Home to Russikon and Pfaeffikon, then a weekend of friends and families in different Swiss cities
It was a dramatic change when I arrived back to 30 degree temperatures and hundreds of emails, but I survived, just! 
The man who owns the rowing boats was probably the only person I never saw smile and yet I think he runs a pretty lucrative business.. He passed by me hundreds of times as he walked his beautiful dog and never once said 'hello'. The couple, man and dog, both seem to have aged!
I had such a brilliant evening in Monika's garden, opposite my old home. It is so marvelous to know so many locals and to be able to sit amongst the original houses of the old village of Pfaeffikon, of course listening to the ringing of the church bells.
I am for ever indebted to Antoinette for choosing an Ipad as a leaving present for me. At the time I was not convinced it was right for me, but to be able to write my blog has been absolutely fantastic.
Next stop, Solothurn, and a chance to catch up with Marcel and his family again. We realised that it was actually more than 30 years ago that he walked up my drive in New Zealand intending to stay a week and staying for a year. I have visited him, Christine and their children on nearly an annual basis since then and have watched the family grow up.
We drove up into the Jura mountains just outside the town and walked to a lovely old farmhouse with a cafe and stunning view. With the cloudless, deep blue sky, the cliffs and forest looked all the more fabulous.
My journey continued on to Tafers, next to Fribourg. It was fantastic to walk down the ramp at Fribourg and to see Marlis standing there. Unbelievable to think another year had passed by. I have also known Marlis for decades! 25 years in fact, and have been visiting them for over 20 years, also watching their family of two sons and daughter become adults. How lucky I have been to be able to maintain this wonderful contact with Marlis, one of my my first ever Swiss atudents in NZ.
One of my very last Airbnbs before I left for Europe was the son of Marlis's colleagues, Beatrice. Guillaume had a short stay with me during his cycle ride from the south to the north of NZ - riding through both islands. What a trip and what an achievement. Anyway, we were fortunately invited to their magnificent home, built in the late eighteenth century. Wow, it was amazing. Guillaume and his father had also made all the beautiful carvings on the front terrace.
The hallway could not have been more Swiss, with the many cow bells, small and massive, all with such a different tone. They were gorgeous.
The other side of the house was no less amazing, with another huge terrace, where we tucked into a fantastic meal at probably the longest wooden table I have ever sat at! Incredible.
The view over the little hamlet with its church and farms was lovely and the fence Guillaume had made really made the scene all the more picturesque. How wonderful it must be to be so creative. I just loved the irregular shapes of the oak branches.
After lunch, we definitely needed to walk off some of the many calories, so a visit to Romont with Guillaume, Marlis and Urs, and a walk around the ramparts was just perfect
I had so often gone past Romont on the train and looked up at the castle on the hill, so it was great to see it close up.
It's a very pretty old town, but being a Sunday afternoon, it was completely dead. We were virtually the only people walking down the hilly cobbled streets and enjoying the very attractive homes and gardens, as well as the expansive views into France from the ramparts.
Not a cat in sight, but there are obviously families with many!
I had a final quick visit to Bern, with lunch with another Beatrice, who I have also known for seven years.
What a great weekend of beautiful places and fabulous friends!
A fabulous cooler evening in Pfaeffikon after a scorcher in Zuerich. I haven't really spent any time at the lake so I was rather desperate to get back there. I realised how much I miss that gorgeous place with the tranquil lake and impressive backdrop of mountains,especially its holiday feel. I have experienced so many exceptional sunsets there. I love it! At the same time though, I thought of Mark and David and so many friends on the other side of the world. I miss them so much too.
The man who owns the rowing boats was probably the only person I never saw smile and yet I think he runs a pretty lucrative business.. He passed by me hundreds of times as he walked his beautiful dog and never once said 'hello'. The couple, man and dog, both seem to have aged!
I had such a brilliant evening in Monika's garden, opposite my old home. It is so marvelous to know so many locals and to be able to sit amongst the original houses of the old village of Pfaeffikon, of course listening to the ringing of the church bells.
My weekend started on Friday with a visit to Basel, to academia. It was great to catch up with Antoinette again and have a delicious lunch with this spectacular view across the river. Basel is a very picturesque city with a very much more relaxed atmosphere compared to Zurich. The temperature was just perfect too.
I am for ever indebted to Antoinette for choosing an Ipad as a leaving present for me. At the time I was not convinced it was right for me, but to be able to write my blog has been absolutely fantastic.
Next stop, Solothurn, and a chance to catch up with Marcel and his family again. We realised that it was actually more than 30 years ago that he walked up my drive in New Zealand intending to stay a week and staying for a year. I have visited him, Christine and their children on nearly an annual basis since then and have watched the family grow up.
We drove up into the Jura mountains just outside the town and walked to a lovely old farmhouse with a cafe and stunning view. With the cloudless, deep blue sky, the cliffs and forest looked all the more fabulous.
My journey continued on to Tafers, next to Fribourg. It was fantastic to walk down the ramp at Fribourg and to see Marlis standing there. Unbelievable to think another year had passed by. I have also known Marlis for decades! 25 years in fact, and have been visiting them for over 20 years, also watching their family of two sons and daughter become adults. How lucky I have been to be able to maintain this wonderful contact with Marlis, one of my my first ever Swiss atudents in NZ.
The first time I visited I took a picture of her incredibly neat washing line, and this time I could not resist this coloursful array of shoes! It was incredible.
One of my very last Airbnbs before I left for Europe was the son of Marlis's colleagues, Beatrice. Guillaume had a short stay with me during his cycle ride from the south to the north of NZ - riding through both islands. What a trip and what an achievement. Anyway, we were fortunately invited to their magnificent home, built in the late eighteenth century. Wow, it was amazing. Guillaume and his father had also made all the beautiful carvings on the front terrace.
The hallway could not have been more Swiss, with the many cow bells, small and massive, all with such a different tone. They were gorgeous.
The other side of the house was no less amazing, with another huge terrace, where we tucked into a fantastic meal at probably the longest wooden table I have ever sat at! Incredible.
The view over the little hamlet with its church and farms was lovely and the fence Guillaume had made really made the scene all the more picturesque. How wonderful it must be to be so creative. I just loved the irregular shapes of the oak branches.
After lunch, we definitely needed to walk off some of the many calories, so a visit to Romont with Guillaume, Marlis and Urs, and a walk around the ramparts was just perfect
I had so often gone past Romont on the train and looked up at the castle on the hill, so it was great to see it close up.
It's a very pretty old town, but being a Sunday afternoon, it was completely dead. We were virtually the only people walking down the hilly cobbled streets and enjoying the very attractive homes and gardens, as well as the expansive views into France from the ramparts.
Not a cat in sight, but there are obviously families with many!
I had a final quick visit to Bern, with lunch with another Beatrice, who I have also known for seven years.
What a great weekend of beautiful places and fabulous friends!
Comments
Post a Comment