I have such exciting news that I've been meaning to share but I get distracted by outings and events and life.

For instance, one evening I went into Nyon to practise my French by watching a film. Instead I got an eyeful of beautiful young girls, religion, torrential storms, surging rivers, trance, suicide, nudity, exorcism, many close-ups of insects and raindrops, and even a daylight meadow scene with the teenage protagonist lying naked with three nubile young men. Very little dialogue though. I suppose the French can't help themselves (although technically it was Swiss). I enjoyed it even while smiling inwardly.

And then there's the rain. I am in awe of the quantity of water that can fall from the skies. Often there is no sign of the mountains surrounding me, or the lake. Just cloud. There have been only two days in the past three weeks when it hasn't rained. And it's proper rain. I mean, not Costa Rican tropical rain, of course, but hours of steady rain, day and night, relentless. The kind usually attributed to England. Let me tell you, fifteen years in London and I have never seen such consistent rain.

A million euros!

But I don't care because I'm having such a delicious time in Switzerland with its history, markets, efficient trains, gem fairs, sweeping landscapes with dramatic clouds, chocolate, a weekend-long writing conference, even the films, and, of course, my delightful young housemate. Same age as my girls.

I haven't said much about him in my Swiss posts as it feels like an invasion of his privacy, but he's worth mentioning as we have a lovely time together when our paths cross. For example, one evening we started with how Aristophanes made playful aspersions on Plato's thoughts - he compared the gods' pontificating to a windful of farts - and moved on to Rome vs Greece (why do we have to choose sides?) and whether Jesus existed. We've discussed wine, chocolate and the challenges of queer culture in Switzerland. At one point, my housemate tied in the mega-churches of the US to the use of Christianity as a force for government, and we've also covered politics, the history of the area, schooling and of course gemmology. He did an apprenticeship and now works on the creative side in the atelier of a top jeweller in Geneva. He is a joy to be around.

I'm barrelling towards the end of my time in Switzerland, so am rushing to do all the things that I haven't quite got around to: the large marché aux puces (flea market) in Place Plainpalais in Geneva, Lausanne and its night watchman (although I believe it's a woman at the moment), Bern is a possibility but definitely Montreux with its connection to Freddy Mercury, a cog train up the mountain and Chateau Chillon on the lake. Plus, if I'm lucky, maybe a couple more decent hikes. Potentially in snow. In the mountains, it won't have been rain falling all this time.

But the point of this post, and the big news which I've finally got around to, is that I have found my what. In January I will return to do a Foundation course at Regent's University in London in Psycho-therapy, with the plan to continue onto a Masters in Psychology in September. Of course, this does involve London in January, which had never been my plan, but that's okay. Weather is irrelevant when life has purpose. 

First, though, I will fill my suitcase with chocolate and head to Mallorca for a few weeks.

The chocolate aisle at my local supermarket