Geneva, Switzerland; Sergy, France

Je suis dans Geneve, Suisse, et Sergy, France!

After exploring Paris on my own I was ready to meet up with old friends and have some company! I am visiting Melanie and Josh who just moved in to their new house in Sergy, France. For the past month they were staying in a house in St. Genis, France. Josh works at CERN, which is mostly in Switzerland but even some of it is in France, so it is right on the border. Geneva is about a twenty to thirty minute car ride from their house. (Although, when Melanie and I were on the bus coming back from Geneva during rush hour, standing in between a couple making-out and a group of crying babies, to took much longer!) Melanie and Josh just moved in, (as in four days before I arrived,) so I was here when they bought their car. Such a purchase was perfect timing for me because then Mel and I could drive it into town where there is a shopping mall for me to get those few things I forgot to bring. They also have a washing machine... what great friends:) The shopping is an adventure, I was looking for shoe deoderizer and it was located with the condoms, and the multi-vitamins I wanted were inbetween the birth control and menapause pills. This situation was made all the worse when Mel and I were at the register of the pharmacy and about four clerks were looking at the screen and laughing. We double checked the vitamins about a dozen times to make sure they were what we thought they were, but we were still curious as to what they were laughing at all the same. I'm hoping it actually had nothing to do with us, but a joke that someone made, which of course we couldn't understand. (Although I should say Mel's French is much better than she gives herself credit for!)

I took the train from Paris to Geneva on Wednesday, June 6, morning, which was a day and a half earlier than I originally planned. The train here was incredibly easy... getting to Heidelberg next will be a different story! The guy across from me on the train was a large, muscular, black guy who was wearing a football tee-shirt, and spoke both French and English. He told me how he had graduated from college and made it into the French Football (as in American Football) Team, and how it was the best thing in the world--even better than going pro-football in the states, because the two things he loves in life are Football and France! For some reason it seemed like an interesting combination to me; a big tough football guy speaking the delicate language of French and talking about pain au chocolat, bread, wine and cheese.

Melanie and I walked around Geneva, which seemed like a rather small city, but still very beautiful. We saw the jett d' eau, (water jet,) which is a great landmark in Geneva, b/c it is so large you can see it from everywhere. We went to the old section, where we ate some great sandwhiches, and of course, ice-cream. And, as fate would have it, we sat next to the "18th Century Fountain." (Of course we took a photo for all you Colonial Williamsburgians!) Perhaps the most exciting part was our search for "the oldest house in Geneva" from the thirteenth century. We looked around for it, and I joked, "Watch it be the building that is wrapped in plastic and under construction!" And then, of course, it was! So, in case anyone cares, the oldest house in Geneva seems to be made from huge plastic bags and metal scaffolding.

Yesterday Melanie and I walked in the Jura Mountains, which are in her back yard. The hike consisted basically of walking behind her neighborhood and then straight up a huge mountain on a gravel path. We didn't go very far making the excuse that her dog, Ally, was out of shape and tired;) The view where we stopped was amazing, though. You could see all the way into Geneva and the Jet d' eau, and look across to the Alps on the other side! It was good that we took the hike when we did because a huge thunder, lightning, rain storm blew over the mountain later. Today I am visiting CERN, where Josh works to e-mail and update my blog. Tonight we will go out to eat because tomorrow I'm off to Heidelberg, where, I hope, (Vic, did you notice I didn't say "hopefully") my German is better than my French.

It has been wonderful relaxing at the Moss-Collins household, eating lots of bread, cheese, and chocolate, and chatting about weddings. Mel is getting married in September in New York and has had to plan her wedding from Virginia and now France, so she has some wonderful hints and advice! I thought about joking that I decided to buy my dress here, but didn't want to give any of you a heart attack, so really, we just chatted a lot:)

To everyone in Williamsburg that also misses Melanie, I will pass on that her place is wonderful and they are doing well, but don't forget to write!