Geneva is small compared to where I grew up: Delhi is one of India`slarger cities, full of people, noise, and continuous bustle. Geneva goes to sleep well before midnight, and the people – even when not visible – dictate whether you can play the piano after ten pm. With a diplomatic corps almost as large as in New York, Geneva can be quite impersonal even as it is known to be one of Europe`s most cosmopolitan cities.

They say Geneva is best for those who work. This is often not an option for diplomatic spouses who spend the first three months settling in and drinking in the beauty of the mountainous terrain. However, as the days pass, a restless loneliness sets in: how long can one admire the lake view or wonder whether the clouds will permit a white-glow glimpse of Mont Blanc in the distance?

Fortunately for us newcomers and temporary residents, there is this institution called the Foundation de Geneve whose Spouses Circle make ssure that we are `found`, included, and entertained! Soon after your arrival in the city, a small booklet announcing its activities turns upin the mail and the accompanying letter asks you to join in six of theirteen activities they organize. What an amazing choice! With something suiting everyone`s predilection, it keeps your calendar filled with trips and visits, lectures and conferences, county walksand fine dining. A few days after you have filled out your choices, it`s signature invitations begin arriving. And before you know it, you have seen many more parts and aspects of the city/country than your spouse toiling away at sorting out the world's problems in the conference halls of the Palais de Nations!

Some of the nicest moments spent in my time in Geneva have been with the ladies of the Spouse`s Circle. My first was a trip with them was to the Serono laboratories just outside of Lausanne. We had hardly been in Geneva two months when the Mission car dropped me off at the bus stopat 8.30 am on a cold February morning. It had snowed the day before, and some of the white was still on the ground. I knew no one, and can honestly say that I was not looking forward to spending the day with none to speak with. However, despite knowing no French, I had an enjoyable day making new friends. The organizers of the trip made sure we had name tags and were introduced to the spouses of other diplomats similarly new to the city. I will also never forget that I dared to ask questions of the speaker and, from his reply, got to know that it is the ovaries of Chinese hamsters that are the source of the fertility enhancing drugs made at the Serono laboratories.

Another fond memory is of a lively talk about `toxic executives`heading organizations who often make life difficult for their underlings, and how expert counseling can help them improve substantially. Others relate to lectures/discussions about the unsolved Arab Israeli question, the dangers of an Avian flu pandemic, the cutting edge experiment being undertaken by the scientists at CERN, visits to exhibitions of the works of Rodin and Corbusier, to the Nestle headquarters in Vevey, to the Swatch showroom in the heart of Geneva, to the Audemar Piguet watch manufacturers in the Valley de Jou – one could go on and on. Each one of these have both educated me andenriched my stay in Switzerland.

Other ways to keep engaged in `serious` Geneva is to travel out of thecity. Weekends are most conducive to long drives in different directions. Day trips do not need much planning; an overnight staycould involve making a reservation for a Saturday night stay in a cozy family-run chalet. The best is when you escape a drippy dreary cold dayby driving up beyond the lowering clouds into the bright crisp sunshine of higher altitudes. And if you don`t want to drive out, there is the lake itself. Walks along its banks on a bright sunny winter afternoon or during a crimson summer sunset will always remain one of the highlights of our stay in Geneva.

I have been exposed to much in Geneva, not least being the highstandard of living enjoyed by Swiss citizens. India is a different world – it`s sheer numbers, color, warmth, diversity, food, and culture etc. being poles apart from the controlled and disciplined Swiss way of civic life. And while I would not change my world for anything, the workings of the United Nations offices in Geneva have made me aware ofthe multi-lateral nature of the connections between the different countries of our planet. The more inter-linked they are, the hard and painstaking work of meetings, conferences, negotiations, resolutions, consensus building etc. between countries becomes more and more important. With its scenic beauty and efficient infrastructure, Geneva provides the perfect environment.