Davos

Yesterday, Kristina and I spent the day skiing with three other friends at Davos in eastern Switzerland. We had a beautiful, clear day, and Davos is a resort with quite a lot of terrain, so we had a great day. Finished the day with beers at a great apres ski bar, and fondue in the town of Klosters. Ahh, Switzerland...

All Good Holidays Must Come to An End

Tomorrow is my first day back at school since Dec 19. I feel rested and ready to get back. Kristina and I spent this weekend at the resort of Engelberg, about an hour south of Zurich. We skied yesterday, hiked up an alp today, took a break in the snow (hence the photo), and then sledded down on those old wooden toboggans. It was cold all weekend, but clear skies gave us plenty of sun and some great views. Fun weekend.
Then we came home and had fondue for dinner before watching the Eagles beat the Giants. Now we're watching the Steelers, though I'm not sure we'll be able to stay up the whole game...

License Plates

Playing the license plate game on road trips is one of my favorite pasttimes. Pretty sure I've seen all 50 US plates, plus a bunch of Canadian plates. Living in Europe, we see mostly Swiss (obviously) and EU plates, which all look the same. But today while walking through Thalwil, I saw the rarest plate I've ever seen from...the Republic of San Marino. How cool!

Langlauf Loipe

As I was completing my second (and final) lap of a 3.5 km cross-country ski course this morning, I reflected on all the cool outdoor experiences I've had over the past few months here in Switzerland; swimming in Zurichsee during the summer, completing a "black" high ropes course (the toughest one at the park where we took our 8th graders during an October Field Week), conquering an indoor wall climbing on the same trip, playing ice hockey, sledding (or "sledging") down a 12 km trail at Engelberg, running a half marathon through the streets of Luzern, hiking some of the higher peaks in Switzerland, touring the Jungfrauhoch, biking through the towns around Zurichsee, and alpine and cross-country skiing in some of the most beautiful terrain I've ever seen.

My latest adventure, cross-country skiing (or "Langlauf" as they call it here), was certainly one of the most grueling. My body aches all over right now. But in the best way. I enjoyed it so much, I'm planning to give it another go on Friday.

Switzerland certainly offers a ton of different outdoor adventure opportunities. A lot of these activities are available in the US, but less accessible and/or less popular. Just makes me appreciate living here even more. Hopefully I'll use the experience gained from trying these activities back to the US and get into a few of them back home in a few years.

Tonhalle Zurich

On Tuesday, December 16, the student choir from the International School of Zug & Luzern performed an Advent Concert at Zurich's famous Tonhalle with the Zurich Symphony Orchestra (Symphonisches Orchester Zurich). What a performance! The Tonhalle is a beautiful venue, the Zurich Symphony Orchestra is the best in Switzerland, and the students were fantastic. An unforgettable experience.

The Holidays Are Here!

Okay, I've recently decided I need to post more on this blog. Even if only to update on the days events...so here goes...
Today was the last day of the fall term. I'm very excited for the opportunity to relax and enjoy Switzerland during the Christmas season. We've had a ton of snow over the past week, so the scenery here is beautiful. And, we're watching our friends Matt & Romy's cat for the next three weeks, so more fun for me!

Hustle and Bustle

The holidays are here, and things always seem to get hectic around the holidays. It's certainly been a hectic few days for me. Here's a quick summary:
-flew to Madrid and back with Kristina, enjoying great food and Sangria and the festive atmosphere of the Spanish holiday season in between
-graded 40 6th grade math mid-terms...only 40 more 7th grade exams to go...
-played 2 hours of ice hockey with 40+ 8th graders on the ice at once...easily the most exhausting adventure of the three

Anyway, the Christmas season is in full swing here in Switzerland. Lights are up everywhere, the Weinachts Markt (Christmas Market) has taken over Zurich, holiday concerts abound, there are only 7 days until a three week Christmas Break from school, and it's snowing!