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.
Yup, I’m having my fair share of bad hair days here in Geneva. So for a quick fix that I’ve been wanting to try for the longest time, I pulled out my twilly and used it as a head-scarf. Kind of a fun look for a casual afternoon out about town.
Things are generally more expensive in Geneva. A trim at a no-frills salon could easily set you back about CHF 90 (SG 120). I haven’t quite had the guts to head to a salon yet to have my hair trimmed after hearing horror stories from friends who had not so-a-pleasant experience with the hair-dresser plus not being able to speak any ounce of French which has become a disadvantage in my case. But I couldn’t resist an offer on Buy Club Geneva for a pampering hair styling package (valued at CHF 189) for CHF 69, I decided to take my chances. Don’t expect drastic changes to the hairstyle, probably just a cut on the fringe. 
Can’t wait to head back to Singapore to get a proper cut, I’ve been missing my bob-do for a while now.
What are your plans for the weekend? Well, we have made foodie plans for the weekend and I’m trying my darnest not to fall sick so as to enjoy the food. Wish me luck and Bon Weekend to you all!
In this month’s edition of Eat, Shop, Play, Love, I talk about shopping! You’ve heard me gripe too often here on this blog how expensive things are in Switzerland. But you know what? It is possible to get my retail therapy fix for this shopaholic. There are always those End-Season-Sales. The trick is to hold out and wait till the very tail-end of the sales and who knows you just might scored some superb deals. I know I did..Tops from Zara for CHF 14.95 (SG 20.20) and Diesel/ G-star jeans for CHF 50 (SG 67.60). Pretty cool huh?
And when it gets too expensive to indulge in my fave activity, what do I do? I go check out the second-hand shops (brocante) as there are commonly known here. Hey, one man’s trash could be another man’s treasure and you’ll never know what you can get. Remember some of my prized possessions from my previous thrifting expedition?
Join me over here to learn more about what I feel about buying second-hand.
Now this is one vintage type-writer that I wish I could purchase but I know it would probably not gain the Man’s approval.
I thought some of these vintage cases could possibly work as a bedside table in the guest-room back home too. It just needs a little dusting, cleaning and viola.. a cool vintage home-decor piece.
And if you want to learn how you could furnish your apartment for less here in Geneva, drop by to Schwingen in Switzerland to find out more.
This weekend is going to be freezing as we’re expecting the Siberian winds to bring deep freeze here in Switzerland. The winds have caused havoc across most of Europe and reports suggested that because of this, temperatures in Switzerland could drop to -30 degree Celsius at night this weekend.
The big chill will hit all major cities – Geneva, Lausanne, Zurich, Bern and Basel. The Siberian winds are expected to peak on Friday and Saturday with temperatures of about -8 to -11 to be expected during the day.
What??? That’s way too cold for me!!! Yikes!!!! Running around town has been quite a challenge because of these wind chills. I’m still trying to be the hero, wearing only 3 layers when I head out but from the looks of it, the layers will come on thick-and-furious come tomorrow if I still wanna feel my hands and feet. Walking around has also been quite a difficult task as the snow has turned into ice and it’s really easy to slip if your shoes do not have sufficient grip.
I thought the weather was bad on Monday because of the snow but I guess the worst is yet to come. Looks like I will probably be stuck indoors and under the covers the entire weekend.
While sightseeing is the activity that you want to indulge in most in Istanbul, I say it’s worth foregoing the sights for just 1-2 hours and surrender your body to a steamy hamam experience.
What’s the concept? The idea of the steam bath was passed from the Romans to the Byzantines and then on to the Turks who named it the hamam. This concept was later exported throughout the world and it’s commonly known as ‘Turkish Bath’. Until recent decades, many Istanbul homes didn’t have bathroom facilities and due to Islam’s emphasis on personal cleanliness, the community relied on hundreds of hamams that were constructed throughout the city. Now that most people have bathrooms in Istanbul, hamams are not as popular as before but some have gone on to become popular tourist attractions.
Which ones to visit? According to our trusty Lonely Planet guidebook, the city’s hamams are enormous. There are some where you may come out dirtier than you went in (eew… definitely don’t want that to happen to us) while others are plain and clean but servicing a local clientele. The book recommended two popular hamams - Cağaloğlu Hamam (incidentally, it made to the list of 1000 places to see before you die. Darn, I should have done my homework beforehand!) and Çemberlitaş Hamam.
We walked pass the later hamam and the exterior kinda freaked me out, was worried about the ‘germs’. So we ran off and asked our concierge for help and he recommended the recently renovated and posh Ayasofya Hurrem Sultan Bath. We went with his suggestion instead for we thought it would be a safer bet.
Photo credit: Aya Sofya Hurren Sultan Hamam
What to expect at a Turkish bath? I honestly had no clue. I knew that it involves a thorough scrub-down and one would emerge out of the bath with baby-soft skin. I’ve also heard that the scrubbing process might involve a little screaming if your masseur choose to be hard-handed. Sounds pretty scary if you ask me. Armed with little knowledge and expectations, we set for our very first Hamam experience.
*Spoiler alert: Read only if you wish to know what happens under the steam (hehe) Continue reading ‘My first Turkish Bath!’
I’m having a moment! A wardrobe crisis moment and I really need help.. FAST!
Okay, so we’re going to be heading to Venice mid February to witness one of Venice’s largest festival – Carnevale di Venezia. How did this come about? The Carnival originally started as a time for celebration and expression between the classes where wearing of masks are used to hide any form of identity between social classes. Today, the carnival is used to bring back the history and culture of Venice and approximately 30,000 visitors come to Venice each day for the activities centered around the Carnival.
So, the invite for the dinner that we’re attending in Venice states : Costume. It means this:
I was pretty cool about this initially thinking that what better way to soak in the festivities than to don the traditional costume. But as the email thread flowed and we realised that it would cost us about 400 EUR and above to rent a pretty decent costume, that’s when I started to panic. I thought that’s kinda hefty for an evening affair. Some of the group checked and if we were to purchase the costume, it can cost anywhere between 200 EUR and above.
So, I’m in a wardrobe dilemma stuck in between wondering whether I should purchase a rather affordable traditional Venetian costume (then worry about storing it back in SG) OR buying a formal evening gown that I can wear over and over again. Oh and the rental or purchase of the traditional costume doesn’t include the mask so we’ll need to buy those as well. What do you think?
I had grand plans of trying to get away with the dress-code by wearing one for the four cocktail dresses that I brought from Singapore to Geneva. But I’m starting to think that I will look severely under-dressed for the occasion.
Watch this space as I frantically go in search for the costume or the dress. And if you are reading this and by any chance will be attending the Carnival of Venice, I would be ever-so-grateful if you knew of any places/sites to recommend the rental of the costumes. Many thanks in advance!
So now the question, to RENT or BUY?
eat | travel | style & everything in between
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