What the doctor ordered

Hi all and happy Sunday!  I've been in Geneva all weekend, doing lots of relaxing and getting some rest for both my mind and my ankle.  My ankle feels ok - still a bit tender, but I'm on the mend.  Since there was definitely no skiing on my agenda for the weekend, I enjoyed a great weekend with friends in Geneva including a game night, a big dinner out, time in the sunshine, and plenty of time cooking.  It was bliss :)

Scrambled eggs, turmeric latte, and fresh flowers to start the day :) 

Homemade ricotta gnocchi!  Honestly, I couldn't believe how easy this was!

Sunny Sunday by the lake

On Estonia

Hello all!  How is everyone?  I am currently sitting in my apartment with my feet propped up.  I'm not exactly relaxing... my right ankle is elevated because I fell skiing this weekend and injured it a bit :(  Just when I thought I was getting the hang of things!

So needless to say, my weekend was not the greatest, but aside from that, life has been pretty standard.  Just lots of work.  This past week, I made (what I hope is) my final trip to Tallinn this year! I went there just after International Women's Day, and I was surprised to see lots of cake and flowers in the office!  My colleagues told me that International Women's Day is quite the ordeal in Russian culture, which has had a heavy influence on Estonia.  Accordingly, all the guys in Estonia bring flowers and treats for the female colleagues on this day.

When I mentioned that this is not really a big deal in Geneva, my co-workers surprised me by buying me flowers and chocolates over lunch break!  How sweet :)

Ignore my tired face.  Seriously, I have at least three people a week tell me I look tired.  Yeah, I am tired.  What do you want me to do about it?!

After having been to Tallinn several times since I moved to Geneva 1.5 years ago, here are my thoughts:

They are just so nice.

I love the brown bread.

I love having smoked fish for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

The idea of Asian food is super funny.

They can really drink a lot.

The women I work with are great examples of how to be stylish in the cold weather when you have to walk a lot.

Other random travel notes from the week -

I have confirmed my loathing of Frankfurt airport.  I used to think this was such a great airport, but honestly, it is just too damn big.  When I have to walk for 30 minutes in between gates, that is absurd.  And when I arrive at my gate to find that there is no lounge nearby, that is even more absurd.  #firstworldproblems

I have confirmed my love of the Brussels airport.  Even though I ended up accidentally knocking a bottle of water over into my laptop bag, I still love The Loft lounge at this airport.  Easy to get to, great food and drink selection, and plenty of outlets to charge electronics!

As you may have seen in my travel schedule, I have a trip to Tel Aviv planned in mid-May.  I am a little nervous.  I'll continue to monitor the situation, but to be fair, anything can happen anywhere, at any time.

The drive to Chamonix was particularly eventful this weekend.  Not only did we get stopped at the border, but I only had a photocopy of my passport as identification, and on top of that, the car details were not fully updated.  It is actually turning into quite the ordeal.  Sigh.

I have been nailing down all of my eating details for my upcoming trip to the US.  I am just so excited!  I'm planning on Bern's, Yummy House, Mexican food, and lots of other delicious favorites.  Hoping to also squeeze in some healthy eating and exercise too :)

Five: A random blog survey

Hello all!  Last week, my former Swiss running buddy Ashley wrote this post on her blog.  I really like random bits of info like this, so I decided to copy her!  My survey answers aren't as fun or cutely photographed, and I changed up the categories a bit, but maybe you guys will at least find it a little bit interesting?

Five Places I Want to Visit
Croatia (the last place left on my Swiss bucket list)
Japan (the last place left on my Singapore bucket list)
Montana
Patagonia
NYC (soon!)

Five Foods I Eat (Nearly) Every Day
Eggs
Coffee (does this count as a food?)
Yogurt
Cheese
Leaves of some sort

Five Talents I Wish I Had
Singing
Fixing things
Hand-eye coordination
Drawing
Styling myself more fashionably

Five (Mostly) Healthy Food Bloggers I Wish Would Cook for Me Everyday
Heidi Swanson
Tracy Benjamin
Deb Perelman
Kath Younger
Jen DeCurtins

Five Things I Wear Almost Everyday
My watch
Black Cole Haan flats
Deodorant
Jo Malone Mimosa & Cardamom Cologne
Contact lenses

Five Songs I Listen to on Repeat
Ride wit Me - Nelly
Valerie - Amy Winehouse
The Mother We Share - Chvrches
Wildest Dreams - Taylor Swift
It's My Life - Bon Jovi

Five Beauty Products I Use Everyday
Vaseline lip balm
Trish McEvoy blush
Mascara
Cerave moisturizer
Peter Thomas Roth CC cream

Five Podcasts I Subscribe to
The Economist All Audio
Slate Political Gabfest
NPR's Planet Money
NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour
Freakonomics

And again!

Man, these blog posts are becoming fewer and farther between huh?  Sorry about that.  I'm struggling to find a balance between multiple competing priorities these days :(

Anyway!

Apparently, the Interlaken area has become a favorite of mine.  This past weekend was "Friends Ski Weekend" in Grindelwald!  After the awesome fun we had at Mallory and Keith's Irish wedding, the gang from Zurich and I chose to meet in the middle for a weekend on the slopes.  And what a great time we had!!  We rented a big chalet for all of us and spent our team hanging out on the slopes, in the spa, and in the kitchen.  It was so great :)

This just makes me laugh.

Aside from that, it's more of the same, except for the notable (to me!) fact that I have actually gone running this week!  As I've mentioned several times before, I have really struggled with the motivation to hit the pavement, but apparently, March is when I will get back on board!  Hooray :)

Winter routine

Hi friends!  How is everyone?  I know my blogging has been infrequent (at best) lately, but thanks for continuing to check in!  Living and working in Switzerland, this time of year is very busy for me.  During the week, work is pretty demanding, and on the weekends, I try to spend my non-working time in the mountains skiing.  It doesn't leave a lot of free time for other endeavors, like blogging.  I guess we all make choices on how to prioritize our time, and for now, working and skiing are higher on the list than blogging.

A sunny day in Chamonix!

A snowy day in Chamonix

Sunrise in Tallinn

On top of that, my winter routine is fairly repetitive, so it hasn't felt like there has been a lot to write about!  I did go back up to Tallinn for a few days this past week, and happily, it wasn't as cold as I was expecting!  Interesting things I heard while in Estonia this week...

1)  One of my colleagues is very musically inclined.  When was talking about how he learned to play various instruments, one of the comments he said was, "well it was easy because I already knew the grammar".  I've never heard of "reading music" referred to as grammar, but it makes total sense, right?!

2)  One morning there were tons of little sandwiches all over the office.  Since it was well before lunchtime, I was curious why there were so many sandwiches everywhere.  "It must be someone's birthday."  Apparently, in Estonia, on your birthday, you bring sandwiches to the office to feed everyone.  (And in return, your co-workers are supposed to bring you presents.)

Little tartine in Tallinn.  Smoked fish!!

And finally, here are a slew of random photos of food that I have on my phone.  Because I am an Asian who takes photos of my food.  Obviously.

Shakshuka!

Shredded brussels sprouts!

This recipe

My favorite!

This recipe

Indian food yum!  (But not Dishoom ya'll...)

 

Veggie burger at MBC!

Snowy hello

Hi friends.  It is snowy and slushy in Geneva today.  Sort of represents the mood I've been in as of late.  Just blahhhhhhh.  Hope to snap out of it soon.  Enjoy the weekend all!

Per usual

Per usual.. I am behind in blogging.  Sorry guys.  This time of year is tough.  It is hard to sit down in front of the computer when I'm not at work.  I'd rather be sleeping.  Or skiing.  Or just staring at the ceiling.

Per usual, I am drinking a lot of coffee. 

Per usual, I am eating take-away dinners at work.

Per usual, I want pizza and wine by Friday evening.

Per usual, I should be eating more salads.