Christmas in Switzerland

The test is done: Geneva is indeed just seven hours away from here, that is when airports are open... I arrived while it was snowing, so I scraped through. And when it was time to return, the flight to New York was cancelled, due to snowfalls on the other side... In Geneva, I experienced a "white Christmas". The festive spirit was all around to feel, but the best place to see it was by the lake. The trees were illuminated with lots of classy and fancy lighting. That was brilliant...
The spiderweb-like lighting was particularly well done. Unfortunately, like a spiderweb, it is too elusive to photography.
In this spot, you had to ride the bicycle to get the trees colored accordingly. With the cold temperature outside, it was no problem to ride fast.
And then the organisers certainly wanted to have fun by including pacman !! Good memories for a whole generation who started exercising their fingers on this very basic videogame. I was just missing the music. What would Christmas be without the Christmas tree... and the gifts underneath it... Not the same! The good thing this year is that the violin strings were broken, so not much singing.
Being in Switzerland for four days resulted in me trying to fit the best into my program.
The best includes a cheese fondue. This time we were treated to a very special and secretive mixture. And it was excellent!
How ironic, that I am gaining weight when I am Switzerland, and not in the USA... But I mean with food and desserts as good as these, who could resist. That's definitely the best black forest one could dream of!
So as not to feel bad about indulging, nothing better than a game of tennis. A great sweat. And I am looking forward to trying my new tennis racket - a good Christmas indeed.

Christmas party

Oups... it should actually read "Holiday party" - that is the official and politically correct wording here. So no talking about a Christmas party.
It all started with a fancy invitation via e-mail with a link to a website and a page to register. The work ID gave the right to one single extra ticket (still more than 2000 people attended). A leaflet described all what would be on offer all over the two main buildings. Did I mention the party took place on a Saturday?
Quite strange then to go to the workplace on a Saturday evening. Even stranger to see how the place had been made over. In particular, the lighting was great. Still stranger to see colleagues partying and socialising in the very same place where we usually have very formal meetings. The place filled quickly and people rushed to enjoy various types of food. As to the drinks, the waiters were very generous. Never had such strong vodkas... even in Russia and Belarus! The "Christmas" tree was standing in the main lobby. I did not get it why there were presents below it and especially who they were for? We moved around to enjoy listening to live music from oriental, Jamaican, classical, international bands. The quiet and thoughtful meeting rooms were turned into sweaty and loud dancefloors. Let's see if the festive spirit is still there on Monday.
All in all, it was great to see that the IMF is truly an efficient and international organization. Everything was well managed and people from all over the world mingled and interacted. A colorful evening !