A Holiday To CERN

When planning a holiday or weekend getaway I'm not sure how enticing an information packed trip to CERN  would be, but the largest Particle Physics laboratory in the world attracts an eager international crowd to Geneva, Switzerland.
At one point I'm sure visitors to CERN were mostly friends and family and there are a lot of organised educational trips from schools and universities or for teachers, but word of the LHC (Large Hadron Collider) has spread. Especially with all the media coverage on the discovery of a new boson (if you want to learn a bit about the illusive Higgs Boson this little series of videos may be interesting to watch). I really believe that interest in Physics is growing and as a result people are using their holiday time to check out what exactly is going on at The European Organization for Nuclear Research.

The image above is of the Globe which houses a permanent exhibition called Universe of Particles. Every half an hour at the exhibition there is an exciting and informative film that takes you back to the Big Bang telling the story of our universe and detailing the mysteries that physicists want to solve. The film alternates between the French and English versions so if you come in and catch the French version, walk around and interact with the touch screen pods for half an hour then watch the show in English. The rest of the exhibition is a mix of interactive pods, displays of scientific items and pod seats that play audio files made by various scientists describing their favourite mysteries of the scientific world.

The exhibition was funded by Rolex and looks very futuristic and exciting and more importantly is free.

Across the road from the Globe, inside building 33 aka the reception at CERN, is another exhibition called Microcosm. It is completely different from the Globe and it is probably more exciting and captivating for younger children, there are interactive experiments and quizzes throughout this exhibition. The displays in the microcosm are quad-lingual (English, French, German, and Italian) whether the Globe only  displays two languages English and French.

The Microcosm features a garden with several large components of old CERN experiments, you might not be able to get out into the garden area but you can see them through the windows of the exhibition. They look quite impressive.

If the exhibitions leave you excited to learn more then there is still plenty to see. Tours are organised by the visits service at CERN where you will be taken around places like the ATLAS control room by a PhD student or maybe a retired Physicist, allowing you to ask questions or get an insight into the everyday musings of a scientist. The tours are free and extremely popular and you will need to book in advance.

After March 2013 the LHC will be shut down for maintenance, this could mean that visitors will be able to walk into the underground tunnel to witness the world's largest and highest-energy particle accelerator with their own eyes. Now that is quite exciting.

It used to be the case that if you were hungry during your visit to CERN you would either have to find the restaurant in a sports centre just down the road from the Globe or get a sandwich at the nearby petrol station, there is also a coffee vending machine at the reception. However this summer a little coffee shop selling sandwiches and other snacks became available outside reception making the CERN experience even better. Also located at reception is a small shop selling books, educational items, clothing and CERN souvenirs.

Getting more people talking and thinking about the exciting developments at CERN is important as it is such a unique organisation where scientists from all over the world can collaborate on experiments that try to answer questions about our universe. It is such an exciting concept, no wonder hundreds of people are visiting daily, whether on holiday or on an educational visit CERN is an amazing place. Spread the word.

Maison Cailler- Chocolate Heaven

When my lovely friends came over to visit this summer we took a trip to the delightful Maison Cailler chocolaterie in the canton of Fribourg, Switzerland.

It was a beautiful day in June when we took the train from Geneva Cointrin airport railway station to Broc Fabrique, where the tastiest chocolate lay waiting for us . Let me just say that train journeys in Switzerland are quite pricey (at almost 100chf  for the entire day of travel), but this is coming from someone who has spent the last 3 years using a 1/3 off rail card back in Scotland. However, let me also say how completely worth every penny it was. 

See this beautiful view of Lake Geneva. I had my eyes glued to the scenery for the entire ride. I really appreciate a good train ride, and this was definitely in my top 10.

There is another way to get to the chocolate factory, a special train known as The Chocolate Train that runs from Montreux to the Gruyère region giving you a beautiful tour of Gruyères castle (shown below as a speck  on the hill) as well as the chocolate factory tour and a cheese making demonstration. I have heard nothing but good things about it but as we were coming from Geneva we decided to keep costs down and take the regular old train which, as I mentioned, was spectacular anyway.

 We changed trains 3 times before we got to the chocolate factory, this allowed us to explore the municipality of Bulle. A pretty place with nice flower arrangements and random but quaint little bikes located on the green grassy areas, worth the wander.

After a quick pit stop there (mainly because our trains didn't connect right away) and we were back on our way to the factory!

The first thing that hits you as you step off the train is the smell chocolate in the air, delightful. There was a discount chocolate shop right next to the train station  and it was cheaper than the shop at the factory. I think we may have even bought some pre-factory chocolate to snack on which is something you shouldn't really do if you want to make the most of the gorgeous free samples. Once in the factory we seen that they do tours in various languages and we started our tour pretty quickly considering it was summertime. There was also a cinema/theatrical experience describing the history of chocolate and how Callier was founded, we watched this for ages at the end of our tour, it was really enjoyable and informative. We were also showed this corporate movie for Nestlé - Cailler which I rather loved.

The tour itself is excellent. You travel through time learning about the early uses of chocolate and progressing to Swiss technique of chocolate making. There was a room where we could touch, smell and sample from big sacks of cocoa beans, un-roasted and roasted almonds and hazelnuts. Then there was the production line of chocolates where a robotic machine individually picks up each piece of chocolate and at this point you can sample some chocolate but be warned, the best is yet to come. The main chocolate sampling room has a vast range of chocolates to eat.You can eat as much chocolate as you want but it was impossible for me to sample one of every kind of chocolate in that room, there was just such variety. Even my chocoholic friend, whom I have never ever before seen giving up a chocolate challenge, gave in and just nabbed a bunch of chocolates for consumption later and all for just 10 chf. Amazing.

*As a side note for visits in the summer I don't recommend chucking your nabbed chocolates in your bag unless you like melted chocolate covered things. Bring a container or baggies. Ahhh happy chocolate hand covered times.

The Trouble With Flat Hunting

After moving out of the family home, it would appear that the task of finding a flat has progressively gotten more difficult with every move. This is where I started out, my teenage haven.

My first home away from home was a strictly student affair. A shared living and kitchen area with 6 separately locked en-suite bedrooms. Easily acquired by waltzing into the reception asking 'Is it possible to rent a room out for the next few months?'. Contract signed, all I needed was a guarantor and hurrah I got myself my own space. Even though it wasn't all that homely, it was a nice accommodation to spend a few months during my studies.

My second flat was picked out by someone else and I didn't do any of the search work. I viewed the flat after my flatmate had chosen it and then signed the contract. Hassle free. If there was any mention of a guarantor I never knew about it.

Flat three was also easy, I moved in with other friends as someone else was moving out. I signed a contract and that was that.

After flat three, flat hunting became a little stressful. I was moving cities and also moving in with my partner, at that time we had been dating 2 years. The initial looking for flats on-line and phoning for a viewing was easy. Once it was decided what flat we loved most we put down a deposit.

The way Ream ,our letting agency, worked was that we needed a guarantor who had a specific amount of money, either in the bank or in wages who could pay for our rent should we fail to. We were all credit checked (guarantor too) and it seemed to take ages for the application process too go through. This meant an entire month worrying if we would actually get the flat. As this was my first time going through a letting agency I was unsure of how likely it would be that we would get our application rejected and so I fretted. A lot. But it all went well and we moved in.

I recommend Ream to anyone looking to rent out in Edinburgh. They were really good at fixing any in flat problems that occurred during our tenancy.It was a pretty nice place too, we even had our own balcony!


Then came the big move abroad. This is an exception to my case as we didn't have to pick out any accommodation for ourselves, it was provided.

It was fairly stressful moving away from everything familiar and getting  all our stuff to come with us.

Now comes the most difficult flat hunting experience yet. We went back to Edinburgh and I researched on-line and phoned around but when it came down to viewing day many viewings were cancelled as they were being taken off the market for their new delighted tenants. We were left with two flats to look at and we applied to one. This agency didn't take the familiar holding fee then go through the application, they wanted references and an application sent to them instead. Taking the time to gather references meant that we were too slow and the flat was leased to another. But on the plus side we had all our references ready for next time. The second round of viewings came about and I wasn't even sure the man showing us around one of the flats was part of a legit letting company. As that flat wasn't as nice as the pictures I didn't have to worry. The second viewing was perfect and we wanted it so we found out that this letting agency gathered lots of applications over a week and let the landlord decide. It meant that our chances of getting that flat were very slim. In fact we didn't get it. I read a sad little email in my inbox:  'I'm sorry to inform you...' and 'Sorry for any disappointment caused'. They were nice about it but we are now back to the start of the square and we are back in France. Looking for flats in Edinburgh and asking family members to pretty please go and view a flat that we really really like. So I am hoping that tomorrows flat is perfect and that this letting agency has a put a holding fee down-sort out the application later policy.

So basically if  you  are a potential tenant looking to rent out accommodation through an agency I recommend that as soon as you know you will be looking for a flat, gather old landlord references and have your current/most recent employer write a reference. Having these handy will help you get applications in quicker.When you find a flat on-line and phone in for a viewing (highly recommended) ask what the application process is like. eg. Do they want a holding fee, or do they let the landlord chose from a bunch of applications.

Sebastien Brocard Obsession

If there is one thing I'll miss after retreating back to my homeland it is this, Sebastien Brocard; master of cake. He has brightened mine and Dean's already sunny Sunday afternoons with his delicious range of amazing gateaux.

They are all so délicieux; the pink and yellow flower gâteau is just packed with layers of sponge and tasty fruit wrapped in a sweet layer of cream. The chocolate mousse cakes are so rich and divine with meringue or biscuit bases and creamy fillings to balance the richness of the chocolate. They have cake shops like this all over the place in France, Brocard is just one gem in a place filled with awesome cake making boutiques.

There are perfectly lovely cake shops in Scotland. I have been to many a garden centre with marshmallow strawberry cheesecake and chocolate Daim bar gateaux. Each cake fills you to busting with just one gigantic slice. However, they fall short of the delicately made French gems;small but bursting with flavour and tremendously satisfying.

Enter Patisserie Valerie, a chain of cafés posted about the UK, bringing over a taste of  "fine Continental Patisserie" from France. I visited the North Bridge café  in Edinburgh with a friend to try out the delightful strawberry cheesecake shown below, married with a yummy hot gingerbread latte and it was golden. The other cakes in store were very grand looking there were tarte aux fruits and even macrons! It wont replace the Sebastien shaped ache, but it will make a very good Sunday afternoon cake replacement.

Maybe one day I'll crack the secret to making delicate French style desserts and set the UK cake scene straight.

Here's To The Beginning Of Things

So I am a Scot who was living, for a while, in the lush Rhone Alpes region of France which also happens to be right near Geneva, Switzerland. Who can complain when you are surrounded by Alps, blue skies and the gorgeous Lac Leman?

Sadly I am nearing the end of my 17 month surreal living experience but I look forward to Edinburgh, life in a city where  24 hour shopping is possible.

I will bring back some new habits that I have acquired. Habits like scouring to find local tasty fresh food. I have already sourced the weekly Edinburgh market for targeting as soon as I return. I am hoping it will provide me with new delights to play with in my cooking.

Recently I met up with a friend while back in Edinburgh (looking for a flat to move into when I return). We ended up having a nice meal and a catch up at Bella Italia, drinking this sensational sparkling white dessert wine named Alasia Moscato D'Asti. It was delightfully fruity with a nice honey finish, I love a sweet wine and this was fabulous. So fab, in fact, that I looked it up and found you can buy it on Amazon. Another reason to look forward to my Edinburgh return, delighted!