Two of our friends from Minneapolis, Patrick Smadbeck and Caryn Krakauer, have lived in Europe even longer than us.  A few months before we moved to Switzerland they moved to London for Caryn to take a job with a video game company, and Patrick to take a job as a chemical engineering post-doc.  Ever since … Continue reading London →

Before writing about the process of getting a Swiss driver’s license I need to at least mention the terrorist attacks in Paris on Friday.  The whole situation is very sad, and hits close to home because of both our nearness to France, and our studying of French culture.  I think it will be the biggest … Continue reading Swiss Driver’s License →

It’s easy to see castles, cathedrals, and cobblestone streets and think they’re all about as old as dirt, but everywhere we look in Europe we seem to find the remains of an even older civilization. On Saturday Melissa and I traveled 40 miles from our apartment to reset our idea of old to Roman times … Continue reading Avenches →

As Americans it’s part of our duty to spread our awesome culture where ever we go.  On October 31st that meant dressing up and throwing a Halloween party, because we didn’t think the Swiss took the holiday seriously enough.  There were pumpkins, a small section of costumes, and decorations at the stores, but there wasn’t … Continue reading Halloween →