Yodel-a-hee-hoo

It’s a good sign when Chase asked, “Is today Saturday?” No. “Monday?” Nope ~ Thursday. “What?” We got a great apartment here in Maloja (CH) and it makes a huge difference to have some space and be able to cook our own meals (okay, heated bathroom floors don’t hurt either).

Charlie and I continue to be so pleased to see the kids get along with each other. We both remember having numerous tiffs with our own siblings whenever we traveled. These three do everything together, all day, everyday . . . and night. They’re either cracking each other up or Mary’s keeping us all in stitches with her Zac Efron imitations. They really miss Rock Band, but that hasn’t hindered their guitar, mic & drums trio. We’re only 8 weeks in ~ we’ll keep you posted. I have to say, writing these blogs forces me to look at our experience in detail. But it also tempts me to write what is entertaining to the reader and avoid some reality. My biggest challenge is to appreciate the small stuff in each day. Certainly, every day brings blessing or hardship, but always a lesson. No big purpose is always evident, but I’m trying to soak up what’s right in front of me rather than worry about the future. I just finished reading “The Alchemist” and there was a good reminder that, if you focus on the present, “life will be a party for you, a grand festival, because life is in the moment we’re living right now.” Oooooh ~ philosophical. P.S. Any good reading recommendations are always welcome!

I’ve always used Switzerland as my natural beauty standard and it hasn’t disappointed. Each of the past two days has been centered around great, long hikes. The average temp here is running about 6-8*C midday (roughly 45*F) so the uphill trek is a welcome warmer-upper. The first day we took straps and carabiners so that we could cross slightly treacherous wood & cable bridges, etc. Then we came across a zipline, which was great fun. We only argued once about which direction to go and I’m not telling who was right. It only cost us a half hour or so. What’s the big rush? Yesterday was windy and cloudy. Again, the family was generous to go along with my suggested destination. We took a tram (think Squaw Valley, but smaller) to our starting point and began a 2 ½ hour hike up to see six separate lakes. I’d post a picture of Mary’s displeasure after an hour of uphill into a snowstorm, but that wouldn’t be very nice. The lakes looked more like mud puddles, but locals insist they reflect the sky and minerals when the sun is out. See, you won’t find me asking “Why won’t anyone listen to me??!” I KNOW why. It was a perfect summer day (see photos).

We really did laugh a lot once our fingers thawed. You can see we’ve lost all vanity, too.

You’re Driving a What ?!?

Our current mode of transportation is this brand new (leased/rental) 2008 Peugeot Partner – although we’ve all agreed that it does resemble a small delivery van, we’re happy to report that it’s able to fit all of our vast quantities of luggage, has been remarkably spunky on the German autobahns and Swiss mountain roads, yet still gets about 50mpg !! The kids love it, because...

"It's a Thriller!"

Swiss Delight (by Charlie)

The tagline in the tourist brochure reads: “2456 metres nearer to heaven” … welcome to the Upper Engadine of the Swiss Alps (think St. Moritz), where we have to suffer for the next 5 days hiking, biking and enjoying the early autumn season change, surrounded by hundreds of snow-capped peaks and blue/green lakes.

There are those who say that the Swiss way of life may somewhat stifle creativity and spontaneity, yet I’m sure I could fit right in here – imagine a place where the public transportation runs like clockwork, crime and unemployment are nearly non-existent and where everyone’s kitchen garbage bag has to conform to a certain standard.

We’ve experienced all the emotional extremes while on the road for the past two months – the excitement of seeing new places, exhaustion after multi-hour drives in our new Peugeot Partner (a.k.a. the “delivery van”) and utter frustration & disbelief at watching the financial market chaos. I suppose I should be grateful since I’m not sitting on a trading floor, but … I’d hate to missing a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

We had the pleasure of staying at the home of Drew & Isabelle Welton during the last several days. Like Colleen and me, they are both AIESEC alums from c.25 years ago. Today, in fact, marks their 20th wedding anniversary, which we recall attending as if it were yesterday. They and their two delightful children, Lucas (17) and Michelle (15), tended to our every desire, showing us around town (bikes, go-carts, discoteques) as well as escorting us on an excursion to Davos, where they’re in the process of building a second home. We'd post photos, but we had our first photographic catastrophe and Zurich was deleted. (Sorry Lucas! You really would have a huge picture here!)

We also had two bonuses during this visit ~ Colleen's brother-in-law was in town on business, so we got to see Jay!

And we had a quick, but wonderful reunion with friends in Liechtenstein (how many of you have been there?) Thank you for the lunch and tour, Jodi!

Like I said, life is good here …

The Black Forest

For me, the most precious rewards of travel fall into two categories. 1) the unlikely connection with certain people at a certain time (which often leads to another meeting down the road) and 2) exposure to local places or events that the common tourist might never see. Some would call it serendipity, others divine appointment. Whatever the name, it always thrills me.

Two years ago, Charlie and I had dinner in Paris and met a German couple at the next table (those of you, probably women, who lean over and ask about the dish they were just served will understand exactly how we met). By the end of the meal, we exchanged information in case their kids ever came to California, etc.

Fast forward ~ we just met up with their family and had the most wonderful visit! We weren't even planning on going to that part of Germany, but they led us on a beautiful hike, invited us to their home for dinner, and took us to a "restaurant" that is only open six weeks of the year when the new wine grapes are harvested. It was such a unique atmosphere and we thoroughly enjoyed their grown children, too. We're grateful beyond words.

And we needed it. We'd seen five days of rain and Charlie had more of an excuse to log on and focus on the financial crisis. Not a great combo.

Highlights of the past week include a toboggan run in Gutach, the Grimm's fairytale architecture in quaint villages, and of course, our visit with the Sauerbecks. Life is good.

Salzburg, Austria (by Jane)

After seeing the Sound of Music about 100 times, everyone pretty much knows every single scene. Therefore, when we came to the city where they filmed all the outside scenes for the movie, we couldn't resist:
Doe, a deer, a female deer......




Fa, a long long way to run

So, a needle pulling thread

La, a note to follow so

Ti, a drink with jam and bread

That will bring us back to doe, doe, DOE!

Yes, we are embarassed for ouselves.

The Bavarian Alps

We are experiencing "technical difficulties" in our current location (Schwangau/Fussen, Germany) which won't allow us to upload any photos, so we hope to post pics from Salzburg very soon.

We had so much fun there ~ mostly pretending that we were the Family von Hildeburn. But we'd be creating a false image if you picture us always singing and frolicking around each town as we go. Truth be told, it would look more like the Cheaper by the Dozen family than Maria's Favorite Things. Instead of being "Something Good", it is occasionally something annoying. And if schnitzel with noodle "looks disgusting" then Liesl & Gretel are alive & well. If barking at the kids in the back seat to "look out the window!" instead of playing hand-held Yahtzee counts as the equivalent of Maria inviting the children into bed with her on a stormy night, then we really do look like the vonTrapps. Some days we have the blessed opportunity to escape over the hills into Switzerland and our response is "What? I have to WALK?" You get the idea. I'll even confess further that Jane suggested we spend a whole day treating each other like friends instead of family. Eh-hem. Okay, we're working on it. Ticker tape parade if we make it until May. Just don't want you to be disillusioned. :)

Let me get back to the wonderful (it's always there). Would I diminish the beauty of Yosemite and the Grand Tetons if I said they don't hold a candle to these mountains? (You know my memory is failing). But it was a spectacular drive from Salzburg to Fussen (through Innsbruck). Incredible, jagged mountain range with lush green hills in the foreground and often a castle or church steeple at the base. Lakes, ruins, and typical Bavarian-style cottages all along the way. Absolutely beautiful.

Munich By: Mary

Munich was amazing. It was a very late night town. But we always ate so many pig knuckles and potatoes that we went to bed early. The first day we got to Munich, we walked around the old town and saw the Glockenspiel which is a huge clock with moving objects such as kings, queens, jokers, and knights. The knights from Germany beheaded the knights from Austria. It was SO cool. The next day, we got the opportunity to sleep in late and then eat at our amazing hotel buffet. After we stuffed ourselves with food, we decided what we wanted to do for that day. Chase, my dad, and I, all wanted to go to the new BMW museum. Jane and my mom wanted to go to the Toy Museum. So that's what we did. It was a very fun day for all of us. It was raining on Sunday morning so we listened to Pastor Matthews preach to us on one of the church's tapes. The next day, dad went to go pick up our car. When I was thinking that it was going to be a hip sports car - I was TOTALLY wrong. All they said was, "It has good gas mileage and good cargo space. That's all we need." Goodness. They must have no good taste in cars.
Now that it is September, I was thinking about all of my friends being in school. I'm glad I'm not in a classroom, but I am still learning alot. Here are a few things that I have learned:

• how to ride the Metro
• how to try foods even if I can't pronounce the name
• how to post photos on the blog
• how to speak Polish (a little)
• how to close all different shower doors
• how to ride segways
• how to use Skype
• how to have church without a church building
• how to drive on the left side (well, Dad did)
• how to watch free movies online
• how to play Ringo
• how to do the "Cotton-Eyed Joe" dance
• how to crochet
• how to pantomime language
• how to figure out all different toilet flushers

Keep posting comments or sending e-mails. We love it.

Prague Blog

This is a great city! Here's picture of the view from our hotel window . . .

and the highlight of our visit was meeting up with our wonderful Pastor and his wife, Lynette.

What a ball we had exploring the Old Town together. Lots of laughter and ice cream :) They have continued on their adventure and we decided to rent Segways for an evening tour.

Impossible to capture all the fun with a camera, but it was a blast! We're thinking that Miramonte traffic would lighten substantially if a few Orindans invested in these.

We're learning how to use Skype.com, so please find us (even if you don't have a webcam we can talk through the computer for free!)

Berlin

We thought we'd happily live without foods & conveniences that we're accustomed to at home, but we arrived in Berlin at the home of Gayle & John Butrin and were delighted to have ice in our drinks, a washer and dryer, and delicious meatloaf for dinner! We've hit the one month mark and, as you know, all's well. It's difficult to miss weddings, babies being born, Cal games, and big birthdays, but we trust that it'll be okay in the long run.

Berlin . . . constant reminders of WWII, east/west conflicts and moving forward. Some travellers we met in Poland warned us that the city was still very colorless and serious, but we had a different experience. It is, however, inadvisable to be very friendly or smiley on the streets, because they'd view you as simpleminded. I'd catch myself walking past people at a sidewalk cafe and smile briefly before I tried to scowl a tad. I'm not sure the drama mask effect was any better.

The Butrins were amazing tour guides, taking us to a mass in the Berlin Cathedral (with English audio translation), the Brandenburg Gate, Checkpoint Charlie, Holocaust Memorial, and Grunewald deportation station. A nice compromise we made one day (our family is really maturing) was to send the kids to the zoo with Gayle, so that Charlie and I could visit Potsdam and do the "boring tour thing". It was perfect. We've learned that Jane, Chase & Mary are always happy just to take silly photos in any of these destinations . . .