Lausanne, Switzerland

The weekend after Bamberg we had planned on going to London (Carissa had a four day weekend) but due to Elise's week long sickness we scrapped that idea for fear that the rest of the family would be bedridden.  Luckily no one else got sick, but we were struggling with where to go until our good friends the Koch's invited us to visit them in Switzerland.  Considering they had just moved there from the Minnesota only 10 days earlier we were a little hesitant, but Dan insisted so we decided to go.  At that point Carissa had informed the clinic that she would work Friday (she originally had it off), but ended up getting out a little bit early and we hit the road about 2.  It was a long drive, but the weather was great and we arrived in Lutry around 9pm.

We all were very excited to see friends from home and the minute we got in the door the kids were off to play with Sophie (7) and Abbey (4).  We let them play for about an hour and then the adults stayed up chatting late into the night.

The next morning we got up and made a big breakfast while the kids played some more.  Afterwards, we walked down to downtown Lutry, which is the little town (about 10 minutes from Lausanne) where the Koch's reside.  Lutry (and Lausanne) are located on the north shore of Lake Geneva.  I'm not sure I've been anywhere as beautfiul in my life.  Lutry is a quaint little town with cobblestone streets, cool shops and a beautiful lakefront marina.  Looking south to the opposite shore is France and the Alps rising straight out of the water.  We lucked out on the weather, it felt about 50 and was sunny, and the kids had a great time playing at a little park adjacent to the 10 km paved lakefront walking/biking path that runs from Lausanne to Montreaux.  Dan bought the kids some crepes and I got to witness his newly acquired impressive French language skills.  The Lausanne area is in the French speaking part of Switzerland (the German area is 30 minutes away), and according to Dan, although most people speak English and most likely German (which he studied in college) they will only speak French.  Dan also said they find it more offensive if you speak German which is interesting.

View from the patio

 Breakfast

Fast Friends

Lutry

Lutry lake front

The Next American Idols?

After the snack we walked back to the house, ate some lunch, and then drove to Lausanne.  We parked on the lake front and then walked along the shore to a bustling plaza with another marina, jungle gym, carousel, and a food stand.  The kids went for a ride on the carousel and then took a spin on a circular swing, after which we took the metro into downtown Lausanne.  It's a little know fact that Lausanne (pop 130,000) is the smallest city in the world with a rapid transit system.  Lausanne is built on a steep hill, which adds to the beauty of the city, sort of like a Swiss San Francisco, albeit on a smaller scale.  We visited the Lausanne Cathedral, which according to the brochure, is the most beautiful gothic building in Switzerland.  The cathedral was a bit higher up the hill so we took in some great views.

Lausanne lake front

Carousel Rides

Views from the Cathedral

We walked back down and through the town and got a coffee and some snacks for the kids and then took the metro back to the lakefront.  At this point the sun had set and we drove home where the Koch's prepared a lovely meal.  That night Dan started a fire and Carissa and I kept up Dan and Cindy late again in an attempt to satiate our appetite for adult conversation with friends.

The next morning we had breakfast and packed a picnic lunch before we set out for Montreaux and the Chateau de Chillon.  The Chateau de Chillon is a castle right on the shore of Lake Geneva and was built around 1100 to control the passage between Northern and Southern Europe.  With the ticket we got a great little self tour brochure which we used while we were there.  To this point I think it's the best castle / tour we have been to due to the access of virtually every room and the location.  Most of the rooms were set up to represent how they were used back in Medieval times.  Following the castle we had a picnic in a little courtyard just outside.

Inside the Chateau de Chillon

View from our picnic spot

Visiting Montreaux was next on the list.  Montreaux is know for it's annual Jazz festival, which unfortunately isn't held until July.  We parked and then strolled along the lake front and enjoyed the nice weather.  After an hour or so we drove back to Lutry (picked up coffee on the way) and let the kids play at the park for a bit. The Koch's provided another fabulous meal and great company and the kids finished the night with a movie.

Park along the Montreaux waterfront

Back in Lutry

Dinner time

The next morning Cindy, Sophie and Abbey had work/school and we had a long drive ahead of us, so we were up and ready to go pretty early.  Before we left we drove back to Lausanne to take in the grounds of the Olympic Museum.  Lausanne is home to the International Olympic Committee which is responsible for planning the Summer and Winter games.  The grounds were beautiful and at the top near the entrance of the museum there were a couple outdoor exhibits showing the World and Olympic records for the high jump, pole vault and shotput.  To see these in person was kind of mind boggling - I'd love to visit the museum but unfortunately it was closed.  We're hoping we will be invited back before we leave (the Koch's will be there for 3 years) so maybe we can see it then.  I think Lausanne may be my favorite city in Europe so far.

 World Record High Jump

Bamberg, Germany

We spent the first weekend in January recovering from our crazy Christmas break.  We didn't even go out New Year's Eve, even though it was the 650th anniversary of Grafenwoehr, and there was a party in the main square.  We ate appetizers for supper and Carissa and I made it to midnight, mostly because every house in our neighborhood lit up the sky with fireworks.  We tried to wake up the kids, but all three were dead to the world.

New Year's Dinner

The next week the kids went back to school, save Elise who got a second round of the flu.  She missed the entire week, which was a first for her - she hadn't ever missed a school day due to sickness.  Thursday night she was actually feeling better, but we kept her home just to make sure and prevent her from spreading her sickness to her classmates.  

Friday was a movie night, and by Saturday morning we had a bit of cabin fever so we decided to take short trip to explore a small nearby town that we heard was cool - Bamberg.  It's about an hour away on the river Regnitz and is another city that was not damaged by bombing in WWII.  Apparently there was an artillery factory near the city, which meant planes couldn't get close enough to bomb it.

We arrived in town about 1 o'clock, and checked into our hotel, a Best Western.  Carissa had negotiated a really cheap rate over the phone and were expecting something similar to a US Best Western, but this place was brand new and very nice.  We dropped off our bags and headed out on the town.

The first stop was the main town square, which was bustling with people due to the warm weather that had rolled across Bavaria the previous week.  After about a month of almost constant snow and cold temps, the first week in January brought temperatures in the low 40s and rain everyday.  Most of the snow had melted as a result and that Saturday was very mild if overcast day.  After the main square we walked toward the Old Rathaus, which was built right on top of the Regnitz.  Past the Rathaus was Cathedral hill and the Bamberger Dom.  We walked through the church, which seemed to be huge considering the relatively small size of the town, and then back down the hill where we stopped in a little restaurant for some drinks and appetizers.  Bamberg is known for it's breweries (there used to be 27 I think, now there are 8) and also known for their signature beer, Rauchbier (smoked beer).  The restaurant was, in fact, also a little brewery and so of course I ordered a Rauchbier.  A very peculiar beer - it literally smells and tastes like campfire smoke is infused in the beer.  

Bamberg Main Square 

Old Rathaus 

The Regnitz

Bamberger Dom

We spent another hour or so wandering our way back to the hotel, let the kids rest a bit in the room and then went out to find some dinner.  We tried to eat at four different places (one was closed, the others were full), almost bought dinner at the grocery store, but ended up at a restaurant directly across the street from the hotel.  A good meal, if a little pricey, but we were getting desperate.

Sunday morning we got up and ate the complimentary breakfast, which we expected to be similar to our previous hotels - cheese and salami slices, rolls and coffee / tea.  Instead what we found was a lovely spread of food including champagne, espresso, cappuccino, eggs, sausage, bacon and a huge assortment of pastries, cereals, yogurts, meats, cheeses, and juices.  We were quoted $100 for the night, but after seeing this wondered if we had heard it wrong.  A breakfast like this would probably run 40 euro minimum so it made no sense.  We told the kids to eat up because it might be their only meal of the day!  Turns out the price we got was correct.  As a result, we may visit Bamberg again just for the breakfast.  

Amazing Breakfast

We thought about doing a bus tour of the city, but the kids really wanted to get home for Sunday school (imagine that) so ended up going to the Naturkunde-Museum Bamberg instead.  It's a great little Natural History museum - entirely in German, but still very interesting.  We walked through all the exhibits, watched a short movie on the environment and rising population growth and spent a lot of time in their expansive collection of animal specimens.  The collection dates back to 1791 and includes an incredible variety of animals, from beetles and butterflies, to reptiles, birds and even larger animals - a male lion and an adult orangutan.  The kids got a little souvenir from the gift shop and then we drove home to Graf.

Cool rocks

Dead Animals