inside my sparkilicious world
I guess this is it… Another chapter closed. I’m now no longer an expat wife , back to being an ordinary gal in search of another role.
Our life in Geneva can be summed up in the 300 odd posts that I’ve written during our stay. I had planned to write more but it’s been a whirlwind of activity here.. Will share more but first up> got a plane to catch!
Tata and see ya all in Singers!
xx: Lady J’s last sign-off in CH
I’ve been really sick the past couple of days. I guess the insane amount of traveling coupled with the crazy winter temperatures has taken a toll on me. It started off with a cold which I tried to suppress it by self-medicating (Clarinese and Actified were supposed to work). Guess, that didn’t work and I got even sicker.
If this happened in Singapore, I would have gone to the nearest clinic to seek medical attention. I would have gotten my meds; maybe some antibiotics and possibly after a day or 2 of bed rest, I would have somewhat recovered. But because I’m in Geneva where I speak absolutely no French, add to that a really bad experience the last time the Man and I got really ill from the food poisoning with no clue how to get a doctor to save our lives, I really hate to fall ill here.
You see in Geneva, I’ve been told that in order to see a doctor, you first have to make an appointment. You do not go unannounced to the clinic and ‘demand’ to see a doctor for they will just send you back. They may make an exception to see you if you are really, really sick but you still have to call and make the appointment on the very day that you wish to see a doctor. If you ask me, too much hassle and things to do just to see a doctor. This is why I often joked that I would have recovered by the time I secure the appointment to see the doctor (sometimes the wait-list could be about a week).
But the sniffles showed no signs of receding and with our impending move plus a farewell party, the Man insisted that I see a doctor fast, get the meds and recover. So off to my friend, E, I went to ask for her help. Since it was ‘sort of a medical emergency’, we decided to call a doctor to come to my place to see me instead – a house-call. The Little Style Princess helped make the call (since she could speak fluent French) and some 2 hours later, the doctor finally arrived at my place.
The diagnosis after about 3 minutes of examination? Dr A pronounced that I’m down with a cold (Duh- I knew that all along). He said it’s common for people to come down with a cold at this time of the year. He asked what meds I’ve been taking and I showed him my arsenal of meds. He then told me to continue to take my cough syrup and proceeded to write me a prescription for a nasal spray and another type of cold medication. No antibiotics was needed. Darn! I really wanted those damn antibiotics.
The bill? I’m probably gonna be slapped with an estimated CHF 200 (SG 275) medical bill for the house-call made by the doctor. Even after all that, I don’t get instant relief for the doctor doesn’t give out the medication. All he did was to write a prescription and I had to make a separate trip to the pharmacy to get the medication. Payment for the medication is separate from the doctor’s fee. If you have insurance, all these would be reimbursed by your insurance company, you just have to make sure that you keep all the receipts to file the claims.
And this sums up my experience and my not-so-stellar review of the healthcare system in Geneva. Having said that, my friend L over at the Swiss Watch Blog had a far better and positive experience of the medical system in Geneva. Read all about her experiences here and here.
Why it’s just us masking our identity and fooling around during the Carnivale de Venezia! ;p
We were in Paris over the weekend to celebrate the Man’s birthday. It was supposed to be magical and great but it didn’t turn out oh-so-well. We took a train from Geneva to Paris each carrying our own luggage. In Paris when we were taking the Metro to head to our hotel, we got sandwiched by 2 men in the train. Didn’t really suspect a thing when it was our stop and one of them stopped the Man from getting out. I kept pushing the other one because he was blocking my way. Eventually, the first one stepped aside and let the Man out. When we got off, we were peeved at the behaviour of the 2 men. Strange!
It was upon checking into the hotel that the Man realised that his money was gone. Le sigh.. what a way to start the trip but I guess if we looked on the bright side, at least it was just the money that was lost and not the entire wallet. I guess it would be a bigger nightmare trying to cancel the cards.
So we spent the remainder of Friday the 13th at the Police Station making a report. Can you believe that this entire incident took place for like less than 30 seconds? The Man didn’t even feel the stupid pickpocket’s hand reaching into his pocket to take his money. Sigh!
So after many a tumble, I finally managed to succeed in doing my little ‘S-curves’ on the bunny slope in Samoëns. Yay!!! If you are interested in viewing my little feat, here it is…
Towards the end of the video, the Man speaks.. telling me to ‘Bend lower’! I guess that’s my problem! I don’t bend low enough when maneuvering the turns… gotta make a conscious effort now.
And here’s another vid that we took of the Style Princess and her brother. They are so good on the slopes and often have to wait for me as I struggle to keep up with them.. hehe.
We’re off to check out La Clusaz tomorrow with our other friends. Wish me luck!
Keeping warm during Winter is such a ‘mind-boggling’ affair. The luggage often feels a lot heavier because of all the extra chunky knits that I have to bring in order to keep warm. Let’s not talk about the footwear.. gone are the days where I can stuff a couple of ballet pumps into the luggage and get away by telling the Man that I really needed them shoes to match with Outfit X,Y,Z!
I’ve since learnt that footwear for the Winter goes beyond just boots. I thought owning a pair of knee-high boots would see me through the season. I was wrong of course! One will need different type of boots to suit different occasions, temperatures and climates. My original plan on relying on my trusty UGG boots was warped when I fell on my butt while walking on the icy roads. Unfortunately, those boots don’t come with the best grip for icy conditions.
So upon the recommendation of my little Style Princess, I’ve gone to invest in one of these Moon Boots for the season. Got them right at the beginning of the Winter/Snow season so that I can maximise them to the fullest while we are up in the mountains. My initial thoughts on them were ‘Who wears these huge boots trudging around town?’ I guess I had to eat my words because I became one of them trudging along in these bulky boots meant for the snow. Thankfully, I got one of the models that were streamlined for contemporary use in the city while keeping my feet snuggly warm.
Definitely the best buy for the season for it not only keeps the toes snug and warm but also dry from the slushy snow. They are my default foot-wear for the mountains now, guess I don’t need any other pair of boots for now.
Joyuex Noel everyone from us to you over here in Zermatt!
I was all excited about snowboarding this winter as we spend our final months as expats in Geneva. The Man had lined up about 5 weekends snowboarding and I thought ‘Cool.. After close to 5 years of boarding, I should be pretty okay at this!’
Guess I was wrong! I fell flat on my face and bum a couple of times today. I could only manage 2 runs today while back in Japan, I could at least do a couple of good runs. My confidence and my face took to a beating as the snow blasted down on me showing me no mercy.
But I picked myself up and made my way down the mountains. I guess it’s a tough afternoon but hopefully it will get better!
So wish me luck tomorrow on the slopes! 
And to all of you, wishing you all Happy Holidays! Have a great Christmas celebrating with loved ones and friends!
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