Summer Time!

It's summer time finally!! Initially we thought end May- Jun is the start of summer but were baffled when it rained a few days and with cloudy skies and cold weather...
21 Jun is the start of summer and summer indeed it was.

Temperature will hit as high as 35 degree celcius by noon. Morning and night are slightly cooler. Fortunately indoor temperatures are maintained around 26-27 degree celcius and I don't get sweaty. But the sun is really blazing and scorching, piercing right through your skin if you're not 'shaded'. So it's best to put on sun block if you get sun burnt easily. A cap and sunglass are necessities here in summer.


Well, yesterday was too hot for us to go to Bellevue to watch the match, so we ended up watching it from home where at least, it was smoke-free :) A pek chek match to watch actually cos Spain had so many opportunities but somehow, no luck...

You could see how the players get frustrated and gets rough eventually when the pressure to win gets intense. From such situations, you could also see whether a player display his sportsmanship.

From merely a sport, it has evolved into something commercial and political. Who benefits? The big sponsors of course, the winning team (though they must have shed lots of sweat and blood, well everything comes with a price), the pubs, the shops selling the merchandise, TV stations etc.

When I watched the contrasting facial expressions of the winning and the losing teams, I then recalled how we used to cheer in secondary school for our team. Our netball teacher did not allow us to clap or cheer loudly when the team scored. The most we could do was to clap with our little pinkies if a goal is scored. I can sort of understand why she did that.

Of course, it would be more fun and exciting to watch a match with all the cheering and clapping, but I guess our teacher didn't want us to develop that sense of pride and ego when we play. A game is a game and should be played as a game where it's a test of capabilities, skills and well, with a tint of luck in the competitions.

The winners will feel triumphant and happy while the teams that do not make it will feel lousy and perhaps with much jealousy when they see the winners basking in their glory. I know it may sound rather idealistic or too 'nobelistic' if I say one should possess the true spirit of a sportsman and play the game fair instead of rough play, acting injured etc. Having the fighting spirit vs playing rough aren't the same thing.

Well, maybe that's reality where sports has somewhat become commercialised. But I'm sure there will be some true sportsmen/women out there.

Semi-final: Spain vs Russia

With the finals coming today, everyone is speculating which country will win this year's Euro cup.

You could see soccer T-shirts, jerseys, flags, souvenirs etc being sold everywhere. Some shops are already selling the items at 5o% off. I wonder how low the prices will go after the game :) Some of Uncle Tan's colleagues would actually wear the soccer jerseys of the soccer teams they have bought and go out to watch the matches at the outdoor screens.

The huge soccer player figurines at Zurich HB.

Standing beside the Captain of Deutschland (Germany) where they will be playing the finals on Sunday, which is today.






















As it was the semi-final between Germany and Turkey, we decided to go to the Fan Zone at Bellevue just to experience how it's like to view it live with the rest of people. It was still bright even thou it was already 9.30pm, so we decided to stroll there.

As we took the short cut, passing by the 20 Minuten (aka like our Singapore Press Holdings) building, we saw some lights still on. In the day time when I pass by this office, I hardly see anyone around. So I suppose journalists are usually late workers...it'd be nice to work in such a building, less claustrophobic. In SG, even if we have windows, we can't see daylight somehow cos most of the time the blinds are drawn to prevent the sunlight from shining in. Uncle Tan told me the settlement staff working in the bank were given an extra 7 days leave as their office is located at the basement where there is no sunlight in the office.

Trust me, sunlight does make one more cheerful, am speaking from personal experience :) Also, during winter time, more people are likely to suffer from depression due to the lack of sunlight in winter.

Business is brisk here with most shops selling food like sausages, kebabs, sandwiches and of course, wine and beer can't be missing.

The huge outdoor screen at Bellevue.

Securities guarding the entrance. The male security officers will search the bodies of the men before they go in and likewise for the female security officers. What we found interesting was that no canned beers are allowed, but you could pour the beer into the plastic cups provided.

Ms Wong, we passed by a few macho, hunky policemen leh...both of us went 'Aiya, if Ms Wong is here' again... ;p

Here's another big screen for the fans. In fact we saw a couple of big screens at this area and even some of the store holders here have their plasma/ LCD screen TVs placed at their mobile pubs for their patrons as you can see below.

It was crowded and we couldn't stand still to watch the match for long cos we couldn't stand the smoke! Too many people were smoking away and we had to keep walking.

They gave the iconic 'twin towers' of Zurich a different facade with lazer lights that changed the designs every couple of minutes. For a moment, we thought this was a British flag ;p

Besides food, souvenirs are sold here as well. And the display somehow reminded us of the stores we saw in Thailand :)

We walked through the place till the match was over. Not a very exciting match I'd say cos Spain had scored a clean 3 goals as opposed to Russia. Ok, we didn't miss much hehe ;p

After the match it was like a mini party with some pubs playing loud music and some people dancing away. Cars went beeping in the streets and as we walked, someone from a car shouted
"你好" as it passed by us. You can hear people cheering, shouting out victory for the winning team.
We are not sure if we wana go down again tonight cos with the smoke around, we thought it's better to watch it from home where it's more comfy and we can watch it without anyone blocking our view.

So who will be the winner tonight? Spain or Germany? I must say I like Germany's soccer jersey thou hehe ;p

A Friend's Visit

A friend's visit sure makes a difference :) After my friends had left, it has been some time since I had company and finally I have someone to talk to besides Uncle Tan hehe ;p

Ferra came to visit me last week, the week where the internet network was unstable. Fortunately she was here, otherwise I would go crazy without connection for a few days :)

She has helped us bring some canned sardines (we didn't really like the ones they sell here) and Uncle Tan's Chuan Bei Pi Pa Gao cos he only brought a small bottle with him. And she also bought lotsa canned food, ready mix sauces and instant noodles! Wah, I can open a mini Ah Kin's Asian Mart already heh heh ;p

So we did what the tais tais do - shop, drink afternoon tea and chat. Lalalalala...keke ;p But I only do that when I have company lah :) And I managed to step into the Mont Blanc shop with her around. Hmm...wasn't as intimidating as I thought :)

We went to the shopping streets and Bellevue, where the soccer fan zone was. We were so engrossed in talking that I didn't realise that the red man light was on and just crossed the road with the vehicles moving already. I got a shock when Ferra alerted me & I just dashed ahead cos I was already on the road while poor Ferra remained on the other side of the road. So that was how I managed to capture this shot hehe ;p

Forgot to transfer the photos we took to my laptop partly because we were busy talking most of the time ;p and also because the network was down so I didn't really bother about the laplop.

As she also doesn't fancy ang moh food, so it's good that I can prepare Asian dishes for her :)

We had a sumptuous dinner on the 2nd night with both of us preparing the dishes in the kitchen. I was teasing Uncle Tan that he was so lucky to have 2 women cooking for him hehe ;p Ferra even cooked Indo Mee for his breakfast and prepare apple water for him leh! So good life huh ;p

She really has lots of ideas on cooking. She has taught me how to make the appetizer dish (the one you can find in Ding Tai Fong). It was quite simple to prepare and we LOVE it! ;d A good dish for summer days.


She also taught me how to make this bacon-ham rice with the XO sauce which she brought from SG! This is 'serdup' and can be a one-meal dish, perhaps can add some veggy to it to make it healthier :)

And this is her sleeping bag. Cosy and comfy. Pillow with compliments from SBB RailCity :)

Didn't manage to take her in her Hello Kitty Pyjamas...cos firs day she said got water retention due to the flight and 2nd night we were excited over watching Portugal vs Germany with Ferra supporting Germany (cos her hubby works for a German firm and her hubby could wear the T-shirt she has bought for him with the Germany logo) and Uncle Tan supporting Portugal cos he likes the striker haha ;p

It was an exciting match cos both teams scored and at the very last minute, Germany scored the winning goal.

As she had an early plane to catch to meet her hubby at Frankfurt, she had to stay at the airport hotel for the 3rd night. So when she left, felt kinda 空虚 again...just like the other time. But well, at least I've enjoyed her company and appreciate this opportunity to get to know a friend more and also learn a couple of things from her as the conversations with her were rather enlightening :)

Now, I look forward to another visitor in Aug or rather 2 groups of visitors :)

Fribourg - Final

A stop after Bern is Fribourg, a medieval riverside city with people living on the left bank speak French, and people living on the right bank speak German.




The city is known for its cultural plurality, university, gourmet restaurants and bridges over the River Sarine that links the French-speaking and German-speaking part of Switzerland.

From the tower of Saint Nicholas's Cathedral or the Gate of Bourguillon you can have a breathtaking view of Fribourg where you could still see part of the Middle Ages that has survived modernity. This city of art is also a city of studies, owing to its university and of course, it has quite a number of museums. Besides the usual art and culture musems, they even have the Carinal Beer Museum and a Swiss-Sweing Machine Museum. But because this was an unplanned stop, we merely make a brief walk through the old town and explore the nearby places.

The city is pretty much the same as Zurich or Geneva, with familiar brand names in the shopping mall, Fribourg Centre.

The Old Town

"It's cold here sia..."

"Ok lah, just nice for me :)"

Hey, they have a Fr 2.50 shop here, similar to our $2 shop in SG :)

Couldn't resist not looking...


St Nicholas Cathedral

From afar we could see the St Nicholas Cathedral. The main portal is adorned with a low relief depicting the Last Judgement and its stained-glass windows were one of the most important collections on the European continent. They were created by the Polish painter Jozef Mehoffer between 1896 and 1936 and the series was completed in the 1970s by the French painter, Alfred Manessier. Sometimes certain things really need time to create and construct...ulike now, everything has to be done quick. We can execute many things much faster than the people in the olden days, yet we still have no time...

This cathedral also has a tower for climbing which cosnsists of 368 steps. I guess both of us have had enough of tower climbing for now. And having seen quite a no. of cathedrals for the past 2 days, we decided to just view it's beauty from afar :)




The tiny train passing by. It's a guided tour (in French and German with sheets in English and Italien at the excursion departure point). The tour is about an hour which will bring you to the scenic spots in Fribourg. Cost CHF 10 for adults and CHF 5.50 for children. 15 pax will be at CHF 8.50 each for adults and CHF 5 each for children.

Operating hours:
May and Sept: Tue to Sun: 2pm and 3pm
June: Tue to Sun : 2pm, 3pm and 4pm
July and Aug: Tue to Sun: 10.30am, , 2pm, 3pm and 4pm
October: Sat and Sun: 2pm and 3pm






So happily and cautiously we went down, down, down...

and down...

and down..

Until we reached the Central Bridge.

Built in 1720, this bridge replaced a covered wooden bridge from 1275. Gosh, this bridge is really old!

From here you could view the Bourguillon cliffs.

And yes, we have to go up and up and up...back to where we came from.
Uncle Tan didn't wana take the lift up which cost...I also didn't know know how much cos he wanted to climb the stairs thinking that it would be a good exercise...if only I could take a picture of how far we are from the top, you too would protest taking the stairs...so I willingly agreed to let him carry my barang barang this time when he offered.

I'm not sure if he regretted taking the stairs thou cos something happened after the trip.

Back to the train station back to Zurich...ah...home sweet home......

Oh about Uncle Tan's 'misfortunes'...
He was on MC for 2 days on Tues, because of.....buttock-ache! hahaha........ ;D

Sorry, not trying to be mean but when he complained about his butt-ache, I was laughing non-stop cos I only suffered calve muscle aches. I do have butt muscle aches before after bowling but that would be ok by the next day. He said he felt a sharp pain each time he coughs, laughs and when he walks...so when he told me he decided to see a doctor, I just couldn't help but to laugh...and ask how he would tell the doc his ailment.

But apparently, this is the common ailment among the Swiss as the moment when the doctor saw him walking slowly into his room, he knew immediately what the problem was. So he was prescribed medication for a few days and had 2 days MC. It was a common ailment here because most of the roads here are not flatted roads, hence, chances of getting your nerves 'go out of place' are high. Also, incorrect posture to carry heavy items could also result in this. Ok, so I stopped my teasing and laughing thou I would still giggle at times when I think about it.

So the advice for the day is: Wear good walking shoes and, don't 'over climb' haha ;D

Lausanne - Part 3

Back to Lausanne, where it gets chilly again.
This time, we decided to explore the right side of the lake. We noticed a number of people walking that direction as well and we guessed that there must be the soccer fans zone nearby since we could see a couple of them carrying flags and wearing soccer jerseys. So we 'kaypoh' and follow them.

So here it is, very near to our hotel...no wonder the night before there were so many cars horning and people cheering as they passed by our hotel. Entrance is only allowed for those with tickets and apparently it's sponsored by UBS.

So we decided to check out the food zone :)

It was pretty empty since it's not dinner time yet and all are at the Fans Zone.

What a huge saucepan!

This shop seems to support quite a number of countries...but look @ its location, so nice to have a shop here huh :)

The day is rather long in summer where the sun sets only around 8ish and gets dark by 9ish. Sunrise is usually around 4+am...ya and that's when the ducks and swans will be awake...

This is a hotel next to ours. Didn't know Movenpick is into hotel business too.

The next morning, we woke up at around 6.30am this time. Probably I was too tired from the walking, so managed to hear only the birds this time :)

We checked out of the hotel early and took a walk to the old town before we head back to Zurich. Should have checked out later if we knew we had to walk so much with our barang barangs.

And we found a fresh market here :) So Sats are good for exploring towns where they are usually buzzing with activities.

Little Robin Hood in the making?

While checking out of the hotel, I happened to see a very nice picture which looks like a theatre. So we asked the hotel staff what place it was and how to get there.

So here are at Palais de Rumine (Rumine Palace).

And we saw a fresh market alongside with a flea market :)

Roast chickens...yummy...

Know what is this? They are figs (无花果). The ones we eat are usually the dried ones, or the preserved kind (greyish in colour) where we eat them in strips (aka 'giam sng tee' where the packaging is usually a small bottle/packet with an uncle Chinaman's face). These are the fresh ones. Remember my hungarian who offered us this fruit? They have the green ones here. Didn't know that it's kinda ex. They sell it at CHF1.80 per piece here and at supermarts, it's about CHF1.50 or so. The fruit has a very faint sweetness and texture is like...a brinjal? Figs are good, should eat more.

The little man in a box

The Golden compass?

I like this clock but not cheap not cheap...ever wonder why the time on clocks and watches are always tuned to 10.10? Cos it will look as if the clock or watch is smiling :) not sure if what I heard is true but thought that was interesting :)

"Help me! Help me! I'm being tied to the chair!"





This is the picture I saw in the magazine at the hotel. For a moment, I couldn't recognise it cos the one in the magazine looks much more magical (or probably with the help of photoshop). Due to the limitations of my camera, this is the best shot I can take.



This building houses a number of museums such as the Archeological Museum, the Cantonal Museum of Art, the Cantonal Natural History and Zoological Museum and the Cantonal and University Library.

A peep through the exhibits.

We took the pictures from outside the museums as they are not open...strange, I thought they should be open on Sats.

A tigress looking at a tiger hehe ;p The tiger looks so real huh?


An interesting exhibit - a clothed homo sapien and the polar bear ;p

We passed by a mini flea market and saw some children selling their home-baked cookies and cakes.

Lausanne Cathedral

Lausanne Cathedral is considered Switzerland's finest Gothic building, which was said to be on par with the greatest French Gothic architecture.



We were like 'wow....' when we reached the entrance of the cathedral. It felt so majestic and magnificent.

Look at the intricate carvings. Imagine the amount of work and effort put into building this cathedral.

Lausanne was one of the cities to institute a nightwatch to prevent the threat of fires. Hence, every night from 10pm to 2am, the nightwatchmen stationed on the wall surrounding the town would call out to each other, ensuring that there were no fires or enemies approaching.

The cathedral nightwatch was the most important where every night, the watchman would walk up the 153 stairs to the top of the tower and call out to the 4 directions "C'est le guet; il a sonné l'heure." (meaning "This is the nightwatch; the hour has struck."

Interestingly, Lausanne is the only city in Europe to continue this tradition till now. Imagine the shock sometimes people will get when they call out and I suppose the watchman must be a very fit fella...153 stairs every night...










In 1536, the Reformation and Bernese conquest stripped Lausanne Cathedral of its screens, altars, statues and paintings. The Golden Virgin statue was melted into coins, the other items were taken over to Bern, preserved in a museum.

Even thou this church took about a century to construct starting from 1175, it went into its restoration work in the 19th centure and is still on-going when we were there.



Took a quick lunch back at Ouchy before we head back to Zurich.

Hey, a bird nesting at the back of a boat :)

As you can see, we can't really eat in peace here with the sparrows, pigeons and crows around. The sparrows here were more 'hiong' than those in Zurich.

See how this naughty one trying to peck at my food when I'm not noticing?

Fortunately we have some bread to distract them away from our pizzas :)

And I realised that pigeons can be quite slow in fighting for food and they aren't as aggressive as the sparrows. But it's interesting to note that the moment they sense the presence of crows, these sparrows would all disappear. Ok, enough of my bird talk and time to upload the last portion of the trip which was unplanned - Fribourg.