Basel

To complete our tour of the Rhine river and the northern border of Switzerland, we traveled to the city of Basel on Sunday. There was a non-stop train from Zürich, taking us just under 1 hour to reach the city. The airport in Basel also serves France and Germany as it is located on the borders of the three countries, so when we disembarked at the Bahnhoff, there was a sign directing people to Basel city or France. The trams in Basel were decorated in bright greens and yellows, quite a surprise compared to the white and blue trams of Zürich (probably those colors because they are the official colors of the canton of Zürich). It was a spectacular day of sunshine and relative warmth - compared to our chilly birdwatching day on Saturday (that story is for another post). We had brought bread, cheese and apples along so we walked across a bridge over the Rhine and sat on the river steps for lunch. This proved to be less relaxing than it sounds because it looked like someone was eventually going to end up in the water between hopping up and down the stairs or peering over for a closer look at the ducks. The buildings along the Rhine had dates on them in the 1300-1400s and were all very architecturally interesting. We decided to investigate the oldest part of the original city and hopped on a water taxi that was an old wooden boat attached to a cable spanning the river. Then on the other side we climbed up the steep staircase to the cathedral and square. Near this spot they had excavated some Celtic ruins underneath the streets and we could peer down through the plexiglass to see the stone wall, small grave, and various other artifacts from the year 80 A.D. After walking the cobblestone streets, we stopped for an ice cream snack by the Rathaus, an impressive huge ornate, red decorated building which has served as the town hall since the 1400s. Throughout the day we had seen huge groups of people walking around with drums and piccolos. We learned that this was the last Sunday after the Fasnacht (like Mardi Gras) celebration where the registered groups get to walk through the city playing the traditional Morgestraich melody. The Fasnacht carnival starts at 4 am the Monday following Ash Wednesday and lasts for 3 days. That first morning, they turn off all the city lights and only lanterns held by the marching groups provide the light as they proceed through the streets. Our last hours in Basel were spent at the Kunstmuseum (art museum) where we looked at a special exhibit of Picasso and some of the paintings from the 1500-1900s. Elisabet really liked the pictures of Christ hanging on the cross- they can be pretty gruesome, hence the fascination. She also kept asking "how did THAT person die". Leif liked to read what the paintings were supposed to be about, and Hanna liked seeing the difference of the Impressionist paintings from up close to far away. We were surprised at how long they all stayed interested with the exhibits. When we made our way back to the main station, we saw the non-stop train for Zürich was leaving in 2 minutes and so we all took off at a sprint and hopped on just before it pulled away. This was satisfying because previously when we had close connections we had missed them by only seconds- such a disappointment, even if they do come every 20 or 30 minutes.

Stein am Rhine

Sunday we took a family trip to the border town of Stein am Rhine. It was an hour train from Zürich through Winterthur and north to the Rhine river valley. Some of the landscape reminded us of Wisconsin and Minnesota with the fields and rolling hills. We wandered the main streets of the city where the buildings date from the 1400s and most are lavishly decorated with artwork and stained glass windows. No cars are allowed within the "walled" part of the city, and the streets are cobblestone. We hiked up the (steep) hill to the Hohenklingen castle which is open to the public and gave us great views of the Rhine river, Untersee (lower portion of Lake Constance i.e. Bodensee, and the valley. After exploring the various rooms in the castle, we hiked a longer trail down the hill which took us through the trees, and later we realized through part of Germany. The kids were delighted to find the international border marker by a corn field, and Leif stood with one foot in each country. There was a date of 1966 on the stone marker, and we were not sure if this was the year it was established, as the border has changed somewhat throughout the centuries. It is an oddly shaped border that does not follow a river or mountain ridge, so we're not sure how it was designated that way. After our hike, we ate gelato in a cafe and walked along the river before boarding the train back to Zürich in time for dinner.

Kyburg Castle

Saturday I took Leif and Hanna to visit a castle and museum north of Zürich. We are now quite adept at navigating the train and bus transport system so we walked to the small station near our apartment, bought a ticket from the machine and took an S-Bahn train north to Winterthur where we got on a bus to the town of Kyburg. Leif enjoyed seeing the farm fields and small villages from the bus ride. The town was small with just a few homes and 2 restaurants near the castle, which was perched high on a hill overlooking the river valley. Inside the castle, we got to see what life would have been like living in a castle during the 1400s. It was built sometime in the 12-13th centuries and later was used by the city of Zürich to house some of their main officials. Despite the warm day outside, the castle was cold and damp, making us realize how cold it must have been to live there. The prison in the tower did not look like a place you would want to be either!

Elisabet and Travis stayed in Zürich and went to the vet school for an emergency radiograph consultation. Elisabet wasn't sure how Travis had helped the "flugkatze" (flying cat, i.e. fell/jumped from an apartment window) because as she told us later, "daddy didn't touch the cat". He explained to her that it was his job to look at pictures of the cat, not directly touch the animals. She's still not convinced. They looked at the horses in the barns and found a couple miniature horses that were shorter than Elisabet. She thought that was pretty interesting.

Hanna's school

Here are a few pictures of Hanna's school. It is just Kindergarten and 1st grade, called Grundstufe (a mixed class). Today we had the afternoon off, like all Wednesdays, and we took a walk to her school and then to a playground nearby. They played knights and robbers and we soaked up some much needed sun. It alternated between beautiful sunshine and quick snow showers today.

Brunnen

A hike this weekend took us to Brunnen, a small town on the shores of Lake Lucerne with Urnersee to the south. We were hoping to take a ferry across and hike between Bauen and Flüelen, but the ferry had left for the day. Instead we hiked the mountain right in Brunnen on a trail called the "way of Switzerland". Elisabet hiked the entire way herself, a big accomplishment. We celebrated at the end with gelato from a little cafe. We are seeing glimpses of spring with the early wildflowers. Snowdrops (Schneeglocke) are blooming in the city.

School Visit

Yesterday, Elisabet and I were able to attend school with Leif to see what his day is like. We sat in on his German lesson and learned some opposite adjectives. Then we went to the school building next door for Turnen (gym) and the children changed into their shorts and tees and non-skid soled shoes and spend 1 hour running around with different games. They played the German version of "cops and robbers' called 'polizei und bandit', then they played a game where 4 children had a rope, chased the others and when caught they had to run together with the rope to catch more children. Finally they got out jump-ropes and worked on counting each others jumps. The teacher used gym to teach German as well, explaining what some of the things were in German. The class has students from all over Europe and none are native German speakers. After a snack break of brotli (rolls) and kaffee we went back inside and worked on some more adjectives. There were several more parents there so she used the lesson to also have each child write the adverb in their mother tongue. So we learned the adjectives in German, Albanian, Turkish, English, Tibetan, Portuguese, Spanish, Croatian, and one more I never figured out (I think something from the middle East). Next they sang "If your happy and you know it" all together in German, very enthusiastically. Then she broke them up into smaller groups and they sang it in English, Spanish/Portuguese, and Croatian/Albanian. It was quite fun!

Elisabet and I also started a German class on Tuesday mornings so we can feel more comfortable communicating and she can learn some before she starts Kindergarten in August. Last night, I went to an informational meeting for parents, specifically for those speaking foreign languages. They gave the information in German and then each language was translated for us in groups. Needless to say, it took forever! The Kindergarten starts when you are 4 and is for two years and they concentrate on teaching them skills to be ready for writing, reading, and working together.

Affoltern am Albis

Sunday morning we were invited to Matthias and Karin's house for brunch. Travis works with Matthias at the Tierspital and they have 2 little girls, one who is 3 years and one 4.5 months old. We enjoyed getting to see a smaller Swiss village. The day was a little hazy, but we could see a few impressive mountains in the distance from their house, Rigi and Pilatus. They live in the house that Matthias grew up in and his father and sister are also both veterinarians. We took a walk through the fields by their house and stopped at a farm with a small dairy and chickens. The farm used to be a school for boys who wanted to become farmers. You could buy eggs, potatoes, honey, and apple juice from a little stand- record your purchase in the book and pay with the honor system. Then we found a huge teeter-totter at the top of the hill and the kids spent at least 30 minutes playing on it. They had to work hard to get just the right balance to make it work. At one point we had Travis on one side and the 4 kids on the other side! Here are a few pictures we took on our walk.

Affoltern am Abis

Adventures in cooking and baking

Hanna and I made tortillas this week for our fish tacos. It's quite easy and definitely more economical than the 6 tortillas for 5 chf in the grocery store. We also took some pictures of the kitchen and appliances. The counter space is limited, but works well for most projects. The oven and dishwasher are several inches narrower and shorter than their equivalents in the U.S. The fridge looks like it's half the size- and the freezer is minute. I can fit an ice cream container and just a couple more items in it. I was worried at first that we would run out of space, but since most items are also smaller, like milk containers, eggs, juice, etc, it fits quite well. Travis and I have been enjoying the Birnenbrot, a bread filled with dried fruit and nuts (pears, figs, raisins and more). We went to brunch at a family's house yesterday (brunch is not a Swiss tradition but the food was). They had bread, cheese, Italian meats, yogurt, and soft-boiled eggs. This is a typical breakfast and then the lunch is often the biggest of the day, cooked at home and usually a hot meal. This is maybe why they send the kids home from school so they can eat together as a family. Many workers also have the 1.5 hours off for lunch. The grocery store near our apartment closes from 12:15- 1:45 and so does the drugstore/post office. In the evening they might eat sandwiches or a light meal of bread and cheese. Travis learned that the Italian food influence appeared in the 1950s and 60s and they haven't looked back since. It was much more interesting than the meat with brown sauce and potatoes that was typically eaten as a meal. Each region has it's own sauce, although I'm not sure we could tell the difference. There is a small section of 'ethnic' foods in the grocery store with asian and mexican items, but it's still so limited (and expensive) I haven't found it very useful. We are embracing the foods that they do well here. Eggs are fresh and with bright orange yolks, milk is fresher tasting and varies depending on the farm where it was produced. You can even buy non-pasturized milk at the farm stands. The bread is bought daily and is fresh baked without preservatives. They have everything from dark wheat, grainy nut-filled bread, to white braided loaves. Croissants (buttergipfels) are a popular snack sold everywhere. Mache (called Nussisalat), a lettuce almost impossible to find until recently in the U.S., is one of their favorites for salads. The farmer's market at Schwamendingerplatz sells a great variety of apples and pears, and also local cheeses and smoked meats. And we're finding lots of great oranges and clemetines from Spain.

From Food/Cooking