8 August 2013 Zurich

First, I left out some important details about Make Diana Cry Day.  When I first got on the train to Hannover a man was sitting in our seat.  I kindly told him I had reserved it, and he said it wasn't reserved, pointing to the monitor as proof.  I said my tickets showed those seats, regardless of what the monitor said. He argued with me until a woman spoke up saying an announcement had been made earlier that the monitors were not working properly.  He said, "Fine!  If you need to sit in your "special" seat," and got up.  It made me angry enough to reply, "I don't need "special" seats, I need to sit beside my daughter." He sat in the seats right beside us, and no sooner did the train start moving that an announcement was made that there were many reserved seats, and please get up if you're sitting in one.  

When I ordered the tickets online the website showed we would have internet, but we didn't have it.  When we arrived in Hannover I had to rush around looking for internet access to email Simone, to let her know I would be late.  Because I was only in Amsterdam for 2 days I only got a few Euros and I was quickly running out.  I could buy disgusting crap food on the train with my credit card, or real food at the station with the ten euros I had left over.  When we were on the train I ordered a cheeseburger for Hannah.  Hannah's face upon seeing her cheeseburger:

Once we got on the train to Basel, as I mentioned, we had to sit on the floor.  We sat beside the doors and each time we arrived at a station I would have to see which side of the train the platform was on and that would determine whether or not we just remained sitting, or if we had to stand and make ourselves as small as possible while people entered and exited the train.  We did that for 5 hours.

So all of that, combined with the late arrival of our train in Hannover, not being able to speak the language, a train station employee who was abruptly UN-helpful, hardly any food, and all the other things that happened, THAT is the reason I cried when I finally found myself safely in the arms of a friend.

Our first day we climbed that mountain/hill, remember?  On our way up we could hear music playing.  I wonder how many of you thought the same thing as me.  Hike faster, the bugles are getting louder!

 In the middle of no-where was a band playing typical Swiss music.

Now... onto more current stuff.  Let's all be happy this isn't a scratch and sniff email.  We went to the Zurich zoo. Zoos smell.  There were all the animals you'd expect in a zoo, and there was a rainforest area.  We felt like we were back in hot, humid, sunny Florida.  After the zoo we visited Simone at work, and then later we took boat back home.  

The town we are staying in is Uetikon Am See.  It is south east of Zurich, right on Lake Zurich.  I have learned that Lake Zurich flows north, so I spend a lot of time confused when people refer to Zurich as the bottom of the lake.  Andi, Simone's husband, doesn't use north, south, east, or west.  He uses top, bottom, right, and left when using directions.  You all know how easily I got lost.  This is not helping.

Tuesday we did very little.  We made the decision to make it a day to rest.  Simone and I took a casual walk up to the store to get some milk and things like that.  She showed me around this beautiful village.  I wish pictures could do it justice.  

Yesterday Andi had a tennis tournament an hour and a half away in Klosters, a small village in the Alps.  Again, there are no pictures to describe what I saw.  The mountains, streams, trees, the snow on the mountain peaks far off in the distance that seem so near, they are all breathtaking.  

The mountain on the right is Austria, and if you look very very carefully, you can see the Von Trapp family climbing down.

While Andi played we visited a museum called Nutli-Huschi, it a is a home that was built in 1656, and still has many of its original furnishings, including a huge loom, and cheese making equipment.  They have a common term here in Switzerland, Typical Swiss, meaning, well that it's typical for the Swiss.  Andi has used it many times, like when we saw a family who set up a small camp fire and roasted sausage on the end of sticks, and lots of food are labeled typical Swiss.  In the museum they had a pot with corn meal in it, and Simone told me this was typical Swiss.  I asked, "How it could be typical Swiss if corn comes from America?

This is the biggest loom I've ever seen

These are animal bones, that served as children's toys.  Next time your kid asks for that new video game give them a gift that will last instead.  This is a gift they'll NEVER forget!

 

Hannah and Melanie at Klosters

Afterward Andi won his tournament we went to a restaurant high up in the mountains, Berghaus Sulzfluh.  We had a typical Swiss meal of macaroni, with cheese, pancetta, and applesauce.  This restaurant had cows all around with cowbells, it sounded like music.

This neat fountain was right outside the restaurant.