Street Parade....Extra Pix

After sitting and people watching for awhile, I couldn't help to wonder what possesses people to leave the house in the risque undergarments....or less? Even though people don't have such hang ups with nudity here, really, do you want pictures of you posted all over the internet?

So, I asked hubby,"HOW do people leave their house like this? HOW?" He just smiled and replied, "With absolute confidence!"

Zurich Street Parade 2011

The Swiss are a very respectable, intense, proper, somewhat uptight bunch of rule makers and rule followers. Perhaps that is why I love to see them behaving badly.....

I was planning a lovely hiking trip for the coming weekend when I brought my boys for their haircuts (30 chf each which includes a glass of soda and 2 pieces of chocolate, of course). The young, hip hairstylist asked if I was going to Street Parade this weekend. "Nein," but "was ist dat?" I replied, not likely impressing her with my Deunglish (Deutsch English). She conveyed that it was a "very cool techno music party." Hmmm...did she really think I could be cool enough to attend a techno music party?! What is techno music anyway? Why do they call it Street Parade if its a party?

That evening, hubby came home and told me that the Street Parade was the buzz all around the office. We've got to go to Street Parade. Then, I was in the throes of research...what is Street Parade? Is it a family event? NEIN....I learned thru experienced friends that this is not a family event....not for my family anyway.

Someone emailed me pix of a previous Street Parade. She described it as Zurich's Greenwich Village Halloween, Tailgate, New Orleans' Mardi Gras, NYs Puerto Rican Day Parade, and Gay Pride Parade fused into one day. We also learned that Boy George would be the "host" and acting as DJ for the event.

With our curiosity piqued, hubby and I ventured on our own....

How do I describe the debauchery that we witnessed? Since we arrived in the afternoon, it started out as just interesting...harmless largely.

The entire city was basically shut down for this Street Parade. There were no trams running, no cars in the city, loads of police a top buildings, people drinking tons of beer and just dropping them on the street regardless of whether they were bottles or cans, masses of people in costumes ....or less....meandering, strutting their stuff, proud to be zany. It was amazingly fun. Hubby and I did feel a bit old...we were definitely flies on the wall, observers, NOT participants.

We strolled thru the streets with Techno Music BOOMING from many different stages set up every 5 blocks or so. There were DJs, Dancers on stage, and we were enjoying the hilarious, interesting people watching. There were tooo many interesting people everywhere I turned that I couldnt even keep on top of it with my picture taking. Above is a strand of wheelchair bound reverlers. They had their wheelchairs decorated and smoke blowing out from their wheels. They had their own float with music blasting. It was very cool.

As we continued deep into the Parade/Festival, things were kickin up a notch. The costumes were become more interesting....risque. We sensed we were getting closer to the Master of Ceremonies...Boy George.

Sure enough, there he was. I have about 20 pix of him, but these 2 show him filming the crowd (see, even he was impressed, or amazed like us), and the advertisement of him and his posse.

Yup, the costumes got more interesting. ...oh and here's a glimpse of Boy George's VIP stage;s dancer...and her pole. Obviously, this was not for Boy George's benefit....

At one point, we stopped at a tent like the one shown above for a coke (5 chf). I noticed the Trojka sign, and also the same name on a box that was displayed. Naively, I asked "Was ist dat?" and the man serving my coke would not answer me....clearly ignoring me despite the fact that there were no other patrons at the moment. I immediately just chalked it off as the usual wanton customer service....then as I looked closely at the box I could see the letters " Trojka kondo_" ( I will let you figure it out) and was mortified! No wonder he wouldn't answer me - he was as embarassed as me!

On to the curb where sat, the only sober people at the fest, and just admired the revelers. Above, you see a man wearing a grand cape made of neckties...super cool. When he see him from the front you also see his rugged looking chest harness....interesting ornamentation. Oops - I think I used up my picture allowance. Perhaps I will have to add another post about the remaining - creative and shocking.

Planning

With our 25% milestone behind us, hubby and I discussed our travel goals. If it wasn't clear to you, hubby is here, primarily, to accomplish a challenging work opportunity, and secondarily, to have a great travel adventure. The opportunities are boundless. Every day I learn about new travel opportunities....Thailand pedicures where the fish nibble the dead skin off your feet, kayaking thru the Croatian islands, Agriturismo in Italy (staying at a farmhouse...think Tuscany!), storybook Prague, Munich for Oktoberfest, Switzerland - glacier express, a helicopter ride over Zermatt (the Matterhorn), Schlaf und Straw (sleeping in the Straw on a Swiss Farm), safari in Botswana, swim with the penguins in South Africa, cycling thru the Netherlands, indoor skiing and sand safari in Dubai. The opportunities are mindboggling. My wish list is ever-growing. How can we do it all in 27 months?

How? By hours and hours of researching, networking, and planning. Trip planning is one of my critical functions for our family. In the US, we traveled a bit. I could easily do the trip planning myself, and had a Disney Travel Agent for our Disney trips and used Costco for our cruises. It was all fairly simple. Here in Switz, I have done all of the planning myself.....don't be impressed...all the expats do their own planning (except for Safari). They/We are such a well travelled bunch, and ruggedly independent explorers that we all seem so driven to do it on our own. Also, we do have the benefit of swapping information and tips about "how to do" a trip, that its almost easier to do it yourself than explain it to a German speaking travel agent. Oftentimes at our gatherings/coffee/hike, travel conversations dominate: "Where are you going for October break?" "What did you think of your Spring Break trip to ... the Maldives?" "How did you do the Croatian Kayaking trip?" "Where can I get bike trail maps for the Netherlands?" When someone reveals something very interesting, several women pull out their Iphones and create Notes with the info. Its very cool.

Finding time to do such extensive research is often difficult. 2 weeks ago I injured my foot when I landed on a tennis ball in my new tennis class and twisted my ankle. It was sore and quite swollen since and I have had to avoid much activity. I was so bummed to be virtually couch bound for a week - its quite dull and difficult for me to sit still for long periods of time. However, it was a blessing in disguise. It forced me to accomplish quite a bit of research for our upcoming trips.

I currently have a couple trips in the hopper. We have an overnight weekend trip to Europapark in Germany. This is the largest amusement park in Europe, about 2 hrs away from here. The park is arranged in a variety of lands (think Disney: TomorrowLand, FantasyLand, etc). Europapark's lands are based on Europe (Italy, Switzerland, Germany, etc) We will be staying on the property....which was virtually sold out...so we are staying in a lovely Log Cabin in the Campgrounds ( the TeePees and Covered Wagons were also sold out....seriously.)

Next we will have a day trip to Kerns to see a Cattle Descent Festival. In early summer, the cows are brought into the hills and mountains (?possibly to stay cooler?), and in early fall, they descend back to their grazing farms. The farmers decorate the cattle with flowers and bells and make a parade of them, and enjoy a festival with food, cheeses, wines, yodeling, and I suspect, all things cow. I am still hoping we will make it to Mount Pilatus this fall for a day trip as well.

In October, we have our 11 day cruise of the Western Mediterranean. We will fly to Barcelona Spain, and sail to Monte Carlo, Monaco (where we will pop over to Nice on the French Riviera and spend an afternoon on the beach- just a 30 min train ride away according to my research), Livorno/Florence & Pisa for a whirlwind day, Rome & the Vatican in 9 hours with a private tour guide/driver, and the same for Naples/Pompeii & Amalfi Coast, Sicily Italy (J & the kids deserve a beach day after 2 rigorous touring days), Palma de Mallorca (mostly beach day, some sightseeing), Marceille, France (we will visit a medieval town in Provence), then Barcelona for 2 days.

I am contemplating taking my daughter on a super surprise Mother/Daughter weekend in later October, but will not discuss it for fear of jinxing it! I'd also hope to do a quick overnight trip with hubby to Oktoberfest.....is there any way we can add another weekend to Oktober this year?

Then, in Nov, hubby & I have a work-related trip to California. I am heartsick leaving my babies here, but I know they will be in good hands, and we will be fine. I am hoping to visit some cousins in CA, and friends. At the end of November, Europe's traditional Christmas markets begin. I have only heard of the magic of these festivals and I can not wait to see them for myself. We are planning to visit a couple in Switzerland, as well as Strassbourg France.

Our holiday break plans are in their conception phase....just a dream so far. I will save that for another post.

Even when we lived in the US, hubby and I have always been big travelers...even just day trips. Since I left my family home at 18 , I've never been a native of anywhere. I've always felt like a visitor. The lovely aspect of that is that I was always seeing things for the first time. Everything was new and waiting to be explored. Although we lived in MD for 10 years, and Il for 8, we always were exploring on the weekends - festivals, little museums, parks, and other attractions. We are doing the same thing here, its just that we have a completely different canvas. Look around your current home with the eyes of a visitor, explore, and discover something new! What are your travel dreams?

Reflections...and ramblings....at the 25% Milestone

Yesterday marked our 9th month in Switzerland. Its hard to believe that equates to being 25% of the way thru our 3year commitment! Hubby and I reflected on this at 6am over a cup of coffee. I must admit, realizing this milestone made me a bit sad. I am so amazed at how much each of us has learned, grown, stretched ourselves, seen, digested, and accomplished in 9 months. It has already been an amazing experience - mainly from the adjustment to living in Europe and to the travels.

Hubby and I discussed the adjustment. It has been incredible to leave a beautiful life we lived in Il - full of friends, great schools, loving family, stability, great job of hubby's. It truly was a charmed highly happy personal and work life and required a big leap of faith to think we could recapture the happiness we felt in our daily life in IL. We left all the security, and leapt without a safety net, quickly weaving a net based on our faith....faith in God, faith in ourselves, faith in each other, faith in mankind.

We still dearly miss our American life, but living away has opened our eyes to a new perspective on the bigger American picture and we do see a couple facets of the larger American life that give rise to much conern. I did not watch the news in the US and each day I am filled with sadness.....the crazy weather systems have reaked havoc on our country, the unemployment statistics with the dismal outlook, the pooor soldiers dying in the warfronts, and the selfish, greedy, self-centered politicians whose priorities are clearly personal power rather than consensus and mutual success just disgusts me.

The thing that frightens me the most when I look back on America is the lack of personal safety. Personal crimes are rampant, a daily event in every city. Each week there seems to be a woman or child missing, and when found, it is with unimaginable....indescribable ....results. This just doesn't happen in Europe...Why does it happen in America?

I recently read a book called The Hunger Games. It tells a story about life in North America in the future, where selected teenage citizens are forced to barbaric survival fighting for the entertainment (and intimidation) of the masses. The irony is that the story set in the future, where you would expect mankind to have progressed in civility, yet the concept of fighting to the death is so barbaric - and is more reminiscent of ancient times...how the Romans forced their prisoner Gladiators to fight for entertainment. I couldn't help but look at America - we have made so many amazing accomplishments and evolution in our 240 year history, in creating a world leader from barren land. In such a relatively short time we have surpassed the world in terms of our global power...we are progressive, ingeniously clever, industrious, productive, multi-tasking, hard-working, mobile, fun-seeking, live full lives, freedom and developed so much convenience.....it is truly the land of opportunity. Yet, I have so much trouble understanding how the land of opportunity and aggressive progressiveness has such terrible crime.

The crime makes me so sad. I see that in some ways, America is so progressive and in other ways it is soooo backwards. Is it rooted in our puritanical heritage? Does our society inhibit people who are a bit quirky to the point of driving them to psychosis? Or do we just not tend to the people who need help? Is the country so big that these people fall below the radar? Is our life so busy that we overlook potential dangerous people? Is our country so big that it is unwieldy and impossible to manage? Is our industrious capitalist society too lassez faire? Are we so much more preoccupied with financial accomplishments than justice? Caring for the needy? Personal gain over greater good?

Here in Europe I see how slow life is....sometimes it is irritatingly slow for this NewYork girl, but I can understand now that greater good that comes of it. People DO NOT walk around with food in hand, and a coffee in the other, but rather sit and linger when the eat and drink. Stress levels are low, and life is very easy. peaceful, and enjoyable. They tend to live in the moment, rather than rushing to the next. Customer service is lacking here - there's simply no need to rush, and be eager to please. They are not big multi-taskers, as there's a mentality of do one thing at a time, and do it right. With it comes a great quality of life.

I admire the sense of community - not that I am really part of the Swiss community, but rather the expat community. Nonetheless, the Swiss stay VERYCLOSE to their friends and family. They are a very private closeknit people, keeping to themselves, and very loyal. Americans are such a jovial friendly lot. Once we meet someone, we readily use the term "friend." The Swiss use a greater variety of terms for others: acquaintance, colleague, neighbor....reserving the term "friend" for a longterm friend or confidant. They are also big tattlers and have no problem telling anyone who is stepping out of line that they are wrong and to get back in line. I think this intrusive oversight keeps things orderly. Swiss people respect rules so much, that culturally, they do not fight back. When they break a rule, they know it when they are called on it, and generally fall back in line without protest. They are a conscientious lot, and generally acknowledge that the greater good outweighs personal gain.

The Europeans are not nearly as modest and inhibited as the Americans. In the warm months, I see some sort of nudity daily- at the Badis (swimming areas). Women go topless without concern, women wear bikinis regardless of body shape. Children (up to perhaps the age of 10) change clothes in public without worrying about "someone seeing them." Zurich, like many European cities, has a legal red-light district where consenting can do what they wish, and also has a "needle park," where users can acquire free clean needles and dispose of them safely. These are very socially progressive policies and I must say that although I personally benefit from none of them, I can see the wisdom and wonder what effect they have on the low crime rates, lack of personal crimes, and personal health.

So sorry for the SocioEconomic ramblings of a woman 25% thru a 3 year adventure, but I had to share with you my mental wanderings....

Ok - so back on topic. The 25% milestone also made generated a twinge of panic - Oh my, there's still so much we have yet to see and experience....I'd better get travel planning....and that is my next project....and blog.

BonJovi+ Toboggans,+Ancient Roman Ruins+Legoland+ Neuschwanstein = Summer in Switz

hi all, So sorry for the hiatus...again.

Summer is now coming to an end and I have so much to share about our summer. I last posted about our fantastic trip back to the US. Since then, we have been keeping very busy hosting visitors, traveling, returning to school and all the responsibilities that come with that, and trip planning.

Two days after we arrived home in July, we were visited by some friends from IL. The eldest daughter was completing a 2 week teen tour of Europe, ending in Switzerland. My friend and her younger daughter came to Zurich to pick up the older daughter, spend 2 nights with us, before they all headed to The Netherlands to visit with their former exchange student and his family. The weather had taken an uncharacteristic turn - it was very cold and rainy during their visit. This however worked out well for us. We all were recovering from jetlag hangovers, and really enjoyed the down time, with the opportunity to chat and laugh; there weren't many lulls in the conversation as we had so much to catch up on. The kids enjoyed hanging out together, too. We greatly enjoyed their company. On one of the days, we went into Zurich and visited the Swiss National Museum, basically Swiss History Museum. It was wonderful, like a micro Smithsonian, filled with artifacts from their interesting history, photo exhibits of the best news photos of the years, quintessential Swiss items (watches, cowbells, chocolate history etc), and period clothing. It was very enjoyable.

Also during this visit, my friend stayed with the kids for an evening, while Jason and I, along with 2 friends, went to the Bon Jovi concert. It was a great evening. The concert was held in an outside soccer stadium. The evening was perfect, the skies had cleared, the weather was mild, and the atmosphere so festive. Now that we are "north of 40" and remember our big concert days 20+ yrs ago when performers wouldn't begin until 9pm for a 7pm concert, we were concerned that the concert would end around midnight and be too tired to enjoy. So, we loaded up on our vitamins, and braced ourselves. We were pleasantly surprised when Bon Jovi started at 7:30 - I guess he too feels the effects of being in your 40s. We loved hearing all the familiar tunes and he put on a great show.

We were sad to see our friends leave, but knew we all had much to look forward to. A few days later we were blessed by a visit by my Bro in Law, Sis in Law & "the cousins." They visited us to kick-off to their 2 week Trafalgar Family Tour of Europe. We had a great time showing them around Zurich, eating fondue, showing them facets of our life in Switzerland (schools, Badis, riding the trains, ferry etc). They enjoyed seeing our little town and getting an idea of how the Swiss really live. They enjoyed the Wildepark and my SIL sooo enjoyed hearing the cowbells ringing. We showed them around the lovely little city of Zurich. It is always so hard to remember the history of the various landmarks, but I think we showed them the highlights, including a spot that had historical significance to my SILs father. We enjoyed a bit of time at the Zurich flea market, in Carl Weber toy store on the Bahnhofstrasse, visiting the Fraumunster and Grossmunster churches, and a playground. My SIL and I spent a bit of lovely girly time at the Flea Market and then had a good chat at one of my fav places, Schober Cafe (fav shabby chic - where Marie Antoinette would eat if she came to Zurich.) My nephews were eager to see a true European castle, so we visited Kybourg Castle, and then took a boat ride to Richterswil, a lovely castle town at the southern side of Lake Zurich. The Brothers made some deposits at the Swiss Casino, which always seems like such a promising prospect before they go, and a bit of a bummer upon exit. One day we ventured to Flumserberg Mountain (where we had skiied in winter) to zoom down the mountain on the cool tobaggan rides. We enjoyed sharing our Swiss life with them as I think it is impossible to understand the beauty, challenges, fun, and wonder of living in Switzerland without witnessing it firsthand. It was a very full and fun visit and, as sad as we were to see them leave, we all had so much more to look forward to in the coming weeks.

Two days after the family left, we were visited by dear friends from IL. They had already traveled in Europe a bit before, so were familiar with European travel. They had a fantastic itinerary set. My family was in a bit of flux during their visit. My son was leaving for Scout Camp in Germany during their visit and my hubby was driving him to camp leaving me & my daughter car-less for a few days. Our friends were following Rick Steve's Switzerland suggestions and did some day trips from our house, and stayed with us in the evenings. They visited Luzern (where we met up with them), Zurich, and Pilatus Mtn. These friends are amazing, effective, and efficient travelers and my daughter and I joined them for a day trip. On Sunday, we visited Bern where we toured Switzerland's capitol city, swam in the frrrrreeezing Aare River (unforgetable wonderful experience), visited an ancient walled city of Murten (walked the ramparts of the old walls - amazing) and ate a lovely dinner and dessert in a cavernous uber-cool restaurant, then enjoyed sunset gazing at Roman ruins in Avanches. We left at 9am and returned at 11:30 pm. The next day, they left for a 2 night visit to the Jungfrau region.

With my car and younger son back from the drop off at Scout Camp in Germany, two days without plans, I decided it was time for an adventure. I had been looking for a reason to conquer my fear of driving on the German Autobahn, and had wanted to take my Lego loving son and rollercoaster loving daughter to Legoland. I did some quick research, made some reservations, and packed up the kids and set off with them to Legoland Amusement Park in Germany, about 3 hours away. My GPS took me on a wierd route - it required me to take a ferry across Lake Konstanz into Germany - which gave me a bit of a worry, but I had faith in the GPS, rolled with it, and as usual, it all worked out. The kids and I had a wonderful time. The weather was extremely hot, and there were tons of bees, but it didn't deter us from having fun. The rides were quite similar to Legoland California. Our favorite of course, was the pirate wars water ride where you suirt tons of water at other riders. It was great fun. We also loved the miniworld. In Calif, the miniland is based primarily on lego structures of American landmarks - the Brooklyn Bridge, NYC, Mount Rushmore, Washington DC. Here, in Germany, the miniworld structures all depicted various European cities. It was amazing to see Venice recreated in legos, German cities, Switzerland, England....it was incredibly lovely.

We stayed overnight in a quaint traditional guesthouse closeby. We ate a scrumptious breakfast there. During the meal, I reflected on the moment and was filled with gratitude for such a great life, and great kids. We so enjoyed every minute of this summer....and of our time in Europe.

I was also feeling quite proud of myself, having tackled this German adventure single-handedly. When I first moved to Switzerland, it seemed that every single day, I would have to go outside of my comfort zone and accomplish something that seemed a bit intimidating or overwhelming. Once we got settled, things started happening more smoothly, errands and adventures became more routing, and things hadn't been so overwhelming. It had been awhile since I had really tacked something new. Driving in Germany had been something on my TO DREAD list. I was feeling quite empowered and eager to conquer this fear....and had done it.

So, what had intimidated me so much? Driving on the Autobahn....where there is no speed limit. My hubby had driven up to the Scout Camp in Germany and returned home Monday telling me about the crazy autobahn and how he had driven 110MPH ....yes, my responsible, safe, completely sane, cautious hubby had driven 110mph with our boys in the car. He claimed he HAD to go that fast to keep up in the slow lane. People were passing him very fast....likely 150 mph. Well, knowing he did it, and getting an idea of what to expect, helped me. I knew I could do it....and the car as well. Well, in the slow lane, I drove quite comfortably at 90 mph, with 95 mph being my fastest....likely the slowest driver on the road, but I was comfortable. I was very happy to have done it safely....and it wasn't so bad....it was sort of crazy fun.

On the way home from Legoland, we planned to spend the day at Neuschwanstein Castle. We had planned to come previously with the cousins, but when we realized how far away it was, it didn't make sense to drive 6 hrs roundtrip in a day. However, it was a great stop on the way home from Legoland since it was 90 minutes away and it was, sort of, on the way home.

Neuschwanstein Castle is a magnificant work of art commissioned by King Ludwig II in the late 1800s. King Ludwig was an extravagant spender. He loved the arts and beauty and luxury and spent the country's money supporting such pursuits quite generously. However, his German subjects did not quite appreciate the lavish expenditures as he did. The castle was only partially completed when he was found to be "insane," removed from the throne, and died shortly thereafter by drowning. The Castle became Walt Disney's inspiration for the DisneyWorld/Land Castles. It has 16 completed rooms, and they are all opulent and gorgeous.

I was very glad that we had gotten to visit the Castle. When we arrived at the castle town, there was a massive line to get tickets to tour the castle. I was glad we had made the reservation on line and avoid the wait. The Castle sits on a very high steep peak. We had 60 mins to get up to the Castle, which we thought was plenty of time. We decided to make a quick pitstop which turned out to be not so quick, leaving us only 30 mins to get up to the Castle. Then we realized how far away it was! Yikes - no joke - see the pic. The line for transportation was a 30 min wait. The kids and I decided to walk up the hill (35 min walk) so we decided to hustle and jog up the hill. My daughter was in a panic - she almost hyperventillated. I reassured her to take her time, not to worry. But, worry she did, " what if we miss the tour? What if they won't let us in?" I assured her it would be no problem, we could always come back another time. The poor little things ran up the mountain in 15 mins - people were amazed and made comments to us since it was a very steep hike. My kids are amazing! Look at the picture of K&T giving the thumbs up - you can see the castle on the peak in the right of center - we literally jogged up the hiking path in 15 mins! Sometimes my kids probably wish they had a different mother.....

As soon as we arrived at the car, the rains started. It poured buckets. Our trip home was delayed due to weather and it made me think of my poor sweet son at Scout Camp enduring this weather in just tents. : (

When we finally arrived home, our friends had returned from Jungfrau and Zurich and we enjoyed our last evening together. They are very dear and special friends and we were so happy to have them visit and share our European life with them.

When they left, the kids and I enjoyed a bit of normal Zurich life. We went to the Badi one day to meet up with friends and swim in the gorgeous lake. Then, on Saturday, we drove to Germany again with J and did some shopping where it is less expensive. It proved to be a fruitful adventure. We stocked up on some awesome beef - filet mignon turned out to be delicious. After spending the morning shopping, we went to a Swiss town, Stein am Rhein for lunch and exploration. This is Switzerland's best preserved Midieval town, famous for the beautiful frescoes painted on the buildings. It is gorgeous and quintessential Swiss. Oh...how I love living in Europe!

Then, my older son returned from camp that evening. He had a wonderful and productive time. We had a few more carefree days and before school started. We made the most of reconnecting with the ex-pat friends, hosting bbqs, and enjoying the amazing Lake Zurich resort-life. Its been a wonderful summer. Hope yours was great too! Drop me a note, I'd love to hear about it. xo

Who Says You Can't Go Home?

We just returned from our "HomeVisit," our first trip back to our homeland after being in Switzerland for 6 months. Since the day I arrived in January I had been thinking of our return trip to the US - who would we see, where would we stay, would we make it to IL or just NY & MD, what are the top things we are going to want to do, what will we buy?

The weeks before the trip were quite busy. There were 2 long weekends prior to our leaving for the US, and we traveled on both of them (Munich & Salzburg for the first weekend of June and Locarno for the second weekend). The end of school year celebrations and concerts, and exhibitions were in full force and occupied both days and nights. Some Ex-pat acquaintances were returning to the US so I had lunches, a spa day!, and after school badi festivities to attend. When I wasn't at the aforementioned events, I spent all of my daytimes in the month of June planning and packing and unpacking from our long weekend trips, organizing my daughter's birthday celebration, planning our 3 week trip to the US which involved a lot of communication with friends in 3 states, planning individual sleepovers, and parties, shopping lists, and travel arrangements, as well as quickly digital scrapbooking our first 6 months in Switz and ordering the photobooks to be shipped to my MILs house for pickup during our visit. I was also fairly consumed with online shopping for clothes since my children have grown quite a bit since we've been here. Further, I had a costly trial membership for a gym and was trying to use it as much and enjoyed it immensely! On a side note, I had another minor car issue which I will blog about separately.

So, once all of the plans were finalized, roughly the night before we left, we flew to the US!!! I planned a 3 week trip thru our old stomping grounds IL, MD, and NY. My husband didn't want to take off 3 weeks, so he planned to meet up with us half way thru our trip, in MD. This meant I had to travel to the US with the kids by myself.

As you know, my husband and I employ a distinct separation of duties doctrine. When it comes to traveling, I manage the kids and do all the planning and organizing. He handles all of the documents and navigational logistics. This trip would mean I would have to handle all of my normal duties as well as his. I was a bit skeptical whether I could manage to get the kids to the airport via train, and manage all the documents (passports, permits, boarding passes, car rental info) as well as the abundance of luggage.

Since I brought up the luggage.... I was very proud of my luggage logistics. Heading to the US, expats bring empty suitcases, so you can shop and fill them up in the US and return with them full of bargains. I not only brought empty suitcases, but nested them inside each other so that we had less to manage. We brought 8 suitcases: 3 were large & empty, 1 small to return to a friend who visited and left with us filled with DD coffee, 1 filled with chocolate gifts, and 1 filled with Tshirts for family gifts. Only 2 contained our clothes for the 3 weeks. Makes perfect sense, right?

The kids were champs lugging the suitcases on the bus to the train to the airport, thru the train station to the airport terminal, up and down steps, up and down into the bus and trains, on escalators. No problem - these kids are experienced and good travelers.

I had some mixed emotions about going to the US. On one hand I could not wait to reconnect with everyone and see, hug them, hold them and share life with them again. On the other hand, however, I anticipated the pain of saying goodbye again, knowing that only six months had passed and my next trip would not be for at least another year, and this next stint would be longer. In some ways I wished the trip wasn't here already. I loved having it to look forward to ....when I would get frustrated or lonely, I always could cheer myself up by knowing that open arms were awaiting us, just ahead. Without having the trip to look forward to, I wondered what will comfort and bouy me for the next 12 months?

My fears were quickly allayed. From the minute we landed, we had a great time....great, great, great. How do I describe the joy we all shared seeing our dear ones? It was just so comforting, fun-filled, and joyous. Every day was a celebration, a celebration of friendship, a confirmation of the strong bond we share with others. Every day we felt like celebrities, with everyone flocking to see us and catching up on our lives.

We flew to Chicago, rented a car and drove to our former town for a 4 day friendship frenzy. We stayed with dear friends and loved every minute of it. We visited with our beloved pet lizard who is being cared for by dear friends. Our older son stayed with his bff for 3 of the 4 day visit and he had an absolutely amazing time. It was so good to see him play with his best friend - it just seemed so regular. Our days and nights were filled with visiting our various groups of friends, with friends hosting large pool parties so that we could visit with as many friends as possible. It was SO refreshing to see the kids pick up where they left off - as if no time or distance separated them. A few noteable things - people had noticed a change in my daughter, substantially more confident, but also a bit more tween-ish. (I have noticed some of the teen-ish attitude has crept in in the form of some sassiness : ( ) My elder son seemed to be more chatty with his best buddies. My younger son, who was/is fluent in Spanish and attended a Spanish immersion program met up with his Spanish speaking buddies and later told me that their Spanish is way better than his now....he's losing his skills since it is no longer being fostered. : (

It was bittersweet to hear about all of the wonderful things that took place without us. I got to hear about the 5th grade Fear Factor Day, the field day, yearbook, scout meetings, and see my daughter's 5th grade "moving up" ceremony pictures, and the commemorative 5th grade signed T-Shirt which bore no mention of her although she had been part of the class for 5 1/2 yrs.....I must admit that the exclusion stung....but hey - we are the ones who left. Hopefully, it bothers me more than it does her. It was wonderful and hard to see my younger son's classmates perform their Celebration Night dance with him standing with me, on the sidelines, rather than being in the midst of the performance. The toughest was taking my oldest son from his bff again. They just laugh and have such a great time together - doing anything - just playing videogames or making wierd faces at each other - they just laugh the whole time. I wish I could have kept him with his buddy for the summer or taken the bff with us as they are just 2 peas in a pod and bring out the best in each other.

It was a slice of heaven, reconnecting with the school friends, my girlfriends, my book club friends, our playgroup friends.....simply joyous! I managed to pop into my former health club and squeeze in a 6am Spin workout with my former early morning workout crew - love them!!

Then, it was time to fly to MD to see our dear friends from when we lived there 9 yrs earlier and my hubby's family. We had a great time reconnecting with these dear friends whom we normally see once or twice a year. It was joyous to be with them and catch up on the past 6 months, marvel at how the kids have physically changed, and swapping mom stories over the emotional, academic, and physical challenges and accomplishments we all bear.

It was wonderful to see the grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles! We swam in the pool, barbecued, celebrated all the recent birthday and holidays we missed, posed for pix in the Swiss T-shirts we brought for everyone. The kids just picked up where they left off, swapping info on the latest video game accomplishments and discoveries. I love to see them play with their baby cousins and the torturous teasing exchanges with a special uncle. We were amazed to see the growth in their baby cousins - who thanks to skype still seem to recognize us. It must be bewildering for her to see us in human form as she is likely thinking we are just these little people who live in the computer screen.

We spent a very fun American evening at a local carnival. The kids enjoyed hanging out with their cousins. The got to ride the rides together, eat cotton candy, ice cream and root beer. The kids enjoyed playing the games with their uncle and dad and winning stuffed animal prizes. It was a fun normal American summer evening. We also managed to squeeze in a couple movies with the cousins - a real treat for us as movie tickets are $20 each for us here in Zurich!

I was giddy that I could SHOP!! Since the day we arrived in Switz, I had been compiling a US shopping list of things that I could not find here in Switz, or that are too inconvenient to buy, or that are outrageously expensive that I can't stomach buying them here. In the US, shopping was easy and fun again. Everything was written in English, it was one-stop shopping, it was easily affordable, items were abundant, and the store layouts were familiar. The shopping carts didn't require a deposit, and I didn't need to go to a parking garage, keep my ticket and pay for my parking space. Shopping in America is SOOOOO EASY!! What did I buy? Brownie mix, makeup, lipstick, a couple favorite candies (bottlecaps, skittles, firey hot cinnamon jolly ranchers, and gum, glorious American gum), tons of clothes, Ugg boots for my tween as a belated bday gift, several pairs of shoes, nerf guns and bullets (I'm not exactly sure WHY, but I did), hair products ("It's a 10" and a conditioning masque), rubbing alcohol, adhesive velcro, fabric adhesive (for scout badges), a new Itouch (as A lost his on the trip in transit- bummer), dvds, books, taco seasoning, Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix, turkey gravy mix (yes - a mix. I never would have used a mix in the US, but here in Switz, we can only really buy small lean turkey breast meat and it is not conducive for making gravy), peanut butter and frosting. These latter 2 were subsequently confiscated by TSA in my carry-ons as they are considered to be a liquid or gel....bummer! There were a zillion other items I would have loved to pick up, but I knew I was approaching max capacity in my luggage.

We drove to NY to meet up with my brothers for our 5th Annual Cousinfest at a family golf resort in the Catskills. We just love this relaxing family vacation. The resort is very safe and offers lots of outdoorsy natural amusements, like a lake with lots of different boats/kayaks, fishing, playgrounds, a swimming pool, some organized activities (kickball, shuffleboard, tennis, soccer games), nature trails, hiking, and nightly entertainment. Our kids have 5 cousins to hang out with as well as a group of friends (12?)whom they have gotten to know from the previous years. This resort is significant to our kids as it allows them to have a vacation where they are happily quite independent of the parents....its sort of like they are at a sleepaway camp, but their parents are there ....somewhere.

We were happy to have some special visitors at the resort this year. One of my college friends stopped in with her 3 children to spend the day with us. Then, the next day, my cousins and kiddies came and stayed for 2 nights. It made the annual trip even more special!!

On the third night, I felt very content and at peace. Everything was going great. The kids were immensely happy running around the resort with their friends and cousins, hubby and I had managed to have lots of time together to walk & talk, my bros and I had lots of chats and managed to catch up on the past 6 months, and we all had time to play in the pool with our kids, and lounge by the pool and refresh ourselves. We were very relaxed, everything seemed so familiar, normal and easy....and then it hit me. In 5 days, this would be ending, as we would be returning and I felt a twinge of that bummed feeling again.

When the last spectacular night came, my big family (19 of us) were playing bingo. By 10pm, the kids were exhausted and wanted to head to bed. It was time to say goodbye. I was dreading this moment....I was laughing one minute and battling tears the next. I hugged and kissed my bros, my SILs, niece, nephews, cousins.....I had to squeeze them hard, but brief....lest I breakdown. Its hard to say goodbye to my family. We love each other so much, have been thru so much together in life, as we endured the long illnesses and deaths of our parents together, my bros and I have a special bond and don't take our time together for granted. We love being together and hate that we have to settle for such a small amount of time together. We will all look forward to the time when we live in driving distance again.

I was surprised by how well I took the return to Switzerland. I didn't cry much leaving the friends which really surprised me. It was always very hard to say goodbye again, but there was always something fun just waiting for us at our next stop. When the final goodbyes came with each friend and family, I actually didn't feel overwhelmed as I had anticipated. I felt very at peace. I felt alright....I can do this...I can go away and come back and know we haven't lost our connection. I do miss sharing my life with each of them, but know that we have interwoven our lives in such a way that it will not unravel readily.

Thinking of these special friends and family causes a BonJovi song to resonate in my head, "Who Says You Can't Go Home" "I went as far as I could ... I've traveled a million miles of memories on that road, With every step I take, I know I'm not alone, You can take the home from the boy but not the boy from his home...It's alright, it's alright.... who says you can't go home?"

Apples and Oranges....and Lemons

I have so many travels to catch up on, but first I must share an interesting incident that occurred this weekend.

We just returned from our fantastic US visit last Monday. On Friday, my younger son who will be turning 9 soon, was invited to a friend's house for a sleepover. This is a very good school friend of his, who is German and has been living here in Switz for 4 years, and will be returning to Germany soon with his family. We adore his family; they are so warm, immensely friendly, loving, chatty, and jovial. T has slept over there before and was eager to do so again, especially with his friend leaving for good imminently.

I dropped him off, and returned home to get ready to go out to dinner with my hubby's good friend & family who also live here in Switz. I hadn't mentioned to T that we would be heading out to dinner....in the same town he was sleeping over at....because I didn't want him to be conflicted. I wanted to ensure he spent time with his friend before he moves away and there will be plenty of opportunities to spend with my hubby's friends in Switz.

Allow me to provide a bit more of the background: I had just returned from the US where in the same week- Casey Anthony had just been acquitted of murdering her child, a unimaginable tragedy occurred in Brooklyn when someone abducted and killed an 8 y/o boy in a most horrific way, and my People magazine arrived with Jaycee Dugard on the cover. Needless to say, I had been keeping my babies extra close to me with a heightened awareness of danger ....

Three hours after dropping off T, my older 2 kids and I drove to meet the friends and hubby at the restaurant for dinner. As I was driving thru this bustling town, I spot T and his friend standing at the curb in the shopping area, preparing to cross this fairly busy street. My mind was momentarily confused...bewildered really, as I slowed down to a stop in front of them. I could hardly believe my eyes....2 8 year olds shopping alone?! I rolled to a stop in this 2 lane street, with many cars making their way around me as there was no shoulder and my car literally fills half the road. I was a jumble of emotions - confused, disoriented, bewildered that I would come upon him at this very moment he was about to cross this street, somewhat proud/excited to see my boy being so independent, grateful that I see that they are ok, but predominently - absolutely- terrified that my boy is out in the middle of the European market area without a protective adult. I was confused...was this really happening? I was scanning the passerbys for anyone looking familiar who might be escorting them, and for anyone appearing dangerous...single men...old men.... I had a dozen questions reeling thru my mind, "do the parents know that they are out and about alone?" " how far is it back to the boy's house?" "had anyone tried to call me to check and see if this was alright?" "should I stop them" "what would ensue if I brought them back to the mother?" "is this ok? "is it not ok" "why? what should I be thinking about this?" "what would those American mothers do who I just mentioned?" Then, I was wonderedwhether T was going to ask where we were going and I felt bad not bringing him to dinner with us.

I managed to swallow my fears, as tears welled in my eyes, and I rolled down the window, continuing to scan the few passersby. "Hey! Hi guys! What are you doing out here?" They were SO cute standing there at the curb and smiled big grins and proudly held up a produce bag full of lemons. "We bought lemons at the store and are going to make lemonade!" "Oh, Wow! that's great!!" I said with exclamations, although my heart felt like this ????????????? : ( I hated being in this predicament! Although, I was probably the only one in the world feeling these pangs.

I quickly assessed the situation: I calculated that the boy's house was just a couple blocks away, this is Switzerland with an amazing low crime rate, with very few personal crimes and child abductions are virtually unheard of here. They were so proud, and I must admit, I could have burst into tears, but really wanted him to have this experience, of feeling proud, safe and confident, and having independence. I was so conflicted, and I was really trying not to freak out.... my mind was quickly assessing the danger. Is it me? Is he safe? Is Switzerland really as safe as they say? They got here alright, they've already bought the lemons, and walked a few blocks from the store, and were quite close to the boy's house. Then T said, "Can you drive us back to his house?" I don't exactly know why but I said," I think you can walk it..." because I wanted it to be true so much. Did I really say that ? Then with a million "I love yous" and "have fun!!," he and his friend continued on their way and we on ours.

I must say that I felt horrible, and guilty and wondered if I would regret this, yet also thankful and excited as I drove away. My emotions were quickly distracted by the traffic and finding parking for this restaurant. I immediately shared this bizarre incident with our friends at the restaurant, who are Americans and have lived in Switz for many years and they fully reassured me that this situation is fine. They reminded me that Switzerland is safe and the kids navigate the towns unsupervised all day long, every day. I know....just not my baby.

So, herein lies the cultural conflict. In the US, we have to protect our children....and oftentimes that can not be enough. Danger seems to lurk everywhere. Here in Switz, like most of Europe, the children are groomed to be physically independent at a much younger age. It is common for children to walk themselves to school alone starting at age 4. It is very uncommon for parents to accompany their children around town, and never to school. Children are routinely out and about without adults once they are at school age. Still, I never expected my child to be thrust into this situation. He's had some Stranger Danger training, but I hadn't reviewed it with him in awhile because, being an American, he's never out and about without me or another adult or his teenage bro.

Later that eve, as I was still bewildered by this event, I related this situation to my SIL via Skype. She is the mom of 2 babies, but is a MS teacher. She was as astonished as me, and asked whether I will bring it up with the mom. When I asked my hubby he said that we really shouldn't bring it up .....this is Europe. This is truly their culture....the kids are free and independent here. We can not impart our American worries in a place where it hardly exists. I thought about it and perhaps it would be like a Cuban asking if we should hide from Castro while in Chicago. It would sound bizarre and out of context, as it is such a remote connection that it seems to be non-existent. It is an apples and oranges scenario....we are dealing with two entirely different incongruent environments that we can not compare them evenly.

I don't like living fearfully and will admit that is something I never liked about raising kids in the US in the 2000s. We have always lived in very nice, immensely safe areas, but somehow I never felt completely safe letting my kids roam out of sight.....sadly.

I love how I grew up, like many of you, in the pre1980s, when kids played with neighborhood kids unsupervised, would play impromptu games of ring-o-levio until the streetlights came on, and baseball in the schoolyard all summer long without having it organized by adults who sign legal waivers to play, everyone just knew what was a strike and what was a ball without the benefit of an umpire or instant replay. I remember walking 5 blocks frequently, at a young age....8?... to the grocery store, for my mom, to buy bread and milk, walking to the public library, and biking to the public pool with just my friends without parental supervision. I guess I can think of Switzerland as being like the US in the 1970s, (albeit without the neighborhood friends since we are ex-pats surrounded by Swiss).

So, the next day I picked up T. I told the parents how surprising it was to run into the boys in the marketplace. They expressed surprise themselves, saying,"Oh, they didn't tell us." Apparently, it wasn't as big a deal to my sheltered American boy as it was to me. Then they proudly showed me their handmade Lemonade sign "Lemonade klein 1 chf gross 1.50 chf" (Lemonade small 1 franc, large 1.50 franc) Then they proceeded to tell me how the little produce bad broke on the way home, and they laughed as they told me how the lemons rolled down the sidestreet and they chased and caught them and had to put them in their pockets for the rest of the walk....they were laughing and I was grateful.

I think this was one of those situations that my precious boy and I will remember forever, but for entirely two different reasons.

Warts and All...

Our cruise was fantastic. The best part of it, truly, was having the relaxing time together. It had been the most time I had spent with my husband in ages. It was also a relief to see him relaxed and happy since he works sooo much. When he's not working....he's thinking about work. It was nice to have him captive and without easy access to the internet.

On the last few nights of our cruise, I found myself waking in the middle of the night thinking about returning home. The first time, I awoke with a feeling that I was looking forward to going home, but I quickly realized I was envisioning returning to IL, and when a second later, the image of Switzerland popped into my head, I felt a bit bummed.

I am greatly appreciative and enjoying our ex-pat experience, but must confess, that it is hard. I try not to dwell on this fact; I don't complain about it, I don't write about it, I don't post my hardships to FB, and it doesn't mean that I don't like it, nor does it mean I want to quit, or that I am deeply sad, or regretting anything. It simply means that daily activities are hard.

When things are perpetually constantly hard, it is hard to stay motivated and stay in the game.

I could make an endless list about everything that is hard, but unless you are having an ex-pat experience, you honestly couldn't understand. I know each of my friends would console me, and suggest an alternate, or look for a solution. What you can not understand, unless you are living it, is the CONSTANT challenges.....just relentless.... becomes emotionally and mentally exhausting.

Loneliness in another big factor for me. I have made lots of friends, but really, noone who knows anything beyond the superficialities. Noone knows my background, my family, nor my friends back home. Ex-pats generally tend to live in the moment, I am seeing. All that matters, at this point, is "are we compatible enough to share this experience together?" Nothing too deep at this point. Maybe as I get to know people more deeply. I miss those long talk with friends. Friends who know me so well, that they can call me on my BS, or laugh with me on my shortcomings, or finish my sentence. I miss those friendships.

I feel bad even sharing these thoughts and know that I keep it all in perspective. I know this is an amazing experience and we are so privileged to have it. I know its a one-in-a million opportunity and I intend to make the most of it. I think that is why I focus so much on scheduling travels - it is something that is soooo cohesive for my husband & me and our kids. When we are away, we can focus on each other, and having fun, rather than chipping away at all of the endless work & responsibilites.

Perhaps it is pride and impatience that bar me from sharing my sad thoughts. I am very independent and do not like to rely on anyone for support. I am so accustomed to doing and handling everything on my own, that, to lean on someone else does not come naturally to me, and in fact, seems like more trouble than its worth.

So, my sad feelings crept into my sleep for 2 or 3 nights. I was a bit crabby about coming back to Switzerland, and returning to our hectic daily life, running 4 lives (me + kids) and the life of not seeing my hubby until the weekends. My brain also started wondering about the logistics - where did I leave my purse? my keys? What was my ATM card password? Do I have a credit card? Did we leave anything gross in the refrigerator? Do I remember all the departure times and routes for the kids schools?

I must say that the first few days of re-entry were a bit tough. I didn't have my car (next blog), Tommy was sick, I had laundry up to my eyeballs which I estimated at 14 loads for my microwave-sized washer - it would take me all week.

However, a few days later, I was back to normal...my normal optimist state. Life was good. I spoke with 2 other ex-pat Americans about this very issue- the emotional difficulty of returning to Switzerland. They also feel the same way, that it is hard to return to Switzerland from vacation and even harder to return from the US and leave friends and family again. It was good to know that these feelings are common. They assured me it gets better with time. I also think that it helps that we have our trip back to the US coming up in June, as well as some smaller side trips in the meantime.

So, those are the ramblings of an ex-pat. Despite the relentless challenges, I am very glad to have this experience...warts and all.

Homecoming

So....with the adventure behind us, we headed home by train - a series of trains that would take us 8 hours. What was on my mind was finding my keys, grocery shopping, laundry, emails, beating Sue at WWF, praying my ATM card would work, etc.

What I should have been thinking about was, 'Why was T sitting on the floor of the train car, with his head on the seat?" I was certain he was exhausted. After all, we had just completed his 2 week non-stop fun and action dream vacation.

Just as we were coming upon hour 7 of our journey, and were standing in the doorway preparing to jump off the train and make our last connection, T said that he thought he was going to vomit. "No, this couldn't be happening...I don't have a bag or anything." Well, he quickly turned green, and J opened the train's little built-in trash bin, and T emptied his stomach there. It was a great catch, but unfortunate for the cleaning crew. We rapidly departed the train before the odor wafted thru the car. T perked up a bit on the last train, and I was certain that it was merely motion sickness.

Upon our arrival at home....we immediately noticed something was missing from the driveway. Ahhh yes, our car. Prior to our departure, we had dropped off the car at Rolf's garage for some minor repairs and the 80,000mile check up. Let me back up and explain how this process went.
I am the driver of the car. My hubby does not drive here in Switzerland - he doesn't need to. He takes a train to& fro and if he needs a ride, I drive him or he gets a taxi or bus.
So, I took my car to the garage in town which is owned and run by Rolf who utilizes 2 young mechanics. I stopped by on Friday, explained the 5 items I wanted to have repaired/checked. Rolf is a very senior member of our community, and I would guess him to be 80 yrs old. He is old-school Switzerland.

So, I explain the needed repairs, that we are leaving for 2 weeks, I would like the work done while we are away, and when could I drop it off? He shakes his head and shoes me away with his hands and says," I talk to your husband about it next week." This is a significant cultural thing about Europe that had to be explained to me. When there is a big expense (orthodontia, auto repair), the business owner discusses it with the husband. It is a guy-thing. They expect the husband to call the shots and are not comfortable discussing monetary issues with women.
Well, unfortunately, my family doesnt operate that way. My hubby truly knows less about cars than I do. It is my car and I handle everything about it. Rolf won't budge. He insists he will talk to my husband next week. Fast forward one week - I am sitting in a piazzele sipping spritzers with my Canadian/UK friends when I receive the text from my hubby," What do I tell Rolf? " So I text him back the script and he works it out with Rolf. Oy!

Fast forward another week, and here we are returning home to no car. : ( I need the car. We have no groceries, and I need to get the kids to school the next morning. The kids were already missing the day of school and I needed them to get back to school so I could get started on the all-consuming laundry.

I picked up the phone and called Rolf. Here about to begin was the match of the century - one for the Deadliest Warriors- the irate, exhausted, bummed to be back from vacation, fiercely independent New Yorker vs. Rolf, the old school Swiss with almost a century of experience avoiding business transactions with women, AND who was in possession of my car!
I think the conversation went like this:
C: Rolf? It's C, the owner of the RR. Ummm, it's not in my driveway, should I come get it?
R: ahh yes, its not ready yet. I call your husband when its ready.
C: Rolf, I need the car tomorrow morning by 7:30 am to drive the children to school.
R: Oh noo....its not ready. its not driveable.
C: NOT DRIVEABLE?! Rolf, you've had it for 2 weeks. Why is it not ready? What am I going to do? I have to drive the children to school! You know the Swiss Law - they are not allowed to miss a day of school.
R: Where do the children go to school ? ( I realize he was thinking they attend the local neighborhood swiss school).
C: I have to bring them to Wadenswil in the morning. How am I supposed to get them there?
R: Oh - you drive my car.
C: Your car? You want me to drive your car?
Then my hubby interrupts to remind me to ask if its an automatic
R: yes - you take my car and you come back at your car is ready after 2 hours.

Take his car? I hardly know him and he's going to trust me with his car? This is bizarre.
I put some laundry in the washer, and walk to his shop at 6:30 am and he hands me his keys to an old Subaru wagon. I drive it home, grateful noone else is on the road at this time as I get used to driving it, thinking how bizarre this place is. The car is quite old, but runs well. I was surprised he had this old subaru. No sooner do I get to the house when I realize that the car is on E....as in EMPTY. Did I mention that Rolf's garage is also the gas station? Why didn't he put some fuel in the car? You've GOT TO BE KIDDING ME was all I could think of. Am I being punk'd ?

Well, I get home as T is waking. He looks very pale, lethargic, he has a headache, and his throat hurts. You know it - classic Strep Throat symptoms. Poor thing! No school for him. He is really sick....lays in my bed and falls back asleep. I call a friend and ask her to drive K & A to school as I dread the thought of T puking in Rolf's car.

With K&T gone to school, I turn my attention to T who is still sleeping. I switch the laundry, and I go to call the dr, and suddenly remember that our dr is on vacation this week. I call his phone and sure enough the answering machine message confirms this when I hear the works "geschlossen woche mai 1-6."

UGH! I make some calls, get the phone number of another English speaking doctor and call them. Fortunately, they squeezed him in. I used Rolf's car to drive him to the appt where the dr confirmed that he had strep throat. The dr dispensed the Zpac right there in his office - how convenient! No 20 minute wait at CVS!

On the way home, I passed Rolf's station and saw that my car was out of the garage and ready for pick up. Hooray! T & I drove up the hill home and I worked on laundry and unpacking while he worked on recovering all day. By late afternoon, he was perking up and back to his old self the next day. I finally finished laundry by Thursday.

It wasn't the homecoming I was expecting, but it all worked out....fortunately. Also, whenever I drive by Rolf's garage I see that he actually drives a Jaguar - the Subaru must be a spare car. Interesting that he didn't offer me the keys to the Jaguar....

Greece!

Again, I'm still having difficulty with embedding pix, so without further adieu, I will describe our Greek Islands cruise without the visuals for now.

Picking up where I left off....

We boarded our Cruise, the Royal Caribbean Splendour of the Seas in Venice. It was a nice ship, a bit older, holding 2000 passengers. We checked in, and checked out our 2 adjoining staterooms, mustered for our lifeboat drill, and set sail. We went to the pool area and watched Venice disappear as the band played some Latin music. At dinner we met our tablemates, a couple of very nice women from Canada (more Canadians!) who were very nice and fun.

Our first port was the very next day: Split, Croatia. We visited the Diocletian's Palace - an ancient walled papce which now houses a contemporary marketplace. We took a tour and learned about the history of the Palace and area. The Palace walls have not held up well and it was quite challenging to envision what it was like in its glory days. We also climbed up to the top of the Bell Tower and enjoyed the amazing view of Split. The water was sooo blue and peaceful and the Tower's arches framed the view beautifully. We ate lunch at a lovely seaside restaurant, and then J took the kids to the beach while I looked around the shops. J described "the beach" as a concrete area with a field of woodchips with a 5 inch strip of sand. He said that the kids had a great time nonetheless. Back on board, the kids swam in the pool until dinner. J&T entered a family Scavenger Hunt in the kids club and won first prize! We had a lovely formal dinner, and then the kids went to their kids/teen clubs and had fun while J& I indulged in champagne.

Bell Tower

Easter Sunday: Corfu

We had a great day in Corfu.... however, it was so wierd that it was Easter, the Greeks were all dressed up, gathered in large groups, presumably with their families, observing their sacred traditions. ...we, on the other hand, were milling about in shorts and sandals snapping pix of their lovely churches, but off exploring ruins and looking forward to some beach time. We started out the day visiting an old Roman Fortress. It was cool. Then, we took a cab to the beach. The beach was fairly deserted as peak season had yet to begin. The kids had a great time digging in the sand, making forts of their own and playing in the cold sea. They had a blast. We managed to find a little beachfront day resort/restaurant and planted ourselves there for the day, sipping wine and Ouzo in the afternoon. The kids loved jumping in the cold surf, building forts with moats, and soaking in the sunshine. It was so relaxing with the warm sun and slight breeze. It was good to see my hubby kickin back for a change. : )

Monday, no ports, just a day sailing the sea. J played shuffleboard, and golf with T. K & I treated ourselves to mani/pedis at the spa. It was incredibly windy, so much so that the top deck was closed. We had a lovely formal dinner and I managed to upload one pic of us all heading to dinner. The kids spent most of the evening at their kids club and loved it. J and T won the kids club scavenger hunt and received medals. The kids swam in the pool and we had a relaxing day.

Tuesday, April 26: ATHENS! Wow - how do I describe this amazing city? We hired a cab from the port area, I believe it was 150Euros to have this driver spend 5 hours driving us around to & from the various sites. His english was poor, but we managed to communicate enough to see the major sites, and arrange times for pick up from the sites. With T as our tour guide, we were all set. T was in his glory. He loves Greek Mythology and is very knowledgeable. He seemed a bit quieter than I would have expected, given how this trip was his dream come true. He later told me that he hadn't expected all of the big buildings and that he sort of expected to see people walking around in togas. So cute! Actually, I was surprised what a cosmopolitan city Athens was. Car and trucks, and people were scurrying around the monuments which were just spread out amidst the office buildings. I would have imagined these historic monuments would have been more sheltered from the city's rat race.

Athens was built to honor the goddes, Athena, which is, of course, T's favorite god as he feels he "is like her - the goddess of wisdom and strategy." Upon arriving at the Acropolis, T knelt down and hugged and kissed the sacred ground.

Our sightseeing started at the Acropolis, the big hill that houses the Parthenon, and ancient temple. The hill was crowded with tourists all wanting to see these amazing structures. It was awesome to see something so old, that had endured so much, and still stood, a bit crumbly, but impressive. I still can not wrap my head around how they actually built these ginormous ornate structures with such primitive tools. It is also incredible that the designers and builders built them to honor their gods, where thousands of years later, we pay respect and honor the designers and builders instead.

We walked around, marveling at the structures, the views, with T explaining the history of the buildings, the gods, and even the olive trees. Surprisingly, he became impatient with my taking a zillion pictures... I reminded him that he will thank me one day.

We climbed the Aeropogous (sp?) Hill for a breathtaking view of the Agora and Athens. It was just amazing to be there.

Next, we went to the Archeolagical Museum. It was spectacular from start to finish. A gorgeous museum filled with ancient artifacts. Some statues were missing heads, others missing limbs, or portions of the torso. We joked that we could just mix & match and assemble some complete statues and save quite a bit of space. T loved the statues of owls - the symbol of Athena. The floor of the museum were all glass so you could look down and see the floor below. On the bottom floor of the entrance, there was an excavation site below and we could peer down to it....super cool.

The Parliament Building was our next stop where we saw the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior. We watched the very odd, high stepping, pom pom footed Changing of the Guards. It was a sight to see !

Our next location was the remains of the Temple of Zeus and Hadrian's Arch, all situated on a large grassy field in the midst of the bustling city. We also saw the ruins of the Roman baths.

We stopped by the Olympic Stadium of 1896, the site of the first modern Olympic games.

Our driver was really pushing for us to go to a favorite restaurant of his for a "beeeg Friiiish Feeesh Deeennner" We didn't really feel up to stopping for a big meal, especially since the ship was overloaded with food, so after much verbal wrestling with the driver, we finally got him to stop for a small lunch at a local cafe. We were glad to stop there as it was so cute and served some delicious ordinary Greek food. A had a Ham & Cheese pie and loved it and asked if we could make these back at home. We shared some chicken gyros, greek salad, and the kids topped off their meal with ice cream.

Next, we went to the Roman and Greek Agoras. These would be the center of ancient life housing some honorary temples, and the seat of government. It is just amazing how many ancient artifacts and structures and sculptures remain. I will try to upload pix!!

Shortly thereafter, we headed back to the ship with great memories.

Wednesday, April 27 Mykonos: What an unfortunate day. It was FREEZING AND POURING RAIN. Completely miserable. I had booked us on a trip to the Island of Delos - a short boat ride away from the port. We all decided to bundle up as best as we could and take the tour. Delos is amazing. It is a very small island that was once the Head of the Delian League - the association of all of the independent city-states of what we now know as Greece. The amazing aspect of this Island is that it is a very well preserved ancient city whose structures are still somewhat in place. It gives you a true picture of what an Ancient community was like. We saw the remaining walls of the city agora structure, the marketplace, 2 mansions with their mosaic floors, bathrooms, kitchens, etc. It was freezing, but fascinating. We returned to the ship on this miserable day around 1pm for lunch and warm up

Hubby braved the weather and returned to Mykonos to spend the afternoon exploring a bit. He scaled some rock walls or cliffs to get to a beach, drank ouzo by the water, and texted me, trying to lure me out to join him, but I couldn't shake my chills. I headed for the hot tub, where serendipitously, I met a Canadian/American family who is living near Geneva Switzerland. We had a good time swapping adjustment stories as only those who endure it could. We later met up with them a few times over the next week for drinks and laughs & tears of frustration!

We went to bed that night hoping for better weather.

Thursday April 28, Santorini: Possibly my favorite island due to its well developed and GORGEOUS. The Weather was better, but not great. ..At least it was dry and warmer. We left the ship and immediately took the funnicular (cable car) to the top of Santorini, and had a gorgeous view of the harbor. It was still quite cloudy and gray, but a magnificent view anyway. Then we walked thru the touristy shopping area over to the public bus & taxi stand ( the only one for the whole island), and took a bus to the greatly anticipated black sand beach. The " black sand" is actually volcanic rock so it is quite rough and not as easy to play with. It was very fun to explore and see this beach flanked by tall cliffs and a rocky jedi in the midst. The kids enjoyed playing in the surf and it always makes me think how lucky they are to have each other to grow up with. They had such fun....

Around lunchtime, we spent quite a bit of effort trying to get a bus or taxi back to civilization. We managed to take a taxi to another beach - also a black sand beach, Perissa I believe. We were famished and set ourselves up at a lovely beachside restaurant. Hubby ordered his Ouzo and my white wine. I was thrilled with the menu - they had hummus and pita - oh how I have missed hummus (there is one store in Zurich that sells it, but it requires me going out of my way to get it and doesnt really feel like its worth the effort). Then we had stuffed mushrooms - ok -I exaggerate...there was no "we" eating them...it was all me. There was a darling cat that lounged around the restaurant that was sooo cute. K had a great time in the waves - she went far out and had a ball jumping in the waves and diving in the surf. When she came in for lunch, she was COVERED in sea grass - just covered in it. Her hair looked like Medusa with these shiny brown grasses hanging off of her head. She was a mess. We did our best to clean her up in the bathroom sink which was the size of a cereal bowl. It was challenging. She didn't care - she wanted to eat and get back to the beach.....We had a great afternoon.

We then took another taxi to Oia. There was a long windy road to this mountainous village. The skies had cleared up and it turned into a gorgeous spectacular afternoon. We explored the village (really just artsy touristy shops & restaurants as far as I could see) and went to the edge of the cliff to see the amazing view. This is the view that you are most familiar with of Santorini/Greece- the white stucco buildings with sky blue domed roofs, arched windows, and churches with big bells. It is postcard perfect. I could have stared at it all day long. As similar as every building looks, they are all actually so different.

As if that was not perfect enough, we decided to try a donkey ride from the top of Santorini down to the port where the cruise ship was docked. We all saddled up. The crazy greek donkey guides put K&T on a donkey together and they were very scared. They could barely hold on and began to cry. They decided to walk down the path to the port instead :( The mean man would not put them on the donkeys with J & me, despite my requests. They were happier walking anyway. I must admit, it was a bit scary going down a mountain riding a donkey - make mental note, it would likely be best to ride UP the hill on the donkey, rather than down. There was a concern about these donkeys slipping on the path, sometimes they would scrape up against the walls, walk into the brush. Also scary was the fact that all of us were tethered together....except my 13 y/o A - he was not tied to anyone - he was a free-range donkey rider. I was very concerned. The ride took about 20 minutes or so, with gorgeous views during the whole ride. Once we got comfortable and confident, it was a very beautiful, cool experience.

On board, we showered, went to dinner, went to show, met up with the Geneva couple for drinks, picked up K&T from kids club around 10, and returned to the cabins. Our big guy, A, had a great time - he'd usually eat an appetizer with us for dinner (sometimes he'd stay for the whole meal as K&T did), then go to the big buffet and meet up with his friends around 7pm and return to the cabin around 11pm. He had a blast and it is always fun to see him running around, hanging out, or eating dinner with his posse.

In the cabin, I would catch up with the major world happenings on CNN and BBC. The next day was the Royal Wedding. I confessed to my hubby that I was conflicted in my desire to hang out with the family, and to stay onboard and watch the wedding. I HAD to see what Kate was wearing. I am sure he couldn't understand, but he empathized.

Friday April 29 Chania, Crete: This was another spectacular day, besides being the Wedding Day. We arrived in Crete, and took a bus to the beach area. We found a lovely resort called Caldera, which offered beautiful pools, a nice beach with beach chairs, topless sunbathers, a restaurant and a beachside bar. Besides all of these ammenities, more important was the fact that the beachside bar had 2 tvs showing BBC & CNN coverage of the Wedding. It was perfect. J& kids spent the morning on the beach and I manned the TV. I would call my daughter over at critical times so that she could see the best moments. I was having a marvelous time watching the wedding, chatting a bit with the bored bartender. I must have established a quick rapport with him as he started talking incessantly with me about his life story - he just arrived in Crete a week ago from Bulgaria and continued to tell me how dreary and depressing life is there, he was lucky to get out, his father's a jerk, he's got a girlfriend who also came with him who is 10 yrs his senior, he treats her so well, other guys are such losers, yada yada. I don't think he realized how serious I was about watching this Wedding - I was foregoing beach time with my family to watch it. I had to discontinue eye contact, and resort to just a few disinterested occasional nods to let him know I was really there for the Wedding, not for the company. Finally, he found something else to do, and freed me to watch the wedding. I watched the wedding until Kate's arrival. Once I saw her arrival, saw the crowds, saw the dress, I knew the rest of the story....so I rejoined my family in time for our beachfront lunch.

K&T's meal arrived quickly and they gobbled it down quickly, anxious to return to the beach. J, A & I took our time, enjoying the lovely weather and surroundings. During the meal, I saw a surprising sight. I grabbed my camera, made eye contact to try to share the sight with hubby. He looked shocked "put that away!" he hissed. "No, I've GOT to get a pic of this," I retorted. "You can't take pictures of that!" I didn't know what he was talking about. I quickly snapped a pic and he said"what did you take a picture of?!" The surprising shot was of A using a fork to eat french fries! My son would normally have no problem handling dirty animals and eating with his fingers. I was so surprised to see him eating FF with a fork. I quickly explained it to hubby who was equally surprised, and asked "what did you think I was going to take a pic of ?" He said," Oh, I thought you were taking pictures of the topless sunbathers!" Men.....

Now that I was out and about in Crete, I could assess my surroundings. The water was a wierd brown....not the normal tourquoise. The bartender explained that the huge storm of Wednesday had stirred up the surf so it was not simple blue. The weather was still a bit chilly, breezy, but nice enough. We spent the rest of our time lounging in the sun watching the kids play.

In the evening, we attended the British Pub Trivia contest that was held nightly - very fun. I must say I did fairly well with the Royal Wedding trivia....likely better than some of the Brits.

Saturday April 30 Katakalon, Olimpia. This port is on the mainland Greece and houses the site of the original Olympics. Most people were heading to the ruins. My family refused to do any more ruins and sightseeing. I was outnumbered and surrendered readily. A taxi driver took us to a beautiful oceanfront resort....which unfortunately was closed. We spent the morning on the beach playing in the sand. I should mention that my kids (and hubby!) NEVER tire of the beach and sand and swimming. We hung out there for the morning, was picked up by the driver and returned to civilization. We returned to the ship in the afternoon and hung out by the pool.

Sunday - our sea day & our last day. We spent most of the day with K&T swimming in the pool. We packed, the kids spent a lot of time with their friends and kids club. We got haircuts on board since it is easier than making appointments here in Switzerland! We were pleasantly surprised by the reasonable pricing. J's cut was $25, the boys were $17. We were shocked when K's stylist charged $90!! She has long hair, and had 3 inches cut off, but no bangs/fringe, nor layering. Her haircut took less time than the boys! I complained, and the manager reduced it to $60. I tried to not let it bother me all day, but it did. That evening I filed a complaint with the Purser's office - who immediately reduced it to a $17 cut. That's what I like to hear..... but not how I wanted to end my fabulous vacation.