Sunday, August 19, 2007
The "family"
Here is a picture of me with our "host family" -- well, at least the family at the place where we stayed. Marianne, Jolanda and Sebastian. Bryan had already left so he didn't make the picture.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Canton Flags
During our stay in Switzerland, we visited 21 of the 26 cantons. Interestingly, each of the five we did not visit borders France.
The flags are all square, just like the Swiss flag should be. They are shown in the order visited (in columns), I think.
The ones we visited (21 cantons, #2-22):
1. Switzerland
2. Zurich
3. Aargau
4. Solothurn
5. Bern
6. St. Gallen
7. Glarus
8. Fribourg
9. Vaud
10. Appenzell Ausserrhoden
11. Appenzell Innerrhoden
12. Thurgau
13. Lucern
14. Nidwalden
15. Uri
16. Schwyz
17. Zug
18. Ticino
19. Graubunden
20. Valais
21. Obwalden
22. Schaffhausen
The ones we did not visit (5 cantons, #23-27):
23. Geneva
24. Neuchatel
25. Jura
26. Basel-Stadt
27. Basel-Landschaft
If you got this far, you may be a nerd like me (Darin!). I think there are some very good flags. My favorite changes from day to day, but more days that not, the Bern flag is number one. As I told Bryan, some days it even surpasses the Swiss flag, but the Swiss flag is consistently my favorite.
But there are also some terrible ones. My least favorite is Ticino. Today Neuchatel is rubbing me wrong as well. I don't want to list all the others I don't really like because I'd love to read some other opinions. Follow this link for a better look, and a map, if you like.
The flags are all square, just like the Swiss flag should be. They are shown in the order visited (in columns), I think.
The ones we visited (21 cantons, #2-22):
1. Switzerland
2. Zurich
3. Aargau
4. Solothurn
5. Bern
6. St. Gallen
7. Glarus
8. Fribourg
9. Vaud
10. Appenzell Ausserrhoden
11. Appenzell Innerrhoden
12. Thurgau
13. Lucern
14. Nidwalden
15. Uri
16. Schwyz
17. Zug
18. Ticino
19. Graubunden
20. Valais
21. Obwalden
22. Schaffhausen
The ones we did not visit (5 cantons, #23-27):
23. Geneva
24. Neuchatel
25. Jura
26. Basel-Stadt
27. Basel-Landschaft
If you got this far, you may be a nerd like me (Darin!). I think there are some very good flags. My favorite changes from day to day, but more days that not, the Bern flag is number one. As I told Bryan, some days it even surpasses the Swiss flag, but the Swiss flag is consistently my favorite.
But there are also some terrible ones. My least favorite is Ticino. Today Neuchatel is rubbing me wrong as well. I don't want to list all the others I don't really like because I'd love to read some other opinions. Follow this link for a better look, and a map, if you like.
Monday, August 13, 2007
Vrenelisgärtli
The Last Trip. This was a bookend trip.
I made arrangements to meet Marianne, my host-mom of sorts, and her husband Daniel in Schwanden on Saturday afternoon because they’d been hiking the previous week. I took the train there via the Zürich HB, where there was some crazy festival with people wearing crazy costumes (or not wearing much of a crazy costume, if you know what I mean). We met as planned and drove to the trailhead. They loaded me up with a bunch of gear that I would need and we set off about 6pm.
We hiked for about two hours and reached a saddle maybe 800 meters above our start. Usually this summer, I was the map holder and guide. This time, for most of the way, I had only a basic idea of where we were and where we were going. For this reason, I don’t really know how far we went. But once we got there, we spent the night at the Guppenalp. This was a summer farm house for the Senn. The Senn are more prestigious than farmers (that’s what I was told Grandpa, I didn’t say it!) because they are the ones responsible for the cows. This is a big job because they have to move the cows up the mountains in the summer; they do this because the valleys don’t have enough grass for the whole year. There are three grass “tiers” and this hut was on the third tier. Huts like this are called “alps” – so we stayed at an alp in the Alps. Here is a picture of the alp and the myth, the legend, the wonderful Marianne.
From the alp there was a beautiful view of the sunset. I’m afraid that this may have been the worst weekend for the pictures though. Later that night I woke up and walked outside to the outhouse. On my way back inside I was a bit cold but I had to stop in my tracks. The sky was crystal clear. My stuttering fingers cannot begin to describe how the stars overwhelmed me. The sky was blanketed with every star that was ever created. It was marvelous. This was just one time of many this summer that I have been blown away by the Creator.
The next morning we awoke before the sun. At breakfast I was served a saucer of fresh milk – like a cat – and enjoyed it. We set off at 5:45 because we had a big day ahead of us. On the way up we did a lot of “scrambling” which is somewhere in between hiking and rock climbing. There were a few difficult, steep spots where I was a little nervous.
Near the peak we got to a small snowfield. I put on the cramp-ons (spikes for my boots – yes I wore boots this weekend) and the harness. I was instructed how to use the ice axe. Then we uneventfully hiked up a snow trail. A bit closer to the summit we tied the rope between us and did something that more closely resembled climbing than scrambling.
Finally (maybe 10am) we reached the Vrenelisgärtli. The summit was 2900 meters, about 2200 above where we had started the afternoon before and 1400 or so above where we started that morning. The beauty of this peak is that we could see it for much of the summer. It is visible from our room on a clear day and it was visible on a number of our other hikes. We had lunch at the top and Marianne supplied me with some Pistachio nuts and yet another Schoci Stanli. Unfortunately, there were many clouds at the summit, but much of the day was clear, so I cannot complain.
Almost immediately after starting our descent down towards the glacier, I promptly slipped and cut my hand. Ugh. I never did feel comfortable in the rigid boots and had a hard time feeling the ground. But I was being a bit careless too. It was just a wide scratch but it bled for a while.
Not far from the top we reached the Glärnisch Glacier. We walked about 30 feet apart with the rope tight, in case one of us would fall into a crevice. I saw one or two crevices but this was thankfully an uneventful stroll through the snow field. After we walked about a mile we reached the end of the glacier. We sat down to remove the cramp-ons and heard the whirring of a helicopter. Dani got out his binoculars and we watched as a rescue crew was unloaded. Later we found out that a man, hiking alone, had fallen 30-40 meters. He was airlifted out to safety.
A little farther down the trail we arrived at the Glärnischhütte. In my mind I had been thinking of this moment for a few hours. This was my intermediate goal. I knew once I got to the hut, my feet would sing for joy because it was time to take off my boa constrictor boots and put on Icarus’ shoes. We took a much-needed extended break at the hut, because we had only taken a few short ones up to that point. Then we hiked down the valley.
I won’t describe the rest of the trip to the Klöntalersee because you’ve heard it before. What I mean to say is that we wrote about it on our first weekend hike. This weekend was a bookend trip because the first hike Bryan and I did was to go up this valley to the Glärnisch hut and then to the glacier. This time, thanks to my guides Daniel and Marianne, we reached the hut from the other side, after summiting the highest peak in the Glarnerland. I also had the opportunity to use the cramp-ons, ice axe, and rope for the first time. It was a fun trip.
As I sit overlooking Winterthur on this cool, peaceful evening, I realize that there will be a lot to miss about this place. But I am also looking forward to going home as well. I hope to do a little more summarizing yet this week, but we’ll see how that goes.
I made arrangements to meet Marianne, my host-mom of sorts, and her husband Daniel in Schwanden on Saturday afternoon because they’d been hiking the previous week. I took the train there via the Zürich HB, where there was some crazy festival with people wearing crazy costumes (or not wearing much of a crazy costume, if you know what I mean). We met as planned and drove to the trailhead. They loaded me up with a bunch of gear that I would need and we set off about 6pm.
We hiked for about two hours and reached a saddle maybe 800 meters above our start. Usually this summer, I was the map holder and guide. This time, for most of the way, I had only a basic idea of where we were and where we were going. For this reason, I don’t really know how far we went. But once we got there, we spent the night at the Guppenalp. This was a summer farm house for the Senn. The Senn are more prestigious than farmers (that’s what I was told Grandpa, I didn’t say it!) because they are the ones responsible for the cows. This is a big job because they have to move the cows up the mountains in the summer; they do this because the valleys don’t have enough grass for the whole year. There are three grass “tiers” and this hut was on the third tier. Huts like this are called “alps” – so we stayed at an alp in the Alps. Here is a picture of the alp and the myth, the legend, the wonderful Marianne.
From the alp there was a beautiful view of the sunset. I’m afraid that this may have been the worst weekend for the pictures though. Later that night I woke up and walked outside to the outhouse. On my way back inside I was a bit cold but I had to stop in my tracks. The sky was crystal clear. My stuttering fingers cannot begin to describe how the stars overwhelmed me. The sky was blanketed with every star that was ever created. It was marvelous. This was just one time of many this summer that I have been blown away by the Creator.
The next morning we awoke before the sun. At breakfast I was served a saucer of fresh milk – like a cat – and enjoyed it. We set off at 5:45 because we had a big day ahead of us. On the way up we did a lot of “scrambling” which is somewhere in between hiking and rock climbing. There were a few difficult, steep spots where I was a little nervous.
Near the peak we got to a small snowfield. I put on the cramp-ons (spikes for my boots – yes I wore boots this weekend) and the harness. I was instructed how to use the ice axe. Then we uneventfully hiked up a snow trail. A bit closer to the summit we tied the rope between us and did something that more closely resembled climbing than scrambling.
Finally (maybe 10am) we reached the Vrenelisgärtli. The summit was 2900 meters, about 2200 above where we had started the afternoon before and 1400 or so above where we started that morning. The beauty of this peak is that we could see it for much of the summer. It is visible from our room on a clear day and it was visible on a number of our other hikes. We had lunch at the top and Marianne supplied me with some Pistachio nuts and yet another Schoci Stanli. Unfortunately, there were many clouds at the summit, but much of the day was clear, so I cannot complain.
Almost immediately after starting our descent down towards the glacier, I promptly slipped and cut my hand. Ugh. I never did feel comfortable in the rigid boots and had a hard time feeling the ground. But I was being a bit careless too. It was just a wide scratch but it bled for a while.
Not far from the top we reached the Glärnisch Glacier. We walked about 30 feet apart with the rope tight, in case one of us would fall into a crevice. I saw one or two crevices but this was thankfully an uneventful stroll through the snow field. After we walked about a mile we reached the end of the glacier. We sat down to remove the cramp-ons and heard the whirring of a helicopter. Dani got out his binoculars and we watched as a rescue crew was unloaded. Later we found out that a man, hiking alone, had fallen 30-40 meters. He was airlifted out to safety.
A little farther down the trail we arrived at the Glärnischhütte. In my mind I had been thinking of this moment for a few hours. This was my intermediate goal. I knew once I got to the hut, my feet would sing for joy because it was time to take off my boa constrictor boots and put on Icarus’ shoes. We took a much-needed extended break at the hut, because we had only taken a few short ones up to that point. Then we hiked down the valley.
I won’t describe the rest of the trip to the Klöntalersee because you’ve heard it before. What I mean to say is that we wrote about it on our first weekend hike. This weekend was a bookend trip because the first hike Bryan and I did was to go up this valley to the Glärnisch hut and then to the glacier. This time, thanks to my guides Daniel and Marianne, we reached the hut from the other side, after summiting the highest peak in the Glarnerland. I also had the opportunity to use the cramp-ons, ice axe, and rope for the first time. It was a fun trip.
As I sit overlooking Winterthur on this cool, peaceful evening, I realize that there will be a lot to miss about this place. But I am also looking forward to going home as well. I hope to do a little more summarizing yet this week, but we’ll see how that goes.
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Reflection
Today is already Tuesday, which means we are at least two days late posting our weekly weekend blog. The reason behind this is simply that we chose not to create an adventure this weekend, so there is nothing epic to write about. However, it would be a travesty to deprive our loyal readers of a passage to read, so I want to write something. And, since my remaining time in Switzerland is now being counted in hours rather than days, weeks, or months, I thought this would be a good opportunity to jot down some of my reflections on this summer.
Now that I sit down to write my reflections though, I seem to be at a loss. We travelled quite a bit, hiked on a fair share of mountains, and saw a fair share of nature. I lived with my brother for the first time in probably eight years, I worked full time from my apartment, and I read more than a handful of books. I did some common things and I had some new experiences. But still, I can not say that I feel any different or that there are any huge life lessons that I will take away from this place. Or maybe I should say, there are no huge life lessons that I can take away from this place right now. What I discovered after my trip to the Netherlands is that, after living there for a couple months, I simply became accustomed to most things, and it was not until I was home again that the things I learned an experienced began to manifest themselves in various ways. I hope things will be similar this time around.
I do know this, though. Living in a different country, experiencing different cultures and attitudes, seeing new sights, and all of the other wonderful things about travelling are great and I am truly thankful for the chance I had to live in Switzerland this summer. At the same time, coming home after a long trip is also an awesome experience. Even though my time in Switzerland has been awesome and I will miss this place dearly, I am still overjoyed to be counting my remaining time in hours rather than days, weeks, or months. I hope to see you really soon!
Now that I sit down to write my reflections though, I seem to be at a loss. We travelled quite a bit, hiked on a fair share of mountains, and saw a fair share of nature. I lived with my brother for the first time in probably eight years, I worked full time from my apartment, and I read more than a handful of books. I did some common things and I had some new experiences. But still, I can not say that I feel any different or that there are any huge life lessons that I will take away from this place. Or maybe I should say, there are no huge life lessons that I can take away from this place right now. What I discovered after my trip to the Netherlands is that, after living there for a couple months, I simply became accustomed to most things, and it was not until I was home again that the things I learned an experienced began to manifest themselves in various ways. I hope things will be similar this time around.
I do know this, though. Living in a different country, experiencing different cultures and attitudes, seeing new sights, and all of the other wonderful things about travelling are great and I am truly thankful for the chance I had to live in Switzerland this summer. At the same time, coming home after a long trip is also an awesome experience. Even though my time in Switzerland has been awesome and I will miss this place dearly, I am still overjoyed to be counting my remaining time in hours rather than days, weeks, or months. I hope to see you really soon!
Nüenchamm
Travis thought we should write at least a little something about our August 1 (Swiss National Day) trip last Wednesday.
All along we've been saying, "The pictures say it better than we can describe it," so this time I'm going to subscibe to that, which means this post basically serves as a link to the pictures.
All along we've been saying, "The pictures say it better than we can describe it," so this time I'm going to subscibe to that, which means this post basically serves as a link to the pictures.
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