Holiday Update

Before you start this blog, let me say that I have NO IDEA why my pictures look like this. In the editor they look fine then POOF they are weird in the final. Sorry!


It's been a month since my last post, and I always mean to post more. Somehow, good intentions never last very long. Life always seems to get in the way. 


It is now fully and truly summer vacation for me. It first started with our flight to Edinburgh, where we were picked up from a pub and taken on the quick train to Glasgow by our lovely friend Ruth. The first morning was very interesting as we helped Stu take nearly a ton of their new floor board up 2 flights of stairs. Here are some visuals to help you see it...

 

How the boys felt at the end... I felt great!

We spent the next 2 days chatting, visiting beautiful places, being rained on, having some wine, and feeling at home. We miss them and we wish we all lived closer together (and we hope we will someday in the future)


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From there we took a train to Newcastle to visit both family and friends. My sister-in-law is looking radiant with 6 weeks to go before her due date, and my family there was welcoming as always. We got to reconnect with several of Paul's old friends and have nice chats - man I love speaking in English all the time!



And just in the snap of a finger it was time to go for our real, no work all rest, one week holiday. We joined our friends in Bristol where we packed up the car and headed out to Wales (to a little town I can't pronounce). No more than an hour later, after peek-a-boo with Elisabeth, my favorite little girl, we arrive in our 13th century cottage, and thus began my first real holiday in a long time.


But WAIT! I can hear you all yelling, what about all those trips we see you taking? Aren't THOSE holidays? And my response is pretty simple - it is very rare that I actually take an entire week of holiday that doesn't include family or working online. I am always putting in an hour or two a day, never really having a real rest. But at this lovely little cottage there was no internet and no phone service. So I was forced to (gasp) relax. And it was the most lovely recharge. I spent a ton of time reading napping, eating scones, hiking about, chatting with friends, snuggling with Elisabeth and doing whatever I wanted when I wanted. It was absolute heaven in a bottle. It was only 7 days, but the days seemed long and perfect with sunshine and warmth. I left that nice holiday home rested and ready for my next marathon of visits. Here are a bazillion pictures from our time -

 

I'm soooo responsible! (She wanted it!)

 
Chillin in the garden with some cider and Elisabeth, eating watches, playing with daddy and Auntie Liz, napping, what could be better?

Out to eat at a little restaurant on the river, such a happy smiling baby :)

  
 
 
Beautiful views, ice cream, and more napping (at least Elisabeth got to!)

 

Drinks at the pub that was 50 meters away. It had a gorgeous garden and Elisabeth liked napping in her stroller while the adults drank apple juice.

  

I spent 2 of the days hiking around these incredible paths that go through pastures, fields, across rivers and meadows, that seem to end abruptly with no warning only to have another one appear. It was a great adventure where I saw many little creatures - horses, peacocks, cows, birds, etc.

 

 

 
Our great friends Anna and Rob came for a BBQ and got some serious cuddle time

These are some cutie pictures I took of Elisabeth - who wouldn't want to steal her?

And Elisabeth's beautiful mum, Chloe :)

After a long hike, I refreshed myself with a cider :)

 

Look at her go! At the beginning of the week she was just beginning to scooch, by the end she could chase you to the kitchen. That's my girl!

I'm not hungry, the dog wanted it! (Such an innocent face...)

 

 

Views of our cottage and gardens - I forgot to take ones from the inside!

Sleeping peacefully on our ride back to Bristol

So we flew out of Bristol on Saturday night, and Sunday morning I was back at Geneva Airport on my way to LA. Everything went smoothly except forgetting my Kindle in the plane. I arrive with my mom carrying sunflowers and my dad, brother, and brother's gf waiting for me. It was very sweet and a good sight after 14+ hours of traveling. 

Now I've been in Torrance for a week, and as I expected the time just flew by. I got to spend a lot of time with family - like my little cousins who I love, my parents and my brother. I also go to see many close friends and catch up, hike, see movies, shop, etc. It is always a joy to come home and I am happy that I am able to visit so far away. 

Celebrating Kristen's 27th bday with tacos!

 
 


Birthday sushi and drinks out mean we had the place to ourselves! What did we do? Play SPEED DARTS! The best (and probably most dangerous) game out there :)

 

We got to visit my baby cousin Jonathan for his 13th birthday! He grew up so fast! We played big chess....

 

Grilled out on the new grill - it was delicious...

 

 

 
...and ate cake and made silly faces. I love my cousins!

 
 Now on to Disneyland! Chris maxed out his points and got to level seven on Astro blasters - I nearly did the same at level 6!

Family all together for a Matterhorn picture. We might take a real one in October!

 

  Cars land was GREAT!!

 

Hiking with dad and Kristen in PV - it was beautiful but really hot!

 

 

 

 

Spent the last 2 nights spending as much time as possible with everyone, but it is never enough!

Now to the next adventure - Chicago to see family, and Indiana for Tiffany's wedding. Another long flight, but I am ready. Bring it on!

Switzerland, Revealed

After living here for over three years, I have learned many things about the Swiss. As several people still think I live in Sweden and speak Swedish, I thought it might be good to share what I have discovered about this little but unique country. These thoughts are in no particular order...


1) Most children at Swiss public schools don't eat lunch at school. They go home for an hour and a half to two hours. This means a lot of mothers have to stay home too.
2) Many companies give a man a raise when he gets married to take care of his wife. But...
3) If there are 2 salaries in the household, the second one is taxed at a much higher rate
4) Children call their teacher 'maîtresse' (meaning teacher), as well as by their name - but the teacher doesn't seem to mind.
5) All shops are closed on Sundays and any public holidays - you have to stock up before a 3 day weekend! (Some exceptions include shops found in the railways, and you can usually find an open restaurant). Most shops also close by 6 or 7pm, with the exception of Thursday which tends to be the 'late shopping night'. Then stores might be open until 9!
6) Tipping is appreciated, but not to the degree of America - about 10% is considered very generous
7) Everyone goes on walks - with their children, dogs, scooters, grandparents, etc. All the sidewalks by our lake our packed every weekend. Lots of people also use nordic walking poles, even on the flat parts.

8) Public transport is amazing, and you can bring your beer along with you. It's not uncommon to bring a can of beer or bottle of wine on a train or bus. The transportation is fast and reliable. If it says the train is leaving at 12:47, it will. This can be a good thing (you are always on time!) or a bad thing (you have definitely missed that train if it is 12:48!)

9) Most people in Switzerland speak "a little bit of English", this means they speak 100 times more English than you speak French without even blinking an eye.
10) Their idea of breakfast out is a croissant - you won't often find nice cafes with eggs, toast, pancakes, or any thing else delicious... you have to make it at home
11) There are four official languages of Switzerland - Swiss German, French, Italian, and Romance (which no one really speaks). Although most students take both French and German at school (and English!), the people in the German section prefer to speak in English to foreigners that in French.
12) While on the topic of languages... many of the "border towns" where the French meets the German section has 2 names, one in French and one in German.

13) Residents living in Switzerland are REQUIRED to have health insurance. We pay large taxes, but health insurance is not included. Most companies offer the same basic insurance, and cannot deny anyone coverage.
14) Most people rent their homes or apartments their entire life - it is so expensive to buy that no one bothers
15) Swiss are very intense skiers, Many parents joke that their kids can ski before they can walk - it might be true!

16) Switzerland is not part of the EU and uses its own currency called "Swiss Francs" which is abbreviated CHF. Things are so expensive that I usually have a 100 or so in my wallet, and 5CHF is a coin. They don't even bother with anything less than 5 centimes (cents)

17) The Swiss in the French section never seem to be working - from their late start, long lunches, early endings and constant holidays it is a wonder anything ever gets done. 
18) Adding the the 'no work' comment above, the post near us is only open from 8-10am and from 2-4pm during the summer.... what are they doing the rest of the hours?!
19) The Swiss LOVE their vacation time. People working normally get 5 weeks of vacation. Kids in school get two weeks in fall (half term), three weeks at winter, one week at the end of February (ski week), 2 weeks for spring break, 2 months at the summer, and a variety of other one or two day holidays... I'm not complaining!
20) Swiss people are hard to crack. A lot of people see them as 'cold' and 'guarded' which can be true. But there are many other Swiss people who are funny and kind and just take some time to get to know. Just remember if you are coming here for a day or two, you aren't going to make a million friends. Save that hope for when you travel to Italy. 
21) Swiss people LOVE their cows - they have little celebrations when the cows get taken up to the higher pastures in the summer or come down to the lower pastures for winter. They get to wear flower crowns and all the farmers come down in wagons behind them. All cows wear enormous bells that make it easy to find a lost animal.

22) Hikers have right of passage on all private land. This means most hiking trails cut through peoples private farms and pastures. As long as you follow the little yellow walking signs, you're set!
23) Swiss are very particular about their quite time - before 8am and after 10pm (and ALL SUNDAY!) you cannot make any kind of disturbing noise. This supposedly includes taking a shower and using your vacuum. We have heard rumors of the police being called on someone being slightly too loud at 10:01pm. 
24) Every adult male must serve in the Swiss military (unless they are lucky to choose one of the other options because or religious or physical limiting reasons). After training, all adult men between the ages of 18-35 (but in special cases up to 50) are part of the standing military. They are required to keep a firearm in their home and be ready to take action should they be called on.
25) All people are required to have access to a bomb shelter, and the military is there to ensure that there are enough bomb shelters to hold 115% of the Swiss population (our bomb shelter is on the first floor with doors nearly a foot thick!)
26) Switzerland's government is a direct democracy. This can mean 2 things: 1) Your vote really counts because each citizen has their say or 2) nothing ever gets done. As I am not allowed to vote, I don't really know, but this seems to be the consensus from most people.
27) Little yellow pedestrian signs can be found on many intersections, street corners, and mountain roads. They tell you the direction of nearby and major cities, and how long it will take you to get there. The time is measured by how long it would take your grandmother to walk the path. Grandmothers are surprisingly fast!

29) There is a very conservative political group here called the UDC. They put up a ton of controversial posters - take a look! (Have you noticed the "black" vs "white" theme?

30) For some reason I can't understand, the Swiss have completely covered their country with benches. Not that I'm complaining, it's nice always to have somewhere to sit. I just find it hilarious some of the places they put them. 

 

31) The drinking water is free, clean, and always running. You can find it in fountains around the lake, on mountain paths, in cities, etc. Just keep an eye out for the very few fountains that say "Non Potable", which don't occur very often. Just think, free alpine water!

32) Now that we know where people get their water from... how about cows? Most of them get to drink out of old bathtubs. I couldn't stop laughing the first time I saw it, but the Swiss farmlands are covered with old bathtubs filled with drinking water for their animals. It's a good way to recycle!





That's all for now, folks. Thanks to Kathleen for giving me this idea by sharing a blog of a friend of hers that lives in France. It's funny the things you notice after living somewhere for a while. I'm sure there are a million other interesting differences out there, none of which I can currently remember :)

A Storm This Way Comes

Sitting under the steely gray sky
Pregnant clouds hanging heavily in the heavens 
Waves crashing crashing into the shore
A dark horizon - what is coming? The storm, the storm
The sky lights up again and again and again
Zigging zagging streaks bright as fire
Blinding my eyes roaring in my ears CLAP CLAP CLAP
The earth and the sky and the air is pounding shaking flashing
Then....................................................silence.