Posted by chetan
on February 08, 2007
I originally decided to hold off on getting a bike since winter was quickly approaching and I hate biking in the cold, but it’s been about as mild a winter here as anywhere else. Even the last few weeks, with a cold wave blowing across the US, it’s been a moderate 40-50F here, with maybe a few flurries mixed in.
Now I realize I should have bought one, even though it would have cost me about US$150-200. There are no walmart style discount shops here, but $200 over 4 months isn’t bad at all. I could easily have gotten $50 of use a month out of it and probably much more than that. Especially on a day like today, when I’m working from home and don’t want to walk 20 minutes into town to get some real food. Not to mention saving money on my commute to the office.
Posted by chetan
on January 28, 2007
OBVIOUSLY I had to try them. Take a moment to think about how roasted chicken flavor chips might taste….
In fact, they’re pretty gross. But they do grow on you..
Posted by chetan
on January 24, 2007
So says my landlady, at least. I returned from work today to find a brand new welcome mat just inside my door and a welcome packet (could have used this 2 months ago!) on my desk.
The welcome mat is well timed though. Today saw Basel’s first snow fall. It’s been snowing all day but so far only a couple of inches accumulation. Mostly just light flurries since noon or so, but still damn cold. For a country with insane hygiene laws I find it really odd that there are no snow plows or salt trucks and no laws requiring the removal of snow from sidewalks. Even in public areas like the central tram station, they just don’t bother. Makes me wonder what their personal injury laws are like…
Posted by chetan
on January 10, 2007
Basel’s mass transit system is made up of a fantastic tram and bus network. You can get just about anywhere in probably 20 minutes or so. They run like clockwork on a set schedule and there’s even an electronic board at the larger stops telling you how many minutes away each tram or bus is. It’s all pretty cool.
Continue reading…
Posted by chetan
on January 06, 2007
Not because of the 3.1 magnitude earthquake this morning, though I’ll never get used to the god damned ground moving under me. Apparently earthquakes less than 3 are minor enough that you generally won’t notice them but even one as small as 3.1 will cause the walls to shake and quite a bit of noise, but no damage.
No, it wasn’t the earthquake. I’ve been sick all week and it culminated in a bit of a fever last night. The worst part about being sick is definitely the loss of appetite. I like to eat. Eating and not enjoying it, heck, not even being able to taste your food, sucks. And even worse, I’ve been feeling a little bit nauseous after each meal so I’ve been eating as little as possible.
I really hope I get the taste back in my mouth before my flight to New York next week. It would really suck to be back and not enjoy all the great food that awaits me there.
Posted by chetan
on January 02, 2007
Him: Is it real?
Me: Excuse me? Is what real? My hat? Yes, it’s real.
Him: No, you’re beard. Is it real?
Me: Uhm… my beard? Of course it’s real, man! Does it look fake?
Bizarre “conversation” I had the other night. Apparently the lines were “too good” so it “must be fake.” Go figure.
Posted by chetan
on January 01, 2007
This BBC story about Swiss hygiene inspections explains why I had to pay a CHF80 (about US$65) cleaning fee up front when I moved in to my apartment. Totally bizarre, if you ask me. No one wants to move into a filthy house but this sounds downright insane!
Posted by chetan
on December 30, 2006
Back in Basel, that is. I cut my trip a little bit short for a bunch of reasons, but most importantly because I was exhausted and I’d already done in 7 days all I wanted to do, and then some. I visited Rome, Naples, and Florence and the thought of pushing forward to Milan and Venice just wasn’t very appealing so I decided to call it a day (or a week) and head home. I had a great time and I’ll be writing all about it as soon as I get all my pictures online. I took a ton of pictures, almost a thousand, and they really do say it all, from start to finish.
Posted by chetan
on December 22, 2006
I’m going to Rome tomorrow for Christmas break. Why Rome? Winter is underway and it’s pretty cold here now, averaging in the low 30s most days. Europe has fairly cold winters and traveling can be less than pleasant so heading south is the best option. From what I ready, my best choices were either Spain or Italy so I opted for Italy. As much as I’d like to put what’s left of my Spanish to a test, it’ll have to wait for another day.
Speaking of Christmas, our holiday party was this past Wednesday. It was held in a restaurant of sorts, but with a twist. It was actually an old factory which had been converted into an event hall. On this particular evening it was a “dinner spectacle” and with good reason — it was actually a carnival complete with juggling, gymnastics and “high wire” acts, fire breathing, knife throwing, and silly animal tricks!
It was lots of fun and I got to meet a lot of people from BIG whom I hadn’t had the occasion to meet yet.
Anyways, I’ll be gone until the new year, so there most likely won’t be any updates until then. I just hope I don’t run out of storage for my cameras!
Posted by chetan
on December 18, 2006
So I’ve been here in Basel for a little over a month now. Five weeks and a day to be exact. Pretty crazy, actually. This project has been in the works for something like a year and a half and now here I am sitting in my apartment in Switzerland! Wild.
Continue reading…
