French Lessons

Matt and I are taking French lessons which are offered through his company. Our sessions are twice a week for 90 minutes each session at Matt’s office. We’ve had five lessons so far and I can say the following: “I am a woman. I am not a man. I am 34 years old. The table is brown.” It’s a start! Our instructor is very patient with us. I think she finds our Midwestern accents a little odd, especially how we pronounce our vowels. We are starting to recognize more words out in the community as our vocabulary increases, but the language barrier continues to be the biggest struggle for us.

Views from our apartment

The Move (One Month Ago)

Matt’s experience:
Headache (cousin’s wedding the night before) – MSP – O’Hare – Millie Lost – Airline Blames Us – Millie Found – Airline Apologizes – Upgrade to Business Class (Thanks Millie) – Zurich – Train – Alps – Lausanne – Taxi – Company Apartment – No Keys – Go to Office to Get Keys – Back to Apartment – Headache Gone – Need a Drink (None to be Found) – Sleep

Millie’s experience:
Crate – MSP – Why Are They Drilling More Holes in My Crate? – O’Hare – Lost –FOUND – Still in Crate (What, No Business Class?!) – Zurich – Baggage Claim – They're Here! – Whine – Whimper – Whine – BATHROOM AFTER 15 HRS – Whine – Whimper – Whine – Train – Alps – Lausanne – Taxi – Company Apartment – Out of Crate – Sniff – Sniff – Sniff – Need a Drink – Sleep

The Beginning

Before we start blogging about our European adventures, here’s a little bit about where we are and why we’re here:

- Sandra, Matt, and Millie relocated to Switzerland for Matt’s three-year work assignment with Pentair. The job is in Lausanne.
- We live in an apartment in Morges, about a 10 minute drive west of Lausanne on Lake Geneva (Lac LeMan is its French name).
- We are in the French-speaking area of Switzerland and taking lessons. Many people here speak more than one language, including English (but not as fluently as we thought – i.e., hoped).