The puzzles of daily life

When I was 16 or 20 years old, figuring out a new city was exciting. How did the Paris metro work? Where did you catch the bus in Heidelberg? What unfamiliar foods in Sainsbury's were really good in England? It was fun, challenging. And here I am again, figuring out the different options for riding the tram in Zurich - a short trip (if you're within some number of stations from your destination), a normal ticket, and a 24-hour pass. I'm starting to get a sense for which trams take me where in the city, and not having to look it all up on a map every single time. Even some street names are starting to become familiar.

But wow, somehow some of the excitement from those early times is gone. I just want to feel at home, and when I get off at Rennweg on the #6 or Bellevue on the #5 to know where things are, which direciton to go, which good restaurants to walk to. I'm a bit tired of the discovery period.

Maybe it is just because I'm more tired out from pregnancy. Maybe I have more than enough things to challenge me intellectually (like thinking about updating my resume and writing up my research) than I did at 20 years old. I don't need the puzzles of everyday life to keep me occupied because I'm still working on getting my medical records sent over and selling a house in another country. I want to have 4-6 ideas of places to eat in town, depending on who is visiting us, that are great (because many are) and that will fit that person's style. I want to spend the energy I have left at the end of each day deciding where to meet M for dinner in town based on what we're in the mood for, and if I want to bring the dog, not go explore to find a new restaurant that may not be that great. And I want to know people, in bars and cafes and our local stores.

That is another issue I'm changing my mind on. I started out here trying to get along just with my really limited German, to be shown to be making an effort. But I've found that my accent is good enough that people expect me to be much more functional in the language than I am. I haven't started language classes yet (I will this month), and I'd rather be able to get my desires across than use a few more words in German right now. And not just my desires, but my sense of humor, my personality, meet people, talk about them or myself. Right now, the grocer down the street knows my face, and given how often I come can probably guess certain things about our eating habits, but doesn't know much more. I come in almost every day, I get a croissant or more milk, coffee, or jam. I get yoghurt and a lot of fresh fruit because I'm finding that I'm a normal pregnant woman who needs a lot of extra fiber right now. But other than that, he and his wife (maybe she's just an employee, but the point is I don't know because I don't say more than "hello" and "thank you" in German) know little about me. I can't say I loved the watermelon this week, or that I wonder what fruits are coming up in the summer season. I can't ask about whether they would order specific items.

Well, I can ask or say these things, but sticking to German means I don't.

So I've switched to more English, after the polite "do you speak english?" question in German. Already, I have my favorite post office clerk who has very good english, and who I've traded a laugh with. And I feel more comfortable going to the post office for complex (express mail or registered post) mailings. It kind of starts to lessen the immensity of the "learning a new city" task, as well. I communicate better, so I learn more quickly and feel at home more quickly.

And we learned this week, with M's sister visiting, that the restaurant down the block is really really nice. So I'm adding at least one place per week to my good food list. From the bread and salad to the main courses, it was really great food. We all had something different and all were impressed with what we got. So for those people coming to visit us in this neighborhood (before we move), we've got a pretty good sense of where to take you.