THE BLOG

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THE BLOG

Jennifer MacLeod

I always kind of liked that Tolstoy quote, the one where he says all great stories are about one of two things; someone going on a journey or someone coming to town. I may have taken this all too literally, but I’ve always loved a good story.

Once upon a time, I decided to leave Toronto, and the job and the people I loved, and I went to Vancouver where I discovered a great job and fantastic people. I took this as a trend, as the inevitable potential of moving, and jumped when I had the chance to come to Geneva.

This blog is dedicated to little nuggets, found in the streets of Geneva, found in the deliciousness of Switzerland, and found in that search for good stories, cool people and great food.

Judy Okten from Bonju takes us the the making of a Luscious Life green smoothie
EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA, Swiss Health, Uncategorized

The Secret to a Luscious Life

Jennifer MacLeod

An entrepreneurial wave has washed over the Swiss Romande these past 5 years, with newly sprung innovators starting businesses not only from a drive to create but from personal passion.  These inspired entrepreneurs are not just building businesses; they are trying to make the world a better place.

This creative spirit sparkled when I sat down with Judy Okten from Bonju to discover what led her to start her popular green smoothie company.  The advice she offered to would-be entrepreneurs both surprised and inspired me.

Continue reading “The Secret to a Luscious Life” →

Monica from Atelier de Danse Orientale
Swiss Health

Can Eastern Dance Contribute to Your Health and Happiness?

Jennifer MacLeod
IT MAY BE TIME TO DANCE LIKE AN EGYPTIAN

Before I met Monica Gayed, founder of Atelier de Danse Orientale by Monica,  my understanding of what is often called belly dancing was informed by an album I discovered when I was 8 years-old buried in my parents record collection. The record was called “How to Belly Dance for Your Husband”.

Continue reading “Can Eastern Dance Contribute to Your Health and Happiness?” →

Business people walking
Swiss Health

Top 10 Countries with the Best Walkers

Jennifer MacLeod

Countries Where People Take the Most Steps Each Day

In what is the largest data set yet, researchers studied 717,527 people in 111 countries to determine the level of physical activity across the globe. The large sample size is thanks to smartphones and their built-in step counters, whose prevalence allowed the Stanford researchers to measure physical activity on a global scale.

Here are the ten countries where people on average take the most steps each day

This study contrasts earlier pedometer tests made by individual countries, where methodology often varied. Earlier national studies showed the Swiss taking on average 9,650 steps per day, just behind the Australians who were taking, on average, 9,695 steps daily. Switzerland has nonetheless made it into the top 10 of step-takers worldwide, which is significant.

Walking is a key to a healthy life.  According to WHO “inactivity is now identified as the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality. ” Walking on the other hand can help prevent disease and improve mental health.

How many steps have you taken today?

5 ways to improve your step count
  1. Set reminders that tell you to get up and move
  2. Get off the bus/tram one stop early
  3. Get a step counter and set goals
  4. Walk with a friend, instead of having a coffee
  5. Take the stairs

 

 

Stands and crowds at the Geneva Street Food Festival, June 2017
EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

Taking It to the Streets

Jennifer MacLeod

Geneva Street Food Festival June 9, 10, 11, 2017.

Now coming up on it’s two year anniversary, this celebration of street eats is not to be missed. If you did miss this edition, not to worry.  It will be back this fall. Watch for the dates. And check out the video.

 

4 young people give a toast on Christmas Eve over the tag line Swiss Sauce
EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, SWISS SAUCE

One Out of Every Two People in Switzerland Will Eat Fondue Chinoise this Year at Christmas

Jennifer MacLeod
How Did This Unique Take On Chinese Hot Pot Become A Swiss National Tradition?

There is one traditional dish in Switzerland that crosses the rösti divide, an imaginary line separating French and German speaking parts of the country and named after pan-fried grated potatoes with Swiss German roots. According to L’Hebdo half of the country will eat Fondue Chinoise at some point during the holidays. Skewering meat on a fork and cooking it in bouillon isn’t just a meal that unites all linguistic regions of the Alpine nation. Fondue Chinoise has become a national dish.

Continue reading “One Out of Every Two People in Switzerland Will Eat Fondue Chinoise this Year at Christmas” →

A smiling spoon among regular spoons. Standing out from the crowd. Concept restaurants in Geneva, Switzerland.
EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

Standing Out from the Crowd

Jennifer MacLeod

Café Concepts

in Geneva

  • bio restaurants
  • vegan restaurants
  • local farm to table restaurants
  • pop up restaurants
  • surprise menus
  • restaurants where you pay what you want
  • restaurants with single menu options
  • waste-based cooking
  • blind dining experiences    

Restaurants all over the world are bringing us concept dining, and apparently Switzerland is no different. In fact, according to Le Temps not only are concept restaurants popping up everywhere in the Suisse Romande, they are rapidly expanding into chains.

Continue reading “Standing Out from the Crowd” →

Lunchtime in Geneva at Place Molard. A young woman reacts.
LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

Lunch in Geneva: Is it possible to eat for less than 20 francs in this town?

Jennifer MacLeod

Round Two

Yes lunchtime is an expensive affair in Geneva, but it doesn’t have to break the bank.  Here are 4 recommendations for an affordable midday meal that doesn’t require going to the COOP supermarket for a leg of roast chicken.  Continue reading “Lunch in Geneva: Is it possible to eat for less than 20 francs in this town?” →

The 12 Most Popular Travel Destinations from the Geneva Airport 2006-2015
INTERNATIONAL GENEVA, LIVING IN GENEVA

Come Fly with Me

Jennifer MacLeod

It wouldn’t be fair to say that the best thing about Geneva is how easy it is to get away, but it is certainly a plus.  Geneva’s airport offers incredible connectivity compared to other airports in cities of its size.  In 2015 the airport serviced direct flights to 142 destinations in Europe and beyond.  Where is everyone going?

 

Top Twelve Destinations by Country 2006-2015

 

Continue reading “Come Fly with Me” →

SWISS FILM

Ma Vie de Courgette a.k.a. My Life as a Zucchini

Jennifer MacLeod

This poignant animated film from Switzerland is on its way to being an Oscar contender

My Life as a Zucchini was a stop-motion dream 10 years in the making for its director Claude Barras.  Now his first feature, based on a novel be Gilles Paris, is the official Swiss submission for a Best Foreign Language Oscar and may be up for Best Animated Feature.   Continue reading “Ma Vie de Courgette a.k.a. My Life as a Zucchini” →

The exterior of the American Market in Geneva
LIVING IN GENEVA

What Does Home Taste Like?

Jennifer MacLeod

8 things you can find at the American store in Geneva

Living as an expat in Geneva, I often get asked to describe a typically Canadian meal. Sometimes people just want to know what foods I miss from home, if there’s something I can’t find here, or if Canada has a national dish.  These are all good questions.  Is there a national Canadian dish?   Continue reading “What Does Home Taste Like?” →

A selection of beers from the Genevan artisanal brewery Brasserie des Murailles
EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

October is beer

Jennifer MacLeod

On the last day of September the sunshine was brillant, the sky was intensively blue, and there was just the slightest hint of an autumn breeze. Riding my bike up from the lake and down Rue Montchoisy, I pedalled past Tom Beers, a store which opened in Geneva this past year and which has a wide selection of beer, and I immediately thought about, well, beer. The next day was the first day of October. With Oktoberfest already underway, not to mention the upcoming Geneva Beer Festival on October 21st and 22nd, I decided to stop and get some recommendations. I wanted something really local.

Continue reading “October is beer” →

LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

It’s already 5pm Geneva. C’est deja 17h Genève.

Jennifer MacLeod
#genevaat5pm #geneveà17h

 

Désalpes in St. Cergue. Cows walk through the centre of town.
EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, SWISS SAUCE

Désalpe 2016 St. Cergue

Jennifer MacLeod

Let’s face it.  The Désalpe festival in St. Cergue is for tourists, or at least for expats. Between the scolding British mother extolling the virtues of sharing ones’ Haribo candy with ones’ little sister at 10:30AM, and the nerdy young American guy enthusiastically proclaiming that this was the very first time he’d been drunk at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, there was a lot of English spoken in St. Cergue last Saturday.  Amidst the cows, the cheese, the wine and the log tossing, there was also a lot of local pride.  Why shouldn’t there be?  There is no better place in the world to be a cow than in Switzerland.

Continue reading “Désalpe 2016 St. Cergue” →

Quote by Robert Doisneau: The marvels of daily life are so exciting, no movie director can arrange the unexpected that you find in the street. Text of black and white photo of a city street.
GENEVA SOCIAL NETWORK, LE JUICE GENEVE

Stealing Kisses in Geneva

Jennifer MacLeod

5 Instagramers you need to follow

These 5 Instagram accounts offer original perspectives of these city streets.  This is Geneva outside the brochures.   Continue reading “Stealing Kisses in Geneva” →

Image of a food truck with the tag Street Eats in Geneva
LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

Geneva Food Trucks – Round Two

Jennifer MacLeod

There’s always time for lunch Geneva

Find out where you need to go next week to eat on the street.  Here’s a rundown of the 10 “official” food trucks and a quick look at what’s on offer at these and the other 15 trucks that roam these city streets.

Continue reading “Geneva Food Trucks – Round Two” →

LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

You Say Apéro I Say Aperol

Jennifer MacLeod

As we roll into the last two weeks of August, and vacationers return filling Geneva’s deserted summer streets with people once again, there is no better way to draw out the last days of summer than with that quintessential of patio drinks – the Aperol Spritz.

Continue reading “You Say Apéro I Say Aperol” →

#igersgeneva exhibition at Found Concept Store in Geneva
GENEVA SOCIAL NETWORK, LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

Have You Checked Out the Hashtag #igersgeneva?

Jennifer MacLeod

This is the hashtag for the biggest community of Instagramers in Switzerland, who also happen to have an exhibition from now until August 30th at the concept store Foound.

Continue reading “Have You Checked Out the Hashtag #igersgeneva?” →

LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

Geneva’s Expensive, Right? What Are You Going to Do About It?

Jennifer MacLeod

Ah Geneva. A city where complaining about what something cost is a lively sport for newcomers. The city does offer the most expensive hotel room in the world, the penthouse at the Hotel President Wilson, which will set you back 60,000 francs a night. Fast and cheap means a Big Mac and fries for 15 francs, and Switzerland is now number one on the Economist’s Big Mac Index, as the most expensive country in which to purchase the double patty with special sauce. Not to worry though because Geneva is third in the world for highest density of millionaires, behind Zurich and Monaco. But what about the rest of us?

Continue reading “Geneva’s Expensive, Right? What Are You Going to Do About It?” →

Geneva Resident Population by Origin and Nationality. Statistics.
INTERNATIONAL GENEVA, LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA, POPULATION AND DEMOGRAPHICS

International Geneva – Where Do We Come From?

Jennifer MacLeod

Geneva is certainly a global city and 41% of the cantons residents are of foreign origin or of other nationalities. Did you know just over half of all Geneva’s foreign residents come from only 4 countries? Can you guess what they are? Just how does Geneva compare to other cosmopolitan cities?

Continue reading “International Geneva – Where Do We Come From?” →

LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

In the Beginning there was Lunch

Jennifer MacLeod

It`s official.  Geneva has embraced the food truck.  What are your plans for lunch this week Genève?

Continue reading “In the Beginning there was Lunch” →

Weekly food truck Calendar for Geneva
LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

What’s for Lunch Geneva?

Jennifer MacLeod
Trying to decide what to have for lunch this week?  
Check out these food trucks.

Continue reading “What’s for Lunch Geneva?” →

LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

Café à Gogo – Meet the Third Wave

Jennifer MacLeod

A coffee to go isn’t very European, and yet there are eight Starbucks in Geneva. In fact Switzerland has one of the highest number of Starbucks per capita in Europe.  Now get ready for the third wave!  

Continue reading “Café à Gogo – Meet the Third Wave” →

EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, SWISS SAUCE

Renversé? Qu’est-ce que c’est?

Jennifer MacLeod

In the Suisse Romande, otherwise know as the French-speaking part of Switzerland, there is an original take on coffee and steamed milk.  Hint: it may have to do with all that delicious Swiss milk originating from it’s alpine pastures.

Continue reading “Renversé? Qu’est-ce que c’est?” →

Lunchtime in Geneva at Place Molard. A young woman reacts.
LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

Lunchtime in Genève (How to Eat Lunch for under 20 francs)

Jennifer MacLeod

There is certainly no such thing as a free lunch in Geneva.   When a simple plat du jour starts at 20 francs is it possible to eat lunch for any less in this city?  It’s a challenge but thankfully there is a way.

Continue reading “Lunchtime in Genève (How to Eat Lunch for under 20 francs)” →

INTERNATIONAL GENEVA, LE JUICE GENEVE, LEARNING FRENCH IN GENEVA, LIVING IN GENEVA

Vive la Langue Française

Jennifer MacLeod

Learning a new language is hard and humbling.  If you’re taking intensive french classes 5 days a week, you might as well be back in primary school so be prepared to regress.

Continue reading “Vive la Langue Française” →

EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, SWISS SAUCE

How do Swiss Women Stay so Thin?

Jennifer MacLeod

Swiss women have scored the best body mass index in Europe.  Globally people have been getting heavier since 1975, but Swiss women have achieved an almost perfect weight score in a global BMI survey.  How is this possible when the Swiss  consume more chocolate  than any country in the world?

Continue reading “How do Swiss Women Stay so Thin?” →

The Best Bircher Muesli Recipe is all about the fruit
EATING AND DRINKING IN SWITZERLAND, SWISS SAUCE

The Best Bircher Muesli

Jennifer MacLeod

(Is All About the Fruit)

Here’s a recipe inspired by elements from both the original and the award winning combination from the Hotel Kempinski in Geneva.

Continue reading “The Best Bircher Muesli” →

swiss chocolate bunnies
LE JUICE GENEVE, LIVING IN GENEVA

No Bunny Business?

Jennifer MacLeod

High cocoa costs may have caused a jump in the price of your chocolate bunny this year, but there is some sweet value to be found in Geneva.

Continue reading “No Bunny Business?” →