Zurich

Christine and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary this week, even though it's actually April 17th. I'm speaking in Zurich on Thursday, and we thought it would be an excellent chance to see some of Europe together, since my ticket and hotel and other expenses are already paid. It makes the trip affordable. Kinda.

Anyway, we flew out of Seattle Sunday evening. Saying goodbye to the kids is a little harder when one of the parents isn't home with them. We're confident in Lindsey though. They'll do great and having spring break should make things go a little smoother.

We had a good flight over but were really tired when we finally arrived at our hotel. The rooms are so small in Europe. The bathroom floor dimensions are smaller than some coffins I've seen... And I've seen a few.

We got settled in our room, hung up clothes, got an internet connection, read email and then headed out to see some of Zurich. We're right by the Lake of Zurich, so getting there was only a minutes walk.
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=47.355455~8.553543&style=r&lvl=13&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&encType=1
The weather was perfect. Probably 65f or so, with a really gentle breeze. There were sailboats on the water and lots of people walking around enjoying the day. We were hungry and were looking for someplace to eat. The concierge at the hotel recommended a restaurant not far, so we went there. The food looked great, but the prices quite high, so we settled on desert first. :) Christine had a chocolate covered ice cream. This wasn't the kind you get at Dairy Queen though. The chocolate came separate like fondue. And you poor it on top as you go. Didn't know this, but fondue is big in Switzerland. I had the apple fritters with ice cream. OK, words fail me on this one. Delicious just doesn't cut it.

We sat on an open balcony overlooking the street and further on, the lake. The sounds from the road were a bit loud at times, including the frequent sirens from ambulances and police. The sun was in our eyes, but somehow, it was just perfect. However, after eating our deserts, we were still hungry and on the prowl for something substantial and local.

Later on the street at an intersection right below the restaurant, we saw a couple eating bratwurst. I asked them if they speak english. They said, "A little". I asked them, pointing to their meal, "Where did you buy this?" I don't think they spoke very well and didn't have a good answer. So, I tried a little German. "Wo haben sie dieses gekaufen?". They brightened up a bit and didn't laugh at my attempt, which I was grateful for. They pointed to the outdoor restaurant where we could find the best bratwurst I've eaten in a long time. Christine really liked it too and said that it melted in her mouth. They served it with hard roles and we bought some Apfelsaft, apple cider, that was just perfect. They also served it with a mustard that was very strong. If you got too much on the bratwurst, it would burn all the way up the sinuses out the nostrils... Mmmmmm, yum. You'd love it Mardy!

After eating that, which we'll certainly have to do again, we wandered around the streets a while. We went over to Bahnhofstrasse for a while. That's the famous shopping street. But, everything was closed down. We couldn't figure out if it was because of the time of day or the fact that it was Monday after Easter. But, there was very little happening. At this point, we were just enjoying the architecture. Most of the buildings are very old having been built, it appears, mostly in the 1740 and 50s. I remarked to Christine, to put it all in perspective, "These buildings were built before our country was born."

We came back to the hotel room around 8:30. Christine wrote email to the kids and then crashed. She was very tired having stayed up very late the night before getting everything ready for the trip. We were able to sleep well last night though.

Today, we're driving up to Germany to visit an old town I haven't seen since I was 7. We're going up to Saarland to see Althornbach, which is a tiny little town next to the former Zweibrucken military base where Dad was stationed. The military base has been turned over to the German government and is now used for various civilian purposes.
http://www.tenninetyseven.homestead.com/zweitoday.html
http://www.flughafen-zweibruecken.de/noflash.shtml

The landing strip is actually larger than the town.
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=49.210533~7.386975&style=r&lvl=14&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=10825358&encType=1

I've wanted to return to that little town ever since before I can remember. It almost seems like a different life now. Hard to explain. I'm simply excited to go there, though I have no illusions about seeing anything remotely familiar, I'm hopeful. If nothing else, it should be a great drive through the country. I'm definitely up for that, that's half the fun.

Well, the wake up call just came in. We're off.