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| Finally! A chance to post! |
| 02.29.04 (11:46 pm) [edit] |
Sorry for leaving everyone "Blog-less" for days now. We don't have internet at home yet, and work was actually incredibly busy last week. I'll try to do a better job of posting daily this week!
April and the crew left last Friday morning and my brother Bill showed up last Friday night for the weekend. He is working in Grenoble, France for 2 weeks and spent the weekend with us. We went sledding down Belalp on Saturday, with the required beer break in between each run, then out for a great dinner and a few too many drinks Saturday night.
Tim, Tom and Johnny - Thanks for the late night (early morning?!) greetings the other night! How was the show? Was it a CD release party for the "Kids"?
Sunday we took a train into Zermatt and then 3 gondolas up the mountain to the highest viewing platform in Europe. It is about 3900 meters up - that's almost 13,000 feet for all you flatlanders! I finally realized that the whole "thin air" thing is more than just a figure of speech! At that altitude it really IS difficult to breathe and taking 5 or 10 quick steps is enough to leave you dizzy and panting for air. We were able to get some AMAZING pictures of the Matterhorn and the surrounding moutains which Karen should be emailing out to everyone within a day or two.
After the hike up the viewing platform we hiked down INSIDE one of the Glaciers where they have carved out a HUGE "Glacial Palace" about 50 feet below the surface - it's hard to describe but well worth the effort to get there. You should also be getting some pictures of this ice cave soon too, but here's a preview that just doesn't do it justice.... http://bergbahnen.zermatt.ch/...
We tried to get some sushi for a late lunch in Zermatt since it is the ONLY place we've found so far that has Japanese restaurants, but alas, all the restaurants were closed til the dinner serving at 6:30. Dining out here can be a challenge since most of the restaurants close after lunch and don't re-open until dinner time. Except for McDonalds of course. And a few buffets serving the standard meat-of-the-day covered with brown sauce.
And that brings us back to another Monday morning at work. And yes, Mondays still suck even here. They just suck with a much nicer view!
I noticed that there was a post from Garrett, so I assume the gang made it home safely - it was a blast having you all here and I hope your trip here was everything you expected it to be.... Now it's only 21 days til Tim shows up and I get a new playmate! WooHoo!! Hurry up and get here man!
Nothing too exciting going on this week - work, shopping, house-cleaning, etc. Maybe a trip into Domodossola, Italy this weekend to go to the market shopping. Oh and I need to find a fuse for my dining room light that I just put up a few weeks ago. I've been to 3 stores so far and no luck in finding a .10¢ fuse. Half the challenge in buying things here is figuring out where the hell to go to find what you're looking for.....
LAUNDRY SCORECARD - we've now done laundry two weeks IN A ROW without being yelled at! Either we've been very lucky, or we have our timing figured out. I tend to think we've been lucky. The people here have taken a liking to the new Swiss Olympic sport of "Berate the Americans".
Actually, after having been here for a while and seeing the way that America is portrayed by the European news sources, it's easy to understand why the U.S. doesn't have quite as large of a "global fan club" as George W. would like you to THINK we have. I was watching CNN last night, and apparently we're going into Haiti now. Super. Maybe THAT'S where Osama is hiding. Cuba's not too far from there either and they've been WAY too quiet for too long - maybe we should stop in there for a "Hello" as well. What I would like to know is exactly how many troops we can deploy before there is nobody left to keep an eye on our OWN borders?
D-R-A-F-T ----- Find out what it means to me.... (Sorry, Aretha)
When did I become a liberal? Must have been about the same time that Tom went conservative on us!
That's enough politics.... At least Karen and I chose an election year to leave - I don't miss the rhetoric and babble one bit.
I got's to go work for Da' Man now. Blog you all later.
Brian and Karen
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| Busy, busy weekend.... |
| 02.23.04 (11:31 pm) [edit] |
The gang has been having a blast since their arrival last Friday afternoon! I don't want to steal April's travel stories by giving you too many details, but here are some highlights.....
We started out with Carnaval on Friday night, followed by local sightseeing in town and more Carnaval on Saturday night. The gang went snowboarding on Belalp on Sunday which is a mountain near us that tops of with a final lift at over 10K feet. Karen and I spent the day sledding down 7km of trails from the top of the mountain to the bottom.... It was a blast!
Yesterday they all went sightseeing around Interlaken while Karen and I worked (Bleaaahhhh).... Then we went out for a LOOONG Italian meal and drinks last night. Followed by April killing off 2 desserts!
I think the gang is heading off to Zermatt today to sightsee and take a peek at the Matterhorn. Tomorrow we will all be going skiiing and then to the thermal baths in Leukerbad....
European lessons learned:
Crescent - Radio Shack Transformers do not necessarily make US curling irons safe to use in Switzerland!
Garrett - Sea Salt and sugar (although both are white and granular) taste quite different! (How was that morning coffee, fella?)
April - Our own April has learned to cross ALL of the language barriers in our region using only 2 phrases:
1) Sprechen Sie Englisch?
2) WHAT are you staring at?!?
That's it for now - talk to you all soon!
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| This made me laugh! |
| 02.20.04 (1:02 am) [edit] |
I was checking the "German Word of the Day" website (link is to the left), and I found today's example phrase funny as hell!
German Word: [b]Mann [/b]
English Translation: [b]husband [/b]
Example Phrase: Ich glaube mein Mann hatte einen Herzanfall.
English Translation: I think my husband had a heart attack.
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| Great Swiss Bands |
| 02.18.04 (11:53 pm) [edit] |
I've put together a list of all the really cool local bands I've discovered here in the Valais so far:
1)
2)
3)
uhhhmm, nevermind.
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| We didn't piss anybody off for a change.... |
| 02.18.04 (11:27 pm) [edit] |
Karen is sick with a migraine so she stayed home from work today. Send your Get Well cards now so she can receive them by June.
We finished putting up our lights last night so THAT hurdle has finally been crossed. It's nice to actually be able to walk through the place at night without tripping over furniture......
I heard a dragon last night at around eleven o'clock. Or I heard something that sounded like I imagine a dragon WOULD sound like, anyway... It was LOUD and sounded like it was eating a village. I swear! I'm sure it was just some sort of noise eminating from a Carnaval celebration somewhere in the valley, but it's much more fun to think a dragon was in the process of swallowing one of these little towns.
I just found out that Tim has booked his vacation here from March 22-31. WooHoo!! I also just realized that means he will be here for St Patricks Day. God help me - my head is starting to hurt just THINKING about it! (AHH Scheisse! I stand corrected! St Paddy's Day is the 17th....)
We made it through the entire day yesterday without being chastised for anything. That's a good sign. I still don't think the neighbors will be inviting us over for wine and cheese any time soon though...
The weather is dreary and gray today - you can't even see the mountains because the clouds are hanging so low.
April and her gang are arriving at some point tomorrow afternoon and everybody in the Valais is gearing up for the last 3 days of Carnaval so we are getting ourselves ready to have a beer or 50 this weekend!!
Travel safe guys!
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| VACATION PLANNING CALENDAR is online! |
| 02.18.04 (12:22 am) [edit] |
If you look to the left under "Links" you will find a link to our online "Vacation Planning Calendar". Karen and I will update this calendar so you can easily find out who already has plans to come here and when, and then plan your own vacation to come visit us.
When you decide on the dates you'd like to travel, just give us a call or an email and we will "block" off your dates on the calendar!
Keep in mind we can sleep 5 guests at a time comfortably (spare bed, queen size air mattress and the couch). After that you are on the floor, so pick your travel dates accordingly!
Hope to see you all soon!
Brian and Karen,
Hosts of Hotel Look-A-Gogo
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| Wine (whine?) |
| 02.17.04 (11:45 pm) [edit] |
Just so you don't think that all I do is complain - we bought 2 cases (12 bottles) of GOOD wine last night for the equivalent of $52.00. A case of YellowTail and a case of Chilean wine.
I bet Becky is smiling as she reads this!!
Life is good!
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| Flintstones, meet the Flintstones..... |
| 02.17.04 (11:22 pm) [edit] |
Got yelled at again last night, but for a reason NOT concerning laundry for a change......
I'll start by saying that all the walls and ceilings here are not sheetrock, but concrete. Great for insulation and durability, but it makes for quite a task when it comes to something as simple as hanging a picture.
Last night I was drilling holes in the ceiling to hang some lights in our apartment without realizing I had gone beyond the sacred 8:00pm "quiet time". It was 8:10. The neighbor from downstairs actually came up to tell us to knock it off. Or something to that effect. In Deutsch, of course.
We are not making friends very fast in our apartment building!
The kicker though, was that 2 HOURS later (10:00 pm) one of the aforementioned "Gugen Bands" came marching very LOUD through our village. These bands are usually 30+ members strong, with at least 8 members on bass drums and percussion alone. They can echo for miles in the little valley we are in.
Apparently THIS kind of noise is okay. Thank god nobody in the band was playing a hand drill..........
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| Carnaval.... |
| 02.17.04 (6:09 am) [edit] |
I haven't quite figured out all of the religious signifigance behind these 10 days referred to as "Carnaval" here in Der Schweiz, but from what I've seen, it's ten days of being BAD before they have to start being GOOD for the Easter holiday season.
Try to picture Mardi Gras without the naked boobs and you start to get the picture. Tons of parades, drinking, Gugenmuzik, drinking, dancing, drinking. And THEN the partying starts.....
Here's a link to one of the Gugen "krew's" websites - a picture speaks a thousand words....
http://www.guggenmusik-pampers.ch/photos.php" title="http://www.guggenmusik-pampers.ch/photos.php" target="_blank"http://www.guggenmusik-pamper...
Like I said - Mardi Gras minus boobs. It didn't need to be repeated, I just like typing the word "boobs".
It blows my mind because normally nothing noisy and/or exciting happens in this area of the "Valais".....
Party on, Garth!
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| By the way, if you plan on visiting us..... |
| 02.17.04 (5:12 am) [edit] |
Make sure to watch for updates to this site. I will post links with information about airfares, train passes, music festivals, general info about Switzerland.... Basically anything I think may make your trip planning a little easier.
I will also probably post links to other crap you don't care about. Sift through them and deal with it. Nothing in life comes free!
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| What the HELL have we done!?!? |
| 02.17.04 (4:29 am) [edit] |
Well, here we are, living right in the middle of the Alps. Dumb foreigners in a strange land.
What the HELL were we thinking?
All kidding aside, everyday is a new adventure. Here's a few from the last 2 weeks:
1) Trying to figure out when the hell we are allowed to do laundry (this has been a challenge EVERY time we need to do it and we STILL haven't gotten it right). We've now been yelled at in German and Italian. I'm shooting for a scolding in French this weekend so I can score the Tri-fecta.
2) Chasing down sales flyers in a never-ending attempt to find beef for less than 15 dollars a pound. You would think that in a country with 32 billion cows meat would be cheap. Think again. Apparently they keep them alive to produce milk for the cheese. And don't even get me STARTED on the price of cheese!
3) Lights. Apartments don't come with them here. And your last name needs to be "Gates" to afford them. 'Nuff said.
4) Stores. Closed everday at 6:30 with the exception of the ones that close at 5:30. Except for Sunday when they don't open at all. This is Sam Walton's idea of Hell on Earth.
5) And since I've mentioned Sunday - You are not allowed to do anything on Sunday, including but not limited to: laundry, gardening, vacuuming, playing a stereo, washing your car, moving furniture, etc., etc.
You ARE however, allowed to pray. And drink. Or pray for a drink. The beer is good (and cheap). The wine is better (and cheap). The bread kicks ass and the chocolate is second to none. And the view from my apartment living room belongs on a postcard.
Come to think of it, maybe living here won't be too bad after all!
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