Nyon

Thought i'd better put this in before i forget. Went to Nyon over the weekend. It's a small town just about half an hour by train from Geneva. It's beautiful!!

They have quite a collection of museums over there- we paid 12 CHF for a full year pass to see 8 museums (some in Coppet, the next town). It's one time entry but i still think it is quite worth it. M and i covered 3 museums that day- the Chateau de Nyon, Roman museum and the Musee du Leman. They were pretty small but enough. It happens that the weekend we were there, there was an antique fair also! There were tents set up in the street and we enjoyed browsing the stuff on sale. We used to watch "Antiques Road Trip" together so we always wanted to go antique shopping ourselves. #signsofaging

What i liked about this place was that it was small and quaint. It is perfect for a day trip, unlike Lausanne- which is big, walked around too much and had so much free time with nothing much to see/do.

My new favourite thing to do

Since last Thursday, M has been going to work. We got me a weekly pass on the public transport so I would not have to be cooped up at the hotel. I went to explore a few museums on Geneva- the red cross, Ariana, art and history museum. However, everything is always opened only after 10am and most museums (maybe all), closed on Mondays (life here is good- for the Swiss). That does not work so well for me, since I am a morning person. So, I take the bus with M to his work place, say bye, then take another bus to my now favourite place in Geneva- Le Jardin Botanique.

The botanic gardens open at 8am and in summer, this place is beautiful. Not only the flowers are in full bloom, the weather - breezy and a touch of the sun rays on the skin- parfaite! There is hardly anyone at this time so it is super serene. I find my usual bench and start devouring my A.C crime novels. I have not read fictional books for a long time and did not realise what a luxury this is. Therefore, this has come to be my favourite thing to do. Then I hit the museums once it starts warming up and the kids all come into the botanical gardens to destroy its peace. 😒

I realised, in Geneva/Switzerland, you need to have a good book/kindle at hand, everywhere you go. Everything happens so slowly here, there is so much waiting in between. It is very frustrating, coming from Singapore, where efficiency is our pride. Starting a swiss bank account takes 8 days for activation??! 😲 Not to mention, talking to the banker to start the account took us almost 2 hours 😱. He got our names/surnames mixed up, printed them wrong, then changed on the computer, said he had to call some central line to get it changed also, printed the forms again, … argh, you get it. 

Well, but the good thing is that there is no lack of gardens and parks, so you can pop in and read while waiting. Or at the bus stop. Waiting is hard, but yet, sometimes I think it is good. It helps us realise some things are not as important as they seem to be, and that we worry over silly things. I have no garden in the apartment we hope to stay, but I know that patience is something I should start growing in the private garden of my heart. 💗

Singing in trials...

The thought of going to a new church really scared me. Not having any friends, standing out in the crowd, or having to raise hands when the pastor asks "who's new in church?". Those were my worries last week. However, I realised that they don't exist because we go to church for God. We went to CFC for the second time today and I wanted to share what the pastor preached as it really sounded like something I need.

Psalms 137:4 "How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land?" 

In Exodus 14, the Israelites were free, they left Egypt, left the life of slavery and abuse. They went into the desert, only to realise the Egyptians were hot on their heels- they could hear the armies closing in. Desperate and frightened, they turned to Moses and asked “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” However, Moses simply replied “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” And what follows is the epic miracle - God parts the Red Sea, lets Israel pass through, and drowns their enemies.

Many of us have been shaped into the thinking of this world. When trials come, we jump to finding solutions, panic, go crazy... We do everything, but be still. Being still and letting God fight is a foreign concept. We cannot sing to God or praise Him when we are in the thick of mess. Our songs stop.

I don't know about others, but I am ashamed to admit I think like the Israelites. Something comes, I have to step out of my comfy boat and make a change. Seems like a good idea at first, but then the change brings about problems/difficulties (yes, like finding a house, relocating, buying home insurance- what is this?? I have never even heard of it, house security etc). In the midst of this madness, finding out there's more to relocating than just getting my butt to Geneva, I have thoughts of turning back, of rewinding to the time we could have rejected this change, of that we would be better of at home. But, that's not the way He wants it.

The pastor shares that God is changing the way we think. Trials are used by God to break up the patterns of thinking that are not in line with His thoughts. Romans 12: 2 "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will." The pastor said this and I quote "The devil has deadlines, but God has lifelines!" If we do everything God's way, then the battle is the Lord's. God told Moses to stand still and wait in the Lord. He is telling me the very same thing today, I believe. And to all His children. We can sing songs in this foreign land. Yes, Lord, I will try my best to do that.

Lausanne

M and I took the train to Lausanne yesterday. Nice little place but nothing much to do- a lot of walking up and down hills though!! My poor feet ached so badly at the end of the day 😔

It was only about an hour via train from Gare Cornavin. We got there pretty early so as not to miss the Saturday markets that close by 2pm. Went to see the Cathedrale de Lausanne, then a museum, which was free. Then we walked around the markets and had lunch - empanadas, pitta and ice cream. The markets were selling mainly fresh produce so we did not buy anything but it was still fun to look.

We went to Aquatis, which is a huge aquarium and I can't wait to bring E there when he comes! I think he will like it. We ended that around 3pm and headed to Ouchy to look around the lake and had some nutella crepe. 😋 There's a merry go round and a nice playground- another reason to bring E.

I realised, after awhile, all the places to visit start to look the same and there's nothing left to do till dinner time. So, we have learnt to bring reading materials out so we can find a park and sit down to read...

Dinner was at La Pinte Besson, a small pub with nice fondue. It was my first time with cheese fondue and it's nice but a little too rich. Went home after being "recharged". So glad to be able to rest my aching feet at last...

Montreux et Yvoire

M and I had a little free time so we took some day trips out. We visited a place called Montreux the day before. It was a pretty long drive from where we stayed at Ferney but it was worth it. We visited the Chateau de Chillon- not the best castle I've been to but I still loved it. Then M took me up the Alps on a rickety old train. It was Les Rochers-de-Naye. There we visited the Alpin Garden, which only opens in summer I think. The view was breath-taking. This is a panorama taken by him:

Today, we went to Yvoire to look. The weather turned rainy so we did not spend long but I must say- it's beautiful!!! It's a small French town but it's so pretty, totally my kind of ideal holiday destination. So medieval and quaint. I would have loved to sit there sipping a coffee and watch the world go by. Unfortunately, due to the bad weather, we only rushed through the Le Jardin des Cinq Sens (garden of 5 senses) and grabbed an ice cream on the way back to the car. Will definitely have to find an excuse to go back there!!

Arriving to Geneva

The ride here was not great for me 😓 I cannot sleep on planes and I cannot sit for too long (even movies give me knee aches). So by the time we got here, I was nursing a migraine. However, there was a house viewing in a few hours so had to pop painkillers and go! We were also planning to go to the supermarket to pick up some food and things for our stay. I really did not know if my body could last all the things we had planned to do.

The first housing agent could not speak English and we were worried!! We texted a restaurant owner we met here in April (she is Singaporean too!) and she kindly agreed to come with us at the last minute! When we dragged our jet lagged bodies to the house, she was already there waiting for us. She handed us a bag and said "dinner for you". All I can say is- God is so good. He who knows our needs before we even say it and He provides. 🙌 Thank You, Lord!

The sumptuous Chinese food we had before crashing at 5pm (Geneva time) and sleeping 12hrs 😛:

Hurricane

Shortly before leaving SG, after all the madness of packing, leaving our marital home and sending things to be shipped, that anxiety of leaving all that is safe and familiar suddenly becomes more obvious to us both. Many "what-ifs" flood our mind. It hit us real bad. It made us see how weak we really were inside and what false securities we were hiding ourselves in. However, it sent us running to the only One we know who never changes and is certain. He knows how insecure we really are and He also knows how to expose us and make us see that He is truly all we need. 

This song by Jimmy Needham "Hurricane" is the prayer we need:

I have built a city here
Half with pride and half with fear
Just wanted a safer place to hide
I don't want to be safe tonight

I need you like a hurricane
Thunder crashing wind and rain
To tear my walls down
I'm only yours now
I need you like a burning flame
A wild fire untamed
To burn these walls down
I'm only yours now
I'm only yours now

I am yours and you are mine
You know far better than I
And if destructions what I need
Then I'll receive it lord from thee
Yes I'll receive it lord from thee

I need you like a hurricane
Thunder crashing wind and rain
To tear my walls down
I'm only yours now
I need you like a burning flame
A wild fire untamed
To burn these walls down
I'm only yours now
I'm only yours now

And it's your eye in the storm
Watching over me
And it's your eye in the storm
Wanting only good for me
And if you are the war
Let me be the casualty
Till I'm yours alone
I am only yours
I am yours alone lord

I need you like a hurricane
Thunder crashing wind and rain
To tear my walls down
I'm only yours now
I need you like a burning flame
A wild fire untamed
To burn these walls down
I'm only yours now
I'm only yours now

Getting ready to go....

We are leaving Singapore next Tuesday! July has just really flown by. The last 2 weeks we were really packing like crazy and also meeting up with friends and family. I have been meaning to write more but just could not find the time.

I think the most fun part was buying winter clothes- because it was paid for!!

However, i could not say the same for packing. The sad realisation i am a hoarder, choosing what i can ship over to Geneva (limited to 30 boxes' space), vacating our marriage home, parting with many things that are still in good condition- 😱😱😱. The thought of parting with my neighbours made me sad too...

Next week, a whole new level of stress awaits us. But, there is no need to worry or fear, as God's word reminds us. We need only to turn to Him who is able to do all things. 😃