Winter wonders
Leaning over next to a window, watering houseplants this afternoon, I suddenly realized that my neighbor has geraniums blooming in a flowerbox in front of her window. If you live in a warm climate this might sound normal, but this is Switzerland and it's December!
It's been unseasonably warm lately but we've had an icy blast called the bise wind blowing all day. It is one of the few things I don't like about this part of the world because when it blows it cuts into your every personal nook and cranny no matter how warmly you dress.
The people who built this village about 700 years ago were extremely smart. We live on a little point of land that sticks out into Lake Geneva and all of the streets bend slightly. It confuses visitors to the town unless they walk along the 10 or so streets with a map.
The reason for the not-quite-straight streets is that the layout keeps the wind out. I went out for a walk this evening and was nearly blown away by the lake, so I sensibly headed for the little streets on the inside of the old part of the village, walking along the Grande rue and staying cozy and nearly warm as I walked along the street whose name means Lost Time.
posted by whistlestop caboose | 9:16 PM
2 Comments:
Does this mean you come down from the mountain to town for the winter?
Geraniums on a window sill in Switzerland or Germany or any quaint European village is almost expected I think, but in December in Switzerland I would expecting icicles.
We have to work down on what we call the plains here - no work up in the Alps, although I do manage to hide out and work on the www.genevalunch.com from there about half the time! Husband definitely has no choice but to go to his school near the lake during the week. In Switzerland these are all relatively short distances, though.
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