Jail hotel

Literally creepy!! Basement was also a packed nightclub ;) definitely a night to remember...


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Swizerland IS perfect

We just found this outdoor automatic lawn mower. Really? Yes, it stops at the driveway and knows when to turn around near the bushes. Clearly in Switzerland life is too good to spend time grooming the grass ;) lustig!!


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Sales

The summer is the time for sales Europe! Swiss goods are 20-25% more than Germany but the drastic depreciation of the CHF to the Euro has made this even more dramatic. Swiss sales have to plummet to compete ;)


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Raclette

This is a raclette station at the Zurich festival for independence day. Raclette is a summer-ish fondue where you put hard cheese under a burner and scrape off the burned and melted layer onto bread with veggies (if desired).


This was about USD12 for a piece of bread with cheese on top - the Swiss do love their quality cheese and bread mmmm!

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Ellen made it!

Ellen being bashful on the bus to Basel SBB from the airport :) willkommen!!


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Outdoor theaters

All August we have the Orange Cinema that has outdoor movies every night - in English, German, and French.


You can see the screen here next to one of the oldest plazas in Basel. They show some choice ads before (mostly cars) and the area is surrounded by lounge sofas and free aperol and ice cream!

Last week my friend Meric and I saw Midnight in Paris - so fun!

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Office buildings

The Novartis Campus is full of super modern buildings, all designed by famous architects with dramatic gardens and surroundings. This is the one i see right outside my office - covered in glass of all different colors of blues and greens.


I'll post my favourite building soon - it looks like a cloud!

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Knives

Swiss army knives! These are some really cool new models in Zurich that come in fun colors and are USB shaped. The store was closed on independence day but it would be fun to go back and get some as souveneirs :)


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Kantons

Every Kanton in Switzerland has amazing flags that represent the region. This is my favourite one but the monk flag was a close second.


This is from the independence day parade on Aug 1!

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Brown bread

Swiss daily bread is this soft brown bread and really yummy. Can't wait to try some with a fondue soon!


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Dinner parties

We've been having dinner parties about every week since I've been in Basel and they're definitely the highlight of my summer! This is Elisa who made an amazing Italian dinner for us to celebrate her new home purchase - a new flat in Milan!


Elisa is one of my best friends in Basel! We love going out and enjoying the summer nights!

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Tendre Buche

This is my favourite cheese in Switzerland. I think it's French but it's like a goat Brie with great texture and perfect with the air cured meats eaten all the time :)


Soo great to see Didem, Galina and Gabi this weekend in CO! Ellen arrives tomorrow so happy!

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Koi pond

Novartis has a beautiful koi pond I walk by on my way to my building every day. Not surprisingly the is a lot of hype and rumours surrounding the koi pond - the first of which is that the fish are very old and cost a whopping 15-20k each! For example, I heard someone once put food in the pond and killed the fish and was never seen again!


I decided to look up some more broad legends and meaning behind the koi - now it all makes sense!

"According to Japanese legend, if a koi succeeded in climbing the falls at a point called Dragon Gate on the Yellow River, it would be transformed into a dragon. More generally, the Japanese associate koi (also known as carp) with perseverance in adversity and strength of purpose. Because of its strength and determination to overcome obstacles, it stands for courage and the ability to attain high goals."

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