Bern, Bears, and Beautiful Sounds

Okay - that attempt at alliteration was pretty lame. But our weekend has been good! On Saturday we made the 1.5 hour trek to Bern, the capital of Switzerland and a UNESCO world heritage site. We could see why. It is a very fetching city: not big (only about 140,000 people I believe)  but with one of the best preserved medieval centres in Europe. It was bustling but with very few cars in sight, so strangely peaceful on a Saturday afternoon. We walked the around the old town, took in the hourly show at the amazing 16th century clock tower, had the obligatory chocolate and coffee break, and joined the crowds enjoying the antics of the Bern bears by the river. They are now in quite a comfortable and humane setting, with lots if trees, water, and terracing, and they seemed to be enjoying it. One (we think it was fun-loving "Finn") had climbed a good 30 feet up in a tree, so was pretty much at eye-level with the crowd gathered high up the hillside! We had no idea how s/he would get down, but when the time came he descended with speed and nimbleness that would put the most adroit lumberjack to shame! I think Holly got it on video; we'll try to get it posted along with some other pictures shortly.

Today we headed into the Cathedrale St. Pierre, which is at the heart of old Geneva and has been a site of worship since the 12th century. The kids and Heather indulged me by taking in a concert by the choir of King's College Cambridge, which I think has to be up there among the world's best. The concert, and the acoustics, were breathtaking... even if Rory found his new/old X-men comic (en francais) more compelling. Afterward we headed to Parc Neuve, site of the Reformation Memorial as well as a great playgound and several giant sized chess boards where matches were being appreciated by large clusters of spectators. We then did some window shopping (about all we can manage) where the beautiful window displays were only overshadowed by the jaw-dropping prices.

That's all for now -- more pictures to follow. Take care all, Dave.

more sledging and then work begins

After our night in Lausanne, we continued down the lake to the Chateau de Chillon (see previous post!!) and I have included some pictures although they don't do the place justice at all.  The next day was the sledging day (Holly's post) and finally I have got some pictures from that as well. We went sledging on two days and both were eventful.  On the first day, Holly's sledge, and coat, took flight.  There was no hope of retrieval, but it was sunny and gorgeous, so she didn't get cold.  This is a uniquely Alpine activity and we had a great time.  It was kind of scary at times though! The following day we went to another spot near Grindelwald. It was much more of a ski resort but there are trails for walking and sledging all the way down the mountain.  Yet again, Holly had a runaway sledge although this time, I was determined to fetch it.  Silly idea really but after much slogging, sweating, and sinking into waist deep snow I retrieved the darn thing. Along parts of the sledging trail there were crossovers with the skiiers and these were potentially  dangerous spots.  We navigated them without incident however and again, had a great day.  The pictures don't really demonstrate how steep the trails were. There were also hair pin turns that one had to negotiate by putting your feet out and leaning! We left Interlaken onSaturday and prepared to start work on Monday.  The first week has been an interesting one for both Dave and I as we meet many new people and start to settle in.  I have an enormous project which will be impossible for me to do in the amount of time I have, but I am looking forward to making an attempt. This weekend we went to a a spectacular outdoor market in Ferney-Voltaire (a town just on the French side of the border) which puts most of our markets to shame.  There were crafts, clothes, meats, cheeses, wine, fish, olives, baked goods galore.  The wine makers themselves are there providing samples no less!  In the afternoon we went for a long walk (to wear off the cheese) and then had a quiet night at home.  Today we hope to go into Geneva to meet a friend of a friend, and go to the Red Cross Museum (one of the more than 40 museums in Geneva).  One of us with blog with a museum update!
Heather

Sledging and the Chateau de Chillon!

Day on the Sledge!

Hi all! We are having a great time here in Switzerland! Today we had this great idea that popped into our heads out of the blue that we would go for a sledge ride, even though we had no idea how to do it!! So, we drove up to the mountain and took a gondola up to the top. It started out fine in a "Oh my goodness! I'm going to flip over because I cant do this" kind of way. But as I was dragging my sledge  up a hilly part of the track, I lost grip on the handle. I had attached my coat to the sledge because it was too hot to wear it. I immediately regretted that when I first saw my sledge drifting down the hill with my coat still attached. Well, Alpy was gone (yes, I named my sledge) and I got stuck with Freddy, but other than that, it was a great trip and I learned how to steer!! This is me, signing out!

~Holly

touring around Switzerland!

Well we have left Annecy and now are doing some touring around Switzerland trying to get famliar with our new home.  We stayed a night in Lausanne which is also on the shores of Lake Geneva.  The cathedral there was completed in the 1200's!  Our definition of "old" has certainly changed since we arrived here.  We had our first experience as a family staying at a hostel in Lausanne.  When I was travelling as a student we stayed in many youth hostels and although some things have changed (people travel with computers and there are computers available for public use) much has not.They remain a wonderful way of meeting people and learning about their travel experiences  Our hostel was very clean and friendly, although quite basic (shared bathrooms and cooking facilities).  We got a room to ourselves with bunk beds! While in Lausanne we visited one of Switzerlands most famour chateaus; the Chateau de Chillon. It is just past Montreaux (site of one the worlds most famous jazz festivals) and is  at the end of Lake Geneva.  Construction of the chateau first began in the 11th century and was completed in the 13th century. Over the centuries it underwent a number of changes, but the basic structure has changed little in the last 800 years. Very careful restoration has taken place.  We were fascinated by it. When one thinks of ancient castles, the Chateau de Chillon is what we picture. Byron was also fascinated by it and wrote a poem entitled "The Prisoner of Chillon".  He carved his name into a pillar in the prison/dungeon.  The place was frigid!  Makes one appreciate the modern conveniences.  From there we made our way to Interlaken and are currently in a very friendly Bed and Breakfast.  Tomorrow we plan on going sledging in the mountains.  Our hosts are great people and are acting as our travel advisors..  Next week the work begins but for now, we are enjoying ourselves.  Hopefully we will have some pictures to share of the sledging.  This part of Switzerland is what one thinks about while reading Heidi.  The Swiss seem to have it right:  wine,chocolate, cheese and great winter sports!
Heather

Skiing at La Clusaz!!

Finally skiing in the Alps!!

Well, we finally got around to skiing and had a marvelous time at La Clusaz today! I am completely exhausted and ready for bed, seeing as we are returning tomorrow! Anyway, just wanted to give an update, but someone else will probably elaborate on what i have written later on. At the present moment, I am too tired to continue writing. Phew!!
Sincerely,

Elizabeth ;)

La Clusaz

Preparing to go skiing at La Clusaz after a very busy week!!! As the week went on - when everyone recovered from a nasty bug- we were able to do some sightseeing in Annecy and Geneva. On Wednesday, we went up to the castle in Annecy, which is now a museum featuring the history of the Savoie region.  It looks out over the town and features a magnificent view.  Dave was still feeling a little weak that day but definitely much better than the day before .  Yesterday we ventured back to Geneva and Dave spent some time at the Centre chatting with his colleauges while the kids and I went on a bit of an explore.  Geneva lies at the edge of Lake Geneva, the largest lake in Europe, and it is very lovely.  At every turn there are headquarters for international organizations.  We are already experiencing the multiple languages spoken.  Hoping to pick some up by osmosis!  The afternoon was then spent making inquiries about housing and schooling.  Today we rented roller blades (Rory and I) and bikes (Elizabeth, Holly and Dave) and cycled and skated along a very extensive bike path along Lake Annecy.  Lovely way to explore the city.  This evening we ate a feast of local foods.  The cheeses here are predictably yummy and we now have our favourite boulangerie where we get our daily baguettes! Tomorrow we finally ski!