During his recent visit, my good friend Dan expressed interest in being a "guest blogger" on this site. As his writing abilities far exceed mine (you may have caught his recently published prize winning essay for "Delaware Today"), I gladly accepted his offer. Enjoy!
John and Kristina (with a "K"),
Please accept this email as my thank you note and guest blog post. I
am greatly appreciative for my time with both of you and the
graciousness with which you housed me for four to five days. Allow me
to recount the highlights of my trip:
July the 9th
I arrive in Switzerland by way of US AIR coach class service, ticket
prepaid. After clearing the efficient customs queue, I met John in
the airport greeting area. He was rocking out to his i-pod and seemed
happy with my arrival. We took the train from the airport to Thalwil,
during which ride John informed me that my trip would be none a
relaxing one, but instead an action-packed, physically grueling
adventure. Having only slept for a couple hours on the plane, I
declined to object.
A short while later we arrived in Thalwil, and after a quick pit stop,
were ready to head to Zurich. Not by car, nor train, as that would be
too safe, but instead by bike. I advised John that I hadn't ridden in
some time, knowing he was well aware that I lacked any athletic
ability or the sense of balance that appears to be inherent in
everyone else. John responded by suggesting we wear helmets, and off
we were. I cannot quite be sure what happened next, but a bike
accident involving me and a curb occurred. My right big toe, knee and
elbow will never be the same though I suspect I will lose the limp in
the near future.
After a quick pit stop and some makeshift first aid, we arrived in
Zurich and ate and drank like kings. At the cost of kings too -- John
was truthful in stating that food is expensive in Switzerland. It was
great to relax outside at Zurich pubs and catch up with a great friend
living half way around the world. After we were thoroughly fed, we
limped to the nearest train station and boarded the train, bikes and
all. That night we relaxed in Thalwil (after a quick swim in the lake
and a few games of ping pong), eating pizza and playing Trivial
Pursuit. Kristina joined us in the evening, exhausted from a lengthy
day at the Swiss office.
July the 10th
Determined to make me "play through the pain" of my bike accident
injuries, John and I set out for a mountain hike on the Rigi. Like
the characters of "Down and Out in Paris and London," our lunch
consisted of a chunk of bread and cheese. With that, we were on the
train headed up the mountain, an accession of approximately 1800
meters in elevation. At the top, we witnessed people jumping off the
side of the mountain with parachutes on, and drifting around courtesy
of the wind, it was very cool.
We began our descent downward which we later determined to be
approximately six miles. The trails were well-marked and though
crowded at the top, we had the descent trail almost to ourselves the
entire way down to Weggis. With an injured knee and toe plaguing me,
we took it slow. Even without the injuries, the trail was often
difficult, being very steep with unsure footing. Nonetheless, we
persevered, and neither one of us fell or was injured (further).
We arrived in Weggis too tired to do anything and chose to rest and
wait for the arrival of our ferry boat. On time as all things Swiss
are, our boat left Weggis at 5:42pm and took us to Luzerne. Luzerne
is a neat city/town, which one could easily mistake for Zurich (as
both look the same and are on the water), but for its identifying
landmarks. We walked through the town and its shops and sat for a
rest by the water with the ducks. We then caught a train to Zoog to
meet up with Kristina for dinner.
Kristina and I each ate a delicious cordon bleu, and John ate a steak
which came out on a sizzling slate platter and cooked right before our
eyes. The food was delicious -- I ate every bite of a cordon bleu
which could feed a family of four. Only the company was better.
Thereafter, we headed back to Zurich for more Trivial Pursuit.
July the 11th
We slept a little later on Friday morning -- finally, John had allowed
me a moment of rest! Once awake, we did some swimming and played some
more ping pong. Then we walked into Thalwil's shopping area to do
some shopping, pick up lunch and prepare for our trip to Munich,
Germany. After a quick bite and a pit stop at the Lindt Chocolate
factory store, we were en route to Munich. Driving in Switzerland is
an anomalous experience in Europe, orderly and considerate. Somehow
though, John's driving skills had worsened.
We arrived in Munich and checked into our hotel. As storm clouds
blackened the sky above, one thing became apparent, we needed to find
a pub and quickly. We sat at the bar at this pub around the corner,
and stayed there most of the night, enjoying their food and drink, as
well as the interactions between the locals as well as the lovely
ladies of Germany. Germany is a great place. In what may be the
highlight of John's year, the bartender asked him if he was American,
and then, asked him why he was "fluent in German." After bouncing
around to another bar or two, we ended up back at the same place after
closing time. The bartender advised us that since they were closed,
he could only give us half a drink. Germany is a great place.
July the 12th
We woke early the next morning to tour Munich. Arriving at one of the
most famous brew houses at 10:30am, we immediately observed a 90+ year
old woman drinking a pint, as well as two children under the age of 5
splitting a pint. We each drank an early morning liter of beer.
Germany is a great place. After that, we headed to the BMW World and
checked out all the BMW has to offer.
We arrived back in Switzerland around dinner time and met up with
Kristina. After some delicious local pizza we played our final games
of Trivial Pursuit. After a grueling final three games, John took the
series. I went to bed sad that night, knowing my next adventure would
be a plane ride home.
I have had a few days to reflect on my visit to Switzerland, and I
have several observations. First, John and Kristina are great people,
a lot of fun to spend time with, and very good friends to have. This
I already knew, but my trip was a welcome reminder. Second, I think
John and Kristina have an amazing opportunity and I am glad they were
able to take advantage of it. Third, living in Switzerland has forced
John and Kristina to grow as people and face many challenges, which
they have done very well and become better people for it. Fourth,
Switzerland is a very well-run, cool country from which we could learn
a thing or two. Fifth, the Swiss sure play a lot of Trivial Pursuit.
Guys, thanks so much for such a great time, cannot wait to see you in
the U.S. soon. For those reading the blog, do yourself a favor and
book your trip ASAP, you don't know what you're missing.
Thanks again for a great trip,
Dan
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