Home Sweet Home

About 12 hours after Travers and I got back from Interlaken, we were on a plane to San Francisco. This was our first trip back there since we have moved to Geneva, and we were both excited and anxious.  Travers was going back for work, and I decided to tag along. I had planned as much as I could beforehand of which of my friends and family I was able to see and when. My week was packed.

Every day and every night was filled with seeing family or friends. It was both exciting and exhausting. I knew everyone wanted to know how life in Geneva was going for me, but I really wanted to know what was going on with all of them. Even though I try to keep up on facebook and with emails, I still feel like I miss out on a lot of the every day stuff that happens in my family and friends lives.

Our week started out pretty good. We got over the jetlag amazingly quickly, and were able to function on a normal schedule from the get go.  We had a great couple of dinners with family, at E&O Trading Company (Thanks Bryna and Ben!), Yoshi's (Thanks Mom & Dad!), and Wayfare Tavern (Thanks Rosemary & Mike!).  And we also got to see most of our friends throughout the week.

We ate as much ethnic food as possible, and I went into 3 or 4 different walgreen's, just to get my fix.  I stocked up on face wash and deoderant (we can't get our favorite brands over here), cheddar cheese (which we accidentally left in my mom's fridge!), vodka, trail mix, peanut butter etc....all to put in my extra suitcase I brought with me to bring back to Geneva.

By the time Friday came around, both Travers and I were exhausted and missing our home in Geneva. There's something about being able to sleep in your own bed, and have your routines that makes a place feel like home, and we both missed it by the end of the week. Its a sign that we have truly settled in here, which is comforting, but also surprising that we could adjust so quickly.  

Me, bryn &T ready to start dancing!

But we weren't going back yet. Friday night we had planned the official celebration of Travers' birthday.  After having dinner with Rosemary and Mike at Wayfare Tavern, we met a group of our friends at a bar/club/restaurant called Mayes on Polk Street at Sutter and had reserved a couple tables for us to all hang out and dance!  The DJ played some of our favorite songs, and we danced all night long!  We have tried finding similar dance clubs in Geneva, and have only found one so far, which was on my birthday at Le Sip. And even though Mayes is not the best dance club to go to, that night (as well as my birthday night at le Sip) proved that all you need is a good group of friends that all want to dance and have a great time.

Bryna doing a great dance move!

Hubby striking a pose!

Dan, Katy and Travers

Sara and Travers

Nicole and Mike

Travers, Scott and Keith

We even got Ben to dance!

Where's Waldo, i mean Travers?

The party was fantastic, and we poured ourselves into bed around 3am. But that wasn't going to stop my hubby from waking up the next day to go watch his favorite football team, the Gators, at his favorite sports bar, Greens.  We checked out of our hotel and made our way to the bar. We met more of our friends there and watched college football for the rest of the afternoon. And I was able to get one of my favorite burritos from Nick's Crispy Tacos down the street. It was just like old times.

Our last day in San Francisco was spent down the peninsula with family.  We watched the 49er game and had lunch at Mike's daughter Tammy's house in San Mateo. Then we had a barbeque with my family at my parents house. I was able to see some of my aunts and uncles, and to spend a few more hours of quality time with my mom and dad.  It was the perfect ending to a great week.

We left the next morning, and while sad to say goodbye, we were very happy to be home and back to our life here in Geneva.  We realized that we have some great friends in San Francisco, and that time and distance doesn't make a difference. Thanks to everyone for making our trip a great one. We hope to see you all soon, whether its in SF or Geneva. xoxo

Crater Bread

For Travers' birthday, we went with our friends Shelley and Mike to Interlaken, what some consider the adventure capital of the world (or at least of europe).  Its about a 2.5-3 hour train ride from Geneva. We met Shelley and Mike at the train station and off we went. The boys sat in the 'lounge' area while the girls sat in the seats with all our luggage (typical). But we all enjoyed the trip as we got to see a new part of Switzerland, the Bernese Oberland region, which we hadn't been through yet.

Each tent is named after a city

We got in on Thursday afternoon, and after getting some snacks and drinks at the local Coop, we started walking to our hotel, The Balmers Tents.  Now for all of you that have been to Interlaken before and know what Balmers is, you know its a hostel with a club below it. But, we actually stayed further from that in the Balmers tents, which is an area that has about 50 tents on wooden platforms, with actual mattresses and lights inside. Sort of like luxury tents in a way. There was a hot tub, hammocks, and a bbq that everyone staying there could use, as well as lots of games and activities you could play, like badminton or bocci ball.

We got settled into our tents, and got ready for the evening. Our big night plan? Hooters!!  Apparently there are three Hooters restaurants in Switzerland and Interlaken has one of them. Hot Wings here we come!  The food was delicious but our waitress was the most non-hooters waitress in the place. Plus, she was the least friendly waitress I have ever seen at a Hooters before. And she didn't write her name on a papertowl for us. Boo. But the food was great and it was all worth it. I would go back (Shelley and Mike did go back that Saturday!).  We were all so full from dinner and knew we had to get up early the next day, so we called it a night and headed back to our tents.

The next morning we woke up early to go Canyoning.  As we're getting ready, Travers opens up one of our bags that had our bathroom stuff, a half a loaf of bread, and some peanut butter. We brought it from home so we could eat something for breakfast before canyoning.  As he pulled out the peanut butter and bread, he said "What the..." and I turned around to see him holding our half loaf of bread in his hand, in the plastic bag it came in, with an entire corner missing. It looked like a mini crater had hit the bread and taken out an entire corner of it, including the plastic.  He then looked in the bag and noticed some tiny little poops and some fur/hair. GROSS!  We don't know for sure, but we assumed the bag was left open, and either when we were at dinner (I hope), or when we were sleeping (I really hope not), a mouse climbed into the bag (which was right next to my head that night) and ate its way through the bread, shed a little, pooped a little, then climbed back out. SO GROSS! I was horrified. I immediately emptied the bag, threw out my brush which I just couldn't tell if any mouse poop or hair was on it, and threw out anything else that it may have touched. I washed everything else off I could and emptied out the bag....I'm still debating on throwing the bag out but its an Herve that my mom brought my from Paris that I've had for years and years. I might just wash it, but still, so GROSS. I wish I had a picture of the bread, but I just couldn't stand to look at it so we threw it out.  You'll just have to use your imagination :-)

So we got picked up by AlpinRaft company, one of the main adventure companies in Interlaken. After going through a brief overview and getting all our equipment we headed out in a van to the Grimsel Canyon, about an hour outside of Interlaken.  Now canyoning is illegal in the U.S., mostly for liability reasons, but it is SO much fun. I was worried at first thinking I was sure to get hurt in some way, but I survived with only a few minor scrapes and bruises.

We start with a 50m (150ft) rappel.

Travers says "Look no hands!"

I say "Look no hands and no feet!"

 



Then we slide...

I'm sliding practically straight down this rock!

Travers goes flying off the ledge of this rock!

We zip...

I go ziplining through the canyon.

Travers shows the peace sign as he zips through the canyo

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We Jump...Or at least Travers did...this one was a bit high for me.

Travers jumping off a 10m high platform

And we survive and smile!

Happy together under the waterfall

Our fearless group!

 

 The rest of the day was spent lounging at the Balmer's tents, taking a hot tub, and getting some sun. We went to a nice dinner at a mexican restaurant (yeah, mexican in switzerland! can you believe it?), then danced the night away at the Balmer's club.

Cows just soaking in the sun

The next day we took a train to a nearby town called Lauterbrunnen and walked to the Trummelbach falls.  These falls are actually just one waterfall, and has 10 connecting chutes that are all within the mountain. The only one you can see partially is the last one where it ends in a river. 

There is a house in there.

We started with about a mile walk from town to the falls. We passed by other waterfalls, cows, and beautiful fields. We came across a house who's roof was covered in grass that it practically was hidden in the hills. 

There is a tiny bee sitting on the sunflower

We got to the falls and went up an elevtor built into the mountain to the level of the 6th chute. We then had to walk up the rest of the way to the 10th chute. Here are some photos of the falls.

We left the falls and headed back to town, caught a train and returned to Geneva. I think overall Travers had a great birthday weekend. We got to see a new part of the country, got some action adventure canyoning, and then beautiful sites in the falls. We will definitely return.

The Big 3-0

Yes that's right. I'm now 30. Its not as bad as I had originally thought it would be. Especially because I was able to celebrate on my actual birthday (it fell on a friday this year), and with a good group of new friends that we've made here in Geneva, and a few old friends who were in town visiting. It was the perfect mix.

My dear husband planned the entire weekend and he did a fantastic job! I started my day with a jog along the lake. As always, it was a peaceful beautiful run, and it just happened to be a sunny day as well. What a great way to start out being 30. I then made sure the house was tidy, and ready for our guests Scott and Lisa to arrive. I picked them up at the train station (with only a little bit of panic since their train was delayed 30 minutes), and took them back home to get settled in. We then ventured out for a quick tour of the area, the lake, and the shops, then topped it off with a beer at our favorite outdoor cafe, La Clemance!

Me, Mich, Lisa, and Angie

Around 5pm we headed back home to get ready for the evening. Travers had planned a cocktail and appetizer party at our place, then dinner, then dancing.  We all got our best outfits on, and we prepped the food and drinks for the rest of our guests to arrive. We made a delicious bruschetta, our favorite sour cream onion dip with potato chips and veggies for dipping, and we had a bowl of mixed nuts to top it all off.  We put our new favorite iTunes radio station on (Absolute Hits) and got the party started.

Me and Mich.

Lisa, Scott, and Travers

 

Our new friend Mich (short for Michelle) came, and brought her friend (now our new friend) Angie. Scott and Lisa were there of course, and our friends Mike and Shelley (also short for Michelle) were there as well.

We then headed to a thai restaurant that Travers and I have walked past before called The Wooden Hut. Travers had spoken to the owner, Chan, and planned the entire evening. We got a private area with a large table and had Chan himself waiting on us.  They brought out delicious appetizers as we opened the bottle of rosé we brought with us. I then had a great surprise as Travers and Chan brought out a bottle of my most favorite champagne, Veuve Clicquot! Apparently my mom and Travers had been in communication with each other secretly and planned for her to treat us to a bottle of my mom's and my favorite champagne. How sneaky, but how delicious!  We then enjoyed a delicious dinner with curries and pad thais and lots of yummy things. And just when I thought dinner was coming to an end, the lights got dim, and I see out of the corner of my eye.....Dessert!  Travers had worked with Chan to create my favorite dessert ever - Cheesecake!  Granted the thai people or maybe its the swiss people don't really know how to make cheesecake, as it was not your traditional style of cheesecake, but it was delicious nonetheless, and I ate every bite of it!

After we finished all the wine and all the food, the 8 of us headed to a nearby bar called The Little Buddha. They had dance music playing and comfy lounge sofas and chairs. It was somewhat crowded, but we managed to take over a booth area and immediately started our own dance party!  We had tons of fun and we didn't care if anyone thought we were crazy.

At Little Buddha

The Boys Dancing??

We then headed to a dance club we've wanted to check out for awhile now, called La Sip. It has multiple levels so we started out on the lower level first at Le Grand Bar. We slowly realized that it was not as busy here and more loungy than what we were looking for. So we sent a few of the guys upstairs to check out the next level, Le Disco Bar. They immediately came back down and said "Let's go. Its much better upstairs!" So up we went and they were right. There were lots of people there, all dancing and having a great time. We immediately started dancing, and the rest of the night is history....

The next day, after we all slept in and had nice big breakfasts, Shelley, Mike, Scott, Lisa, Travers and I took the train up to Vevey and then to Chexbres, which is in the wine region of St. Saphorin.  Once off the train, we walked a few minutes to a winery called Au Coeur D'Or, which means "Heart of Gold". We all sat around a table and Romin, the winemaker, immediately brought us a bottle of Chasselas Blanc from their winery. It was delicious. We then got a bottle of rosé and then a bottle of red, all of the same chasselas grape, just prepared differently.  Scott also ordered a cheese and salami platter for the table, which went perfectly with our wines. We sat for an hour or so, just chatting about the night before, and enjoying the wine, the food, and the room around us. 

We said good bye to Romain and headed down the hill through the vineyards of the St. Saphorin region.  This was the perfect time to go as it was late afternoon, the sun was getting lower, the greens of the vineyards really stood out, the blue of the lake was so clear, and there was no fog or clouds covering the mountains across from us. We strolled down the hill, picking a few grapes off the vineyards just to see what they tasted like. It was magnificent. This was my 2nd time doing this (my first was with Katy), and both times, the views have just taken my breath away.

We completed our hike in the town of St. Saphorin. I had located another winery called Le Caveau de Vignerons de St. Saphorin. We found it at the bottom of the hill, and were the only group there, but the winemakers were very nice and took their time to explain each wine to us.  By the time we left, it was dark out, and we rushed to the train station nearby to catch the train back to Geneva.  We ended our night with delicious hamburgers at our favorite expat bar, The Clubhouse.

The last day of Scott and Lisa's visit was spent riding bikes throughout the town, and ending with a barbeque in the park in Eaux-Vives.  We took them out to an area called The Junction, where the two rivers, Rive Arve and Rive Rhone, meet.  One side is clear blue, and the other side is murky gray, and somehow when they meet, they don't mix. Its a fascinating thing to see.

We ended the evening with a barbeque and invited some of our friends from Travers' work to join us. We grilled chicken and sausages, while others had burgers or vegetables. We watched the sun set, making the sky and the lake turn all sorts of different colors.
It was the perfect relaxing end to an amazing birthday weekend.

Here's to being 30!

You Say Tidibaldo, I say Tibidabo

I would be right. Its Tibidabo.

This is a panoramic from the initial viewing point before going up the church.

This is from the top of the church.

After three and a half days in Barcelona, Travers was finally able to pronounce Tibidabo correctly.  This is the mountain top that overlooks Barcelona, and it had beautiful amazing views of the entire city, the beaches and surrounding areas as far as the eyes can see.  Travers and I took the metro from our hotel then boarded a bus to climb up part of the hill. We then got on a funicular which took us straight up Tibidabo Mountain.  My first funicular ride was in Hong Kong where we took it up to Victoria Peak to look out at all of Hong Kong. It was magnificent. But I will say that the Tibidabo funicular was even steeper and climbed higher than the Hong Kong one.  The Peak is 554 meters above sea level. While close, its not quite as high as the top of the church at Tibidabo which is 575 meters.  Although not much of a difference, the top of Tibidalbo just felt higher up. I think it was how drastic the drop off was from Tibidabo down to Barcelona. Either way, we were high up there.  When we got off the funicular, we walked out in the viewing area and took it all in. We then decided to check out the Tibidabo Church. We stood outside the church and looked up. And far far up there at the top of the church we saw some hands waving at us. I could barely see them, but realized that we could go up there too. So we walked inside, found the elevator, and we took the elevator up the church. The elevator only went up about half way. We then had to climb some winding stairs, then about 5 more sets of stairs up and up and up to the very top of the church, where we stepped out to a tiny circular platform.  It was breath-taking. I wish my pictures did it justice, but it was just amazing.  After climbing back down on shaky legs, we took the funicular back down and grabbed a drink at another outlook spot just as the sun was setting.

Earlier that day, Travers and I rented bikes and did a self-guided tour through Barcelona.  Now I'm not very talented on a bike. I can ride it of course, but when it comes to navigating through people (who don't see or hear you coming) and on cobblestones walkways, and in street traffic with cars and motorcycles, I can get a bit nervous and wobbly.  But, thank goodness, I did not crash or fall of the bike once during this trip. I am very proud of myself.  And I should be because we rode those things for four hours and saw tons of things. Mostly we stayed in the Old Town area, but we also went out to the beach and marina, through a park. We saw a lot of the major monuments and lots of really pretty churches and buildings. We took a break out by the beach and while people watching, we happened to witness the aftermath of a beach blanket robbery! Apparently, two women (stupidly) left their things on their beach towel which was pretty far from the water, and went to cool off in the waves. Next thing they know, a nearby couple is shouting at them to come back because they just saw a man grab their stuff and run off.  The women come running out of the water (not as urgently as I would have) and asked the couple for information. They then saw another man at the top of the walkway overlooking the beach, yelling that the robber went that way. We hope the women were able to get their things back, but I highly doubt it. They didn't seem to be hurrying enough. If that was Travers' or my stuff, we would be sprinting down that beach and tackling the robber with all we had!  But that's just us.  It was nice to see so many people trying to help out though.

Standing on La Rambla

The next day, Rosemary and Mike arrived! Yay!  We met them at the hotel, and as jetlagged as they were, they were in great spirits and ready to go touring for the day.  We headed to Placa de Catalunya, about 10 minutes from our hotel, to buy tickets for the Barcelona Bus Turistic, a popular hop on and hop off bus tour.  What we quickly discovered is that Placa de Catalunya is the most popular spot to hop on the bus and the lines were extremely long. So Travers went to get the tickets, and we decided to walk down La Rambla to another nearby stop in hopes that it would be a shorter line. At this point, however,  Mike was getting blisters on his heels. We had told him we wouldn't be walking a lot so he had worn brand new shoes and no socks!  So after some brainstorming and wandering, we found a pharmacie and a grocery store, where we bought him some bandaids and socks that had the "W" emblem on them for Wilson, which just so happens to be Mike's last name. It was perfect!  He felt much better after that and we headed on our way to the next stop to board the bus. 

 Once on the bus, we had a great time seeing more of Barcelona! It took us all throughout the city, more places than Travers and I could have seen on our bikes the previous day. We got top deck front row seats and had the best views the entire time. The bus had an audio guide that you could listen to so we got to hear all about the places we were driving past.  After awhile, we decided that it was time to get off and get something to eat. At one of the stops before we got off, we were high enough up on the top of the bus that we could see the roof of the bus stop. And it had a lot of the blue headphones that they give you when you get on board so you can hear the audio guide. So Mike decided he didn't need his headphones anymore and threw his headphones towards the bus stop roof.  Unfortunately, for a woman standing below, Mike's aim was not very good, and he missed the roof and the headphones went flying down to the ground, grazing the face of a woman standing below waiting to get on the bus!  As much as we felt bad for the woman below, we just couldn't help cracking up laughing :-)

After we stopped laughing, we got off the bus, we found a cafe for tapas and beers. Travers and Mike got large beers and Rosemary and I stayed got small ones.  Boy were the guys surprised when those large beers came out! They were a liter each and in the biggest mugs you have ever seen.  They had to hold the mug with both hands just to drink it!! 

We then let Rosemary and Mike take a much needed nap, and Travers and I got some much needed pool time. And a few hours later, the four of us headed to dinner at Salamanca, a restaurant in Barceloneta that I had been referred to for some of the best paella in town.  While I'm not a paella expert, this was definitely some tasty paella. We got two orders for the table, one seafood and one chicken. And a pitcher of sangria to wash it all down with. This restaurant was right on the beach and gave us some tasty dessert and a digestif liqueur at the end of our meal for free!  It was a great end to a great day. We loved spending the day with Rosemary and Mike, catching up with all that is going on in Sarasota. 

We said goodbye to them the next morning, as they hopped on another bus which took them to their cruise ship for their 14 day excursion. We were very jealous and sad to see them go, but we look forward to seeing them again in September and to hear all about their trip.

After they left, Travers and I just walked around town, wandering down streets we hadn't been down yet, and looking in shops we hadn't passed yet. We had lunch at a cute boulangerie (or whatever the spanish word for bakery is), and then walked down Rambla De Catalunya (not to be confused with the famous La Rambla) and found a Zara store!!  We found new clothes for both Travers and me and walked out extremely happy that the costs were so low (it is double the cost at the Zara in Geneva). 

We headed back to the hotel and layed by the pool again for our few remaining hours in Barcelona. Both Travers and I are tan now (yes, he is actually tan too!) And we came back very relaxed!

Like I said, yo amo Barcelona!