Alpine Adventures - Part 2

Tuesday we woke up to spectacular weather once again. I made us some bologna and cheese sandwiches (not your Oscar Mayer bologna, I assure you) and we got on the train again to go to Engleberg. Back in Miami when we were looking through our travel books, we saw that one could actually build an igloo and overnight in it. Somehow Elisa and I thought this was an especially fabulous idea. I think we underestimated the difficulty of this exercise.

Nonetheless, we met with our guide Nicole, scouted out our location and learned the fine art of digging snow trenches, cutting snow blocks with saws and setting the snow blocks together. Unfortunately our snow was too dry to stick properly and our igloo kept collapsing. Quite frustrating. Fortunately the igloo that someone built on Sunday was still standing and was solid so we were able to stay in that igloo overnight. I regret to advise that I chickened out and headed for the hotel, I had a really bad cold and no great desire to catch pneumonia, besides it was awfully handy for us to have a place where we could use a bathroom.

So after a whole lot of hard work we headed to the igloo village bar and hotel, an actual hotel made entirely out of snow and ice - very cool but really really cold inside. We had an apero of mulled wine, devoured the peanut chips and pretzels and had a delicious fondue dinner. After dinner the four of us, head lanterns on, trekked up the hill (actually up a ski run) to my hotel where we were able to thaw out a little bit. We had some hot chocolate and my friends headed off to their igloo for the night. I have to confess I was a bit nervous for them and was a bit afraid they would freeze but the next morning the troopers hiked up the hill intact.

The next morning the weather turned and after hiking through the snow and monster snowflakes to a chalet for breakfast, we headed back down to Luzern. The afternoon consisted of a massive acquisition of cheese and chocolate at the grocery store and another delicious dinner with Philipp and Radka, after which it was time for bed as we had to be down in the city at 4:45am the next day for our next adventure.

Alpine Adventures - Part 1

Monday our program really began. Our initial plan was to go to Bern, the capital city of Switzerland, or up into the mountains, specifically the the Jungfrau if weather was permitting. Well the weather forcast called for sensational weather, so Monday morning we got on the first of many trains and headed to Jungfraujoch. It has been a really long time since I have been to Switzerland in the winter and a really really long time since I have been here on actual vacation.

We passed one charming village after another on our way to the Jungfrau. Our first stop was Interlaken, which was straight out of a postcard. Swiss chalets, bright blue skies, massive bright white mountains in the background and of course, lots and lots of skiers. Next we boarded a panorama train to the next stop up in the Bernese Alps. The view was beyond description, our train climbed steeper and steeper around turns and bends with the Alps surrounding us. We switched trains again and got on the last train that would take us up to Jungfraujoch, the highest train station in Europe. The train carried us on tracks that were first laid in 1896, up the mountains and into a tunnel that is actually in the Eiger north face. I could not help but be totally amazed by this feat of engineering and think about all those who have perished at the hands of the Eiger. This is a SERIOUS mountain.

We finally made it to our last stop, 11,387ft above sea level. Not a place to be running up and down stairs, a simple flight of stairs will literally take your breath away and that is before you take the view into account. Other members of my family have been up to Jungfraujoch but unfortunately they were not as lucky as we were with the weather. The views were jawdropping - the Eiger, the Jungfrau, the Monch, the Aletsch Glacier - it was more vivid than any dream or reality could ever seem to be. We took in the sights, played in the ice palace that is in the mountain, I tried to reenact a famous Anton Ono speed skating scene and successfully managed to fall on my ass, twice! Somewhat familiar to someone else I know who shall remain anonymous. Ha ha.

After taking in as much as we possibly could, we got back on the train (totally exhausted as high altitudes can take a toll on you) and headed back to Luzern, where we were treated to Raclette for dinner by Philipp and Radka. Raclette is a very typical Swiss winter dish. Essentially you have a mini grill on the table and you place slices of Raclette cheese into mini frying pans on the grill. You take the melted cheese and pour it over potatoes, mini pickles and cocktail onions. It is a delicious meal after a long day in the fresh mountain air.

As one can imagine, after a day like that and a meal like that we were ready to collapse into our beds, besides the next day we had another alpine adventure planned.

To the Land of Heidi We Go!

While I was back in Miami, I checked the calendar one day and saw that Fasnacht, AKA Swiss Mardi Gras, was coming up pretty soon. After a quick search online for a ticket and a quick chat with my mother, I very impulsively decided to go. For about as long as I can remember, my family in Switzerland have been urging me to come to Fasnacht but I have never been able to go due to obligations with either school or work. This time I had no excuse, I found a cheap ticket and I decided to go.

The day after I booked my ticket, I went to dinner with my friends Kiki and Rob. We had talked about going to Switzerland over the years but never really put anything together. So when they heard I was going they wanted to go too. After a bit of convincing, calender checking and coordinating, Kiki, Rob and Elisa (Kiki's cousin) booked their tickets on the same flight as me.

We bought some travel books, some train passes and pretty much mapped out the week we would spend together in Switzerland. It was a rough schedule and my cousins in Switzerland called me quite a slave driver of a tour guide; well, if you only have a week you better make the most of it as far as I'm concerned.

Anyway, so we land in Zurich at 7am Sunday morning, two of us were able to sleep on the flight and two of us were not. But hey, we are troopers and we were determined to push through. So my awesome cousin Alex, picked us up at the airport, gave us a driving tour through Lucerne (my family's hometown) and took us to my cousin Philipp's house (which is actually the home my mom grew up in). After making us coffee, Alex went back to his home and we hit the city. We walked to the old town and had a huge lunch of alpine macaroni. We do not recommend mixing jet lag with a massive pasta dish, we were lucky that nobody passed out at the table.

In classic tourist fashion we headed to Mount Pilatus for a quick look while we still could. Mount Pilatus is a notable mountain in the Lucerne area and a place I went often as a child. One of the most fascinating things is that the Swiss military actually has a small base at the top and according to the soldiers we talked to, they are there to make sure nobody comes along and steals the mountain. Ha ha.

After a long day we were welcomed back at home by my cousin and his family for a lovely dinner after which we finally made it to our beds!

Moving Right Along

Well after about a month in Miami, enjoying the holidays, spending time with friends and family, and the constant challenge of trying to improve my computer's efficiency, it was time to head back to Brooklyn. Rather than driving up, I left my car in Miami and flew back since I was about to embark on another trip out of the country.

After about three and a half months in balmy sub tropical weather I was definitely not ready for the harsh and bitter cold of New York. However I survived, sorted through all my mail, saw some friends and after three days in NY, I headed back to the airport for a flight to Switzerland.

Thinking Blogger Award!

Wow so I got a comment on my last post from a very mysterious Mrs. X, who tells me she likes what I write and that she has nominated me for a Thinking Blogger Award! First of all I was surprised anyone outside of my family and friends has read my blog and even more pleasantly surprised that it has made someone think.

Well, you may ask, what does this award mean and do I win anything? From what I can gather, someone in cyberspace (a part of the world I am really not that familiar with) has developed a recognition system for people whose blogs make others think. There's no prize money (for those inquiring minds) but I think it is a really nice thing nonetheless.

So in order to be an award winner I basically have to do an entry about the subject and list 5 blogs that make me think. Sort of a receive and pass it on thing, which is kind of nice.

Here are some of my favorite blogs.
1. Bonz's Travel Antics - That's my friend Teba's blog, she totally inspired me and talked me into packing my bags and heading over to Asia.

2. The Lost Girls - These girls are from NYC and they decided to pack it all in and travel. Funny, insightful and very handy resources.

3. Creating Ms. Perfect - I found this blog randomly, it is written by Kimberly and she writes about all sorts of things, the post that caught my attention specifically was Flirting vs. Being Nice. I can relate.

4. The Skeptic Yogi - Also a random find, written by Caren who has written some really interesting things about her quest to change her life. Her post called Clearing Space for Life to Happen is fantastic.

5. Think Simple Now - Written by Tina, the Chief Happiness Officer! I love that title!! She has written a beautiful post called Train Your Eyes to See Color Again.

Please check out all these wonderful websites!

Everglades - Miami

On another stellar Miami day, my sister and I decided to take a trip to the Everglades National Park. As children we used to go there a bit, either on field trips through school or with our mom. Every time we had a European relative visiting, we knew a trip to the Everglades was in store. As a kid I was not too into going to the Everglades, I guess I used to think it was a bit boring sometimes, so as a result of that former impression, I have not been in many many years.

The Everglades are subtropical marshland that were at one time inhabited by the Seminole Native American Tribe. The park , a World Heritage Site, was established in 1947 under the order of President Truman and the biggest champion of the park was Marjory Stoneman Douglas a prolific journalist and environmentalist. Mrs. Douglas championed the conservation of the marshlands and was instrumental in creating legislation to control the sugar cane industry and ensure compliance of water quality standards.

So for the first time in many years I ventured down to the Everglades with my sister to the Anhinga Trail part of the park. We saw lots of birds; anhingas that sit on trees spreading their wings to dry them in the sun, a wood stork that was fishing for his lunch in the marsh and was dangerously close to being gobbled by an alligator, a cormorant that caught a fish and swallowed it whole right in front of us. But what we were really after were alligators! So we hunted for them carefully and quietly and ended up seeing quite a few sunning themselves, one even gave us quite the evil eye. Just in case anyone is wondering, we were not trekking through the marsh, it is relatively safe and you walk along a boardwalk trail so it is unlikely you will be gobbled up by a gator.

After spotting lots of wildlife we made our way to a very special fruit and vegetable market. Just on the outskirts of the Everglades, in the agricultural community of the Redlands, is the wonderful tropical fruit market called Robert Is Here. The market started from a simple vegetable stand in 1959 when Robert was six years old and was told to sell some cucumbers from his father's crop. When Robert got home that evening, he had not sold one and his father thought people must not see this little boy as they drive by, so the next day Robert's dad made a big sign and attached it to the table saying Robert Is Here and a business was born. Robert is a tropical fruit expert and farmer, in addition to having a lovely market where you can buy all sorts of things. My sister and I bought all sorts of goodies like passion fruit and star fruit, homemade mango salsa and honey jalapeno barbecue sauce and then had some of Robert's famous milkshakes, blackberry for Carmen and cherry key lime for me. Robert's is a great place and an institution of South Florida, you can check out his website at www.robertishere.com.

Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens - Miami

Winter is high season in Miami and it is no wonder why - temperate climate, bright blue skies, sunny days, it's easy to see why so many tourists flock to Miami during this time of year.

So on one of these pristine winter days, my mom and I went to go visit Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens in Miami. An appreciation of nature tends to run in my family as does an interest in horticulture (although I do not seem to have the ability to keep plants alive too long).

Fairchild is a beautiful botanical garden in Miami which was established in 1938 by Robert H Montgomery, a business man with a passion for plant collecting. Mr. Montgomery named the gardens in honor for his friend Dr. David Fairchild, a renown plant explorer and collector. Dr. Fairchild traveled all over the world looking for plants that could be of potential use to the American people. The gardens lie on 83 acres and have a huge variety of beautiful plants, butterfly gardens, green houses and fruit trees. Fairchild is a leader in the area for botanical and environmental education and conservation.

In addition to the amazing botanical collection, Fairchild also has various art exhibits throughout the year. Currently they have a permanent Dale Chihuly collection of incredibly glass sculptures as well as the monumental sculptures of Roy Lichtenstein on display in the gardens. It stunning to see a collection of modern art in such a beautiful, tranquil and organic environment.