30 March, 2008
And The Adventure Begins...
The last couple of weeks have been an all out free for all. My average night sleep as been about 3.5 hours and I've been doing more physically demanding work then I may have ever done in my life.
Let's start with Friday, 21 March, 2008 (mostly because that's as far back as I can remember and yes, that's how they write their dates, get used to it). I woke up at what felt like the crack of dawn (becuase I think it actually was before dawn...) so that I could ride with my family to Tulsa, OK to (hopefully) see my sister row and then spend Easter with my extended family. It was great seeing everyone, and I got to play some good poker. I took all of my change hoping to lose it and I just about did until I swept 'Midnight Baseball' and walked home with a whopping €5.55 (ok, that's really supposed to be a dollar sign but this crazy Swiss keyboard only has a pound sign - you have to admit though that it's pretty cool lookin'.) That money bought me 3 Chicken McNuggets today for lunch...
After Easter dinner we headed home to KC to finish up packing. The movers we coming the next day to get us out of the house. Both Kyle and I were up til about 2 doing 'stuff' so the packers didn't screw anything up the next day.
Monday - The movers show up at 8:15 ready to pack. They packed and hauled off everything that was allowed to go in our air shipment (it was mostly clothes, some cleaning supplies, our computers, and a little bit of food). At about 2:30 they call it quits for the day. That's fine, I wasn't able to get anything done while they were there anyway. I start cleaning, organizing and getting ready for them to come back on Tuesday to pack the stuff that is going by sea. We have our last German lesson at 4:15 and at 6:15 we run out the door to make it to the Brigades game that we are going to with Kyle's parents (Kyle's brother's girlfriend is a Brigades girl so we wanted to see her perform at least once before we moved). At about half time everyone left. Kyle and Bob went to take Kyle's motercycle to Olathe and pick up his car from my parent's house. Kathey and I went to 'Chefburger' (a new resturant in the P&L district) because I hadn't eaten since probably Easter dinner and I heard it was great. Kyle gets back to the condo about midnight and we still have to pack to move into the hotel room we have for the week since our bed is now missing. About 2:30 we check into the hotel (don't get me started on the disaster that pretty much was...) and go to sleep since we have to be up at 6 am to meet the movers at 8...
Tuesday - I was told that the movers would probably be done with everything on Tuesday, they had a different idea. They put everything that wasn't nailed down into boxes or wrapped it up - but only after they specifically asked about everything. Apparently 'Everything that is here needs to be moved to Zürich' was not clear enough direction. I also asked them to stack everything in the middle of the room so that I could paint the walls after they left - they took that as' please stack everything as high as you can against every wall in the house'. The movers finally left about 4:15 and now it was time to get cleaning and painting again. Kyle removed his stereo from his xB since we had decided to sell it, when he put everything back together the check engine and a couple other lights came on, great. When he took it to Toyota they said that one of the computers was fried and that it would have to be replaced. They didn't have the part and wouldn't get it until Tuesday. So, we also had to work through that and figure out how the car was going to get back to the dealer to get fixed and then to Carmax to get it sold. We, again, were up pretty late doing 'stuff'.
Wednesday - FINALLY, the last day of the movers. Again, we showed up at 8 and they basically just hauled everything out to their container truck and tetrised the stuff in there. We took another load of stuff that stayed in KC to our storage unit and then finally got to start deep cleaning before the carpet cleaners got there at 2. Luckily my mom was there to help me clean otherwise I NEVER would have been able to get everything done. The cleaners show up at 2 so I have to sit out in the hallway and let them work while I read my trashy murder mystery book. They finish up about 4:30 (they did a GREAT job) and I speed back to the hotel so I can shower and make it to Lawrence for Brookie's 21st birthday. We have dinner at Quinton's and then go to the Hawk for Dollar Night (where Abby meets us). I buy Brookie a couple of shots and then leave her there with her friends to have a good time. Kyle, Abby, and I go have ice cream at Coldstone and shut the place down. Then we head for the bed.
Thursday - We have no one to meet but still had a crazy busy day. I can't even remember what exactly I did but I'm sure it involved cleaning and signing paperwork (and running around like a chicken with my head cut off). Thursday night I went to dinner with Meg and Lin and then we took Kyle's brother to Ameristar for his 21st birthday that was actually in January. Somehow about 2 am we decided to leave and then I realized I didn't have my license. Damn. It's not in the lost and found so I get a number to call the next day to see if they found it. On the way back to the hotel we decide we must have ice cream so we go to the grocery store to get some and finally go to bed about 3:30.
Friday - Get up. Late. Kyle goes off to run errands and I head back to the condo for more cleaning. After I get done I call Ameristar who now has my license, GREAT. So I head out that way and talk to a security guard who says it'll be about 20 minutes before they can get it to me, fine. Luckily, I have my passport so I can get another players card (they took it away from me the night before because I didn't have my license) and I hit the machines where I immediately win $30.00 (I found the dollar sign). I play until I lose another $10 and the guard now has my license - thanks for the money, I'm out of here! Next stop Carmax where they appraise my car for about $1,250 for less then Kyle thinks they should give us. No deal (at this point I'm a little stressed out, what the hell am I supposed to do with a car exactly? And I now have about 14 hours until I get on a plane to move. Well, it doesn't matter, we have to get to dinner on the plaza anyway. We can sell it after dinner since that will only take about 15 minutes. Go to dinner with Kyle's parents. If Kyle and Bob go back to the condo to finish up the painting, laundry and fix the garbage disposal and Kathey is willing to pick me up from Carmax after I sell my car then there will still be about 45 minutes left before the pool closes at the hotel and I can soak in the hot tub. Well, 3 hours later my car is finally sold (for less then Kyle wanted) but it's sold!! You don't even want to know about all of the hoop jumping that took place to get it sold. No ice cream, no hot tub, bad day...and I still have to go home to pack up the hotel room so that I can get on a plane the next morning.
Saturday - Got up late, of course, for our 11:33 flight out of KCI. Kyle had accidentilly left something at the condo the night before so we had to go back to get it before we left, and we had to put gas in the Scion because we didn't want his dad to have to put gas in it before it was sold, and we had to eat breakfast, and then get to the airport...check, check, check, check. Everything went pretty smoothly, except on our flight from Washington Dullas to Zürich we had probably the crappiest plane ever, I swear it was built in the 50's. The seats were smelly and not automatic, the tv was about as big as my pinky finger and only played 5 movies the whole time, and the guy behind us kept pulling and kicking at our seats as he got up every 15 minutes to check on his kids in coach.
That brings us up to today. I'll make sure to post pictures and stuff as soon as I find all the pieces to my camera and will let you know all about our house, we get it today!!
06 March, 2008
No Ma'am I Don't Work Here...
...And I can't tell you where the 'Preparation H' is...
Today was the third most expensive day of my life (behind the day I bought my condo and bought my car...). I went to Sam's Club.
I decided, with the help of my new friend Flo (more about her in future posts) that I had to buy some rations for my trip. So, I went shopping for all the non-perishable goods Kyle and I will need for the next 2 years.
My plan was to be up and in the store when it opened at
About 3 seconds into my shopping expedition I realize that this is quite possibly the worst thing I have ever had to do in my life - luckily I have a half charged iPod in my purse. With the help of Justin Timberlake I was able to get through the next 3 hours of my shopping day...
About 4 aisles into the pharmacy section as I'm loading 16 Crest whitening, extra fluoride, tartar control toothpaste tubes onto my pallet (that’s right I had a pallet – no lousy cart for me!) jamming out to my ‘sexy back’ I hear an “Excuse me”. I scoot out of the way assuming that someone is just trying to get around me and my big-ass pallet.
Again, I hear “EXCUSE ME” so I decide to turn around to see what the heck is going on. There is a freakishly old women (you know, like 65…but she was a smoker) THISCLOSE to me. Fine, I’ll see what she wants. I reluctantly remove my headphones and tuck them into my hot pink sweatshirt (notice that a hot pink hoodie is not the same as Sam’s blue vests) and give her a ‘what the hell do you want crazy lady look’.
‘Where’s your Preparation H?” I continue to stare blankly at her…more because I’m trying to fathom what she just asked me and understand why she made me remove my headphones so she could talk to me.
Her husband finally decided to chime in with “Dear, she doesn’t work here. She’s shopping.”
“Oh” The end.
…that might have been one of the weirdest experiences of my life…
Three hours later and 2 full pallets it was time for me to pack up the toaster and move on down the road to the Wal-Mart to get the other stuff that Sam’s didn’t have.
Once at Wal-Mart I spent half of my time discussing the finer points of the stockroom with the 12 year old working the cosmetics section (remember, I went shopping at like
Me: “Do you have any more of this face soap? This is the last tube.”
12yo: “Let’s go look on the shelf.”
Me: “I just said this is all there was on the shelf.”
12yo: “Then they’re all gone.”
Me: “Could you have them somewhere else as well?”
12yo: “No”
Me: “What about the stockroom, could you have any more back there?”
12yo: “Maybe” ~blank stare~
Me: “Can you check for me, I need 11 more tubes.”
12yo: “I guess…” ~walks off with my tube of face wash~
Literally 20 minutes later she comes back empty handed, she doesn’t even bring back the tube that I sent her off with.
Two and a half cartloads later I have a closet full of 24 pounds of pasta, 48 boxes of macaroni and cheese, 450 loads worth of laundry detergent and fabric softener, $65 worth of razorblades, enough plastic bags to cover the earth, and more feminine products then I would like to admit.
In case the world comes to an end everyone is invited to my house.
24 February, 2008
We Got It!
I'll post pictures as soon as I can find some! (That, unfortunately, probably won't be until we move...)
20 February, 2008
Let the Loft Hunting Begin...
~ There is tile all the way up to the ceiling, not just around the shower, but over the entire bathroom (apparently this is fairly common)
~ The toilet is not attached at the floor, it's only attached at the wall. Every time I sit on it I think I'm going to snap it off the wall and live through my own personal "I Love Lucy" skit with water spraying everywhere and soap...maybe even some whipped cream for good measure...
~ You flush the toilet by pushing the button on the wall. And it doesn't really flush like you think it should (clockwise or counterclockwise) water is just dumped into the stool and just about when you think it's going to overflow it starts to empty out.
~ The shower doesn't have a curtain. It has one piece of frosted glass that only goes about halfway to the back wall. It makes for a very cold shower until you can are able to warm up the entire bathroom. Even then, when you get out of the shower you have a small swamp where there was no curtain...
~ You get the water that you get. You can set a temperature but sometimes it's hot, sometimes it's cold, and sometimes it's juuuust right. When the water temp changes you kinda scream then get out of the water, wait a few minutes to see if it goes back to warm and then when it doesn't you tinker with the knob until you get it back. Three minutes later you do it again. I hope that this isn't how it is everywhere...I guess we'll have to see.
On to the 'loft' search...
Of course we started the day off by looking at the most beautiful 'modern' penthouse loft I may have ever seen in my entire life. The floor plan was very open 175 square meters (about 2000 square feet) with 2 bedrooms, 2 full baths, light colored wood floors through out, washer and dryer in the unit, very open kitchen with a lift (elevator) from the ground floor to the apartment - in the heart of the city. The absolutely best part is that the loft has three (count them THREE) balconies! One right next to the kitchen, one directly off of the guest bedroom, and the best one is up a flight of stairs to a private terrace. The view overlooks (...ok, barely...) Zürich Lake. The loft is just about completely windows - most of which completely open.
This is the loft that we really, REALLY want. We've put in an application but the tenant that currently lives there hasn't told the management company that they are leaving. Also, apparently in Switzerland they want to give the good apartments to the Swiss. So, if a Swiss-y wants the apartment then there is a more likely than not chance that they will get it (do you like that my accountant friends?). Luckily, the apartment is pretty damn expensive so hopefully not a lot of people can afford it - Thank you living allowance!
The other loft that we have already been accepted to is in the Merriam of Zürich. Which is not bad but if I'm going to live in Zürich for 2 years I want to LIVE in Zürich and be close to all the action. This loft is at the top of a hill (although compared to Kansas standards I would call it a mountain...) and is about 160 square meters. It has all the same things as the other loft but it also has an elevator that, with the key, will take up up into the living room of our loft (super cool!) This loft only has 2 balconies, but the add up to about 100 square meters - that just about doubles the size of the unit; and on a clear day we think you can see the Swiss Alps (you know...no biggie ;) ) To get to Zürich you can either take the 5 minute bus right to the train station and then a 10-15 minute train ride into the city; or you can walk down the 'mountain' to the train station.
One thing that I find odd is that none of the lofts in Zürich have air conditioners - they don't need it. The summers are so temperate that when it gets 'hot' all you do is close your blinds and open the windows. (I'm a little intrigued to see how this works...but if all else fails go shopping!)
We actually saw about 16 lofts in a matter of a few hours but we had some pretty specific specifications and were able to rule out many of the lofts immediately. There were 4 units that Kyle couldn't even stand up in some of the rooms. There was a loft that the trains actually went under the house, everything shook a little but but apparently we would get used to it...
Traditional Swiss apartments are very segregated. The kitchen has it's own room (often with a door), the living area has it's own own room with door as does every other room. This is something that American's (and now younger Swiss people) don't care for very much so as lofts are being renovated they are making them 'modern'.
Another thing that all Swiss houses have to have is a bomb shelter. The bomb shelters are in the keller (no, I didn't spell that wrong) and normally have a couple toilets (they are not allowed to be used unless you are being bombed) and are used for storage. They were mandated during WWII because sometime these poor people had to stay in their basement for days when they were being bombed. The shelters still have to be built today in the new construction homes. Our relocation lady told us that after the foundation of a home is poured that 1/2 of the money is spend in building the house because of all of the laws about how a basement must be.
We should find out sometime next week what loft we will be 'residing in'. Both lofts are very nice and I will be very happy with either one - but I would definitely like to be closer to the city, both for myself and for all of you that come to visit!
18 February, 2008
Swiss Bank Accounts - The Good, Bad, and Expensive
The Bad - You can't
The Expensive - There's a Charge for EVERYTHING
We started our morning with a trip back to the airport. Why the heck would you go back to the airport after you just got here you ask? Because they told us to (I think it's actually because we don't have a Swiss address).
(Just now, as I type this, Kyle told me to "Bloggen Sie!" He thinks he's hilarious, you would get it, maybe, if you knew German.)
We learned that they charge for just about every little service they provide and if you buy in bulk you can save a little bit. We are getting a savings account, checking account, debit card, credit card and payment service all for the low, low price of 30 CHF a month (thats $30) plus the yearly 100 CHF for the credit card....BAH. Really? Aren't all of those services provided free of charge in the US?
We also learned that they cannot mail paperwork to America, therefore we can not open the account until we actually move here. They also need Kyle's work permit and our resident alien paperwork before they can open our account(s).
After we discussed the intricacies of Swiss bank accounts we decided to go shopping for cell phone plans. So, we took the elevator down (remember, we're still in the airport) and after a nice TexMex lunch we went to the three main telecommunication providers; Sunrise, Orange, and Swisscom.
We took the train back from the airport to the 'HB' (haupftbahnoff - basically the grand central station of Zurich) where the trains and buses all meet up.
We thought we would take a audio tour of the city that we had seen advertised in a flier at the hotel. We had to get it from the Apple Store so we tracked that store down. Well, then they wouldn't take our American Express card so we were told to walk across the street to the Coop (grocery store) to go to the ATM. Well, the card doesn't have a PIN number. So...we walked back across the street to go BACK to the HB to go to the change bureau. Well, they don't take AMEX for cash advances there either. So again, were SOL. Kyle calls the number on the back of the card to see if they can give us a PIN number so we can withdrawal from the ATM. They can't get us a PIN (because the corporate card isn't approved for cash advances) but they can wire us some money every 6 months. 'OK, do that...' So we stand through the change line again to be told that we have to go around the building to the Western Union office to get our money. OK, so we walk around the building and get the money and FINALLY get to go back to the Apple Store to get the audio tour.
We're helped by a different person who has NO IDEA whats going on and gives us a totally different answer then what the lady said before. So, instead of renting 2 iPod nanos to take the 2 hour tour we just buy the $40 software. We have the mp3 software, we have our iPods, but we don't have a way to get the mp3's onto our iPods. No problem, we'll go upstairs and have the tech department put it on. We sit though a 20 minute wait just to have the 12 year old with Red Bull behind the counter tell us that it'll be an hour before they can put it on. 'Fine', what else can we do? We walk back over to the Coop (now we're just trying to kill time) to look around and check prices of stuff and then over to Starbucks for $30 worth of coffee.
Back to the Apple Store. IPod's good to go, it have the audio tour and all of my music on it - YEAH! Well it's 5 o'clock now, I don't want to take a tour in the dark. So we decide to go home and on the way do some window shopping and get dinner.
On our way back to the hotel we found the English book store (I'm glad to know they have one) and about 12 Victoria Secret type stores, all within about 4 blocks - Kyle really liked that street until I reminded him that everything was at least $500... You would be really surprised about the price of clothes here!
We took a nice walk around Lake Zürich and then came back to the room with the intension of going back out to get dinner. That didn't happen. We ordered room service and have been laying on the bed zoning out since.
Tomorrow we are meeting with our KPMG accountants and house hunting. I am very excited to see what Zurich has to offer!
