Madulain and the spectacular Engadine

I cannot put into words how I feel as the little red Graubunden train pulls up at the request stop, Madulain. It's another homecoming, minus my family and best friends, yet still special! These pretty little stations along the valley always have the most glorious window boxes. I don't know how they manage to have a constant mass of flowers throughout the summer months. They never seem to fade or wilt. Perhaps the cooler mornings and evenings help them to recover from warm days ( a bit like I do I guess).

The station is just next to my little home, Flurina, a very old wine barrel fitted out marvelously with little kitchen and gas cooker, double bed, dining table ( when bed not in use), heating, radio, electricity and the most amazing view of the valley from the beautifully painted front door. It was even more special to be greeted by my neighbours from last year as I arrived. It is a brilliant place to come and relax before the bustle of the camp. Here life stands still. We spend our evenings outside, chatting, or as now, blogging. Nobody is in a rush. The kitchen and the shower area become meeting points and, as most people stay for the week, we gradually become more communicative. Opposite me a family with baby and young boy are in the other wine barrel plus tent. It brings back fabulous memories of our time spent camping with Mark and David, David as young as three weeks. It is so easy with young kids because you have no other pressing matters to attend to in a campsite and can devote your time to one another.

Cooking for more than one with two tiny gas rings and equally tiny saucepans required careful time management, but by the time Marc arrived from Zuoz, I had a pasta dish and salad all ready. It was such a fun evening with lots of in- depth discussions and laughter in my cosy little kitchen/ lounge/dining room/ bedroom! Not to mention the New Zealand wine.

I was thrilled with my work/ life balance this week. I took every other day off and worked the others. Perfect mix and it meant I could work steadily through my outstanding tasks with virtually no interruptions. It was great to get some surprise visitors from Solothurn and to dine with Marc and Jack in their lovely flat in Zuoz. I even had time in the evenings to pop next door to the hotel to watch some soccer.

The days off were fantastic. The first day I just set off from the camp and walked with no real destination in mind. Big blisters sadly stopped me at Samedan, but I had still walked a good distance and lunched at one of my favourite little lake areas looking towards Bever. I love it here at any time of the year, but must say that late October is my favourite when all the larch trees turn gold.


Then yesterday I had a full day away in the Oberengadin, by the magnificent lakes and in the narrower valley. I had originally thought of going up one of my favourite valleys, the Fextal, but as we drove around the lakes, with such wonderful colours, I changed my mind. This is an advantage of travelling alone. Spontaneous decisions do not need to be discussed! Anyway, I ended up walking from Sils, a lovely  little village at the other end of the valley, to Maloja, where the pass descends towards Italy. 

What a magical day I had. First, on leaving Sils, the wild flowers in the pastures were just stunning. I have enjoyed carpets of blue, yellow and now pink flowers in the past months. I made rather slow progress at this point 😀 but no rush!

Nearing the Silser Lake, the panorama was absolutely breathtaking. Not a puff of wind, so what remarkable reflections I enjoyed throughout this wonderful day. A lady was sitting by the lakeside with her three dogs, which thankfully did not seem keen to swim and disturb these still waters.

I was rather surprised to encounter a donkey on my walk. He was wandering around braying so loudly that I was convinced he was lost. I was very relieved to come across some horse riders who told me he had simply decided he didn't want to go with them, so they left him behind. Apparently, he would follow them! I would have loved to have taken him back to camp with me.

My lunch spot was absolutely gorgeous. This seat, my picnic seat, says it all. 'Enjoy this splendid outdoors with us!'. I did just that!

How could you not enjoy this? It was spectacular, and the water a very pleasant temperature. I will certainly be back one weekend with a picnic and my swimming togs. 

Having reached Maloja, I then waited for the little boat which links various points of the lake. I had always wanted to do this trip, the boat ride on the lake the highest above sea level in Europe, but the timetable never seemed to fit my plans. Today I planned round the timetable and was more than happy to wait half an hour with this view, photo taken just as we left the jetty and headed gently across the lake towards Sils passing along the walkway I had taken earlier in the day. What a totally different perspective!. 

I got off the boat rather reluctantly. It had been such a beautiful, gentle crossing, I would have gladly stayed on board for another round trip! By the time we reached Sils the wind had picked up and the reflections in the lake had been replaced by little waves gently breaking on the stony beaches. The skies over Maloja threatened a downpour or storm, both fortunately not eventuating in Madulain until the evening. A sky with clouds, and the sun rays lighting up the waves , made this majestic scenery even more spectacular!

I can rarely visit Sils without a visit to the Edelweiss hotel for tea and an apple strudel with custard. It is almost an annual pilgrimage and a really fantastic place to catch your breath. It not only has great tea and strudel, but the white petunias and white sun umbrellas are just so stunningly beautiful and pristine. After 15 kms walk, I felt I had deserved a people- watching break!

It was a brilliant day from start to finish, even if England did get kicked out of the World Cup! 

A work day today, but even there I love crossing the meadows to get to the school and coming back along the river, then strolling through the picturesque, narrow streets of Madulain back to the barrel.

So, a last cosy night in my beautiful wooden wine barrel. Five wonderfully snug evenings, a fantastic mix of outdoor living, plus indoor living in about 6 square metres. I will miss the peaceful nights here with skies so laden with stars, you get the feeling it can't be real. The advantage of having to get up in the middle of the night is that you get to see this phenomenal sight. It is almost a crime to go back to sleep!

Tomorrow I will be back to luxurious living in our Chesa Arpiglia. I am looking forward to that too and to seeing friends return and new teachers arriving! Of course, it will be great to see the kids arrive too on Sunday, but I know this restful existence will be put on hold for a while.