I've been totally corrupted, to the core. First there was boarding "at your leisure" rather than in rows, then there was the super friendly service, the fact that my water glass was never actually empty (and was refilled even when I was dozing to make sure I wouldn't be thirsty upon awaking. The better than average (for airline food) meals and the guest passes to several business lounges with free food, coffee and internet access were also pretty good.
But mostly it was the fact that I actually got some sleep and felt in some sense human after flying for 21 out of 25 hours that has really tipped me over the edge.
Still, it's not like C and I can afford to fly business, so if it's a choice between cattle class and not going to South Africa later this year (all for C's research, I promise), then all of the above goes straight out the window.
I've never been to Geneva before, the farthest east in Europe I'd been before this trip was Paris. Not that Geneva is Eastern Europe, it`s just further east than Paris.
I`d have to say my first impressions are really good. The old town is gorgeous and the rest of the town isn't too bad either. There are bicycles and scooters everywhere and more international organisations than you could poke several sticks at. In fact you can hardly turn around without bumping into the headquarters of one organisation or another.
The Alps are a stones throw away and you can see them from all over town, which kind of reminds me of Vancouver CA, another city I would like to spend a lot more time in.
Speaking of spending, the one down side I can see to Geneva so far is the insanity of the cost of living. It's almost hard to believe how expensive everything is here. I haven't yet seen anything I would consider a bargain, let alone anything moderately cheap. I'm sure people living here know places around and about to find bargains and a meal that isn't more than out rent in Canberra, but as a short stay visitor without any French I'm pretty screwed on that front.
The second, and so far last, down side is the lack of obvious vegetarian options anywhere. Most restaurants don`t have more than one dish that's veggie, let alone vegan, and I`ve looked in two supermarkets and several corner stores and am yet to lay eyes on soy milk (good thing I bought my own).
Still, despite this, I'm sure that if the opportunity arose, C and I could be quite happy living here, there are dozens of organisations either of us would be happy to work for and the scenery is (almost) worth the obscene rents.
Right, I'm off to bed, got another full day of pretending I know what I'm talking about tomorrow.
Meanwhile, I'm thinking about C's mother and her partner, who have just this weekend moved to Darwin and walked right into cyclone Monica. The news update on the ABC says it's going to hit tomorrow morning, local time, at which point I'll be fast asleep. I can only hope they've headed inland.
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