Thank you for those tips! I'm planning a move to Lausanne this January and I will pack some vanilla!

I heard that eating out is expensive in Switzerland so I'm planning to do a lot of home cooking and home baking but it's hard to anticipate what ingredients will be available etc.

I will be cooking/baking Canadian classics

Should I try and buy a scale in Canada? Is it super-expensive in Switzerland?

Also, the difference between baking soda and baking powder is that baking powder has the "catalyst" (incorrect term but it's the only word I can think of for this) for the needed chemical reaction already in the powder. If you are using baking soda, you need to throw in a pinch of salt and it's the salt that will set off the chemical reaction. Baking powder already has the catalyst in the powder. I'm not too sure if it's salt or what though.

In other words, if you substitute baking soda for baking powder, make sure you throw in a pinch of salt. If you substitute baking powder for baking soda, no need to throw in the pinch of salt.