From Mary, With Love

Sintra City and Pena Castle

2009-04-22T10:58:00.001-07:00

There is this wonderful castle about an hour outside of Lisbon up in the hills. It is very Moorish in design and we were able to go through it, although no pictures were allowed inside.

I was fascinated by the walls that look like they are covered in spikes.

When I think of a castle this is what I have in mind.

This is the first impression as you arrive. It was a Monastery first and added onto when it became the quarters of the Royal Family.

As you can see, there is a view all the way to the ocean from Pena Castle.

This is a view of the city hall in the town of Sintra.

First Time in Portugal

2009-04-13T12:22:00.001-07:00

We took a short Spring Break and flew to Lisbon for three days. We really had no idea what to expect--first time for both of us. One of the first things we discovered was that there are no "really old" buildings in Lisbon because a devastating earthquake leveled the city in 1755. Next, I think I had forgotten from my history classes, that the history of Portugal is all about Navigation and Discovery. This beautiful Belem Tower sits on a river which flows out to the Atlantic Ocean. It used to be on an island in the river.

At the front of this monument to Portugal's navigators is Henry, the Navigator. Then they had to choose only 32 of the other significant Discoverers to depict with him--not the least of these, Vasco de Gama.

This is the gateway into the city from the water. Every street and sidewalk that we saw was of tile. Better wear flat shoes.

We were happy to take one of these cable cars up the many steep hills whenever we could.

Panoramic view across the city to Sao Jorge Castle.

I'll finish our trip to Portugal next post---

CHOCOLATE, CHOCOLATE, CHOCOLATE

2009-03-29T11:22:00.001-07:00

Since we attended this event last year we have been looking forward to it's return. We braved rain, winds and unbelievable crowds to enjoy the work of local Chocolatiers.

We think this must be the South American God of the Cocoa Bean. There were unprocessed Cocoa beans there which I have tried before and tried again. Processing definitely makes the flavor better.

This artist spent a long time getting the various parts of the rabbits exactly where he wanted them.

I am trying a sample of one of my favorites--Pave.

These look tasty but we didn't buy any. We did pick up a lot of business cards and know where to find all these wonderful shops.

Not your ordinary chocolate egg. We were told once in a local shop that "Chocolate is very important to the Swiss". I'd have to agree.

A Beautiful Saturday in Bern

2009-03-23T01:58:00.001-07:00

Bern is an interesting city architecturally. In the Old City, the shops are under colonnades down both sides of the street.

This clock tower has a great "show" of moving parts, but the best time to view it is at 12:00 when all the characters do their thing.

There are fountains down the center of the street--each has a different statue on top.

Check out the Bern Bear between the legs of the soldier.

The reason for our trip to Bern was to attend the Temple, located in Zollikofen just outside Bern. The day was truly beautiful, but also very cold due to the strong winds that blew Friday and Saturday.

Spring Will Come

2009-03-09T13:00:00.001-07:00

As if magically, life begins to return to the city streets with the coming of March. Temperatures may be only slightly warmer and the sun and clouds are definitely mixed, yet the changes have begun. Cafe tables are back on the sidewalks, as are the walkers, joggers, and bicycle riders on the promenade along the lake. The Gelato shop across the street, which remains closed for six months of the year, is now open. Nature has produced no signs of Spring yet, but people are anxious to be outside after a long dreary winter--no matter that they must remain bundled up to sit outside and have something to eat or drink. It doesn't matter. These are all hopeful signs of warmer days to come.

As I look out the window today I have seen rain, rain mixed with snow, clearing skies, more rain, puffy clouds with blue sky--it must be time to hurry out and get a walk in before the next feature on the Geneva weather channel presents itself.

Saturday Steve and I attended the Geneva Auto Show where I was excited to see how far the electric automobile has come in the past year. Great things have transpired--now if we can just get the cost down so we all can afford to drive one.

This Opel has a great design with a generator that recharges the batteries. The speed is good and the range is getting better all the time--about 300 miles.

But this is the new electric car which I choose for my dream car. Impressive! It might cost as much as a house, so I may only be dreaming, but it's fun to dream.

Look What We Walked Into

2009-03-02T01:39:00.001-08:00

We planned a trip for when our friends, Henry and Lari would be visiting us. We traveled by train to Luzern on Saturday, February 21. As we exited the train and walked through the station we noticed that many of the people we passed were wearing costumes. Some were very elaborate. Left-over confetti was everywhere and we wondered what celebration we had just missed. Having just left Geneva, where nothing out of the ordinary was going on, we were not expecting anything exciting. But we had walked into the middle of "Fasnacht" From what we were able to learn it is a version of "Carnival". There were lots of different bands from the area--all gathered in the "Old-Town" section of the city. These bands were all percussion and brass and all very loud. We had booked a small hotel in the center of Old Town (not knowing about Fasnacht). Each band seemed to have a costume theme that went with their band name. All ages participated.

These elaborate masks were in a store window and many more of this type were seen being worn by those on the street.

More great costumes--this was much better than Halloween.

Each participant certainly seemed to enjoy really getting into the celebration. Whole families dressed in matching costumes. We loved the chicken brood.

The partying did not stop in the evening. It did not stop at midnight. We had heard that it would stop at 3:00 a.m. It did not stop at 3:00 a.m. but went on. There was a quieter time around 4:00, but the "clean-up" crews began their noisy tasks by 6:00 a.m. No sleep--but lots of excitement and fun. It also was very cold and when we looked out the window Sunday morning it was snowing. We boarded the train Sunday morning for Lugano, but that's the next blog.

Not So Common

2009-01-26T01:16:00.001-08:00

When most people think of Switzerland images of Snowy Alps come to mind. The reality, however, is that it rarely snows in Geneva--especially by the lake. Saturday, though, we woke to snow falling after it had rained all night. As you can imagine this made for a slushy mess. I insisted that we get out immediately and record what may be the only snow that I will see on the ground by Lake Leman, where we live. I had been feeling so sad about missing the beautiful snowfall in Pinehurst last Tuesday, that being able to enjoy some snowy moments Saturday morning was some consolation. Enjoy the scenes from our neighborhood as we recorded a fairly uncommon event.

Despite our soaking feet, I was glad that we had made the effort to take these pictures on our morning walk. The snow was completely gone by mid-afternoon.

Christmas was Great

2009-01-19T11:17:00.001-08:00

January is such a cold, dreary month that I feel it's a good time to look back at the color and fun of Christmas. We celebrated birthdays as well as Christmas and had lots of fun, family time. Apologies to those who have already seen the pics.

It was warm enough Christmas Day to be outside without coats.

Castles, Dragons and Princesses. What fun!

A new bow and arrow rounds out the make-believe fun.

The warmth and pleasure of Christmastime all year long would be fine with me.

Now we will just wait through the cold, wet, fog, rain and snow until blessed Spring.

Hard to Believe

2009-01-11T22:41:00.001-08:00

This is NOT what Geneva looks like right now. Since our return to Geneva after spending the Holidays in the United States we have not seen the sun. Each day (despite what the local weather forecast says) the temperatures have not varied more than three degrees and remain between 25 and 28 degrees Fahrenheit for each 24-hour period. The snow that fell on New Year's Eve is still around in clumps and patches here in the city, but a little ways out it covers the fields etc. Each day the forecast tells us it will be mostly sunny, partly cloudy, sunny, etc. but we have seen nothing but gray skies. It's amazing--and I don't mean in a good way.

On a happier note, the holidays were fabulous for us as we were able to see and spend time with children and grandchildren. We very much missed our California and Utah kids and families, but will be able to visit with them in the summer.

As soon as Steve is able to take a minute to edit photos, I will post some of our favorites from Christmas. I hope some of you, at least, are having a bright January.

Thanksgiving

2008-11-30T13:04:00.001-08:00

This was our Thanksgiving dinner. Okay, there was no turkey, nor stuffing, but we did have chicken with delicious fresh sweet potatoes to which I added sliced apples and pecans before baking. I also made cranberry bread and a salad with fresh pears, a little cheese and nuts. The other item on the table is a nice selection of fine chocolate. Okay, so it's no pumpkin pie, but I happen to prefer chocolate to pumpkin pie. We didn't even eat this meal on Thanksgiving Day, but then Steve was working in Germany on our Thanksgiving Day and we shared our meal together on Friday evening.

At this time we recognize that we have in abundance all things which really matter in life; family and friends to love and appreciate, faith in God and good health to enjoy life.

Who Knew?

2008-11-23T09:16:00.001-08:00

For over two months I have enjoyed looking out my front window at the hearty ever-blooming Chrysanthemums in pots which I had placed in my window sill. When the huge purple one began to look like it belonged to Morticia Adams, with brown flowers instead of purple, I couldn't stand to just throw it away and gave it to a friend to plant in her yard. Since that time, the two smaller yellow pots have braved the cooler temperatures and oft-times brutal winds to continue to display cheering yellow flowers. I must admit today, however, that they may not be up to the dusting of snow which we received yesterday and the night-time temperatures that are below freezing. Still, I watch as they rock, buffeted by the chill wind, and yet look fairly healthy.

I have not seen too many, if any, Chrysanthemums on window ledges. Sometime in the past couple of weeks I read that one should never take Chrysanthemums to someone as a gift because they are associated with funerals and death. Hmmm--I wonder how many people here have either chuckled at our cultural ignorance or thought that we had suffered a loss.

Interesting--Chrysanthemums being associated with funerals and death when in reality they are the essence of longevity, hardiness and can be depended upon to rise back up out of the ground to flower again next year. Maybe they should be thought of in terms of resurrection rather death. I still will remember not to take them to someone as a hostess gift.

Heading in a Different Direction

2008-11-17T03:41:00.001-08:00

The hills that we look out on from our front window are called the Jura. We had never gone into the Jura nor seen what lay beyond--that is until last Saturday. The deciduous trees had all lost their leaves, but there are plenty of pines. Also, we left a semi-clouded over Geneva, with hazy skies and drove into bright sunshine and brilliant blue skies. Nice change. Steve took this photo outside of the little village of Morez. We only have to drive 15 minutes in the North-West direction from our home to cross into France. We spent the day in France. We thought we might head to Dijon, where I have never been, but as we traveled in that direction we became ensconced in heavy fog. We changed plans and drove back in an Easterly direction, having picked out the town of Besancon on the map as a town to explore. It turned out to be an excellent choice--the weather stayed clear and the areas we drove through as well as Besancon itself were very interesting. I love little French villages!

As we approached Besacon the view is of the ancient Citadel and wall on the hill and of part of the river which flows all the way around the city. (By the way, the "c" in Besancon is pronounced as an "s" which would show up on a French keyboard and a little comma under the c.)

This shows the mosaic tiled roofs that are common to this area. The old buildings even in the little villages often have this type of roof.

We saw this type of turret on the corner of buildings often throughout the city.

Row houses along the river

Church on the square

Great Carousel. It's quite old.

I've aged a bit since you last saw me.

Love to you all--

Moving Through Autumn

2008-11-09T11:24:00.001-08:00

I have often heard the saying, "Till the cows come home" in reference to doing something for a long time--until the cows come home. Here is the picture to go with the saying. We were traveling along a road near Gruyere when a farmer got off his tractor which he had been driving down the road and placed two "cones" -- one on each side of the road to indicate a cow crossing. He then proceeded into the field and urged the cows into a line to begin their walk "home". Such a simple sight to view and yet for some reason it filled me with contentment to being able to take the time to enjoy watching cows return to their barn in the evening.

On the hill is the Gruyere Castle. Just some beautiful scenery on our way back to Geneva.

As Autumn pushes onward, I am getting more anxious each day to get home to North Carolina. I have discovered that I'm good for about two and a half months before I start counting the days until I come home. I find that I'm less tolerant of the crowds of people, the cigarette smoke being blown in my face, the dirty bus seats and the even dirtier streets. Yep--it's definitely time for a break from here for a little while. City life is fine in small doses. We plan to get out of town next Saturday--we haven't decided where, but it'll probably end up in my next blog.

Love to you all--

Family Fun Time

2008-10-26T11:01:00.001-07:00

Last Sunday we took a beautiful autumn ride up towards Mount Blanc, turned down toward Albertville, drove over to the bottom of Lake Annecy, around the Lake to St. Bernard de Menthod, and finished at the town of Annecy. It was a brilliant day with spectacular fall colors everywhere. We love it when visitors give us all the reason we need to go exploring. Every time we reached a "pull-out" on the side of the road we would stop to take more pictures. We hope Chad and Danielle had as much fun as we did.

One of Danielle's requests was to see a castle. This is the Castle St. Bernard de Menthod across the lake from the town of Annecy.

We ended the day in the town of Annecy. Danielle said that Annecy was her "favorite" of their whole vacation here. It certainly is picturesque and was the perfect ending to a beautiful day.

An Autumn Afternoon

2008-10-12T12:35:00.000-07:00

The weather will always make a liar out of you. After last week's post when I talked about how cold it had gotten here all of a sudden, we have had a very moderate week, temperature wise. The snow on the Jura is melted, but I'm sure it will be back soon. I felt like taking a walk this afternoon and taking some pictures of Autumn in Geneva. What won't show up on pictures is the fairly dense fog which shrouds everything each morning. I told Steve today, that I feel like I live in San Francisco or something. I'm content as long as I get at least some sunshine every few days. Enjoy the scenes from our walk.

This vine grows on walls all over around here, but it becomes spectacular during the Fall.

On a different theme--This huge three-legged chair stands across the street from the United Nations building. It represents all the children of the world who have lost limbs or been killed by land mines and cluster bombs. It is quite a statement. This square is also the site of many demonstrations by various groups with different agendas. I have just finished reading the book, Three Cups of Tea --A true account by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. I would encourage everyone I know to read this inspiring account.

FALL CAME FAST

2008-10-05T12:05:00.000-07:00

It seems like only two weeks ago that all the trees were still green with no color and then, as if overnight, the colors appeared and some trees have dropped all their leaves. It snowed already on the Jura (the low mountain range that I see from our front window). Wow! Everything changed quickly. I'm more used to the rich colors that develop slowly in North Carolina and stay till almost Thanksgiving. It's not that way here. This morning when we got up the temperature was in the low 30's. (Fahrenheit, not Celsius) It did warm up to the mid 50's, but coat-less days are gone. As we approach our one year mark here in Switzerland I can see some progress in the communication area. Our "only-French-speaking" neighbor feels like she can talk to us in simple phrases now and knows we will understand and respond in rudimentary French, but she seems to understand. A lady on the bus next to me told me something in French and I knew exactly what she said. It would be so easy here in Geneva to just depend on our English to get by, but then I would not feel like I had taken advantage of a real opportunity to learn something new. We have met many wonderful people at our church and are enjoying more social activities with some of them. Our experience here, so far, has validated my view that you can learn to adjust and be happy anywhere. There are still holes that only children, grandchildren, dear friends and perhaps a dog can fill. Aside from that we consider ourselves very fortunate for the experience we are having.

I've Been Tagged

2008-10-03T06:48:00.000-07:00

Apparently, I've been "Tagged".

A. Attached or single?--attached
B. Best Friend(s)?--Steve
C. Cake or Pie?-- Cake (chocolate of course)
D. Day of Choice? -- Thursday has always been my favorite
E. Essential? -- A project to work on, preferably hand quilting
F. Favorite Color?--Green
G. Gummy Bears or Worms? -- Bears (only red ones)
H. Hometown? -- Berkeley Ca.
I. Indulgence? -- Chocolate
J. January or July? -- July. Who likes January?
K. Kids? -- Five (Troy, Chad, Lara, Ben & Emily) There's no need to include ages here.
L. Life is not complete without? -- Family
M. Marriage Date? -- June 11
N. Number of Brothers and Sisters? -- One brother, three sisters
O. Oranges or Apples? -- Apples. I eat an apple everyday.
P. Phobias? --(just one?) Snakes, dirty things run a close second.
Q. Quotes? -- Happiness is a choice.
R. Reason to Smile? -- too many to name, but let's start with the natural beauty of the world
S. Season of Choice? -- Fall
T. Tag Someone -- Lara, this is for you.
U. Unknown Fact? -- Where I'll be a year from now.
V. Vegetable? -- Red Cabbage
W. Worst Habit? -- (only one?) Procrastination, I guess
X. X-Ray or Ultrasound? -- Neither, it might mean I'd be sick
Y. Your favorite food? -- Fresh-baked bread
Z. Zodiac sign? -- Cancer

Having Fun

2008-09-28T12:06:00.000-07:00

Emily and Damion have been visiting us here in Switzerland. We have spent the last ten days traveling to interesting sights and recuperating from our travels by just hanging out in Geneva. We went up to Mont Blanc, took the train to Lyon for the day, and spent two days in Grindelwald and the Lauterbrunen Valley. There is so much beauty to be seen here and we relish the opportunity to share it with others.
We were bundled up as we set out, but after a little bit of hiking, the jackets were shed and we enjoyed the warmth of the sun.
We hiked up to this lake from First. It was cloudy in Grindelwald when we got up so we decided to take the gondola up to First and get above the clouds. We were rewarded with such clear air and sunny skies at 7400 ft elevation.
Aview of the Alps from the beautiful little town of Murren in the Interlaken Region
We watched as this hiker walked on the narrowest of trails.
It's so much more enjoyable to share the beauty with those we love.
Damion definitely enjoyed the whole experience.
What a view through this "ice tunnel".
Back to Mont Blanc. We enjoyed another beautiful day on top of the world, so to speak. It was less than a month since we made this trip for the first time and yet the temperature was significantly cooler. This time, however, there was no wind to speak of. I also had a companion in my dislike for the tram ride to the top. Emily also is a little nervous on the tram rides. This time, however, the tram actually stopped about half-way down and it seemed to me like we dangled there thousands of feet in the air forever. In reality we were moving extremely slowly, inching our way into the terminal. White-knuckle time once again for me.

Same Game--New Setting

2008-09-14T12:12:00.001-07:00

When Steve and I moved to Switzerland I did not bring any of my golf equipment. I really did not think that I would play while I was here. It would be far too difficult to get to any courses without having a car. Then one Sunday I was introduced to a lady who works at the United Nations with the High Commission for Refugees. We were introduced by an acquaintance who knew that we shared a common interest--we both like to golf. Moira, my new friend, first took me to a charming little driving range/nine-hole executive course that was part of someone's farm. The guy had extensive acreage and had built this golf facility on part of the farm which included corn fields, orchards, along with grazing bison and elk. This past Thursday was a Swiss holiday and Steve and I joined her at a beautiful 18 hole course called Signal De Bougy. Walking the course is expected in Europe, but Steve and I also ended up carrying our clubs that we rented. It's been ten years since I carried my clubs (that was in Scotland), but we survived and are anxious to find new courses to play. Moira has been kind enough to take us in her car--maybe we'll have to rent a car for our next outing.
I felt like I was back playing in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA. One needs to be part billy goat to deal with the extreme ups and downs of this hilly course. Also, there was a constant misty fog that settled in for most of the round--only to be interspersed with actual rain showers. These weather factors would explain the way I look. I still had fun.
We really did not stray off the course to take this picture. The tee is directly in front of us. It wouldn't be golf in Switzerland without the cows.
The sun finally came out after we finished our 18 holes. We have come up with an admirable quest--to play one new golf course every month.

A Saturday Drive

2008-09-07T12:35:00.000-07:00

We woke up on this particular Saturday and it was raining in Geneva, but we had a car rented for the day. My suggestion was "let's head for the Valais, and Sion, if there's any sun, it will be there." It turned out to be true and we had mostly sunny skies until we reached the top of the Grimsel Pass and it was clouded over and began to rain which continued all the way back to Geneva. The river you can see in the above photo is coming off the glacier which is also visible.

As we drove toward the Grimsel Pass over the mountains we came to the village of Gletch. It is interesting to me to imagine what it would be like to live in such a place.

We were dealing with lots of clouds and some sun on this particular day. However, the sun came out and lit the church in this village at the right moment.

I find it amazing that the Swiss like to "perch" their villages on hillsides up in the mountains. It takes quite a while to wind up the steep little single lane roads that will take you to the village. The views, however, once you get there are always worth it.

We Finally Made It!!

2008-08-30T02:26:00.000-07:00

We've been in Switzerland since mid October 2007, and this past weekend we finally made our trip up the highest peak in Western Europe. We needed the perfect day weather wise and the motivation of entertaining a guest to bring it all together. It takes two tram rides to reach the the Aguille du Midi, the lookout to Mont Blanc. The tram rides were "white knuckle" time for me as we rose almost 10,000 vertical feet from Chamonix where we started. Even if the cliffs are steep, I would rather have my feet on the ground than hanging from a cable in the air. But I would and will do it again to see such breath-taking natural beauty.
Time to soak it all in together--this is as good as it gets.
Words really can't describe the majesty of this place. I think I could have take in the scenery all day and never gotten my fill.
Got Mountains? One of our sons-in-law said that having mountains was a criteria for a place to live. Would these mountains qualify?
Great photo of hikers on the ridge-line. This photo would definitely make it onto the wall of our Swiss Chalet, but alas, we don't have one.
Rock climbers with Mount Blanc as a backdrop
Henry Dirkmaat on the look-out at the Aguille du Midi Mont Blanc. Having people visit brings us to the best places. There are not many days this spectacular on the Mountain.

Beautiful Lake Luzern

2008-07-06T08:21:00.000-07:00

Luzern continues to be one of my favorite places in all of Europe. A few Saturdays ago, Steve and I took the train from Geneva to Luzern--a three hour ride. Steve arranged ahead of time to meet a long-time friend and his wife in Luzern and spend the day with them. Due to the need for Arianne to fulfill some grand mothering duties for their newest grandchild, she was unable to join with us on our wonderful trip to the top of Mt. Pilatus and back down to Luzern. It was a beautiful day as you can see from the photos, and on my next post I will include pictures from the unique "old town" of Luzern.
We met our dear friend, Reudi Blattmann, in Luzern and he took us on an adventure.
There were great views from the boat as we crossed the lake.
We sailed across Lake Luzern to a port where we disembarked the boat and boarded a cog-rail train which took us to the top of Mt. Pilatus
A boathouse we passed on our sail across the lake.
If you look carefully (or just click on the picture) you can see the cog train about to enter the tunnel. You can also hike to the top of Pilatus.

We took this cog rail up to the top of the mountain. It is the steepest cog rail in Europe. What views!
A view down to Lake Luzern from the top
The peak of Pilatus as we began the descent in the tram.

Living Without

2008-06-23T12:01:00.001-07:00

The June Gloom is definitely gone and it has been 90 degrees for the past three days. I'm sure that there is some reason, yet to be revealed, why I need to discover all the ways to stay somewhat cool on the 5th floor of an apartment building with no air conditioning. No air conditioning is really the normal way of things in Europe so I am not surprised, but I am challenged to deal with the feeling that at any moment I might become a melted puddle on the floor. I should have known we'd be in trouble with excess heat in the summer, when we hardly had to turn any heat on in the winter. The hottest part of the day (between 4-7 p.m.) is when the sun is directly on our front window. This makes it necessary to roll down the outside shade but when I do that, no air is able to come in. We do have fans--thankfully, and have found that if we don't turn on any lights at night then the bugs don't come in our screen-less windows. At least there is usually a pretty good breeze coming through either the front or the back windows. We've found that the newer buses have air conditioning, but the older ones do not. I told Steve on Sunday on our way home from church that I would rather walk all the way than get on a crowded, non-air conditioned bus again.

Lest I sound ungrateful for all of our wonderful experiences, let me clarify that I am merely challenged to learn new ways to handle living without some things which we sometimes take for granted. What is interesting to me is that so far I have been successful in adapting. An "Old Dog" can learn new tricks.

Our pictures from this weekend in Luzern are on Steve's lap top which is with him in Boston. It has crashed, so we hope that all the pictures were not lost.

Love to you all,
Mary

TIME FLIES!

2008-06-15T05:38:00.000-07:00

We had a great view of the Lake and sunset as we enjoyed our Anniversary dinner.

This past Wednesday Steve and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary. I remember clearly the day we were married and I don't think I could have looked forward and imagined the kind of life that we would have together. I don't think that I could have imagined actually turning 40 years old, let alone being married for 40 years! Though some days with five children seemed to last forever, forty years have sped by. As I look back I am amazed at what we have learned from our relationship with each other, from our children and their unique personalities, and now from our precious grandchildren. I won't lie and say that I've enjoyed every minute of our life together but all our experiences have worked together for our good, and now I will say that it was definitely worth it.

Chad complained last week that we never put any pictures of ourselves on the blog. At our age we really don't like to look at pictures of ourselves--"Who are those old people?" I don't think we should have to look any older than we feel. We still feel young. So we have given in to Chad's request and included some pictures we took at our Anniversary dinner.

Love to you all wherever you may be---

WE ARE STUCK ON GRAY

2008-06-09T01:34:00.000-07:00

We have been experiencing a real "June Gloom". We haven't seen much in the way of sun, nor had a day or night without some amount of rain. People who have lived here for a while say it's the coldest, cloudiest end of May and first of June they've experienced. That really isn't much consolation for someone whose moods are rather dependent upon a good amount of sunshine. But as Steve always says, "It is what it is." We have experienced our first real introduction to the craziness of Soccer fanaticism. Geneva is one of the host cities of the Euro Cup--the national qualifying teams from Europe play for the championship. The good side of being in a "host" city is that the grayness has been brightened by a profusion of bright flags representative of the competing teams displayed everywhere. There is not an apartment building nor business in town that does not have flags hanging from windows, doorways or sides of the structure. On Saturday everywhere in town we could hear the soccer "singing", horns and chants to accompany the flag and scarf waving. There will be another match here on Wednesday and another on the Wednesday following. At least now we know what to expect. Whenever a goal is scored fans open their windows and yell and cheer and some run out into the street and jump around and blow horns. I must admit, I can't really relate to the avid fan. On the negative side, we have found that having drivers from other countries on the streets of Geneva can be dangerous to pedestrians. In Geneva if a pedestrian is in a crosswalk a driver will stop and wait. Even if the pedestrian waves them on, they will wait and let you cross. Now, however, if you are the pedestrian, you better check the color of the license plate before venturing into the crosswalk. Residents of other nations don't have the same driving habits. I see Switzerland as a country of laws and rules and one does not want to find oneself on the wrong side of the law. Traffic fines can be horrendously expensive.

Have you ever seen a Pelican pedaling a unicycle on a carousel? I have to give it to the artist for originality.
This is one of the most unique carousels I have ever seen. On our Saturday trip to the botanical gardens we were able to see it in action for the first time.
For my little grandchildren. This is the "middle-sized" Billy Goat Gruff. The great Big Billy Goat Gruff would come close enough for us to take a picture of him. Many of the plants and animals in the garden are species native to Switzerland which the country wants to preserve. We have in the store purple carrots and potatoes. They grow here in Switzerland.
There is a species of duck in this pond that has bright red eyes, although we were unable to get a photo of this strange duck. Most of the fowl were in the resting mode.

I had walked to the botanical garden often and told Steve that ducks there had unbelievable color and looked like they had been painted. When he saw them for himself, he said he would be bringing his camera back when the sun was shining.
Talk about color! This peacock was just asking to be photographed.
It is apparent in this photo how they blend flowers with grasses and trees for a great scene.
This water spot makes for a peaceful scene.
We don't know what this bush is. The "berries" almost look like grape clusters but the leaves are quite different. Any ideas?
After experiencing gray and rainy skies for over ten days Steve and I decided to go to a place where we could see some color. Geneva has a wonderful Jardin Botanique. Although it wasn't raining, the gray skies made for rather muted pictures, but we did our best. The gardens here are unlike ones I have seen in the U.K. or the United States or Japan. Here, they leave things in the most natural state possible. They don't necessarily pluck up all the weeds and they leave the native grasses uncut where they can. The garden is not overly manicured, but is filled with a large variety of beautiful specimens of trees, flowering shrubs and seasonal flowers. It was exactly what we needed to lift our spirits. The other thing that is lifting my spirits is the thought that I will be coming to visit family and friends in a month. We miss you all---

We Love Company

2008-06-01T23:05:00.000-07:00

We spent this weekend with Paul Dirkmaat--our second guest to visit us in Geneva. Paul is in Rome for the summer doing a legal internship. He was able to hop on Easy Jet and be here in just over an hour. Easy Jet may be "no frills" but many flights are only $30 each way. That is cheaper than train, car or anything else. It certainly makes Europe accessible once you have made the "big trip" from the U.S. Either our guests are becoming less discriminating or we are raising our "value", but Paul gave us a 4.5 out of 5 rating.

After a mostly rainy day, the sky became beautiful over the lake.
We walked to dinner in part of the "old town" Friday night. For the first time in days we had a somewhat clear sky.
Paul on Tourbillon. The evidence that Steve made the hike despite a very sore foot is the picture itself. The day was cloudy, but fortunately it didn't pour on us.
The walk to the top of Tourbillon is steep and a little difficult. But as with most things that test us in life, the climb is worth it. Paul and Steve climbed it this time--I am waiting to make the climb with my grandchildren. I hold fond memories of hiking with some of them in the hills of Tennessee last summer and I'm hoping to make this hike with them. Though I love many things about living here I am really looking forward to seeing family and friends again. It's close enough now to start thinking about it.

Love to all of you

More of the Jungfrau

2008-05-26T02:18:00.000-07:00

I hope it's not getting tiresome viewing pictures of our experiences here in Switzerland. Life between our little trips is pretty much just normal life for us both. Once we got used to what "normal" is here it isn't all that exciting. I am still amazed by the diversity of nationalities and cultures that is in Geneva and that will never seem mundane.

The above picture is taken from a bench outside a church in Wengen were Steve and I sat and just took in the beauty for a long time. We are looking down on the Lauterbrunnen valley and falls.

This tme I got to use the camera. Pictures of Steve are few and far between.

The above pictures are all of a waterfall called Trummelbach. This is an interesting fall because it is inside the mountain rather than outside. You take an elevator up inside the mountain so you are in a cave, and then you walk down the trail viewing the falls from different vantage points as you descend.

Steve has take this picture of the church steeple with the falls in the background before when we were here, but that was either the visit 25 years ago, or the one 13 years ago.

The Lauterbrunnen Valley and Falls are one of the memorable places from when I was in the Jungfrau region before. From Lauterbrunnen you can get to the top of either side of the valley by cog rail or gondola. The two most notable towns at the top are Wengen and Muren.

I love the cows just peacefully grazing amidst such grandeur. They are totally unaware of the beauty which surrounds them--not that cows have the ability to appreciate beautiful surroundings. We, on the other hand, do have the ability to appreciate the beauty of the world around us and hope to make the most of our experience here.

We hope you all have a great week. We think of all our family and friends all the time and are looking forward to our trip home in July.

SPECTACULAR

2008-05-18T12:09:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of the mountains called Eiger and Monch. They are in what is called the Jungfrau region. We stayed in the village of Grindelwald which had spectacular mountain views. Needless to say, Steve had lots of camera time and I have pictures to make up several blogs.
This is a scene just outside Grindelwald as you approach the town. You wouldn't need a label to tell you that it's Switzerland.
A view of the Eiger and the valley below dotted with chalets. Along with the chalets there are grazing cows with very loud bells and also sheep and goats--also with the requisite bells. It's surprising how the sounds from the bells travel up from the valley and through the hotel room windows.
There was a picturesque little railway that ran from the valley floor at Interlaken up to Grindelwald. We know we have some grandchildren (and their parents) who would enjoy a ride on this train.
This is the terrace of the hotel where we stayed in Grindelwald. It's a nice place to sit and take in the views.
This church is in the town of Grindelwald where we stayed. It is actually across the street from my wall of flowers. The mountain in the background is the Eiger.
I think these walls that they grow flowers out of are so beautiful. The chalet behind me and the mountain rising up in the back ground complete the scene. This trip to the Jungfrau region has been my favorite so far. I love the Alps and the feel of the air when you are there. There is so much beauty in every direction that it is almost a sensory overload. When we are experiencing this type of beauty my thoughts are that I want to share it with my family and loved ones. We sincerely hope that we will be able to do just that.

A Beautiful Thursday

2008-05-05T06:18:00.000-07:00

Thursday, May 1, was a holiday and Steve and I took advantage of the day off to explore. The above picture is one which we saw as we were driving to Fribourg. It is looking across the lake to the Vallee with the Alps in the background. I decided that during our car rides we could review some of our French phrases and thus get a little extra study in. It was while I was going over a verb conjugation with Steve that I realized where the term "mayday" in reference to a call for help originated. If I were to ask someone for help in French it would be M' aider, or the phonetic equivalent of "mayday". I'm sure most people already knew this but it was a "discovery" for Steve and I. We also discovered this weekend why so many people take to the streets to stroll and eat when the weather gets warm. None of the buildings are air-conditioned and it gets really H O T inside. Especially when you live on the fifth floor. It only has to be 74 degrees outside to generate temperatures that feel like 90 inside one's apartment. Opening the windows seems like the answer until the rooms begin to fill with mosquitoes and tobacco smoke from everyone who is eating outside right under your window. We've noticed that everyone just opens their windows wide and doesn't worry about bugs. There are no screens here anywhere--even in new construction. This is just one of our challenges to figure out. "The price of living in Europe" as Steve puts it.

Fribourg is an ancient walled city with a lot of architectural character and natural beauty. This shows some of the old city wall.
The clock tower of the Fribourg city hall. There is a statue of a "bell ringer" in the bell tower. You'll want to click on the photo to enlarge it.
Fribourg is built on several levels with a canyon which the river has carved separating some of the areas of the city.
The river which runs through Fribourg.
After we went to Fribourg, we drove to Sion. There are two castles in Sion--an old one and an older one. The above picture is of the Chateau Tourbillon the older one from the path which ascends to it. Steve and I didn't go all the way to the top, which you can see in the right hand corner of the picture. We are waiting for some of our energetic grandchildren to help us get to the top.
A view of the Chateau Valere from the ancient ruins. This was a fairly steep climb.
In the late afternoon Steve and I just sat on some of the rocks of the ruins and enjoyed the wonderful air and beautiful views. There really is no picture that can do justice to the beauty of the area. We are using every opportunity to check out the various sites--architectural, historical and natural beauty so we will be able to serve as your tour guides when you come to see us.

Finally--Up Close. . .

2008-04-27T12:40:00.000-07:00

Ever since moving to Geneva I have looked across the lake at Mont Blanc in the far distance whenever it decided to show itself. Now I have been able to see it's majesty and grandeur from a much closer perspective. This is the tallest mountain in western Europe and is taller than Mt. Whitney in the United States. Maybe sometime this summer we will take the tram up as far as it goes on the Mountain. Even in the summer it can be really cold especially if the wind is strong.

This is a view of Mont Blanc from a distance as we were driving to Chamonix.
View of old town with the Annecy castle in the background.
Tulips are in bloom everywhere. The towns here are big into planting flowers. All winter I looked at the signs in the empty flower beds of Geneva which asked people not to step in them because the tulips had been planted.
When we drove into the town of Annecy early Saturday morning the market was set up . It was an extensive market, going on for blocks and blocks with everything from clothing to food. Choosing the right cheese was difficult with so much from which to choose.
Cheese shop at the Saturday Market in town.
Steve and Karen on bridge in Annecy. The building behind and to the left of Steve is the old prison.
View from Annecy across the lake
Old town in Annecy, France. This town is about 45 minutes from Geneva. It is a very picturesque town with views in all directions. We visited here the same weekend that we went to Castle Chillon which was on last week's blog. There were enough pictures from last week to create several blogs.

Fascinating Chillon

2008-04-22T23:27:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I last posted a blog. I spent two weeks in Pinehurst and two days after coming back to Geneva we had a visitor, cousin Karen from California. What a treat to be able to take someone to the wonderful sights and share the experience we are having here. We went to Chillon on Friday. Chillon is a few kilometers past the town of Montreaux (home of a great summer jazz festival). The castle dates from the 1100's and has been beautifully repaired and restored. Some of the inside wall painting is original. The House of Savoy occupied the castle and used its ideal location to be able to see anyone coming into the area. They were big on levying taxes and didn't want any traders to get by without paying. The Savoyards occupied the castle until the 1500's when the Bernese took over. Detailed records had been kept of every aspect of life in the castle and the Savoyards took all the records back to Italy with them. The Savoyards are the same which attacked Geveva unsuccessfully in 1603. Having these few facts now when I see the word Savoise as it refers to a type of cuisine, it means something. We really hope a few more of you will jump on the visitor bandwagon. Our first guest said that she would call the Michelin travel guide and recommend us for a four star out of five rating. I think having to share a bathroom had something to do with the deduction of a star.

Love to all
Mary
Interesting chimney vent. This shot illustrates how the castle sits right on the water.
This is the fireplace in the large dining hall of the castle. They would roast whole animals such as wild boar or deer on the spit. The chevron design on the walls is painted on and is the ancient equivalent of wall paper. That red and white chevron design is found all over Switzerland.
If you click on the picture you will see me and Karen in the tower window. Steve's cousin Karen has been our first house guest and we had a great time going to see wonderful places.
The castle sits on a small rock island at the edge of Lac Leman. This is the same lake that Geneva sits next to only at the far end of the lake which is 45 miles long.
A view from one of the castle towers. The mountains are on the right and the lake on the left.

It's Still Snowing

2008-03-24T07:32:00.000-07:00

A stop in the old town of Murten
The main street of old town was all cobblestone and some of the shops had interesting guild signs hanging above the door of the establishment.
We stopped at a little town called Murten. We found out that it is a mixed region, meaning that it is right between the French and German speaking area of Switzerland. About 80 percent of the people speak German here and call the town Murten on the Murten See. The others, speaking French call it Morat on the Lac du Morat.
We drove back on a country road where the farm houses/barns were just off the road.
This is from the cathedral above the town of Neuchatel
Despite the inclement weather on Saturday we took a car ride to an area neither Steve nor I had yet explored. We traveled north of Geneva to an area called Neuchatel. The town of Neuchatel sits on Lac de Neuchatel. The region is a grape growing area with mountains on one side and the lake on the other. We are right now in a weather pattern of some rain/snow every day. We have none on the ground where we live but there is plenty just a few miles away. Still I am sitting at my desk looking at the snow fly and happy in the thought that I will soon be in Pinehurst.

Looking For . . . .

2008-03-21T01:16:00.001-07:00

Knowing how beautiful Pinehurst North Carolina is at this time of year I have been looking for signs of spring. I'm afraid that they are not so overt nor easily discovered. I did find it interesting that many small flowers just seem to pop up in the middle of lawns. A friend asked me if a certain one she had in her lawn was a weed. After carefully analyzing it and showing her examples of the same flower in pots for sale in the market, I told her it was a primrose. Although the picture here is not one of primroses, it is just another example of the "lawn flower". These pictures were not taken this week, but rather last week. This week we have had a return to winter. Actually it is colder than it was in December, January or February. Today, on Good Friday, we awoke to our first snow since we have been in Geneva. It was coming down thick and white, yet none stuck to the ground. A while ago Steve had made reservations for us to go to the Interlaken region to Grindenwald and spend a couple of days. However, we were thinking of temperatures a little warmer than the 30s and with a little less precipitation. We therefore put off the trip until the middle of May. Whenever we sit in our little living room and can hear the wind howling down the chimney, we know that it is a little too raw for an outdoor adventure. We have also discovered that the Swiss take their holidays very seriously. Everything--shops, schools, businesses are all closed on Good Friday. We don't know about Saturday, but definitely Sunday (they are always closed on Sunday). We have not found Switzerland to be devoutly religious-- just devout about time off and holidays.
I will be in Pinehurst from the 28th of March to the 14th of April. I need a "home" fix every so often. Steve told someone this past week that my trips home are the cost of him working in Europe. How true.

Not your typical chocolate bunny. This week when I went to a department store to get a few things I entered on the "food" level. There is a whole section of the store dedicated to Swiss chocolate. There were "Easter" chocolate displays everywhere. The amazing thing however was the crowds of people. I couldn't make it down any aisle and the lines at four different cash registers were 15-20 people deep. It's not like this is the only place to get chocolate in town, or even the best place. I can picture this scene replicated all over Geneva. After witnessing the extent to which people love their chocolate here, I feel that I am on the low end of the scale of chocolate obsession.
This is an apartment building that looks out over the lake. The architecture is pretty typical of the period that many of the buildings in Geneva were constructed. We do not live in this apartment. We don't want any of you to get the wrong idea of our life here in Switzerland

I Didn't Know One Could O.D. on Chocolate---

2008-03-09T11:43:00.000-07:00

Did we mention that chocolate was important in Switzerland? This past weekend we experienced the Chocolate Festival in Versoix. The train to Versoix from Geneva runs every thirty minutes and it was packed as I have never seen it. The crowds at the festival were unbelievable. Steve and I visited each vendor and sampled from every one who would offer samples. We bought a lot of very fine chocolate and knew it was time to end the experience when we actually did not want to sample one more item. I really didn't know that I could O.D. on chocolate, but apparently it is possible.
The other fun event of the weekend was to attend the Geneva Auto Show. It is one of the largest auto shows in the world so we had to go, just to say we had experienced it. The concept cars and zero emission cars were quite interesting. The actually had three functioning hydrogen cars. I wonder if we'll actually see them in the future?
Take care everyone, and know that I love and miss you all.

This guy was really interesting. He made the "rats" completely of chocolate before he started the artistic decorations. By the way, they love the movie Ratatouille here, I guess it's the French association.

The train was fantastic and the chocolate was even better. We just kept trying more different artisan's products to find what we considered the best flavor.
Sorry about the double image entry. I'd get rid of it if I could figure out how.
I included the pictures of the trains (both chocolate and other) for my grandson, Andrew. I wished he could have been here to get excited about it.
How's this for a really big car?

Classic beauty never gets old
This is a four-wheeled motorcycle--fully enclosed. What next?
The Geneva Auto Show was very interesting--lots of things to look forward to in the future.

A Visit to Evian

2008-03-02T12:05:00.001-08:00

We spent this past weekend in Evian, France. We took an hour train ride to Lausanne, which is about the middle of the Lake. Geneva is at the south-western tip of Lake Leman. In Lausanne we boarded a boat for a ride across the lake to Evian. Evian is famous for (What else?) Evian water. It is also a resort town with thermal baths. It is like Baden Baden in Germany. These places became popular around the late 1800's to early 1900's as vacation spots with thermal baths, opulent hotels and a grand casino. Many of the old buildings remain and the places still draw large crowds in the summer, but are pretty quiet during the rest of the year. The road along the lake is the only flat road in the town. From the lake, the town rises pretty quickly up the mountain-side. It is the site of the Evian Master's Golf Course which hosts an European Women's golf event I believe. On our way over it was cloudy and rainy and we couldn't see just how magnificent the Alps are as they appear to rise up out of the lake. On the way back we were blessed to have a beautiful sunny day.
We stayed here at the Hilton which has a nice spa.
View across the lake to Lausanne (you have to look closely to see the buildings of the town)
A great example of Art Deco--notice the tiled roof and the stained glass windows
Hotel de Ville. In France, the Hotel de Ville is what they call the city hall. It's not really a hotel at all.

Evian is full of interesting architecture from the late 1800's to early 1900's.

These mountains are on the Evian bottled water label. There is another row of mountains behind these, but the clouds kept them hidden for the most part.

Everybody's Out Walking

2008-02-24T10:25:00.000-08:00

This weekend was beautiful weather in Geneva. We went out for a couple of walks along the promenade by the lake. The pictures show that we were certainly not the only ones who thought it was a nice time for a walk. For as far as you could see in both directions people were walking. Those not walking, roller blading, biking, etc. were seated along the rock walls or on benches. The road along the lake was not crowded with cars, but the walkways were packed. The age span was from the oldest to the youngest--the elderly being pushed in wheelchairs down to the infants in strollers and buggies. Families walked together with their little guys on scooters and trikes. Everybody walks! Walking is part of life here and it is a part I really enjoy.

While I was in the United States, Steve took a Saturday trip to Annecy and up to Chamonix at the base of Mont Blanc. These photos are from his exploring.

The photos that missed the blog

2008-01-21T12:09:00.000-08:00

I never get tired of these scenes. I took these pictures today after I had posted the blog. So I am sending another blog page.

Bear with me. . .

2008-01-21T05:39:00.001-08:00

Bear with me. . .

2008-01-21T04:25:00.000-08:00

I have found myself reflecting this past week on how my experience has been so far here in Geneva. Walks are a perfect time for introspection and because I do a lot of walking--well, you can see where this is going. I have come up with a list of things that I love about being here. I love the bread. I have not found the need to put butter on any bread that I have eaten here--it can stand on its own merits. Those merits being a hard, crunchy crust with soft insides. We get fresh baked bread across the street every morning when the store opens at 8:00a.m. I love the cheese. I've had to try many varieties to come up with my favorites but that has not been a trial. Obviously French and Swiss cheeses have won the contest for me. I love the chocolate. I'm not talking about the ordinary Swiss chocolate brands that you can buy in the United States, but the "fine chocolates" made and sold in little shops all around the city. Each outing with Steve is an excuse to try a different shop's chocolate. I love the yoghurt. The yoghurt section in a super market can take up what would be the whole dairy case in the States. All I've mentioned so far has to do with food, and from what I've described, both Steve and I should weigh about 400 lbs. by now. This actually has not been the case, so we come to another thing I love about being here. Apparently, eating all these good foods doesn't make one gain weight. Another thing I love about being here is being able to look at the Alps (on sunny days). They are truly magnificent with their irregular jagged peaks. It is spectacular to me when we take off from the Geneva airport and within a few minutes can look down on these gorgeous mountains. I can't wait to go exploring in the Spring. I love the view from our front window of the lower mountains called the Jura with their snow-covered tops. I love the beautiful skies we get to see at sunset. I love meeting interesting people from many parts of the world. Geneva is a very cosmopolitan city which makes it easy to live in. This one may sound strange, but I love not having a car. We do not have to pay ridiculous prices for gas. We do not have to pay huge fees to garage the car. We do not have to spend hours looking for parking places, nor do we have to drive in traffic.

There are some things which I do not find so appealing here. Probably topping the list is smoke-filled restaurants and other eating places. I also find it uncomfortable waiting for a bus when everyone else who is waiting is smoking. Hopefully Switzerland will follow France and become smoke free in all public places. I hate CNN Europe and MSNBC Europe. If someone wants to be tortured all they would have to do is have only these television channels available. In fact, I think that these are the channels that are available in hell.

Geneva shares a curse common to most large cities--pigeons. I have come up with a great idea to rid cities of pigeons. I think that the pigeons should be fed bird feed laced with contraceptives. I wouldn't think it too hard to invent such a thing. As you can tell, pigeons are another thing I find not appealing about living in the city.

Well, I titled this "bear with me" and I hope you just quit reading if you weren't interested. I head for back to the U.S. in five days, and am looking forward to seeing family and friends.

Love, Mary

This is winter?

2008-01-13T10:48:00.000-08:00

Not much exciting went on this week with the exception of our miniature washing machine/dryer refusing to function. This is a challenge to overcome as we can't very well go without one. For any of you that do not have the number, our skype phone number is (910) 213-3900. It will actually call the computer and we can talk for pennies a minute rather than dollars per minute. Steve leaves on a three-day trip to Darmstadt on Monday. I will be rather short on conversation for those days. I'd just like to import all our family and friends over here. Anyplace is better with the ones we love around us.

Sometimes we get great skies at dusk. Unfortunately this wasn't the best. The day before was better, but we didn't have the camera. There is usually great light on Mont Blanc. We are going to go there during the springtime.

My wanderings took me up to Old Town where there is an armory. Notice the mosaic pictures from the history of Geneva.

It was a beautiful sunny day and I packed up the camera and started walking. The pretty little gazebo is in one of the parks by the lake. It hardly looked like January.

Holidays are over--Back in Geneva

2008-01-06T10:22:00.000-08:00

It was great to be in the United States again and to spend some time with each of our North Carolina families. We did not make it out west to see Troy's family nor Lara's family--hopefully I will be able to do that this coming summer. Christmas is such an exciting and fun time for the grandkids that just being with them is complete satisfaction for both Steve and I. We came home to a warm Geneva--rainy, but warm. In three weeks I plan on a 4-day Caribbean Cruise followed by almost 3 weeks back in Pinehurst. Steve will be working and traveling in the U.S. so I'm not abandoning him. Our dog, Nicholas, missed us so much while we have been in Geneva and let us know it when he saw us. I felt so guilty that I almost considered bringing him to Geneva--I said "almost". He remians at his home with Emily and Damion. We love you all and wish you all the

Ryan enjoyed showing Andrew how fast he could undo all the tracks that had just been laid out.

Andrew's Christmas was all about trains, trains, and more trains--and a new swing set.

Evin is good at posing for the camera. Alex had a Christmas that was all about CARS. His hands are full of them--the tent is a CARS tent and he even got a CARS DVD.

Ryan knows that paper is a better than presents.

Grandpa introduces new tiger to Madylen.

Steve and I just enjoyed watching the kids open presents and took lots of pictures.

Masen had an elephant Christmas--including a game that sends butterflies flying out of an elephant's nose. How fun is that?

What's not to love about Prague?

2007-12-07T03:00:00.000-08:00

Our trip to Prague was a beautiful experience. Steve took this picture after waiting for the lighting become "perfect". It shows the Charles bridge in the front with the Prague Castle and St. Vitus church in the background. One of the benefits of living here is that we can get to places like Prague all across Europe quickly and cheaply. Come visit and we'll take you with us.

Above is a picture that I took of the cloisters right next to the hotel where we stayed. We could walk down to old town and the castle and the famous Charles bridge. The only problem was that it was straight up hill on the return. That didn't slow us down much. I think we both are in better shape physically than we were before moving to Europe.

The architecture of the city right down to the ornate doors on the buildings we found so beautiful. The church above right is found on the grounds of the famous Prague Castle.

This is an astonomical clock which was also on the old square. They were having a Christmas market on the square also with traditional foods and ornaments and crafts. They had a stage where there was music being performed by various groups throughout the day.

In this old church on the Stare Metske (old town square) we were able to attend a concert of classical music. They hold these concerts all over town at various times of the day and the musicians are all very accomplished. Our only problem with this particular concert was that the church was of course not heated and both Steve and I thought we would freeze before the hour-long concert concluded. The next day we looked for one that advertised that the chapel was heated to 20C. It was much more comfortable. We attended one more the day after that in a private palace. One of the defining characteritics of Prague is their love of music. Many composers traveled between Vienna and Prague, so there is a lot in common in these two cities.

Chocolate and More Chocolate

2007-11-25T12:29:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures that go with the legend that I included last week. All these pots are made of chocolate and the "vegetable" are of marzipan. While taking the pictures, of course Steve and I had to sample a little chocolate from the various shops to see which was the most delicious.

Some of the Chocolate shops are so decorated that you can't tell it's actually a candy store.

I'm having trouble learning how to work with this site in order to put pictures where I want them and the text where I want it. There are very few leaves left on any trees, and the reality of a long grey winter has set in. Happily I won't be here for several weeks of it. I have also included a picture of a typical bread counter. What you see in that picture will be the cause of many extra pounds on my body. I actually prefer fresh bread to chocolate.

We did have a Thanksgiving dinner at the home of one of the church members. It was on Saturday and they really had a spread. They also really had a crowd. Many of the people there had not been to a Thanksgiving dinner before. This is a great experience for us. Steve and I are recognizing more and more words in French conversation. I think that Steve is surprised that some of the French he learned in high school is still in his brain.

I wish you all well. Next week I might not post a blog as Steve and I will be in Prague for five days. I should have lots of fun pictures for my next one.

Love to all,

Mary

Counting down till Christmas

2007-11-18T12:23:00.000-08:00

I called this week's blog counting down till Christmas. Appropriately, I found this great wooden advent calendar in a chocolate shop in town. Yes, every door is filled with a home-made chocolate. It now adorns our little living space. There is a Genevoise legend that I learned about this past week. They celebrate on the 1st of December a festival called Escalade. The story goes that in the early 1600's the city of Geneva was under a surprise attack, and a woman who saw the invaders coming poured her boiling soup over the city wall, thus scalding the encroachers. The noise this made alerted the Genevoise soldiers and they were able to fend off the attack and save the city. So in rememberance they make what looks like old soup kettles out of chocolate and fill them with marzipan shaped and colored vegetables. You can see them everywhere in stores and they come in all sizes from very small to gigantic. Because they don't really celebrate Halloween nor Thanksgiving Christmas decorations go up very early here.

There is no shortage of "festive items" in the stores, especially beautiful displays of Christmas goodies. The first week in December Steve and I will be in Prague for a business conference and I am looking forward to seeing what is there. Getting ready for Christmas is different and really quite fun.

You get the idea of how cold it is by how we are dressed to go to church. Steve hadn't put on his gloves yet. Baby it's cold outside and only going to get colder. The high for the week was about 42 F and it feels much colder with the biz or wind that is always present. I think a hat will be my next purchase.

Views From Swiss Countryside

2007-11-11T11:44:00.000-08:00

I've entitled the first picture Swiss village church on a snowy afternoon. As you can tell we spent an interesting Saturday afternoon driving out in the countryside and up into the mountains. We were very close to Gstaad, but didn't go the rest of the way up because of the weather. We also had a successful trip to IKEA--loading up the car with nightstands, a dresser, a bookshelf, a chair and a desk. None of these items were in the furnished apartment and all of them were necessary. I had never been to an IKEA store before and was amazed at the way they cater to organized living in very small spaces. It was a lesson to me of how you really can live in one room. Even the high chairs and cribs here are very small in comparison with what is in the U.S. We keep hearing stories of people being unable to find any place to rent here. We were so lucky to find the person who was willing to rent to us. One young couple in the ward here had put in nine applications just in the last week and been turned down every time. He has a great job and can afford the places, but housing is so scarce. They also have two little kids--3 and almost 2 so it is hard not to have a place to call home. Steve and I have become adept at assembling IKEA furniture. The instructions (for those of you who haven't experienced it yet) are all in pictures. There's no need to read or understand any particular language. What a great idea. Our boxes all got here without a problem. We are on the fifth floor and have an elevator that only two very skinny people can fit into at a time. So the poor Fed Ex delivery guy is struggling with trying to fit a dolly and several boxes at a time into the elevator. I knew he was coming cause he called to get into the building. Then I can hear all this grunting and shuffling of boxes and banging of things and I'm wondering what is going on. When he finally gets upstairs I see that the poor guy is handicapped with only partial use of one of his arms. I felt guilty for not going down to help, but I had no idea that Fed Ex would be hiring the physically handicapped to make deliveries of large boxes. Who knew? I miss everyone so much, but we are blessed and everything here is going well.

I love you all,

Mary

This was a very typical swiss mountain village on the road up to Chateau de Oex. You see also genuine Swiss cows with genuine Swiss cowbells. I've never seen one that didn't have one of these bells on. Even the farms and barns are idyllic looking. These cows will come right up to you--they seem very curious about what you may be doing. The all brown cow is saying :"What am I doing out here with my hooves ice-cold in the snow, and can I please get in the barn now?"

It was interesting to still be able to see the fall colors in the foreground with the snow on the hills.

This is the village of Gruyere. It is very quaint and charming with a castle at the top of the hill. It also was bitterly cold with wind and blowing sleet. We look forward to seeing it in better weather.

I haven't hopped a plane home yet.

2007-11-04T12:40:00.000-08:00

The trees are starting to get color. This place is called Perl du Lac. Not too hard to know what that means.

Looking across the Lake, you can see Mont Blanc in the distance. Chamonix is at the base of Mont Blanc. We will drive up there some weekend.

This shows the huge water spout that is rather a symbol of Geneva. When the wind blows too hard they turn it off. We get many really windy days.

There is not a lot new going on for me right now. Every afternoon I take a long walk, usually along the Lake. It's great excercise and most days I learn something about Geneva that I didn't know before. This past week I got to go about 40 minutes out of town to Ikea. This place is a necessity for those setting up house here (even if your place is furnished). Furnished is in our case the bare minimum to exist. Some items just need to be replaced, especially if your bedroom has curtains that look like they were taken out of a "house of ill repute." I'm not sure how it happens, but I am reading labels and instructions much easier now, even though I've only had one French class. Steve and I are taking the class together, and it is fairly intensive. At first I didn't think our instructor knew any English. Actually she does, but did not speak one word of English during the entire hour and a half of class. I hope we're not too old to learn. Our boxes from home will be delivered tomorrow, and my only challenge will be trying to fit their contents into this tiny place. Who knew that one of the reasons the people here shop every day is because the perishable foods , including meats, breads, etc. have no preservatives in them. You have to read the labels very carefully to check for expiration dates. Shelf life is very short on everything.

Love to everyone, M

Week Two In Geneva

2007-10-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

I've decided that I need to start a "Who Knew" book of interesting things that I have discovered while getting situated here in Geneva. The one I will share this week is: "Who knew that if one earns more than a certain amount of money in a year they can't open a regular bank account, but are escorted upstairs where they are serviced by their "personal banker?" That was a unique experience. We still have no internet at our home--only a non-secured open wireless that we are able to pick up here. There are so many laws, rules, and a general feeling of rigidity in this country. I'm doing better at shopping. It only takes me twice as long as I used to spend instead of four times as long. I have to read the German, French, and Italian labels to figure out if I am buying what I really want to buy. I am getting a little more adventuresome however. I actually picked up some carpaccio (dried/seasoned beef) to try. The Swiss aren't very innovative in their cuisine, but there are plenty of other restaurants of every ethnicity to try. My first experience with trying to bake something in my oven that registers heat in Celsius rather than Farenheit was not successful. Obviously I need more practice. However, with groceries in general not being that cheap; I think we'll just have to keep trying new restaurants. We are one step closer to beginning our French classes. We should have a teacher assigned and find out which evening we will be studying this week. Someone told me that they heard haircuts were outrageously expensive--$100 E. They live in France rather than Geneva, but I did see an ad in a window for a shampoo and cut for $80 CHF. That's only $68 U.S. rather than $130. The laundry bill for Steve's shirts was about double what we spend in Pinehurst. We are lucky to have a cost of living allowance.

Keep the Blogs and E-Mails coming as I really, really miss my family and friends.

Love, M

We've been gone a week

2007-10-22T13:16:00.000-07:00

Although the past week has been interesting, it has also been difficult. We started out in Darmstadt Germany for two days of work for Steve, and trying to keep busy seeing the sights for me. On Thursday night, we flew to Geneva, and early Friday morning took our suitcases to our new apartment. It seems a little overwhelming to me to attempt to set up house when nothing is familiar in the stores and I don't speak French. I will be learning enough to get along here, I am sure. The weather is the big news so far. We have had very strong winds--very cold, strong winds since we arrived. Fortunately, on the fifth floor where our apartment is located, stays pretty warm. My warm coats are not here with me yet. I thought I would have them sent with other things we need a little later, that I would have time before the real cold set in. That has been the first mis-judgement. Scarves and gloves have been purchased, and I have made my first trip to the cleaners with Steve's shirts. I knew that whoever was working at the laundry would not speak any English and I was right. However, both the proprietor and I were able to make ourselves understood. I am surprisingly able to understand a lot of what is being said to me in French, even though I do not speak any. Trying to cook some packaged risotto with no understandable directions proved interesting. I had no measurning cup and didn't know how much liquid 9 dl was. It still was edible and gave me hope, though I don't envision myself doing much in the kitchen here which is the size of my shoe. Hopefully, my next report will contain some photos. As yet, we are without our own internet access. That is another challenge that will soon be overcome. I miss everyone and think of you all constantly--

Love, M

Our last weekend in Pinehurst

2007-10-14T12:22:00.001-07:00

This is such a great picture of "cousin fun" memories.
Chad & Danielle's boys Ryan and Andrew with Grandpa and Grandma.

This is the first sleep-over for Andrew and Masen. Andrew fully uses the bed--even Masen's spot. Masen stayed in one spot and didn't seem to notice Andrew on top of him.

Bedtime stories with Uncle Chad. The "big boy" cousins with Maddie.

On our last weekend with the family, we went to Henry's for Gelato. From Left, Alex, Masen, Andrew, Madelyn, Evin w/Henry, Ryan w/Lari. We had lots of laughs, lots of activity, lots of snacking, and loads of love. Being with the family is what I will miss during the time Steve and I are in Geneva. It has been difficult to pack and mentally get ready to live away from home for nine months--at the least. I'm sure things will be fine once we get on the plane, but I'm also sure that I will be counting the days until we come home on December 19.