Thursday, October 4, 2018

The final days - 15 and 16


Our final day in Europa... sigh. Although we have had an amazing time (and agreed that this was even a better trip than our 2015 adventure) we are ready to be on our way home... the consensus is that we are tired of “being polite” and “trying to impress people” lol! Yesterday we enjoyed a buffet breakfast at the hotel and then headed to Lucern to see the city. We ate lunch at a little place called Joel’s bistro. It was nice. On the whole, our food experience this trip and left a little bit to be desired... while we haven’t had a bad meal, we were not continually wowed as was the case when we were in Italy. All the same, we have been loving the high mountain meat and cheese boards. I’m also going to dearly miss the “nature jogurt” that I’ve grown so fond of having each morning - the creaminess!!!!! After Lucern, we headed back to Zurich which was quite the trek through the city. We dropped the bags off at the hotel and then returned the car. Afterwards, we enjoyed some pre- dinner drinks at the hotel bar, then had - by all Euro standards - an early dinner at the hotel (6:00pm). The actual food was mediocre but the bread was amazing! Following our dinner, we went scouting for chocolates to bring home and ice cream. I found us a couple mini tubs of ice cream from the migros, along with two bags of chips. We had a cozy night in after that - looking at photos from the trip in our room. We didn’t have much luck with the air conditioning, however we all eventually fell asleep (me last). This morning we agreed that we all slept pretty hard. We got through a scrupulous questioning session at the ticketing counter, and eventually found the aspire lounge for a late breakfast near our gate. It’s crazy to think that by the time I open this email I’ll be back in my beloved SLO! We’re looking forward to seeing the doggies and sleeping in our own beds. 

Update: Our time to home was extended a bit by a delayed flight to Phoenix and a cancelled flight to SLO. We were stranded in Phoenix overnight without luggage, although we were able to take showers and sleep in very comfy beds. We made it to Santa Barbara the following morning and had a ride home from Amanda. We love to travel and we love our home. 



Day 14


Yesterday was bliss! We had a good (if cold and scary to drive to) hike up near Rosenlaui which gave us some beautiful views and a meat and cheese platter at Scheartzwaldalp. After we explored town a little more and made it to Brienz during what we assume was their lunch hour since everything was closed. Following this was a nap, then dessert and iced coffee hour, then getting showered and changed for a SEVEN course meal with Simon. He has been so, so kind to us. During dinner we FaceTimed with Fred and Margie, talked business, politics, where do you see yourself in 10 years, and more. It was a dream. Today we are off to Zurich for the last leg of the trip. 












Day 13


We awoke with a lovely breakfast in the hotel Victoria. Some of our neighbors were a little rude but it only made us appreciate the staff more. After breakfast we did a little shopping in town (mom wanted to find a dirndle and I wanted to find some crystals). Following this, we began the way to Rosenlaui on Simons suggestion, but turned around at my insistence after we passed someone who had hit a black cat. Instead, we hiked up to Bidmi from town (over 200 flights and 4 miles!) and had more dessert than anyone should ever have in the middle of the day at a small cafe. The woman who served us did not speak much of any English at all and we ended up with three plates of plum cake and apple strudel. We took the gondola down - praise Daddy - and went back to the hotel. I napped and mom and dad had a drink. For dinner we are at the restaurant on the bistro side. And, to top it all off we watched videos of thr trip in mom and dads room. The homesickness is starting to set in a little bit but we are still loving our time here.