Cross Country skiing instead of Ice Skating...

We ended up no going ice skating... the lake wasn't all that frozen! We opted for cross country skiing with the family instead. I didn't take pictures of us: we were too busy trying to get back in the groove. It's a tough sport!

But this morning, there was a cross country race just a few miles from the family chalet. Here is a pic.

Ice Skating anyone?

I like Fridays... everyone at work talk about theirs plans for the week end. Here is an email that we all got at work today coming from one of our coworkers. He had included the picture above.

"Dear all,
If you don’t know what to do during your weekend and want to leave the city, you can enjoy the Lac de Joux on the ice. From this week we are allowed to access the lake, but please follow the flag on the lake to be on safe place.
Enjoy your weekend AA."

What a great idea! The lake he's referring to is close by. I want to skate on a lake... I've never done it. We just might have found a great outing for the week end.

Whatever you do, have a good weekend everyone!

Alinghi 5 - Nyon

Close to the castle of Nyon, half way between Geneva and Lausanne, there is a Museum dedicated to Lake Geneva and for a couple of months there is a small exhibition about Alinghi 5. Last week we went to listen to Pierre-Yves Jorand who is Swiss and coach of the sailing team. He got somewhat technical and I won't bore you with the details.

This summer Alinghi got his catamaran on the water on lake Geneva. It was so big I could see it from the office. A few days later, we saw a huge helicopter coming from Russia to pick the boat up and drag it down (over the Alps) to the sea where they tested it for a couple of months. Next month, this 90 foot monster will race against the American monster (Oracle) in Valencia during the America's Cup.

This is a good example of what the swiss are capable of. Switzerland is a mixture of keeping old traditions alive, surprising us on how conservative they can be. And in parallel, they put their mind and money to work and come out with the latest and greatest when it comes down to technology, art, etc.

Time to book your vacation for this spring/summer...

Come and visit us!

Movie: Coco & Igor

Our first movie of the year was Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky. You can find a review here. I think I enjoyed it more than the previous Coco before Chanel. I loved the cinematography, the wardrobe, the acting, and the music.

Berne. Giovanni Giacometti.

Yesterday, we drove to Berne (an hour from Lausanne). It's fun to go just 100 kms from home, whithout crossing a border, and be in a place where people talk a foreign language (german).

One thing with Switzerland that I have hard to adjust to is the opening hours for stores and public places. Especially on Saturdays. Sleeping in on Saturday is not an option or you can get frustrated really quick...

We got to Berne around 2.30pm. Found the art museum to see a Giovanni Giacometti's exhibit that Sam was interested in. Giovanni Giacometti is Diego's father. Above is the painting I liked the most from the exhibition.

We spent a couple of hours to discover Giacometti and take a quick look at the permanent collection of this great museum. Next thing I know, we get out of the museum when it closes - 5pm - to find out that everything else in town is closed as well. It's freezing cold, dark and shopping is not an option. So much for visiting Berne!

This is Berne after 5pm on a Saturday...

Good Reads 2009

Since this is my first post of 2010, I wish you all a Happy New Year. If I had to recommend one book out of the list I read in 2009, it would be What I loved... (by Siri Husvelt).

2009

Dans ces bras la. Camille Laurens YY

L'echappee belle. Anna Gavalda. YYY

Madrid, cette annee-la. Daniel Chavarria.Y

A flat in New York, Jane Smiley Y

Rendez vous sur le Lac. Cathy Ytak

What I loved... Siri Husvelt YYYY

Changing places. David Lodge.YYY

Battements d'ailes. Milena Agus YY

Mal de pierres. Milena Agus YYYY

Une vie francaise. Jean Paul Dubois. YY

Le rapport de Brodereck. Philippe Claudel YYYY

L'aube, le soir ou la nuit. Yasmina RezaYY

Un romman russe. Emmanuel Carrere.Y

La vie devant soi. Romain Gary YYY

Les adieux a la reine. Chantal Thomas YYY

L'adversaire. Emmanuel Carrere.Y

Firmin. Sam Savage Y

Un brillant avenir. Catherine Cusset YYY

Journal d'un cycle. New York. Catherine Cusset. Y

No et moi. Delphine de Vigan YY

Soie. Alessandro Baricco YYY

L'elegance du Herisson. Muriel Barbery YYY

Girl with a pearl earring. Tracy Chevalier. YYY

Trilogie Fabio Montale. Jean-Claude Izzo. YY

Man on Wire. Philippe Petit.

To reach the clouds. Philippe Petit.

Desert Solitaire. Edward Abbey.YYY

Persepolis. Marjane Satrapi.YY