Thing #16 that I love about Geneva - Pumpkins from the Ferme de Merlinge

Halloween is the holy of holies. I pick and choose selectively what I want to transmit from my culture to my son, and top most on the list is Halloween.

Halloween has tepidly been introduced to Geneva, but more than anything, it is a commercial experience and lacks sense. People seem to be a bit confused by the whole thing. No one has really celebrated it here before so people aren't always sure how to "do it right". There is also (quite fairly) a certain amount of animosity, with people feeling that they are having an "American" holiday foisted on them with the associated imperative to buy more crap they don't need.

Despite all this though, our annual Halloween party, since it is considered to be a "real Halloween party" thrown by Americans, is a big date in the social calendar of my son's friends.

Every year, a couple of weeks before Halloween, we head out to the Ferme de Merlinge in Gy to buy our pumpkin. Winter squash is abundantly available in the supermarkets here but pumpkins can sometimes be a bit more of a challenge to find. Europeans largely consider pumpkins something you would feed to the pigs, not to the people. I understand. I mean there are some amazing varieties of squash that are just superb, but I still accuse Europeans of being a bit snobby on this issue and in defense of the modest pumpkin would say, "dem's good eatin'!".

Be ye proud, Americans! Eat not your pumpkins in silent shame! But stand up loud and proud and say, "I'm a pumpkin eater and proud of it!".

Thing #15 that I love about Geneva - Multi-langue

I love the multi-linguistic packaging on all products sold here. I think that you get a bit of this everywhere in Europe, but in Switzerland it is pretty balls out since law requires many products to be systematically sold with the packaging in the three official languages: German, French and Italian.

This turns your grocery shopping into a truly educational experience. I have the feeling to have already learned a good bit of German and Italian just from the Osmotic experience of having a kitchen full of products trumpeting their identity in three languages.

Ausgezeichnet! Uh, I mean, Eccellente! Uh, I mean, Excellent!

Thing #14 that I love about Geneva - Wild Postering

One of the things that I really love in Geneva is seeing the different creative graffiti and the affichage sauvage or "wild postering".

You get a good mix of stuff: calls to the right to affordable housing, manifestos of gutter punks and travellers, interesting artwork, and then you get some which like my current favourite posted here, are political statements meet art.

The sign says its all "need food not football". It has a bit more context if you live here in Geneva which over the summer was one of the hosting cities for the European Cup, but still on its own, it gets its point across profoundly.

Thing #13 that I love about Geneva - Chimney Sweeps!

That's right my friend. In Geneva we have chimney sweeps (Les Ramoneurs). For real ones dressed in black and wearing top hats. They even have a cute chimney sweep brush that they call a "herison" which translates to "hedgehog". They also tend to drive around in teeny-tiny vans. How bad ass is that?!

We are bad, evil, delinquent fireplace owners who don't have it cleaned out properly by a chimney sweep every two years as required by our renter's insurance (or is every year that we are supposed to do this?). But in our defense, we haven't used our fireplace much these past few years.

However, I am feeling oddly law-abiding this year and plan to call our chimney sweep up this week and ask him to bring his surly self over to ours and run his hedgehog up my chimney.

Kinda makes you want to blush, doesn't it?

Thing #12 that I love about Geneva - Chestnuts!

The sun is beating a hasty retreat from our climes. It's damn chilly. Kinda grey and ugly out. But hey! We a have a compensation! Chestnuts!!!!!

Yup folks, it is chestnut season in Geneva. I'm pretty sure that the ones growing in our parks are of the horse variety (i.e. Don't eat unless you have hooves) but they are sooo be-you-tiful.

I love walking through the Parc des Bastions and seeing the promenade littered with these shiny little balls. Sure, you better watch where you walk/bike or you could suddenly find yourself staring at the sky with a concussion, but small price to pay for being able to pick up these smooth lovelies and rub your thumbs over them.

You have to be careful though when you start picking them up off the ground. The gathering becomes addictive and you just can't stop. Soon you find yourself standing in the middle of the park with approximately 23 kilos of chestnuts stuffed into your pockets, bag, a pouch you made by holding your sweater up from your waist. You start throwing elbows and shoving little kids aside to grab ones that particularly catch your eye. In short, you look like a mutant, motley squirrel. Greedy and on steroids. Not pretty.

But the chestnuts. Oh so pretty. Preeeeety.

Thing #11 that I love about Geneva - The Library in English

Okay. You may not think that a library in and of itself is very exciting, but move your happy butt to another (non-English speaking) country and see if you yourself aren't dancing in the street with your undies on your head when you find a well stocked anglophone library!

I'll be honest. The Library in English, previously the American Library - name changed for reason of cultural sensibilities - totally convinced that the Canadians had a hand in this :), doesn't exactly spoil you for choice. If you go in looking for a specific book on a specific topic, you risk leaving disappointed. However, if you go in with an open-mind and wander the aisles seeing what you might stumble upon, you will be surprised at the gems you can find. And I have to say, they are darn good at getting new and interesting books in regularly.

Big shiny stars as well for having a rockin' children's section. Lots to choose from. Beautiful stuff.


Above all, I love the spirit of this library. It is a real anglophone community endeavour. The Library in English is a private entity, that receives not one pretty cent of funding from the state. It runs on membership fees, very dedicated volunteers (if I'm not mistaken, there are only 1 or 2 people who are paid), the generous donations of its patrons, and its bi-annual book sales.

It is a total labour of love.

Kinda makes ya feel all tingly inside, no?