I got back Monday evening from my trip to San Francisco, where I indulged in everything I miss out on here in Zurich – family, old friends, food, shopping, and speaking fast English to anyone who will listen. I got back to Zurich just in time to catch the tail end of Sechselaüten, the Swiss semi-equivalent of Groundhog Day, which, as I’ve described before, involves a gasoline-soaked, explosive-stuffed snowman effigy, costumed men throwing fish, apples, and rolls, fake Arabs in brown-face, and (like every good Swiss celebration) a parade with enough marching bands to populate a small country (I’ve come to believe that all Swiss men, in addition to having a military-issue rifle under their bed, also have a brass instrument tucked away in their closet).
After dropping my stuff off at my apartment, I stopped at my friends’ place to say hi to my local crew, who were celebrating the fact that the head of the Böögg (the burning snowman) exploded in just over twelve minutes, which supposedly means that we’ll have a warm summer. I handed out a few American goodies that various people had requested I bring back for them – contact lens solution, soy chips, and toilet bowl cleaner (I also brought back vast quantities of candy, beef jerky, dried mangoes, and cereal).
Then, I proceeded to instill envy in all of them as I regaled them with my doings during my ten days in the States. “I went to Costco! I went to Safeway and Walgreen’s! I had two Cinnabons! I went to Banana Republic and Old Navy, and the salespeople were so friendly! I ate all kinds of food – Korean, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, Mexican, French, mint chocolate chip ice cream! Everything was so cheap! I used the icemaker in my sister’s freezer! The washing machine was so big that I couldn’t even fill it!” Sometimes I wonder if I live in Switzerland or an alien planet.
My ticket was booked using some of my dad’s frequent flyer miles, and because coach was booked out by the time I bought my ticket, I flew business. I know this is obvious, but it’s a different world in front of that curtain – seats that recline more than three inches, so much leg room that it’s nearly impossible to kick the seat in front of you, warmed nuts, ice cream, eight movies, steak, complimentary toothpaste and booties, extra baggage allowance, priority seating, and the assurance that your bags will come within five minutes of deplaning. If all seats were business class, I’d fly a lot more.
It’s probably a good thing they aren’t all business class, because I’m not sure I really should be flying any more than I already am. I sat down and calculated all the flights I’ve taken since the day I started work in Zurich, and they total up to approximately 120,000 miles, which is equal to roughly fifteen trips around the world, one weekend at a time, in less than three years. Al Gore probably doesn’t approve of me.
Speaking of Al Gore, when I got back to Zurich, my friends informed me that for the previous week, it had been unseasonably warm, with temperatures going as high as 78 F (25 C). Keep in mind that Zurich is not a particularly hot town, and we usually only have a couple weeks each year where sleeping without air conditioning is actually uncomfortable. To be pushing 80 degrees in early April is a pretty good sign that I really ought to be flying less, or at least buying some carbon offsets to assuage the climate gods. Just don’t tell them about the trip I’ve got planned to Helsinki and St. Petersburg in May, or about the fact that I’m trying to decide what to do with my next two long weekends. Greece looks tempting.
After dropping my stuff off at my apartment, I stopped at my friends’ place to say hi to my local crew, who were celebrating the fact that the head of the Böögg (the burning snowman) exploded in just over twelve minutes, which supposedly means that we’ll have a warm summer. I handed out a few American goodies that various people had requested I bring back for them – contact lens solution, soy chips, and toilet bowl cleaner (I also brought back vast quantities of candy, beef jerky, dried mangoes, and cereal).
Then, I proceeded to instill envy in all of them as I regaled them with my doings during my ten days in the States. “I went to Costco! I went to Safeway and Walgreen’s! I had two Cinnabons! I went to Banana Republic and Old Navy, and the salespeople were so friendly! I ate all kinds of food – Korean, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, Mexican, French, mint chocolate chip ice cream! Everything was so cheap! I used the icemaker in my sister’s freezer! The washing machine was so big that I couldn’t even fill it!” Sometimes I wonder if I live in Switzerland or an alien planet.
My ticket was booked using some of my dad’s frequent flyer miles, and because coach was booked out by the time I bought my ticket, I flew business. I know this is obvious, but it’s a different world in front of that curtain – seats that recline more than three inches, so much leg room that it’s nearly impossible to kick the seat in front of you, warmed nuts, ice cream, eight movies, steak, complimentary toothpaste and booties, extra baggage allowance, priority seating, and the assurance that your bags will come within five minutes of deplaning. If all seats were business class, I’d fly a lot more.
It’s probably a good thing they aren’t all business class, because I’m not sure I really should be flying any more than I already am. I sat down and calculated all the flights I’ve taken since the day I started work in Zurich, and they total up to approximately 120,000 miles, which is equal to roughly fifteen trips around the world, one weekend at a time, in less than three years. Al Gore probably doesn’t approve of me.
Speaking of Al Gore, when I got back to Zurich, my friends informed me that for the previous week, it had been unseasonably warm, with temperatures going as high as 78 F (25 C). Keep in mind that Zurich is not a particularly hot town, and we usually only have a couple weeks each year where sleeping without air conditioning is actually uncomfortable. To be pushing 80 degrees in early April is a pretty good sign that I really ought to be flying less, or at least buying some carbon offsets to assuage the climate gods. Just don’t tell them about the trip I’ve got planned to Helsinki and St. Petersburg in May, or about the fact that I’m trying to decide what to do with my next two long weekends. Greece looks tempting.
No comments:
Post a Comment