J is one half Finnish on his Mother's side. His family lived in Helsinki for a few months about 20 years ago and he attended a Finnish school where only a few teachers and students spoke English. Amazingly, he was able to make email contact with several of them and we arranged to meet. We spent a very enjoyable evening with two of his schoolmates (and one of their husbands). It was fun for me to hear their tales of 12 year old J in school! Sounds like he hasn't changed much. We arrived in Finland on a clear, cold day [View Full Entry]

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We are sad to say it's our last day in Switzerland. BK and CK have been such wonderful hosts to us. We have really enjoyed our time here, the places we've seen, and all of the people we have met. Two Octobers in a row we've had excellent weather in the mountains and spectacular fall foliage - incredible! Having a home away from home and friendly faces in Zurich to recharge our batteries really keeps us going. It was such a lovely afternoon that we decided to take the Dolderbahn (cogwheel train) up to the FIFA sports complex. We were too [View Full Entry]

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With a few unplanned days on the calendar due to Corsica accommodations falling through, we checked out the last minute deals from Zurich and scored a 3 day package to Vienna. Although we had hoped to make it there on our roadtrip, it was a bit too far to drive, so we were happy to take this opportunity to visit. The weather turned from fall to winter on the 1st of November with chilling winds and threatening snow. We managed to bundle up and still did quite a bit of walking outdoors though. The trick to staying warm is drinking a [View Full Entry]

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What a glorious day! Shirt-sleeve weather and sun to soak up. We walked along Lake Zurich and sat watching the swans (and the people) going by. We came across an area where people had stacked rocks seemingly cheating the laws of physics and J decided to try his hand at it. We had not felt this relaxed and free for weeks, we let our guard down and we paid for it, when J's pride and joy Oaklies were stolen from a rock by where we were sitting. With all the tropical weather coming up, the only acceptable solution is to buy [View Full Entry]

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We stopped in Bern for lunch on the way back to Zurich. Lucerne is a bit nicer, and also in the running for the stopover town, but the train schedule didn't work as well today. We had the chance to try "alpenmacaroni" - noodles with cheese sauce mixed with ham cubes and a bowl of applesauce on the side. It was raining, so we didn't take the time to pay our respects to the bears this year, despite J's desire to do so: . [View Full Entry]

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On the bus ride back to Lauterbrunnen, we stopped at Trummelbach Falls. From the sign outside, this about sums it up: "10 cascades inside the mountain rendered accessible with a tunnel-lift and illuminated. The Trummelbach alone drains the mighty glacier defiles of Eiger, Monch, and Jungfrau." You walk through the cave past all of the waterfalls - it's beautiful (and very loud!). [View Full Entry]

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Today we headed up into the mountains from Interlaken to Murren. The hostess at the Rugenpark told us about Murren last year but we didn't have time to make it there on that trip. Murren is a mile high village of 300 people and is situated basically on the edge of a massive cliff that looks like Half Dome in Yosemite. You must take 2 trains, a bus, and 2 cable car/trams to get there from Interlaken. It is absolutely spectacular (and a bit vertigo-inducing) to look down into the valley and then up at the peaks of Eiger, Monch, and [View Full Entry]

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After a wonderful stay last year, we returned to the Hotel Rugenpark in Interlaken with BK and CK. We were thrilled to see our buddy again! We spent the afternoon exploring town on a walking route suggested by our hostess. Then we returned to the wine bar, Benacus, for a terrific dinner. We were able to choose our own cheeses from their vast selection for our fantastic cheese plate appetizer. For the main course, J had venison, CK had lamb and BK had the "wildschwein" (wild boar). We are not vegetarians. Dessert was chocolate mousse with chilies. [View Full Entry]

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On the way back to Zurich, we stopped in Lugano for lunch. Lugano is in the southern part of Switzerland and is therefore in the "Italian zone." Italian is spoken there, and it definitely has a distinct flavor from the German feel of Zurich or the French feel of Gevena. It is amazing that such a small country has such diversity in language, food, and culture; it makes Switzerland a very special place. J had a dijourno pizza, or "pizza of the day." Exponentially better than the "Dijourno" frozen stuff you can buy at home, this pizza was covered in mozzerella [View Full Entry]

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J did all of the driving in Europe, so here are his (longwinded) thoughts on the experience: No question I liked driving in Germany a lot. It was primarily freeway driving, and the freeway typically has only two lanes. Drivers seemed VERY good at staying in the slow lane unless passing. Even while passing, I experienced several BMW and Mercedes drivers appear out of nowhere and suddenly flash their high beams at me. The speed limit (when there is one, and there usually is) is 130kph, or about 80mph. Slow drivers would typically do around 140; normal drivers like myself, 160kph [View Full Entry]

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