geneva

First day in Geneva for real... a bunch of us took the bus down into Geneva (again, something like a half hour bus ride, for CHF 2.20) to go to the beach. That's right, the beach. Something like twenty meters of shoreline on Lake Geneva set aside from swimming, somewhat near that big squirter nozzle that puts Geneva on the map (a great use for five hundred kilowatts if there ever was one). Thing to do in Geneva: get in the lake and throw slimy balls of algae at each other.

Kenny₂, Michelle, and I got detached from the rest of the group, found a decent albeit smallish lunch for about ten francs ($7). I miss my $3.50 falafel-fries-drink combos in Lund!! Then we wandered off into some neighborhood where the preponderance of Lebanese restaurants really rescued my opinion of Geneva (but still, no $3.50 falafel combos). We strolled along the shore through a nifty park (complete with fountains sporting potable water — they must either have a superplentiful water supply, or they are incredibly wasteful). The botanical gardens are pretty but all the glass houses were closed. Now, if only the CERN people could get some landscaping advice from the botanical gardens people, things would be improved significantly. And they might as well talk to the Weizmann people about architecture (and gardening too, for that matter) while they're at it.

Tomorrow I should get settled in for real here, with a computer account, access to a van (!), and all sorts of other things. More importantly the grocery store will be open so I can acquire some less expensive food. Silly Swiss, no grocery stores open on a Sunday. No wonder the Swedes make fun of you. [Really, Switzerland is considered a corporatist regime when it comes to social welfare.]

The summer students from last year made a nifty website. Hopefully we'll do the same.