Being a responsible Swiss citizen and taking good health very seriously, today I went to the doctor to get the second of my FSME shots (impfung). This is the subject of a vigorous promotion in medical practices and what you should do if you take to the woods frequently. There are believe it or not nasties in Switzerland ... and ticks are among these and increasing. Apparently it's all the Russians fault. But of course I would rather not have meningacoccal disease no matter where it comes from.
I jumped up after having my jab upon which my delightful doctor - whose English is about a million times better than my German - declared "Now you are safe for sex". Oh my ears and my whiskers, I thought - what was that injection I just had. I responded, "So that was my FSME jab". "Yes," she said, "and you come back for the booster in six months". Upon which I realised that I was safe for sechs monate! Phew! I shall have to be careful about my sexes in future!
The world goes green
Musing on other lines I read a wonderful passage in Thomas Hardy's "Under the greenwood tree" recently about spring which was along the lines of one day you wake up and the world has turned green overnight. That was just exactly what happened on Saturday. We've been watching the spring leaves appearing gradually and sporadically in patches. But when we woke on Saturday to perfect blue skies and the now familiar lyrical birdsong of the northern hemisphere, the woods had literally turned completely bright, translucent spring green. It is the most perfect colour.
And everyone was out and about enjoying the sun ... and turning bright pink from overexposure of course. I've just been out and bought factor 50 particularly for Richard because everywhere there are tables on pavements and in courtyards tempting you to tarry and take a refreshing brew of some kind and positioned exactly so as to maximise complete exposure to the benefits of vitamin D. Very important after being covered up from head to toe for so long.
We sat at the top of our hill on a rustic wooden bench on Saturday evening with a bottle of Spanish cava overlooking a green grassy field dotted with yellow dandelion flowers and with a barn in the middle distance. It was utterly tranquil and quiet, quite literally the only sounds were the distant Saturday evening church bells, eventide birdsong and then in due course the click clack of a pair of Nordic walkers coming towards us. We are so enjoying the stillness here - very good at our time of life. Sydney has become quite frantic and you always seem to be rushing towards some kind of EXPERIENCE. Here we can just "be" at the weekend and that is good for the soul.
Doggy dos
One of my American friends here has this concern that dogs and children have miserable lives in Switzerland. They are almost without exception well behaved. When a dog bounded up to us barking in the country recently while we were out walking, the dog's Dad came up and apologised on the dog's behalf, explaining that he we just a puppy still in spite of his size.
Children sit in their seats on the train and play with their travel toys and eat their snacks from their lunch boxes in an orderly fashion rather than bouncing around and running up and down aisles. Typically their parents sit and talk to them - at least one parent per child is the norm.
I have never seen a dog obedience course but they MUST be everywhere - like the dogs. Walking home from the bus the other night, I might have got my answer. Coming towards me was a woman leading a small black dog (could have been a baby Doberman but it was definitely no more than adolescent). It badly wanted to play so it had the leash in its mouth and kept on tugging at it as it walked (or rather was pulled along without any pauses). I looked at the dog and smiled up at the woman. Her face stony, she kept on walking purposefully ahead and pulling the dog along. Absolute clarity of message about who was in control. Absolute consistency. No fooling about while out for the daily poo run.
Next day I sat on a tram behind a woman taking her cat to the vet in plastic cat-to-the-vet carrier. She sat talking in a quiet voice to the cat throughout the journey to keep it calm - and it was - totally. I bet you the woman with the dog got home and hugged it and played with it just like anyone else - they love dogs really. BUT for the Swiss generally, in public you behave politely and are considerate of other people - full stop.
Except on Feiertage (holiday days) when you are allowed to misbehave. Today is one - May 1 and Ascension day coincide and so we if we make more noise than usual and be more boisterous it will be tolerated. YIPPEE!!!
I jumped up after having my jab upon which my delightful doctor - whose English is about a million times better than my German - declared "Now you are safe for sex". Oh my ears and my whiskers, I thought - what was that injection I just had. I responded, "So that was my FSME jab". "Yes," she said, "and you come back for the booster in six months". Upon which I realised that I was safe for sechs monate! Phew! I shall have to be careful about my sexes in future!
The world goes green
Musing on other lines I read a wonderful passage in Thomas Hardy's "Under the greenwood tree" recently about spring which was along the lines of one day you wake up and the world has turned green overnight. That was just exactly what happened on Saturday. We've been watching the spring leaves appearing gradually and sporadically in patches. But when we woke on Saturday to perfect blue skies and the now familiar lyrical birdsong of the northern hemisphere, the woods had literally turned completely bright, translucent spring green. It is the most perfect colour.
And everyone was out and about enjoying the sun ... and turning bright pink from overexposure of course. I've just been out and bought factor 50 particularly for Richard because everywhere there are tables on pavements and in courtyards tempting you to tarry and take a refreshing brew of some kind and positioned exactly so as to maximise complete exposure to the benefits of vitamin D. Very important after being covered up from head to toe for so long.
We sat at the top of our hill on a rustic wooden bench on Saturday evening with a bottle of Spanish cava overlooking a green grassy field dotted with yellow dandelion flowers and with a barn in the middle distance. It was utterly tranquil and quiet, quite literally the only sounds were the distant Saturday evening church bells, eventide birdsong and then in due course the click clack of a pair of Nordic walkers coming towards us. We are so enjoying the stillness here - very good at our time of life. Sydney has become quite frantic and you always seem to be rushing towards some kind of EXPERIENCE. Here we can just "be" at the weekend and that is good for the soul.
Doggy dos
One of my American friends here has this concern that dogs and children have miserable lives in Switzerland. They are almost without exception well behaved. When a dog bounded up to us barking in the country recently while we were out walking, the dog's Dad came up and apologised on the dog's behalf, explaining that he we just a puppy still in spite of his size.
Children sit in their seats on the train and play with their travel toys and eat their snacks from their lunch boxes in an orderly fashion rather than bouncing around and running up and down aisles. Typically their parents sit and talk to them - at least one parent per child is the norm.
I have never seen a dog obedience course but they MUST be everywhere - like the dogs. Walking home from the bus the other night, I might have got my answer. Coming towards me was a woman leading a small black dog (could have been a baby Doberman but it was definitely no more than adolescent). It badly wanted to play so it had the leash in its mouth and kept on tugging at it as it walked (or rather was pulled along without any pauses). I looked at the dog and smiled up at the woman. Her face stony, she kept on walking purposefully ahead and pulling the dog along. Absolute clarity of message about who was in control. Absolute consistency. No fooling about while out for the daily poo run.
Next day I sat on a tram behind a woman taking her cat to the vet in plastic cat-to-the-vet carrier. She sat talking in a quiet voice to the cat throughout the journey to keep it calm - and it was - totally. I bet you the woman with the dog got home and hugged it and played with it just like anyone else - they love dogs really. BUT for the Swiss generally, in public you behave politely and are considerate of other people - full stop.
Except on Feiertage (holiday days) when you are allowed to misbehave. Today is one - May 1 and Ascension day coincide and so we if we make more noise than usual and be more boisterous it will be tolerated. YIPPEE!!!
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