Two-fer

Oh hi.  Remember me?  Sorry for the slow posting, but I'm sure you guys have figured out that I suck at blogging right now.  My bad.  Anyway.. let's catch up a bit.  Basically my life right now consists of working during the week and skiing on the weekend.  Not bad!

Remember when I went hiking in Wengen at the end of the summer?  Earlier this month, I returned to that same area to do some skiing with Emily!  We stayed in Grindelwald, which is a different town than Wengen, but it's in the same general Jungfrau region.  I actually ended up in Wengen for après ski on Saturday night!  It was fun to see the mountains from a completely different view point this time.  And of course, always good to spend time with friends :)

Other than that, the past week at work was pretty busy, as is typical for January.  But luckily, we all had something to look forward to!  A team weekend of skiing in Verbier!  This was my first time in Verbier, but it has definitely been on my list of places to visit since everyone raves about it.

All in all, it was a great weekend.  The skiing in Verbier is tough, but it was really nice as well.  We were really lucky with the weather, and I can definitely see why so many people love Verbier.

This week is another big week at work, but unfortunately, I am sick :(  I may have blogged about this before, but I definitely think that I get sick way more often living in Geneva than I ever have before.  I'm loading up on liquids, vitamins, and meds now, so hopefully I am back to normal soon!

Hope all of you who got snow are staying warm and safe.  Have a good week everyone!

In the kitchen

Hi friends!  As previously mentioned, this year I'd like to spend more time in the kitchen cooking.  It's kind of a two-birds-one-stone deal.. not only does cooking for yourself save you money, it can also help ensure that you are eating healthy meals!  Plus, I enjoy cooking, so it's a good way to unwind, particularly when life outside the kitchen gets stressful.

In an effort to get the new year started off right, I spent a  lot of time in the kitchen last weekend!  Since I am pretty busy at work during the first few months of the year, I don't normally have tons of time to do anything elaborate during the week (if I manage to get groceries, I am happy), so I was happy to have a couple of days to relax and spend time by the stove.  Here is what I made!

Herby Barley Salad with Butter-Basted Mushrooms - anyone who has been to my apartment knows that I have a special love for grains.  Barley is no exception, and of course, mushrooms are absolutely my jam.  This simple salad was super delicious and came together in no time, so I will definitely be making it again!

Marcella Hazan's Rice and Smothered Cabbage Soup - this simple and delicious soup was the perfect thing to eat on a dreary Sunday afternoon.  The smothered cabbage takes a while to make, but it's totally worth it.

I also made a Kale Caesar salad with a Greek yogurt based dressing that I saw on Instagram.  The recipe was a bit heavy on the garlic, but otherwise super yummy and easy.

Do you guys care about what I eat?

Looking ahead

More New Year's stuff, even though it is well into January already!

Of course, I made some resolutions this year, and while I won't share each and every one publicly for all the internet to see, I did want to document some of the general themes that I want to focus on in 2016.  Hopefully writing them down here in a public space will help me actually stick to them a bit better this year!

Exercise more - pretty self explanatory.  I have a few metrics in mind, and I'd also like to get back on the running train, and maybe do a spring or fall race?

Eat healthfully - generally, I am a pretty healthy eater, but this year I would also like to spend more time cooking for myself.  Cooking at home is definitely the easiest way to ensure healthy eating, since you control all the ingredients, and besides - I love to cook!  I'm hoping to also start trying out more recipes this year, since I have the tendency to fall into some ruts.

Travel - as you may recall, I was feeling a bit weary after my summer travel blitz.  In 2016, of course I want to continue to explore, but I want to do it in a more manageable way, so that I don't wear myself out.  I'd also like to make sure I'm spending more time exploring Switzerland itself!

Financial - it seems like every year, one of my goals is to be more financially disciplined.  Blah.

Learn - I've turned into a fairly voracious reader.  (People often ask me when I find the time to read - the answer: on planes!)  Between book club and my own personal leisure, I definitely read my share of easy fiction, so in 2016, I want to make sure that I read at least ten non-fiction books.

Relationships - of course, I can't forget about my loved ones.  Every year I hope that I can grow and nurture important relationships with friends, both old and new.  Even though I live far away from many of the people in my life, it's easier than ever to stay in touch with FaceTime, What's App, even regular old email!

Hope all of you are starting 2016 happy and healthy.  Best wishes in the new year!

Happy new year!

Per usual, I am writing my New Years post a full week and a half into the new year.  Sigh.  Better late than never right?  For the holidays, I spent two full weeks in the US, and it was bliss.  Like last year, I spent a week in Tampa before heading out to Colorado to hang out at the Frozen Tundra Chalet!  Fun times with family, friends, and delicious food.

Of course, no trip to Tampa is complete without the Yummy House's salt and pepper tofu.  This is the only thing I am sure to eat every single time I'm home, so if you don't know - now you know!

Christmas Eve at the Yummy House also featured a Dim Sum cart!

Per usual, Nancy Lin and I went to FBCTT for the Christmas Eve service.  This year's theme was "A Charlie Brown Christmas".  This is obviously not-so-traditional, and while I've kind of ended up hating the service the past couple of years, I simply can't bear to go to Christmas Eve service anywhere else.  There's just something about home (church), you know?  Though I will say that I literally recognize nearly zero faces anymore :(

Entrance to the fellowship hall.  Obviously.

We had a hot pot feast at home for Christmas dinner!  Though it was just the two of us, it was actually a great Christmas.  Hot pot is a meal that I always love most with my mom, and we hadn't had it together in years, so it was a nice little celebration meal.

The remaining days I was in Tampa after Christmas were a whirlwind of shopping, eating, and drinking.  Catching up with friends in all corners of the city, requisite re-stocking of Tide Pods etc, and returning all the online shopping rejects basically dominated my days.  Always fun to see friends (and their growing kids!) and catch up :)

Datz!!!

Of course, you must get the Bloody Mary

We take the best pictures

Temple Terrace forever

Love these girls!

Then it was off to Denver to spend a week skiing Winter Park!  After the trip, I think I have officially graduated past novice skier - woohoo!  There was plenty of snow (unlike in Europe), and the crew was so fun to hang out with, of course.  Me, Brian, and Greg drove back to Denver a night early and caught the end of the Seahawks win at a sports bar before a quick trip to REI.  The best of America!

I miss atmosphere like this

REI!

Going home is always such a nice treat.  US (doesn't it seem like longer?), the visits home are always so nice.  Christmas time is also a fun time to be in Tampa because any out-of-towners are usually home too, so it's a good chance to see everyone all at once.  I've said it before, but I am really so very thankful for the community that I grew up in.  I feel so lucky that I have so many friends that I have known since childhood.  Miss you all.  Til next time!

Looking back

Hi friends - happy holidays!  I'm in the midst of packing up for my trip home, and I've been thinking a lot about the upcoming new year, as well as looking back at the the past 12 months.  I did a Year in Review post when I hit my one-year anniversary in Switzerland, and obviously most of that is relevant to 2015, but I wanted to do something similar to what I did in 2012 and recap the ups and downs of the calendar year.  So here we go:

Favorite memories of 2015
Visiting Russia alone in winter
All the visitors (especially Nancy Lin!)
Finishing the Geneva Half Marathon feeling great
Prague food tour (that whole weekend, really)
San Francisco
A Saturday afternoon in Old Town

Not so favorite memories of 2015
A stressful last week of March
A stressful April 1 and 2
Some unexpected work projects in May
Feeling exhausted by the end of summer
Feeling homesick

The highs definitely outweighed the lows this past year, so I can't really complain.  Life has been good lately, and I'm hoping that trend continues into the next twelve months!

Season two

Hello all.  It is my last week of work before the holidays, and I am really feeling ready for a break!  I fly home to Tampa a week from today (yay), and I can't wait.  I'll be spending the week of Christmas in Florida.  I'm looking forward to hot pot at home with Nancy Lin, salt & peper tofu at the Yummy House, a Cuban sandwich, a Publix sub, running on Bayshore Blvd, and of course, seeing as many friends as possible!

Then I'll be heading to Colorado to celebrate New Years at the Frozen Tundra Chalet with Stephanie and the gang!  This will be my fourth NYE spent with Stephanie, Lena, and Cindy (see 2014, 2013, and 2012), and this is our first return trip to the FTC for NYE.  You may recall that last year, I had just began to learn to ski - with mild success.  This year, I'm looking forward to getting a lot better on the slopes, and I'm curious to test out my skills in Winter Park!

I've already kicked off my second season of skiing earlier this month.  The ski club that I am in does an opening trip to Zermatt every year, and since I had such a great time in Zermatt last season, I was happy to return!

We rode the bus up on Friday night, and after a late dinner, we called it a night pretty early because we wanted to wake up early to get on the lifts!  It was a beautiful day in Zermatt on Saturday, and ski buddy Becca and I spent the day cruising around the blue slopes shaking off the cobwebs.  There wasn't a ton of snow, so not all the runs and lifts were open, but it was plenty to keep us entertained for the day.

There were a few points where the visibility was not so good, but we managed to navigate through every run pretty successfully.  We even managed to make it down two reds!!

After a long day of skiing, you do shot-skis.

On Sunday, Becca and I tackled the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, which is basically skiing on a glacier.  Fun right?  The only way down from the top is a series of reds, so we were a bit nervous going into it, but we took our time and made it down without any problems!  We both actually felt like it was not at all as bad as we had anticipated.  So proud!

And after the glacier, I treated myself to a giant rosti for lunch :)

This coming weekend, I am heading over to Chamonix, France.  So far, the snow conditions don't look great, but even if there isn't much skiing to be done, I'm excited to get to look around the town a bit more!  Since Chamonix is only about an hour away from Geneva, it is a really popular place to go, but since I don't have a car, I haven't really had the chance to spend much time there, so I'm looking forward to seeing what all the fuss is about.

Other than that, I'm basically just counting down until Florida and frantically online shopping.  The weekend can't come soon enough!

Safe and sound

Hi everyone - right now, Geneva is on a heightened terror alert, but I am safe and sound at Zach and Courtney's apartment.  Don't worry!