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| View on Road Trip Near Queenstown, NZ |
My Big Holiday comprised 2 days in Zurich (not realising at the time of booking that I would be returning to live there for a year), 2 days in Singapore, 3 days with my brother and his wife who live near Auckland (hello Paul, hello Pat!), a 15 day coach tour of the North and South Island, and a final day in Auckland. It was a once-in-a-lifetime effort (or is it?).
As with my return to Egypt after the holiday, my return to Zurich during the holiday met me with things that had changed since I last lived there. The Sternen Grill now had a fancy restaurant bit upstairs with a view of the lake. The Swissotel in Oerlikon had been revamped and you now needed a code for the toilets! Life always goes on without you.
In my little bubble at Sahl Hasheesh, I forget things like winter, so I was surprised both at how pretty Lake Zurich was and at the existence of snow, which was glistening on all the hills around. It felt out of season, somehow, having just come from the warm Egypt sunshine.
On contemplating that I would soon be staying in Zurich for a year, I felt both excitement at the prospect of seeing old friends, visiting old haunts and the security of the familiar and also a bit of disgruntlement that it wouldn’t really be anything that new, it wouldn’t be such a great adventure as a new city would be, and I worried that I would quickly tire of being back.
Even in that short time, I noticed things that I’d forgotten about Zurich. For the first time, I felt the surprise that Safi had told me about where you turn on the cold tap and the water really is cold. Suddenly, I could understand why Sheila was complaining about the warm water in Egypt and wondering if something was wrong. You just don’t get water that cold in Egypt!
I stayed in Lena’s flat for the two days (thank you Lena, thank you Zak!) and I’d forgotten about sorting out the rubbish; in Egypt, everything just gets thrown away all together in one bag (the reality is that in Egypt poorer people rifle through rubbish to see if they can retrieve anything). On going to look at the flat I was going to rent, old memories of being falsely accused (and fined!) for improper disposal of electrical rubbish returned to me since my new accommodation is near where the elektro-tram is stationed.
Then, as I rang to enter the flat, the church bells started to chime noisily, and I remembered all those sleepless nights I had when I first moved to Zurich when the bells kept me awake through the night. How could I have forgotten about that!
I spent my time in Zurich signing the contract on my rental flat, setting up a new bank account, and trying to arrange with my new work place as to whether I could start work a week earlier because they wanted me to be in a meeting in Japan on my first day. As it turned out, a few days before my holiday ended, I had an email saying they were reverting to the original start date, with my first day of work in Zurich back to 13th April. I’d forgotten how hectic and “ready for change” (the motto of so many companies) that you have to be in the working environment. I was literally on the phone to HR as I was on my way to the airport to go to Singapore.
Fortunately, all travel on the way went smoothly.
The documents on the plane reminding you that you automatically receive the death sentence if you are found to be carrying drugs were a bit scary (even though I’ve never done drugs! But what if they made a mistake, what if someone managed to plant some on me? I mean, with my luck...).
Even in that short time, I noticed things that I’d forgotten about Zurich. For the first time, I felt the surprise that Safi had told me about where you turn on the cold tap and the water really is cold. Suddenly, I could understand why Sheila was complaining about the warm water in Egypt and wondering if something was wrong. You just don’t get water that cold in Egypt!
I stayed in Lena’s flat for the two days (thank you Lena, thank you Zak!) and I’d forgotten about sorting out the rubbish; in Egypt, everything just gets thrown away all together in one bag (the reality is that in Egypt poorer people rifle through rubbish to see if they can retrieve anything). On going to look at the flat I was going to rent, old memories of being falsely accused (and fined!) for improper disposal of electrical rubbish returned to me since my new accommodation is near where the elektro-tram is stationed.
Then, as I rang to enter the flat, the church bells started to chime noisily, and I remembered all those sleepless nights I had when I first moved to Zurich when the bells kept me awake through the night. How could I have forgotten about that!
I spent my time in Zurich signing the contract on my rental flat, setting up a new bank account, and trying to arrange with my new work place as to whether I could start work a week earlier because they wanted me to be in a meeting in Japan on my first day. As it turned out, a few days before my holiday ended, I had an email saying they were reverting to the original start date, with my first day of work in Zurich back to 13th April. I’d forgotten how hectic and “ready for change” (the motto of so many companies) that you have to be in the working environment. I was literally on the phone to HR as I was on my way to the airport to go to Singapore.
Fortunately, all travel on the way went smoothly.
The documents on the plane reminding you that you automatically receive the death sentence if you are found to be carrying drugs were a bit scary (even though I’ve never done drugs! But what if they made a mistake, what if someone managed to plant some on me? I mean, with my luck...).
I didn’t have many expectations of Singapore but as I saw the harbour, the tall modern skyscrapers, and all the boats dotted about in the sea as the plane landed, I suddenly realised that this was exactly how I imagined Singapore to be.
Singapore is as clean as it is rumoured to be. I knew that chewing gum was not allowed, but I hadn’t expected even the bank notes to be all crisp and new. I wondered whether they ever used them more than once; I hadn’t really ever thought of the Egyptian ones as shabby, which is what struck Sheila when she was over, but the newness of the notes in Singapore was startling. I was scared to fold them in case it wasn’t allowed.
It was a very cosmopolitan city with a lot of English being spoken in the streets; everyone was very well dressed and it gave off the impression of being wealthy, and the prices, particularly of alcohol, matched that impression. Strangely, the place where we ate had a happy hour from 10pm to 11pm, which was their final hour before closing. That’s not usually how it works, not in the UK at least, where happy hour is early in the evening to get the crowds in before the night gets going.
After the disorganisation that is Egypt, I was particularly struck at how well-signposted everything was. It was easy to get around as you were really well-looked after with all the signage. We went to Gardens by the Bay and spent most of the day there; we also took a boat trip and visited the Fort Canning Park.
After that, it was onwards to our main destination: New Zealand.
Singapore is as clean as it is rumoured to be. I knew that chewing gum was not allowed, but I hadn’t expected even the bank notes to be all crisp and new. I wondered whether they ever used them more than once; I hadn’t really ever thought of the Egyptian ones as shabby, which is what struck Sheila when she was over, but the newness of the notes in Singapore was startling. I was scared to fold them in case it wasn’t allowed.
It was a very cosmopolitan city with a lot of English being spoken in the streets; everyone was very well dressed and it gave off the impression of being wealthy, and the prices, particularly of alcohol, matched that impression. Strangely, the place where we ate had a happy hour from 10pm to 11pm, which was their final hour before closing. That’s not usually how it works, not in the UK at least, where happy hour is early in the evening to get the crowds in before the night gets going.
After the disorganisation that is Egypt, I was particularly struck at how well-signposted everything was. It was easy to get around as you were really well-looked after with all the signage. We went to Gardens by the Bay and spent most of the day there; we also took a boat trip and visited the Fort Canning Park.
After that, it was onwards to our main destination: New Zealand.
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