TRAVEL AND LIFESTYLE DIARIES

Our company’s European headquarters is about 15+ minutes by tram to Geneve city centre. Taking public transport like the tram is the best option in Geneva as it is free. You get a free tram ticket upon checking in at the hotel. So after work on a Friday, I went to the city centre together with my Egyptian colleague. He’s quite well travelled but it’s his first time in Geneve. I told him I am going to the city centre to shop and if he wants to come along I will buy him a drink in town. He obliged. We both had rose while enjoying Europe’s favourite pastime, people watching. I wanted to take more pictures of people, especially the well-dressed Swiss-French women but I got slightly distracted. A glass of wine peppered with a very interesting conversation has definitely won over my camera. Fotos here: Travel Period: September 2011

On our third night in Geneve, I, together with a few colleagues searched for a restaurant in the city that is not Italian. Swiss cuisine is like Dutch cuisine, they are not famous for it, except for the fondue of course which is best eaten after skiing. Because of this, the Swiss tend to embrace their neighbour’s gastronomic abilities, surprisingly not from the French but from the Italians. Geneva in my opinion is flooded with Italian restaurants and I am not exaggerating when I say flooded, because literally, in every corner, there is a restaurant that is serving Italian cuisine or related to Italian. We have had enough of Italian, and this time we were looking for something different. While walking on Rue de la Servette, we saw this Doner Kebab place called ‘Saveurs D’Orient’ located right across Lyon metro stop. Saveurs d'Orient Doner Kebab. The boys had another serving. It’s actually a very humble place, more like a cafeteria and they do not even accept cred...

The nearest café restaurant from the office in Geneve is selling some Toblerone. Nope they are not the usual chocolates that we see sold in the airports and grocery stores. They are ‘Toblerone Sandwiches’! This was my first time to see something like this so naturally I snapped a foto =). The Toblerone chocolate is melted inside the bread. Didn’t buy this for lunch though. I chose a green salad. Each day the café restaurant has a theme for the chef’s main course and during the week there was a day that they went local with the Swiss specialty, ‘Raclette’. I was quite tempted to take it but my Swiss colleague told me not to. He said its best to take them somewhere else. He mentioned the name of a restaurant that I could not remember. At the Movenpick Buffet Restaurant for lunch. It is usually 4 Swiss cheeses and they are melted. You can eat this (dip) with bread, thin slices of meat and vegetables (potatoes, pickled gherkins and silverskin onions). When eating r...

My first night in Geneve was quite uneventful except for the news that I received at the hotel reception: THEY FOUND MY BAG. I was ecstatic because I dreaded wearing the same clothes the next day. I already bought a few stuff at the nearby Coop store which I really regretted because it cost me a lot of money. Switzerland is not cheap. I do not like unnecessary spending. Anyway, I was so tired. My body has taken its toll from waking up at 3AM that morning, the nightmares at the airport, the long sessions I had during the day—all I really wanted was to lay on my bed and sleep early. Had dinner at the hotel and went straight to bed. Boring? Heh. So on the second evening I was a bit adventurous and joined a group of colleagues for dinner at Le Lacustre Restaurant in Geneve town center. For dinner I had Risotto ai Frutti di Mari, 4 stars out of 5. The wines here though are 5 stars, superb! Service as well is very good, the waiters are nice, attentive and accommodating. Le Lacustre Restaura...

The week in Geneve went rather quick. I was very busy; I was in a training and I had several meetings spread throughout the week as well. I have never really posted much about my work life in this blog which is a conscious decision by the way but while on the plane to Geneve, I thought of taking a foto of my daily work outfits, which is not as fashion forward as compared to outfits on other blogs out there. My work outfits are mainly business conservative. And because I have been busy throughout the week I only remembered to take a foto of my outfit on Friday, the last day. A colleague took a foto of me another day so I’ll wait for that and post soon. Last day work outfit. I go around at work, at my clients and business partners in similar business outfits. A bit boring but safe =), I try to liven up my outfits with colours sometimes. My flight, Amsterdam - Geneva was actually at 07:00 Monday. I drove to the airport very early that morning, however, I missed my exit because it wa...

My next agenda for the day is to visit the Old Town—Gamla Stan so I cross the bridge (Strombron) from Ostermalms District and I could not help but stop halfway of the journey to admire the beautiful views to Södra Blasieholmshamnen. The most popular resident of Södra Blasieholmshamnen is none other than the Stockholm National Museum. She is very impressive and very elegant. From the bridge where I stood there is a boulevard that connects to Gamla Stan Island and Strombron (the bridge) with a platform that juts out of the water. It´s a nice place to sit down here for a picnic or just to admire the lovely views to Södra Blasieholmshamnen. I joined the rest of the people and sat down for a bit. No need to hurry to Gamla Stan. It will not go away unless a gigantic meteor will swallow up the city. That´s not going to happen I thought. The lavish Grand Hotel Stockholm home to the Veranda Restaurant that offers the famous classic Swedish smörgåsbord (Swedish buffet) and beautiful views to the...

When I was shopping in Norrmalm District in the morning I obviously forgot to take fotos. I was only able to take fotos later in the afternoon and during twilight when I had time to walk around and enjoy the surroundings. I always love taking fotos. It’s not really the art of taking the foto itself that I love. I am not into the technical and aesthetic side of photography. I don’t care about those scientific and technology crap. Aesthetics I may mind but I refuse to become a photography nerd just to get a great foto. I cannot see myself sporting a DSLR as well. Too heavy and bulky. They are not even fashionable? Plus they shout TOURIST and are magnets for trouble (read: robbery). What I care most when taking fotos is capturing my travels—the scenes around me, the people I came across with and their gestures, the real happenings that I encountered, the architectures I admire, the everyday art, the normal daily life, the FOOD and many others that interests me through my eyes. I want to ...

Stockholm is a city of islands, its old town where the Royal Palace is housed and which I will blog separately, is situated strategically in an islet. The capital is indeed a beautiful city. No wonder Stockholm is the capital as well of the Scandinavian or Nordic region. Very well deserved! So after my smoked salmon lunch at the Ostermalms Saluhall I ventured out to the quays of the Ostermalms District, the Strandvagen Boulevard. Ostermalms is one of the wealthiest districts in Stockholm. Luckily, the rain stopped this time. I just blow-dried my hair that morning and you do not want to know how much I hated rain that day. Then I realized that it is actually Gay Pride Parade in Stockholm so I went searching for the parade. I later found out that the parade and the area where they can celebrate is regulated. It’s not like in Amsterdam where during Gay Pride Parade the whole city centre is celebrating, on the streets, on the canals. You can practically hear the shouts and screa...