cheese fondue, swiss boys and shots

One thing I love about my au pair adventure is you never really know where the day will take you. Sure, most days are routine; take kids to park, make lunch, do alphabet, draw, shop.... But somedays are almost magical (even if they don't start that way). Yesterday (saturday) started meeting two fellow au pairs, Ashley and Cassie (ages 19 and 18) at starbucks. The weather had been beautiful in the morning but turned drizzly the second we ventured downtown with our ridiculously overpriced coffees. We wandered aimlessly for a few hours checking out the stores and stumbling over awkward first conversatons. We then decided to go back to Ashley's "au pair"studio" (fully decorated in bright Ikea orange, in true European style) then to Cassie's house in the village of Bardonnex, on the outskirts of Geneve. Bardonnex is one of those quaint European villages with cobblestone streets and medieval houses. We hung out in her room, until her family called, and asked if we'd like to stay for cheese fondue.

They walked through the door, and I was immediately enchanted by their warmth, manners and hospitality. The 3 boys (ages 4, 13 and 15) all came and gave us 3 kisses (which is uniquely Swiss) on alternating cheeks, called faire la bise. Their parents, Nancy and Pascal, welcomed us into their home with open arms. Nancy is Canadian and Pascal is Swiss, and met when Nancy was in grade 11 studying abroad in Neuchâtel, Switzerland (I find this so incredibly romantic and amazing...maybe because I'd love to meet the man of my dreams while I'm here?). Both speak English and French, and the boys and parents casually switch back and forth between the two languages. Pascal spoke to us in English, but as I am absolutely hell bent on using French whenever I can, I spoke back in French. To my surprise, he complimented my French, even asking where I had learned it. I told him at school, but that I had studied in Grenoble, France. He said, ahhh, that makes sense because you already have a very French accent.... a huge compliement seeing as most think I have a quebécois accent, the French equivalent to the american hick :-D

We went up stairs while they started the cheese fondue. We received a tutorial on the finer points of cheese stirring- first we practiced going in a figure 8, then a 3. Although the ultimate, Pascal said, is to do a 33, connecting both 3's in one smooth motion (though this is debatable depending on who you are talking to, and apparently the source of many heated, wine fueled arguments).

This family has had many au pairs, and Nancy shared her wisdom about having the best experience possible. "You have to be open and un-judgemental about who you're going to meet. Let go of your inhibitions and be open to friendships with people the "old you" would have written off immediately." This advice completely fits my experience so far... I have gone on essentially two "blind dates" to meet other au pairs, and we are all incredibly different from one another. Yet, we get along well b/c of the ties that bind. I actually feel very old when I'm with them, but I don't care because it's better than being alone in my room, reading my friends' away messages and hearing about all the fun they are having back home.

But back to the night. After the amazing cheese fondue, ice cream with homemade chocolate sauce (melted Lindt choolate), and being invited by the family to a Swiss national soccer game (wooohooo!), Pascal offered to drive us to the town's festival. We got decently priced drinks (5ch for a heieken, 6chf for the Kir royal I had) and headed to look for a bus stop to take us back into town. We met a whole herd of French guys who didn't speak English (pretty cute too!), including one guy, Philippe, that Cassie had befriended earlier. We headed down the street to the bus stop, and were waiting there when Philippe drove by. We flagged him down and (I, in french) asked him if he was heading into town and if so could he could drive us. Luckily he said yes, and not only did he drive us, but parked his car and walked all over La Vieille Ville to show us the bars and the Boites de nuit (night clubs). I find this so incredibly gracious, especially since he already has a girlfriend and wasn't planning on going out in the first place. Plus I can't really picture any of the American guys I know doing something like that for girls he's only just met, without the possibility of a hook up. European men 1 point, American men, nul points.

We went around and tried some of the different bars, but weren't really feeling any of them. Personally, I felt like I was carrying a neon sign saying "AMERICAN FOREIGNER," and that everyone around was keenly aware of it. The last bar we wandered into was Le Roi Ubu (whatever that means) and was a pretty good time. Philippe randomly came in and met back up with us, so I got to speak more French (yay!). Plus we ordered shakers of Sex on the Beach and the hosue special, the Ubu (coke, jacke daniels and rum. So bad but soooo good). I felt a bit more comfortable in this bar, and the music was wackily fun...one minute the Offspring, the next minute Dirty Dancing, the next Marilyn Manson! It was better, but the awkward feeling of being in a bar you don't know, with people you barely know, in a foreign country was tangible and lingering the whole night. And not even a liter of the Ubu was going to make it go away.

Despite minor awkwardness, overall the night was a blast. I got to know two nice fellow au pairs, meet a cute local Swiss guy about my age, speak quite a bit of French, get a little buzz goin, walk the cobble stone streets (steep hills actually) of the historic old town, and have a generally carefree and happy time. Tweak the scenery a little and I could have been back in Ann Arbor or Royal Oak, letting loose with Bridget, Jackie and Ian. And the awkward feeling, well I suppose that's to be expected and will fade with time.

But one thing is for sure--- I never would have thought I'd be out the entire day and half the night from what started with a simple coffee at Starbuks. Lesson learned here: go with the flow. If you're lucky it'll keep going with you till 3 in the morning!