Achy feet

So we had a nice spontaneous pre-house-warming tonight, cracking open a few blue bottles. And yes, I smoked the place in. Mind you, lotsa windows and balcony doors open. And I reached an all-time-high on the step count, 25K+ after walking between old and new flat all day. Plus the trips to stock up important stuff like drinks. Also noticed I blogged more than 100 items this month. Guess it's because I had something important to say...like bragging about new flat :) Now I have to get some sleep, since moving company will arrive 8 in the morning. Another long day tomorrow. And tomorrow is the day when I will fall asleep looking at the Alpes...

Multi-kulti

So now I've met all the neighbours except for the two above. On the ground floor we have the English-German couple, but where the English have been so long in Switzerland that she says "we see us". This is a common error amongst ze German-speaking people who in German say "wir sehen uns" and directly translate it to English at which time it becomes "we see us". I now have the permission to slap her when she does that. On the other side there is the Romanian couple who refused to take my advice and get a cat, and insist on having a baby. Pretty soon by the looks of it. However, they have promised me never ever to ask me to babysit so I guess it'll be all right. It seems anyway too late to impose my opinion on them. In the house behind we have two couples. One Swiss-Swiss and one Swiss-German. But it's all right too, one of them speaks my Scandinavian language and despite me protesting the others make me improve my German. This is the place where I'm going to spend the rest of my days. Only one more night...

The mistress bedroom

It sounds wrong to say the master bedroom when it's mine. Have a bit of a concern though regarding the "balcony" door to the left. It leads straight out to the ground (which btw I'm assured will be nice and green shortly).

However, I have top security window glass, supposedly unbreakable, together with a closing mechanism that basically bolts the door shut.

But I guess it's a psychological thing. It feels like anybody could just walk in there. If I'm lucky :)

Guest room

The theme for my guest room is forest, and I have therefore chosen the oak floor :)

Swiss food-center

Turns out that Zürich city is worried about my food-center. It is not so common here as in the US. So worried that they will come next week to inspect that it is properly installed. Haha. Next on the agenda is a little pre-housewarming with the nearest neighbours. It's a good feeling today.

Priorities

Tomorrow the moving company is coming, and everything is packed up in boxes in old place, so what to do after contract sign and inspection? Shop of course. First thing's first.

And as luck would have it, Denner offered half price on my favourite bubbly. Today everything goes my way...

Mine all mine

The sun is shining, it's about 25° and Zürich is showing its best side today, which makes my granite floor look fantastic.

Shiny kitchen

I am so going to enjoy cooking in my new spacious kitchen.

Welcome

A little welcome from my new neighbours. They are so sweet.

Hello home

At 9.01 this morning I became the proud owner of the best flat in Zürich.

I remember back in December 2007 when Bro first found the ad on the net, and I thought it was too far from the city.

After taking the approach of "it doesn't hurt to look" I fell in love and decided on the spot to buy it. A long time ago.

And now the day is here. Joy!

Today is the day

In approx three hours I will finally officially be the owner of my new and fabulous flat. It's an exciting day. In approx four hours I will be inspecting said flat, and get the keys. I am so happy!!!

Restaurant?

Hehe, packing guy asked me if I'm in the restaurant business. This while he was packing up my bar. Ex wouldn't agree, since he thinks I cannot cook. But I can drink. And last minute I saved one bottle of wine and a corkscrew. Phew!

Packed up

Well, I must say they are diligent in packing. They have been working for hours now, and the place is starting to look well, packed up.

Disappointment!

Wow, what a disappointment. The packing people finally showed up, but not the four muscular guys I had envisioned. Oh no, an older couple. A man and a woman. Ah well, at least they're here.

Lesson learned

Never ever trust a man. Yesterday ex was gonna come and pick up the tv, which I in all my generosity is giving to him for free. He didn't show. Today the packing guys were supposed to arrive between 8 and 9, and when I called at 10 they had planned to be here in the afternoon. Despite the fact that I have an email from about a week ago saying 8-9. But at least ex showed up today, and as punishment he was put to work taking screws and stuff out of the walls and doing manly things. The tv he claims he will pick up later today. Trust a man? Never.

Packing day

It is not very often I am out of bed, showered and dressed before 8 o'clock in the morning on a Sunday. But here I am, eagerly awaiting the packing guys. Before the afternoon everything will be boxed up and ready to go on Tuesday. Exciting!

Why travel?

Now when I've rooted myself here in Zürich I no longer see the point of travelling. And since the US has introduced a rule that you need an electronic passport or similar I cannot even be bothered to go to New York. My friends travel experience last week confirms my belief. This is how it went. He was driving from Farnham to Heathrow, having eons of time. Well perhaps not enough for discovering the M25 was closed and ending up in queues that didn't move. Took him 4 hours to get to the airport, at which time of course his flight had left. On arrival he managed to somehow get his bag stuck in the escalator, being dragged with it and falling down hurting himself in several places. Almost cut his fingertip off, and it was bleeding like hell. This delayed him so when he finally got to the baggage belt his bag was gone, to be located later in Lost&found. I am happy I have found my place here in Zürich. I shall never leave.

Dörflifäscht

And just when I have enough to do Niederdorf (old town) decides its time to throw the Dörflifäscht. Can't really miss that, can I?

The Swiss post office

Some service in Switzerland is excellent. The post office provides one of'm. Today I was in their office telling them I will move next week. Promptly I was given a form, asked to fill it in (old address, new address that type of thing). I showed my passport, paid 15 francs and for that I get the mail forwarded for a whole year! It took 5 minutes. You gotta love ze Swiss and their organizational skills!

For the last time

There's lots of things done now "for the last time" in this flat. Washing this and that, taking down the curtains, big plants will come down from the wall later on this evening, tv will disappear tomorrow. There is stuff that will be untouched by human hand, well actually I guess it'll be touched by the moving staff...but not by me...until I'm in the new place. I was thinking of when I first thought of buying a place, and luckily since I have a blog I know exactly when. Back then it was just a thought... From thought to fact in no more than 20 months :)

Spear time

I was reviewing an application letter of a friend, since everybody knows I am very picky with language (feel free to insert joke here). He'd written "and in my spear time I like to...". But as a male friend pointed out, for a man spare time is always spear time...

Champagne!

Was talking to my soon-to-be-neighbours tonight. Suggested we might share a bottle of champagne on Monday after the contract-signing, only to hear that "we bought it today, it's already cooling in the fridge". Somehow I think I'm gonna get along with new neighbours just beautifully! Great minds think alike.

Partition wall

Ok, so now the problems with the new flat are starting to surface. I was questioning why the shower wall and door were not in place earlier this week. Turns out somebody didn't do what they were supposed to, and it is just now being produced and will not be ready in time before I move in. I seem to remember ordering this back in April-May 2008 and paying for it spring this year. This is starting to sound like discount to me!

Greek-Irish

Britain's got talent strikes again. Or rather dances. And here's another potential winner.

From ash to fire

Back in Scandinavia we have a saying when you leave something bad going to something even worse it is "going from ash to fire". Was thinking about this when writing about Libya. I have an acquaintance who was born in Sarajevo, you know the capitol of what now is known as Bosnia? Part of former Yugoslavia, and where the 1st world war started. Anyway, when she left Sarajevo she moved to Libya of all the places in the world. Talk about going from ash to fire! Luckily for her she now lives in Switzerland. All is well that ends well.

Swiss sense of humor

Always thought that a Swiss sense of humor is a bit of an oxymoron, but today 'Blick am Abend' was really funny. The background is that the police in Geneva arrested Gadaffis son (the Libyan guy) some time ago. This led to a diplomatic incident and a top Swiss politician has now been forced to apologize which in turn has led to that some people think he should resign. Ze Swiss were not happy having to apologize to a dictator, which is not very surprising. So 'Blick am Abend' on their front page had the world revolution "führer" as they named him against "BundesratNötzli" (not sure what Nötzli is) with Gadaffi making the V-sign and the Swiss politician looking something up in a big pile of paper holding a phone to his ear. Then they rated them on seven different criterias. Power, style, business, entertainment, travel, army and mother nature and guess what? Gadaffi scored 100 coolness-factor points. But despite having boring Swiss politicians I rather stay in Switzerland than live i Libya!!

Way to go

A friend sent me an email today telling me about her Dad. He has broken his hip, is 92 years old and think that a nursing home is just for old people. A difficult situation. But when she told me how he got his injury I couldn't help laughing. He fell off a chair in the casino. Way to go old man!

Almost the truth

One of my favourite groups is Monty Python. The "Life of Brian" movie is a classic. Now they're making a re-union with something called "Almost the truth - the lawyer's cut". Brilliant.

Flattery will get you everywhere?

In the wardrobes in the hallway that I inspected today I discovered that there wasn't a hanger. What good is a wardrobe for jackets if there is nothing to hang them on? So I have to sweettalk the ex again. He fixed the hanger thingie in my current wardrobe when the IKEA wooden ditto broke. Sent an email with the subject line "hello handsome". Think it'll work?

Support?

Nothing like having supportive people surrounding you. One voice remarked regarding my yellow door "well, that's the first impression people will get when visiting you". When "the voice" is ones brother the respond will easily be "well talking about something completely different, I am thinking of making a will".

Bathroom details

The cockpit

Went down in the basement (which is actually on the ground floor) and "inspected" the heating thingy. I was relieved to hear that I never ever will have anything to do with it.

Mystery feature

What are these? They look like hooks, but hang the wrong way. What am I supposed to use those for?

Extended spray

Look! I can clean all over the place...actually I don't mind cleaning the kitchen, I just don't do the rest of the flat.

Seen from below

Pic taken from the terrace underneath my flat. What you see is my balcony floor from under. Weird. Looks like a tiny place, doesn't it?

Think it's a bit of a defense mechanism, since I've chosen my place I want to find errors with the other flats to justify my choice. Which is ridiculous, because I'm very very happy with it!

Seen from above

Every time I visit the place I take a sneak peak at the neighbours. Don't say anything, but some of them have no taste whatsoever. Which is great, since my flat will seem so much nicer :).

Here's the terrace above me with my fireplace pipe...

Hall cupboards

With handles and all.

Bedroom floor

Look, I've got strips next to my fab bedroom oak floor.

Kitchen uncovered

Still dusty, but soon it'll be there with all its shiny details! And no more walking around closing kitchen cupboards after men...these need just a little push and will then close themselves. Oh joy!

Cutlery box

Haha, I know some people will be happy that I have a built-in cutlery box. Currently I use the method of throwing forks, knives and spoons in a drawer having no order at all. My way of keeping a bit disorganization in my life. I guess that part of my life is now over...

The worlds smallest?

Have you ever seen a more tiny display? It's for the people ringing the door downstairs, so that I can see who I let in. It's a good thing I have good eyesight.

A bedroom door

This is exciting, isn't it :)? I realize not everybody shares my interest in my new place, but by putting it up here on the net, it will stay forever in case you change your mind!

Guest bathroom

Some people have expressed interest in my guest bathroom. Here it is, with standard equipment and a not yet installed washing machine.

Yellow door

For the first time I've seen something I do not particularly like. A yellow door. Unfortunately I didn't have any influence on the colour, since all doors should be the same. I did however have them paint it white on the inside. There shall be no yellow doors inside my flat.

Balcony floor

So today I visited my flat for the last time before moving. There is still a hell of a lot to do, but they have promised to be finished on time.

Except for the balcony floor which is delayed. Seemingly they import the granite from Italy, and they cannot deliver on time. Interesting, since I ordered it about a year ago, but I guess Italians have never been known for their organizing skills.

Right now the floor looks like this (why stones you ask? I have absolutely no idea).

Expensive in Zürich?

Got some questions in the previous item from a journalist I guess. Perhaps any of the readers can help? The price of: Public transportations (taxi, subway, bus)? Hair dressing and movie ticket? Instant noodle and McDonald´s? A cup of coffee in Starbucks? Electricity and water bill? Local school fee and university? Small, medium, large apartment (per month)? Internet connection? (also about the speed) Food and snacks monthly approximate expense for a single head? Handphone bill? The soap, tooth paste and shampoo? Mineral water and rice if you buy them in stores? Service tax if you eat in a restaurant? How bout the fines (littering, spitting, traffic light ignorance, etc)?

Doing the dishes

Had dinner with a friend tonight. He's moved into a new place that I hadn't seen. It was nice, but it didn't have a dishwasher. So after dinner I placed myself strategically in the balcony doorway watching him do the dishes.

He might be German by birth, but he certainly behaves like a Dutch. The Dutch wash the dishes without rinsing them. I am glad I only knew this after dinner. So first the plate in a sink full of dishwasher liquid, foaming, moving it around with a brush. Then straight into the IKEA-rack to dry.

I can only hope the dishwasher liquid holds something good like resistance against swine flu or something!

Bus

I really hate people who occupy two places on the bus. Especially when it's full and people are crowding in the middle. But just look at her. Grandmas hair-do. What can you expect?

My beloved Zürich

Pedantic

The idea I had to hire to hire a consultant to help me do the inspection of the new flat didn't work out. It was a Swiss company, and they never answered. Sometimes I wonder why the Swiss economy is still doing good, the servicemindedness is certainly not present. So my friend suggested that I bring a gay guy. There is nobody more pedantic than a gay guy. Excellent idea. So now I have engaged a good friend of mine to help me find all the "errors", all the things I have the choice of complaining about. You know, if they put the tiles in the wrong way, didn't install a spotlight in the right place, didn't make the water flow the right way or whatsit. It's always good to take friends advice.

"Depression" cure

If you feel a bit down, there is nothing better than spending an afternoon in a sunny Zürich with a good friend. Talking things through. Having a drink (strawberry marguerita, what else?). Relaxing. Except for the place was riddled with wasps. I really hate wasps. But the talking, drinking and enjoying myself made me (almost) forget them. Let's see if tonights dinner with a friend I haven't seen in a long time make me completely forget...

Storebrand

When I was working in Norway I was insured by a company called Storebrand. Once a year they send me a statement, informing me about the tiny amount of money I can expect when I retire. Today I sent them an email saying that I will move and my new address. This was the response: "Takk for din henvendelse. Vi beklager at vi for tiden har lang svartid på din e-posthenvendelse. Svartiden skyldes svært mange henvendelser i forbindelse med kontoføringen for 2008. Vi vil besvare din e-post så snart som mulig, men ber samtidig om forståelse for at det kan ta noen dager. Haster det er du velkommen til å ta kontakt med oss på 08880. Noe ventetid må påregnes. Med vennlig hilsen Storebrand" This means that they still haven't dealt with the emails from 2008 and I can expect some time before I get an answer. It is 23rd of August 2009, and they are still busy with stuff from 2008. Yeah, the Norwegians don't rush things...

Lost in translation

Found out it is Japanese, here's another spam: " 最近様々なメディアで紹介されている家出掲示板では、全国各地のネットカフェ等を泊り歩いている家出少女の... 最近様々なメディアで紹介されている家出掲示板では、全国各地のネットカフェ等を泊り歩いている家出少女のメッセージが多数書き込みされています。彼女たちはお金がないので掲示板で知り合った男性とすぐに遊びに行くようです。あなたも書き込みに返事を返してみませんか"

Spam

Friend of mine was complaining that I moderate the comments. And I don't really do, I just have to choose to either publish or reject. This is to prevent spam coming through. And then I thought about not having had spam in a very long time, so perhaps I'd open up for free comments. Until this evening when I got this. "女性会員様増加につき、当サイトの出張ホストが不足中です。女性の自宅やホテルに出向き、欲望を満たすお手... 女性会員様増加につき、当サイトの出張ホストが不足中です。女性の自宅やホテルに出向き、欲望を満たすお手伝いをしてくれる男性アルバイトをただいま募集していますので、興味のある方はTOPページから無料登録をお願いいたします" Not sure this is spam though, since I cannot even work out which language it is...Chinese?

Snake

A while ago I was reading in the paper that a snake had sneaked away from its owner. And that from an address very near to my place. First of all, I don't understand people who have snakes as pets. There seriously must be something wrong with them. You cannot pet a snake. Second, if you cannot keep it in its cage, you should be shot. It does happen that I go to the toilet in the middle of the night, and I do not turn on the light. Imagine sitting down doing your business when a 2 meter long snake peeps up! I really hope that my new neighbours do not have strange preferences when it comes to pets. Or any other weird habits for that matter.

Finger faint

I was lying when I said that I only fainted twice in my life. I had forgotten the finger thing. About a lifetime ago I was out dancing. In those days I danced 3-4 times a week. It was always fun. Back then we were seldom drinking alcohol, but this particular night we were. Think it was Easter. My dance partner and I were really rockin' and I was twirling when he failed to catch my hand. I fell, but immediately got up, dusted myself off and was ready to rock again when I saw my finger. My little finger was from the middle pointing 90° away from the rest of the finger. I took one look and gracefully (?) fainted. A friend drove me to the hospital. It didn't hurt, it just looked funny. Perhaps I was a little in shock. The doctor said "you don't need anaesthetic" (he probably smelled my breath) and promptly snapped my finger straight again. With my finger duly plastered I was back on the dance floor in time for the last dance.

Bathroom themes

Because I have chosen dark and light grey/white in the bathrooms, I need to develop a colour theme to liven things up. I was thinking one theme for my bathroom, and another one for the guest bathroom. Bro wants blue in "his" bathroom. Not sure where he got the idea from that it's his. But I can go with blue for the guests. Blue shower curtain, blue towels, blue bathroom mat. For my own luxury bathroom I am leaning towards pink (I know what you think but it's mine!). Alternatively I can buy several mats and towels and have different themes in autumn, winter, spring and summer. All these choices that need to be made!

Switzerland for dummies

When I googled for Swiss kiss I came across this. Very true.

Bail out

I guess I'm not 100% my usual self since the puking incident. Tonight I opted to go home early. Was out with friends I hadn't seen in a long time and it was fun. When they went to the next place I went home. What is wrong with me? Think I'm gonna blame the heat, 30°C in the bedroom doesn't provide the best sleeping environment. And I'm above 16,000 steps today. Yes, it's exhaustion. And tomorrow is another day.

This kissing thing

After 7 years in Switzerland I am still amazed over this kissing thing. Left-right-left every time you meet. Thing is nobody actually places the lips on the other persons cheek, it's kinda physically impossible unless you have really long lips. So you go cheek to cheek and kiss the air. Really...what's the point? However, I guess if people would stop doing it to me I would feel offended. It's a cultural thing. And one that I've gotten used to.

Plate-heater II

Ok, I got curious so had to find out what a plate-heater looks like. Here it is.

Plate-heater my ass

Turned out the plate-heater wasn’t a plate-heater. Went to the flat this morning to meet with the bathroom guy, in order to take strategic decisions like where the toilet-roll-holders and soap dispensers should be placed. I then noticed a Bauknecht box on the floor, sitting there on its own looking lost. I again assured the building guy that I had not ordered a plate-heater. However, I noticed a product number on the box so I phoned my best friend in Bauknecht. He assured me it was the box I ordered to be placed under the washing machine to be used for either wet wash, storage or whatever. It worries me that the kitchen people cannot tell the difference between a plate-heater (whatever that looks like?) and a wash-box. At least one crisis is now averted!

Big ass

Had lunch with a friend today. He told me they are expecting their third kid. I so do not want to change place with this guy! Anyway, he said that his wife hadn’t told him even though he noticed a slight “change” to her body. Wisely enough he decided not to stick his head into a wasps nest and ask “has your ass gotten bigger?”, but wait for her to tell him. Did I say he’s a smart guy?

Small talk

Sometimes you have to be there to appreciate the humour, but tonight was very funny. My friendgirl and I were sitting down for a drink, then being joined at the table by six Swiss guys. We had just gotten our drinks on the table (water and wine) and they ordered beer. "A big one?" I asked. "No", he said, "a small one". His friends picked up on the subject, and it went downhill from there. "How small?" I asked. "This small?" showing him my little finger. When his friends demanded to know what we talked about he said "only small talk". Indeed. As I said, you had to be there...

Bat hotline

When you call an ambulance because somebody is dying you expect the emergency people to pick up the phone. This is not always the case I have heard, not even if you live in a "western" country, especially not up North where they are lucky if an ambulance shows up at all . It is different here in Switzerland. Here we have an emergency hot-line to call if we happen to find a sick bat. What are the odds? Well, apparently in suburbia it happens. Friend of mine found one, actually her cat did, walking into her house with the bat in his mouth. She retrieved it, called the hotline who told her to put it outside for an hour, then if it was still there, bury it (well actually they said they would come and pick it up later). Luckily (?) the bat was gone before his/her hour was up. A bat hotline? I'm so happy to live in Switzerland...

Plate-heater I

Ok, now starts the problems with the flat. One of many I assume. Today I got an email saying the kitchen people couldn't install the "plate-heater", it was too big. Issue is I have not ordered a plate-heater. Seriously, who wants a "plate-heater"? If you insist on hot plates just stick'm in the normal oven for a while. Right now I cannot bear to think about it, since it's about 34°C in Zürich!

Bauarbeiterkotlette

Ex showed up today, having been tasked with removing the big rhododendron plant, the more than dirty kitchen carpet and the wooden chairs I "accidentally" left on the balcony for about 3 years, now being sorta rotten.

Once again he mastered to make a dinner out of nothing left in my fridge. A "working class chop" out of sausages, some bread, leak, cucumber and 2 leftover eggs. The wine he brought.

And for dessert we had water melon, which he managed to cut in an interesting shape. I tell ya, I might have let this one go for no good reason...

Hotmail restriction

I learned something new today. You can only send hotmail to 50 recipients, above that it doesn't work, so you have to split in two. Why? I have no idea. Realized when I sent out the invites for the housewarming that I know more people here than I thought. Since my new flat can accommodate shedloads of people, I really hope most of them can make it. Only 2 weeks to the move!

Outside

Not entirely sure what is planned here. I just hope they do have some plans...

Bedroom floors

Turned out better than I thought, even though one can only see a small part yet. Oak wood.

Shower panel

Rainshower, shouldershower, footshower and massage beams...

Cool spotlights

Spotlights lead the way from the entrance door, through the hall, all the way to the bar!

Main bathroom

Progress on flat since Tuesday: bedrooms floors, spotlights and bathroom interior!

25°

Not often I put a pic of myself on the blog, but here it is. me enjoying Zürichsee.

Limmat-schwimmen

Loads of people were swimming in Limmat today, hopping in the water at Frauenbad and floating all the way down to Letten. All of them with little yellow plastic ducks. I don't mind, except for they clogged up the space for me to take my boat out. And if that wasn't enough loads of sailing boats were out having some kind of race. Kinda funny since there was no wind. Despite all the obstacles we had a fab day on the lake!

Flatscreen

On 1st of September a Samsung LE40B750 will be mine. It's a 40" screen and a real beauty. It's closing in people.

Ex-geraniums

They are gone, they no longer exist, no longer with me, they're resting in somebody else's arms, they ceased to exist, they have gone to meet its maker, they are no more. I shall miss them.

Cover up

Was talking to Bro today about the housewarming party, and he asked whether I will require people to wear those plastic covers for the shoes at the party. It's actually not a bad idea. It will for sure give the guests something to talk about! Seriously, I think perhaps my new and shiny granite floor will accommocate 100 feet.

Would perhaps 8 be enough?

Met a friend tonight who told me he did a bargain in Germany over the weekend. Bought another aquarium. Apparently compared to Switzerland aquariums are half price in Germany (how come I didn't know this?) and Germany in turn having half price on whaddayaknow aquariums. He bought a new one for 50 francs. Turns out it's his 5th or 6th aquarium (I lost count), and I was asking if he planned to grow fish for eating. Reminded me of my fav series West Wing, where the republicans make a joke of the democrates when Jed Bartlet is about to end his term, chanting "8 years is enough" many many times, and you see Leo, the chief of staff, watching the show saying sarcastically in the end "is perhaps 8 years enough?". That's how I felt with aquarium-guy. Is perhaps 5-6 aquariums enough? But he did bring me home-made cookies, so I'm gonna let it go.

A beauty