GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – France’s Jura mountains are defined by deep, secret forests and rushing streams, so it is always a surprise to suddenly come upon snug villages edged by magnificent vineyards. Coming down into Arbois, there is such an abrupt change of scenery and state of mind that your arrival calls for a pause. A […]
Food & dining
Our shrinking rubbish
LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND – We in canton Vaud, having now paid for taxed garbage bags for a month, are suddenly becoming aware of how much we throw away. The first thing we’ve noticed in our household is the packaging, silly amounts of it. Lo and behold, a side benefit of this new system is that our […]
The curious case of Zurich’s high-priced table wines
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – The latest global cost of living index by the Economist Intelligence Unit has sparked the usual national pride and fear remarks, with Australian cities showing a sudden rise to the top 10, while Zurich and Geneva have slipped, ouf, thanks to pressure easing on the franc against some other currencies. But a […]
Winter surprise: fresh frozen broccoli surfaces
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Our family has just had a wonderful small surprise from the garden, broccoli that we assumed had died, reappeared and was perfect for a quick stir-fry. The broccoli, along with some celery, fell victim to a metre of snow that was suddenly dumped on our mountain garden in November. Since then we’ve […]
Swiss 2012 wine production down 10% in 1 year but quality high
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The 2012 wine harvest in Switzerland was the subject of an odd mix of projections during the year, ranging from terrible to very good. The explanation is simple: a year of weather extremes touched different regions in different ways and, as the year progressed, the positive or negative outlook often turned around. […]