A place to breathe….

I have this favorite place in Geneva. It’s two bus away from work so I usually head there right after office hours. I usually just sit on the bench for an hour or two either to learn my french or just watch people.
 
The water gives me a sense of freedom. I’m freed from the worries of work and i’m freed from homesick, just free from everything. What do I do in this place? I just watch people, sometimes laugh by myself while watching somebody do something really silly or funny. Or sometimes I try to learn my french here by reading the newspaper - horoscope section only: cancer and leo in particular.

The kind of people that I usually see here are the ff:
a. Lovers - wow they are everywhere. Why not? This is a very romantic place. It’slike the sea and the mountains are your witness plus me.

b. The athletes - this is better than the gym. You have unlimited space to jog, walk or to bike and it’s for free!!!

c. The elderly - They too have the same favorite past time as me - watching people. I sometimes get a wink or two from them but sorry grandpa I’m not interested.

d. Porno kings and queens - they are the swimmers. gosh it’s free nude people here. Everybody dresses up at the shore and literally remove everything and change into their swimsuits and vice versa… I don’t get too close coz I may not be able to control my sudden burst of laughter. How can be anybody be so carefree??? As in no pretentions at all. I admire them! I hope oneday I will have the courage to do that but not today.

In this place you”ll mind will be refreshed by the wind and the water will take away everything that worries you.

Everytime I leave the office it seems like I’m gasping for air. Wanting to do more but lately I’ve been trying the art of letting go. REgardless of how long I stay in the office there will still be work for tomorrow. And one thing that I dont’want to happen is to have that look like my boss hae here… the look of desperation for so many things in his list of to do.

i want to have the look like I’m having the best time of my life and i really am so why not reflect it on the expression. I only get to be young once and I will not let this pass by without taking it to the limit.

There are just so many things in life to be thankful for and sometimes some of them are free for us to grab like time with our families and loved ones, nice places to visit with no entrance fee and the freedom to just have fun!

I just have one regret… I hope that the most important people in my life will also get to see the beauty that I’m seeing right now… Maybe soon!

Wow one more week and it’s my bday already! One week ago I felt so depressed realizing that my bday is fastly approaching and with nobody to celebrate it with but depression is not a good friend so I thought of ways of celebrating it and tada… i’m going on a tour!!!

For 148 Francs I’m going to visit three capitals of Switzerland:
Berne - Capital of Switzerland
Gruyeres - Capital of Cheese
Lavaux - Capital fo the Vineyards

For 8.5 hours I will be treated to the breathtaking view of the countryside of Switzerland, that will be nice. So far I’ve seen almost all part of the smallest canton of Switzerland, I hope the see the rest of the country for the coming days.

That’s something to look forward to. Now back to work!

It will be 3 weeks this Saturday since I make the big move to Geneva, Switzerland. I don’t even know how to describe the feeling of being here.

Of course I was very excited when I first knew I’m moving here for a few months, i think the term excited is an understatement. But then there were so many preparations in the office to make sure my interim will be able to take over when I leave. Almost two months were spent training the new staff, making process flow manual for them, learning the new work assigned to me, still working, cleaning up the old work left by my colleague… just so many things to finish before take off, even most of my weekends are spent in the office which i really regret. i was so excited day dreaming of how it will be like in the foreign land. Though I’ve travelled so many times but I only stayed for weeks and I always stayed in a hotel and I know this time it will be different, very different.

There are so many first things in this trip:
1. 1st Longhaul trip - imagine 16 hours of travelling but i never slept during the trip. I watched 3 movies, i had 4 meals and watched several tv shows while sobbing in between. I already missed Manila.  As I was reading the letter of archie I can’t help but cry all the time (i read it more than ten times along the trip), I know it’s the start of being apart for a very long time and I’m not used to that.
2. 1st time in Europe - i never thought i will live to see europe not even in my wildest dream! But here i am, i am really here!
3. 1st four seasons - exciting yet scared, don’t know yet how could it can be here. Right now winter just ended and summer is coming in. I liked the transition weather, it’s like having an AC turned on wherever you go.
4. 1st time to live alone - i stayed in the hotel for 1 1/2 week. it was great, nice place, very near my work, very easy transportation from the hotel and nice filipinos working there.  

But now I’m living in my own flat. The office rented a fully furnished unit for me. It’s so nice, it’s my dream kitchen, dream bathroom… Really a nice place to live and very safe. When you go down you will have access to everything: grocery, laundry shop, dvd rental, shopping area, restaurants, pubs…just everything. and one block away from me is the famous lake of geneva with it’s wonderful fountain. I’m also near the flower clock which simbolizes the city’s world class achievements in the clock industry.

5. 1st time to feel so alone - almost all of my life i’ve been surrounded with people that genuinely cares for me: my family, relatives, my friends and by archie… it’s been a long time since i feel alone and the feeling just usually last a few minutes or an hour if only feel like being senti. But now for the first two weeks of my stay here i always cry at night or just wherever… I miss home, i miss everything back home… i miss the convenience that our country brings…. 

I know there will be more first time for me here and I’m willing to welcome them.

Will tell you more of the places I’ve been, my new work here and my new apartment…