We’re here! Finally. After months and months of planning and anticipation, we’re physically in Lausanne. I’ve heard it takes months to feel like you’re not on a vacation. Life here doesn’t feel like a vacation right now, partly because it’s very cloudy (we haven’t even seen an alp yet!) and we know we have a lot to accomplish before S’s job and my language class begin.
In the hopes that this blog post helps someone else who is moving to Lausanne, here’s what we got up to on our first day in our new home.
Find your closest grocery store
First things first: food. One of our first observations in Lausanne was just how many grocery stores there are. I can only assume this is because people shop more frequently because they don’t drive their cars to pick up food in the city. Whatever the reason, there are at least ten grocery stores within walking distance and I’m excited to shop at all of them. On our first day, we stopped at Aldi (ah, a taste of home) for muesli, milk, eggs, a baguette, apples, tea, and chocolate biscuits. You know, the essentials.
Check out your neighborhood
What’s around the corner? For us, it’s like five barber shops (and one of them has TWO French bulldogs!). Are there any cool shops to check out? I resisted the urge to get right into bed and strolled around the neighborhood before we stopped at Aldi. A 20 minute walk was enough to get my bearings and not get overwhelmed by all the newness.
Make sure your name is on your mailbox
In Lausanne, they will not deliver mail to you if your name isn’t clearly labeled on the postbox. If you are living with a partner, both names must be labeled. Don’t sleep on this one, as your canton may need to mail you registration documents.
Check in with your stateside family
It probably goes without saying, but if you are jetlagged and emotional, I’m here to tell you to let your people know you got there safely with all your stuff. And now that living abroad is real for you, make sure that you’ve checked these tasks off your list. We didn’t, and we should have!
- Send your current address and the dates that you’ll be there to your family members.
- Let your family know if they can call, text, or Facetime you easily with your current phone plan.
- Tell your family members if you have a will and where it is located. We used Willing and recommend it if your assets are straight forward.
- Let family know if you have life insurance and what company it is with.
Drink water
After goodbyes and hours of traveling, I was dehydrated, but didn’t realize it until I woke up at 2 am with a throbbing headache. Drink water. Stretch. Based on the monster headache I got, I cannot stress this enough.
Relax (and sleep!)
Moving to a new country can be exhausting, physically and emotionally. We have known this could be a possibility for almost a year and it’s still going to be a big adjustment — and we’ve only been here a few days. It’s exciting and daunting to know that there are so many surprises out there waiting for us.
For me, relaxing looked like this:
- We made dinner in our kitchenette and had a cup of tea.
- I wrote in my line-a-day journal.
- I took a shower and dressed in clean pajamas.
- I just went to bed and worried about fixing my jetlag later.
American Girl in Switzerland 