen-crew will all know the band, as they used to frequent the late Unitas. In Paris they were, more upscale, playing the theatre of the Cité Université:
I was curious to see the reaction of the french crowd to this punk/folk/world music group. Let me just summarize by saying the crowd went nuts. 4 encores, dancing, yelling; these guys fit right in. Needless to say I had a good evening. For you to enjoy: a little piece of 'Orenmens' live in Paris:
Swiss clocks are well known for their accuracy. Rumour is, Swiss society is too.
Last few days, I have experienced this is not a rumour. Yesterday during lunch I called SwissCom to arrange internet in my new apartment. This morning at 6.40 the mailman knocked on my door to deliver my new modem. Goodmorning, sometimes you can be too accurate...
For you who didn't hear the news yet: last week I signed the contract for my new apartment! For now no news yet about the new place, but as soon as I move in I'll promise / warn you I will flood you with information and pictures that will make you jealous. For now, I want to tell you a different story: After signing the contract, I suddenly share a bank-account. This is not because the apartment comes with a wife. No, suddenly I share an account with my landlord...
Apparently, there's a whole banking industry that accommodates the safe storage of deposits. And the great thing about these accounts: they are just like in a traditional marriage! I'm providing the money and the significant other is deciding when I can touch the money. I've been thinking for a description of this system in one word, but for the moment only the word "Swiss" comes to mind...
Ok, so you don't need to tell me that I'm lazy. Truth is, pre-cut vegetables are just very convenient when trying to prepare a quick meal. And besides, a single guy like would never have the chance of mixing this many kinds of vegetables without letting half of it rot away in the fridge. The Dutch Albert Heijn understands my needs, sporting a huge range of internationally themed pre-cut vegetables. My Swiss Coop is also trying, though here the choice is limited to a Chinese and an Oriental mix. Visual inspection showed that the Chinese mix was mainly cabbage, so the choice for the Oriental mix was from now on quickly made.
Hmmm, the last few weeks I have been enjoying several good stir-fried dishes! Only one thing kept bothering me. The Oriental mix also seemed not completely cabbage free. To be more precise, the mix contained a dark somewhat rubbery cabbage variety that was unknown to me.
Needless to say, I picked it out and threw it away.
But these kind of things bother me. Being from a cabbage-culture, I couldn't believe I didn't know this type. So, when I bought my Oriental vegetables today I decided to check what I was dealing with. Well, not cabage apparently...
Last few weeks I have consistently been throwing away the most exquisite ingredient of my Oriental vegetable mix: Judas Ear mushrooms.
So from now on I'm enjoying stir-fried dishes with extra bounce. Now that I know I can't throw it away anymore....
Bon appetit!
Today I had my first French class! No English allowed, so one and a half hour of stammering and stuttering. Luckily we are all in the same situation, so only little embaressment.
Today was mainly devoted to getting to know each other. We're 12 people, and we're a pretty international bunch, ranging from Iranian, Indian to German and Danish. Hopefully it will not only be educative, but also enjoyable. Tomorrow lesson 2!
Wow, all hell broke loose:I'll be sitting next to the central heating for the rest of the day.
The location in the middle of the city center and the view of the lake compensates a lot though:
And this moving keeps my body in shape too! When biking home from work, I have to climb up the hill an additional 100m. Maybe I should consider joining the Tour de France next year...
Knowing the city has more advantages: knowing what's happening! So suddenly I had a chance encounter with great Dutch band De Kift. The Wageningen-crew will all know the band, as they used to frequent the late Unitas. In Paris they were, more upscale, playing the theatre of the Cité Université:
I was curious to see the reaction of the french crowd to this punk/folk/world music group. Let me just summarize by saying the crowd went nuts. 4 encores, dancing, yelling; these guys fit right in. Needless to say I had a good evening. For you to enjoy: a little piece of 'Orenmens' live in Paris:
Apparently, there's a whole banking industry that accommodates the safe storage of deposits. 
Today was mainly devoted to getting to know each other. We're 12 people, and we're a pretty international bunch, ranging from Iranian, Indian to German and Danish. Hopefully it will not only be educative, but also enjoyable. Tomorrow lesson 2!
