Hi!
Since I’m new on Quantum Diaries, let me first introduce myself. I’m Rob, a Belgian Ph.D. student at CERN. Unlike most other physicists here, I am doing purely theoretical work, the kind of work for which one doesn’t need CERN’s Large Hadron Collider or any other equipment, except perhaps for its blackboards.
The nice thing about being a theoretical physicist at CERN is that the experimental guys are never too far away, so you are quickly updated on their latest discoveries. For us theorists, that knowledge is like heaven.
As a theorist surrounded by experimentalists, I hope to be able to give a slightly different view on any discoveries. But until then, let’s talk about life around CERN and Geneva. When arriving in Geneva as a foreigner, it is quite difficult to understand and adapt to the city’s quietness when it comes to nightlife. With all bars closing at 2am and nightclubs being overly expensive, young expats need to be creative to have a good time (read: home parties).
Although it can be difficult to find out about them (since the Swiss seem to be horrible at advertising), there are a few events that make Geneva absolutely worth it. Young people at CERN seem to have armed themselves against the lack of advertisements by exchanging useful weekend information on Facebook groups such as [email protected]. This way, Geneva’s most awesome events usually have quite a high percentage of cernies attending them.
For example this weekend, the little villages on the Swiss side behind CERN (Satigny, Russin, Dardagny, etc) had their ‘caves ouvertes’, or open (wine) cellars in English. Basically, you go to one of these villages around noon, buy an empty wine glass for 5 Swiss Francs, and then pass as many winemakers as possible who will let you taste all of their wines for free. Whether you are interested in tasting a certain winemaker’s pinot noir or merlot, or you just want to walk around the vineyards carrying a glass of wine, it usually is a Saturday afternoon well spent.
Or perhaps, like me, you are just wondering about the effect of wine on your fellow physicists..
