Hiking the Grossen Mythen…

I went on the most amazing hike this weekend…up the Grossen Mythen. When you first drive up to this mountain, you think there is no possible way there is even a trail up…but there is…and a restaurant at the summit. There are even tables at this restaurant which are reserved for people who climb up at least 100 times per year. It’s amazing to me anyone would have time for that but it would be a great accomplishment.

Most of my close friends were out of town on their own separate trips; so Laura, new au pair from Katy, TX, and I tagged along with my family on this hike. It was a nice day…we took a picnic lunch and just enjoyed the time together. So, I admit I’ve not been on many hikes, but when the parents purchased rock climbing harnesses for the girls (ages 4 and 7), I thought they were being a little over dramatic. I quickly changed my tune upon arrival at our obstacle!! One wrong step and you’d be out of luck, I’m afraid. The trail was extremely narrow at points with very large drops which would land you on nothing but rocks below. I was extremely proud of my performance on this hike. It was the first time I’ve gone bottom to top and back down without using any kind of transport. Other times I’ve ridden on a train, tram, or cable car in some direction at some point. It was completely rewarding for me to complete it using only physical exertion this time! Although, I did get a rough looking sunburn from being out too long (I did use some sun cream but not enough, apparently!), I have no major aches or stiffness like you’d expect the day after a hike. It must sound strange, but I almost wish I had the aches. That’s my reminder of the accomplishment which carries on for days afterward.

I guess that’s about all the info I have for now. I’m heading out tomorrow night with some friends to see the new Harry Potter movie! I’m completely stoked to watch it, although I’ve heard mixed reviews. I’ve added the pictures from the hike on my photos link to the left of the blog. They are labeled ‘Mythen’, so check those out if you’re interested!

Ciao for now!

LuLu

It’s Those Little Things…

This week I have been a baking and cooking machine. It’s funny to me, I sometimes don’t realize I’m living in a different country until I want to cook something from home or go into the grocery store. I’m getting used to the different language. It’s no longer totally scary to me to have someone ask me something in Deutsch…oh, excuse me….Schweizer Deutsch (Swiss German!). This week I was asked to make both Banana Bread and a Devil’s Food Cake. Are you aware that there is basically no such thing as a box cake here? That’s right…you want it…you make it from scratch. I’ve successfully made a Devil’s Food Cake from scratch! I’m so proud…no one need give me a pat on the back…I’m doing enough of that for myself! It’s not often, but always seems to amaze me, when I find there is something I need for a recipe which cannot be found here. Probably the most obvious to me are two things…brown sugar (can’t find it anywhere!!) and soups in a can. This includes the fabulous cream of soups which are needed for a wide variety of great recipes I know how to make. I am severely impaired in my cooking abilities because of this fact. I know how to make a handful of things on my own and for everything else I must be given directions. This is not such a bad thing actually. I’m building quite a list of things I can make with ingredients here in Switzerland. I’m sure if I ever return to the States I’ll miss the things I have here like fresh cheeses and different kinds of meat. One meal in general…Fleischkase and Rosti!!! Is there any in between place where I can have everything…

Will I ever be able to bake my cake, have it, and eat it too???

Things to think about…

LuLu

One more thing...

I've updated my picture links on the left side column of the blog. Megan and I are both using different sites for our photo storage now. Have a look at them...they are fantastic!! I'm working with Shutterfly and, so far, really liking their site. There is an option for you to order pictures you might like and they are sent to Target for pickup, if you want. I have added, I think, all the pictures that were missing up 'til now. Vienna, Budapest, some hiking and social events in the last few months.

Hope you enjoy it!

LuLu

Züri Fäscht 2007 (The Summer Went on Holidays)

This past Friday night was, quite possibly, one of my favorite memories to date. First, there was the end of my German class. That’s right, no more! I got to the point where there was more anxiety over going to this class than anyone should ever have to feel. It was embarrassing how slowly I am learning the language compared with everyone else. I can do the grammar and tell you why things are where the are in a sentence all day long, but my vocabulary is not very large and I need to be able to hear how it should sound in my head…I can’t do that right now. So, I’ve decided not to take another class. I’ll find another way to learn it!

After the horrible end to German classes, the girls and I went into Zürich for the Züri Fäscht. This is an event that happens every few years. I have conflicting accounts ranging anywhere from 3-5 years between each Züri Fäscht. I’m not sure which is correct. The city looked like an American carnival. It was spectacular. Food, vendors selling anything from jewelry to clothing to anything you can imagine, rides for kiddies and adults, etc. We arrived in the city about 8:45ish and made our way to the lake front where there were fireworks to, what I’m told is, a live orchestra (that was Friday night…Saturday night I’m told they were to pop music…wasn’t there). They lasted for quite a while and were so amazing it’s hard to describe. After that we made our way, along with about a million of our closest friends, get in line for the Ferris wheel. It was possibly the highest one I’ve ever seen. We’d made friends with two guys from Chicago and ended up hanging out with them for the evening…so they rode with us. Now it was off to a food area where we made pigs of ourselves eating the traditional bratwurst and bread. Oh, it gets worse, MUCH worse! Ok, so most of you know how extremely motion sick I get just riding in a car. Well, it was suggested to me we should ride some other rides while we were in town. By this time it must have been at least midnight or after. We proceeded to ride on one that swung from side to side all while spinning you around on this giant wheel…they Chaos it was called. The picture doesn’t do it justice but…it was BAD! Then it was decided that we should get on one called the Top Spin….you can imagine. If I felt sick enough from the first, it was nothing compared to the Top Spin!! I will say this in my friends defense…I could have waited at the bottom…one of the guys did. I just couldn’t…wouldn’t…whatever!!! I’ve always been the person who “can’t go” because of her sickness so I guess you could call this rebelling….well, I think that rebellion stage is now over (at least for a few more years!). Megan and I finally made it to her train station at around 3AM. We then had to walk 10-15 min to her house because the bus had stopped running by that time. I think now, 6 days later, I still feel a bit nauseous. It is just wrong the way I feel/felt…but it was all self-inflicted…I guess I can’t complain.

The rest of the weekend was really nothing to speak about…it was all the random happenings of 3-4 girls just wandering their way through life in Zürich. I was informed tonight the summer/sun went on holidays for a while (says girl aged 4) but it’s coming back now. The girls’ summer holidays officially begin tomorrow after school so it will be nice for the warm weather to return. We are planning to visit with some of my other au pair friends and have at least one picnic and play date by the lake.

For now I’m off…Dinner with my friend down the strasse tonight.

Love you all!

LuLu

ps-I've been here 10 months exactly today...14 more still to go....YAY!!!

A Rainbow in Downtown Oberruti…

Hello all!

Just thought I’d take a moment to share these pictures I took yesterday evening. At one point there was actually a double rainbow (one very bright and one quite faint…) but I missed that photo opportunity. About 20 minutes later this one appeared so I snapped away with my camera.

July has thus far been cold and wet. Quite depressing when July is almost as cool as January/February (at least that’s the way it seems to me!). Perhaps we’ll have better weather this weekend for ZuriFest. I’ll share, as much as I can, the experience and some pictures next week.

Love you all!!

LuLu

The Most Beautiful Place On Earth!!

Hello again. I know, I know…I’ve got to get better at this blogging regularly thing!! I’ve just had so much to do lately and with summer daylight hours and all I’ve been out of the house a lot more in the evenings (my usual blogging time…).

I’ve found the most beautiful place on earth. If you are looking for the beauty of the mountains and the calmness of the sea, you should take a trip to the Ticino Region of Switzerland. Inside Switzerland there are distinct regions of the country with different cultures. Of course there are the German speakers, to the west are the French speakers and French influenced culture, and finally to the south, along the border, there is the Italian region. I guess I’ve made it quite clear that Italy is my favorite place on earth but I may be beginning to have a change of heart regarding this issue. The Ticino region has the cleanliness and hospitality of the Swiss but a major Italian influence in atmosphere and food and of course the Italian language, which I think is the most beautiful language there is!

Since I last posted, I have been twice to visit in this lovely part of the world. On June 16^th the girls and I went down to Lugano for the day. We just relaxed by the lake, enjoyed good food, and stayed in a fantastic hostel! The place had a swimming pool and looked like a resort. Needless to say we were in heaven…The next day Megz and I took the train another hour south to meet mom and Aunt Lori in Milan, Italy for the day. I was yet again unsuccessful in seeing the fresco “The Last Supper”. I am determined, DETERMINED to see it before I leave Europe! It is absolutely unacceptable to me that I have yet to see this artistic masterpiece!! We did, however, take a walk along the roof of the Duomo, which was lovely, and we spent the day with my Mom and Aunt and just enjoyed each others company. (As an additional note-my Mom and Aunt have since gone back to the US. I believe they enjoyed their month in Europe immensely but were greatly missing the people back home. Maybe next year everyone can come!! It was sad to say goodbye to them; however, as I did, I realized just how much I consider this to be my home. A few people have asked if I wished I were going home with them and the answer to that is definitely no…I’m so happy here I can’t imagine it any other way at this point in my life! We’ll see if that feeling continues to grow the longer I stay…)

Moving on, this weekend we took a group of 6 people to Locarno for Saturday and Sunday. Manda’s 21^st birthday was last Friday, the 29^th, so we surprised her by taking her away for the weekend. It was so lovely and I think all in all I liked Locarno more than Lugano (and I didn’t know it would be possible!). We purchased some wonderful tickets that included the 3 hour train trip down and 3 more hours back, a one day pass on the lake, Lago Maggiore, and entrance into some special botanical islands on the lake, Isole de Brissago. They were absolutely beautiful and amazing. I’ve never seem such exotic plants. There were truly some from each of the four corners. The boat ride to and from the island was and hour each way, which was so nice. The weather-beautiful!! We had excellent food and enjoyed good company and lots of fun. Today, Sunday, we rented paddle boats and went out on the lake by ourselves for an hour. (I still feel like I’m on that boat actually…experiencing a tiny bit dizziness….).

Like I said…I STRONGLY recommend a trip to this part of the world. There is something calming and completely romantic about the atmosphere and the people. Even now, Megz and I are looking to our next trip to the region. Perhaps we will visit the town of Ascona on the next visit!

Finally, the time has come which I’ve dreaded from the beginning of my stint here in Switzerland. I am starting to say goodbye to a lot of my good friends here. I’ve been invited to two goodbye parties just this week. I knew most of the girls wouldn’t renew their contracts like I am doing (it apparently takes a different kind of person to do this for a second year!) but I guess I didn’t think it would affect me as much as it is. I’ve come to rely on seeing these girls and enjoy hearing their stories and about their lives. They have becomes some of my best friends and, in the case of two-Manda and Sara- who go home not so long from now, they may as well be family. We’ve been everything to each other over the course of these last nine months and I’m not sure how life will be here without them. Megan and I still have each other and are happy and content to stay here on our own but together we make a good team, but life will definitely be different without Manda and Sara!!

I know this post has been a hodge podge of everything from the last two weeks and I’m terribly sorry for that. I have several things coming up to post about so hopefully I’ll find both the time and the motivation to do so! I’ve updated my maps to reflect the places I’ve visited lately and I’m working on the pictures. I tried to log in to my Yahoo! Photos site tonight only to find they are closing it down. I’m in the process of switching to a different provider and will connect the link to this as soon as I can. Until then I believe you can still access the photos through my Yahoo one if you click on the link from the blog page.

Very tired and going to bed…Love you all!

LuLu