A New, Clean Start

Ever since we moved into our apartment we have NEVER liked our shower. It has plenty of water pressure, it's warm enough, it's a large enough space (once we got the shower curtain issues sorted out), but the shower head produces scores of needle-like lancets that produce a less than satisfying experience which we articulate each morning using very colorful language. This weekend we broke down an bought a brand new shower head with THREE (3) settings that has made us the happiest people alive from 7:30am-7:40am (if Robert is taking his patented 'fastest shower ever' that will be from 7:30am-7:55am). Thank you (good) shower head companies for making our world a better place to live, one shower at a time.

Basel Museum Night 2007

Each year several Swiss cities sponsor a museum night where you can visit all the museums in the area for one price (20CHF) from 6pm-2am. There is a huge variety of museums to choose from in Basel (architecture, art, history, design, toys, etc.), but this year we decided to visit a few that we had never been to before. First up - the Music Museum. This museam features the history of many different instruments and is housed in the old city prison. You can see the evolution of many instruments over time including the recorder, flute, clarinet, saxaphone, pianos, organs, orchestral string instruments and traditional drums. Then it was off to the Cartoon and Caricature Muesum. Here they were featuring one artist in particular, Tomi Ungerer - sometimes a bit lude for my taste, but he certainly had panels that were fun to look at =) Just down the street was the Basel Contemporary Art Museum designed by the local, Prizker Prize winner architecure firm of Herzog & de Meuron. The high-light of the exhibit was the Sol LeWitt wall drawing (pictured above) - FYI: we also have a Sol LeWitt at the IMA in Indianapolis. Lastly we ventured off to the Paper Museum that operates using a paddle wheel from way-back-when. It's a delightful museum that allows you to participate in the paper making process, details the history of paper making, and features a fantastic gift shop packed full with a huge assortment of hand-made paper and paper products. We had a terrific time and hope to be able to participate next year too. Otherwise, we will use our new-found knowledge to direct our 2007 visitors to the best Basel has to offer. Check out the photos from Robert's new camera here.

More hiking in Switzerland!!

A perfect day for hiking in Switzerland! The weather has been unusually warm for January. Today it was in the 50’s so we decided to take advantage with a trip to the mountains. We ended up near Interlaken in the Bernese Oberland region of central Switzerland. This area also over looks the Thunersee which is a large lake in Interlaken. Thanks to clear blue skies, we were able to walk along and view the gorgeous snow capped mountains that seem to go on forever. Robert really enjoys the mountains and the views, so it was a particularly good day for him. It also gave him the chance to experiment with a new camera that Santa gave him for Christmas. You can see pictures from the day here, or all of our hiking pictures here.

Konstanz Germany

The second part of our day trip took us to Konstanz Germany. Konstanz is a town located on Lake Konstanz which is just across the Switzerland border in the Northeast part of the country. Because we visited on Three Kings Day (or Epiphany), a public holiday in Germany and Switzerland, most of the stores and shops were closed. However, we were able to wander around the town and see many of the sites including the Cathedral, and from across the lake, the Austrian Alps. After dinner, we were able to see a small part of the Three Kings Day parade located in the center of town. Complete with costumes, music, a public reading, and singing, it was a nice experience for us. You can see our pictures of Konstanz here.

Rhine Falls

We decided to start the new year with a day trip to Northeast Switzerland to see the Rhine Falls. It’s a natural waterfall located on the Rhine River in Neuhausen Switzerland. Schaffhausen and the German border are also nearby. The name says it all, the Rhine Fall is the largest waterfall in Europe in terms of volume of water passed. At only 23 meters, it wasn’t tall, but with the full weight of the Rhine running over it, it looked spectacular. Like Niagara Falls, a whole town (Neuhausen am Rheinfall) is built around it. Unlike much of the Rhine in Germany that is wide and rock free, this part of the river is narrow and full of large boulders. Barges can’t travel through this part of the river. The Schloss Laufen is perched on the high cliffs directly above the falls. The Schloss may have once been a true palace, but now it serves as the Rhine Falls' primary tourist haven. The Schloss hosts a restaurant, a massive souvenir stand, a garden, and a gateway to several observation decks that wind their way down to the falls. You can see our pictures of the falls here.

Christmas Vacation

We were lucky enough to be able to spend over 20 days in Indianapolis over the holidays. We met our new nephew (9 months old, now), got caught up with our families and did a LOT of shopping (Switzerland and Europe in general is VERY expensive). Robert got a new camera and took lots of photos. Thanks to everyone for taking time out of your busy holiday schedules to get together with us. YOU are what we miss the most from home (not Dairy Queen, unlimited soft drink/coffee refills, our 24-hr gym, Jayne's chocolate triffle, shopping after 6:30 pm, or the ability to do laundry in less than 3 hrs). Wishing you and your families a happy and healthy 2007…Nancy & Robert

2006 Anecdotes

During our first trip to the grocery store in Germany, Robert decided that he needed to use the facilities. Off he goes and thirty seconds later, Nancy hears the fire alarm. Robert returns to the aisle almost immediately and yells over the alarm that the door he thought led to the bathroom…didn’t.

Trevi Fountain – there is a legend that says that if visitors throw a coin into the fountain, they are ensured a return to Rome (est. @ ~3,000 euro per day). During the filming of a documentary, a man was interviewed who, early each morning, collected these coins from the fountain. It turns out that he was unemployed and had been collecting the coins for years. They calculated that he had made about a million dollars doing this for many years (GENIUS!). The city now collects the coins for the needy.

Signature shot: Robert LOVES his camera and is constantly taking pictures of anything and everything of interest (5,000+ photos in 2006). During each day of photo taking there is a ‘signature shot’ as he likes to call it…a partial, upward view of a building, mountain, etc. that reveals a blue sky in the background. Sometimes the weather doesn’t cooperate, but that never hinders his efforts – look for them in up-coming blogs!

Aruba – the Dutch-colony tour guide spoke perfect English during our submarine tour of the Caribbean and was thanking us for our participation. She wanted to let us know that there was a traditional saying in Aruba that was part Dutch and part English. Danke (donk-a…the same as “thank you” in German) and the traditional American good bye. Oddly it came out as a very enthusiastic: Donkey, Bye, Bye! Something we now say to each other every day.

Soccer Game

On Monday, we went to the Basel Soccer game. It was raining, but we had seats under the roof, so we were able to stay warm and dry. The stadium is very nice, and only a few minutes from our apartment. It was recently expanded to add more seats for the European Soccer Championships that will take place in Switzerland and Austria in 2008. The atmosphere at the game was much different than a Football or Basketball game in the U.S. There is a huge “rowdy fan” section at the end of the field. These are the people that are waving flags, singing songs, chanting, synchronizing their clapping, and whistling. They are quite loud, and they create a special atmosphere in the stadium. It really helps in getting the rest of the fans excited about what is going on. In the U.S. they try to create atmosphere and excitement by playing loud music during down times. Another difference to U.S. crowds is the use of whistling. In Europe, fans whistle instead of boo to show their unhappiness with things on the field. Basel won the game against Lucerne 3-0 which was nice for us! We had a great time, and we’ll go again for sure. You can see pictures of Basel events here.

Christmas Market

Last weekend we decided to do some Christmas shopping in Basel. There are areas around town where Christmas Markets are set up. This means many local (and other) vendors have booths setup where they sell their goods. Everything from Christmas ornaments, to pottery, wood carvings, scarves, toys, and MANY others. The booths and surrounding areas are decorated with a variety of Christmas decorations like lights, Nativity scenes, ribbons, and others. There is also a lot of good food available as well. (Pizza, hot dogs, sausages, bread, cheese, etc…) Gluehwine (hot red wine with spices) is also available to keep you warm as you shop. If you’re not in the Christmas spirit before going to the Christmas Market, you will be before you leave. It seems to have a very festive and pleasant atmosphere with all the music and decorations you could ask for. Merry Christmas! You can see our pictures from the Basel Christmas Market here.

Charity Run

Last Saturday night, hundreds of people participated in a charity run in Basel. There was even a shorter run for small children (something you don’t see in the U.S. very often). The weather was excellent for November… Warm in fact. The course was in the main part of the city, and the Christmas decorations made it pretty for everyone. Lots of people lined the path, plenty of food and music around for everyone, and also sponsor tents that had plenty of gear. Roche had a special program that encouraged their people to “race” against the IT Management team. If a Roche participant finished before the Managers, the Managers would contribute extra money to the charity (Manager money, not Roche money). As expected, Nancy had an awesome performance and turned in a time under 29 minutes!! She finished 3rd compared to all the female Roche employees. Great job Nancy!! You can see pictures of Basel Events here.

More Basel Hiking

Another day of hiking near Basel. This time we started in a town called Sissach (15 miles south of our apartment) hiked to Farnsburg, and then returned to Sissach where we started. About 4 hours all together. As opposed to last week, this hike had less steep inclines which made it easier, and less mud which made it more enjoyable. We enjoyed a lot of wide open scenery with plenty of green grass, hills, and trees. Once in Farnsburg, we visited another castle that sits on top of a hill. Although the castle is mostly in ruins, we were still able to climb the stairs in a very narrow column to the top where we had an excellent view of the surrounding areas. There are so many castles like this around here… just look to the top of a hill or mountain, and you’re likely to see one. Every castle has unique characteristics that always make it fun to see. Also, hiking up the hill makes it all worth it! You can see our pictures of the castle and the hike here.

Hockey Game

Hockey season has started! Becasue we didn't make it to a single game last year, we decided to get an early start this year. The Basel Ice Hockey Club plays at St. Jakobs Arena that is just a five minute Tram ride from our apartment. The tickets were 35 Francs and a good saugage for 5, (both comparable to a game in the U.S.) However, the fans are very different than in the U.S. The Basel team, and the visiting Bern team both had sections where their "crazed" fans stood and cheered together. It was very similar to a student section at a college Basketball or Football game. They waved flags, beat on drums, chanted, sychronized their clapping, and they even sang songs! It was a good experience, and we'll go back for more. You can see pictures from Basel events here.

Basel Hiking

The Basel Tourist Office has a good list of hikes that are near Basel. We decided to try one just 18 miles south of here starting in Waldenburg. The hike turned out to be quite difficult as we spent most of our time ascending steep inclines. However the weather was perfect, and there were still plenty of colorful leaves on the trees to enjoy. Our first stop was an old castle that over looks the town. Although now in ruins, you can still climb the stairs to the top of the tower where a platform provides an even better view of the surrounding area. From there, we moved on to the "tight rope" (as it's called by the Tourist Office) section of the hike. We walked along the crest of the hill, looking down on both sides. After a quick lunch we moved along, stomped through lots of mud, and eventually made it to a hotel where we enjoyed one of our favorite beers, Schneider Weisse!! Our journey continued at a quicker pace in order to make it back to the start before it got dark. After six hours in total, we made it back, and completed another beautiful hike in Switzerland. You can see our pictures here.

Basel Autumn Fair

On 11 July 1471 Emperor Frederick III granted Basel's Mayor the right to hold an Autumn Fair "in perpetuity". The fair begins 14 days before St. Martin's day each year, lasts for two weeks and ends on the third Sunday evening. There are also fairs within the fair, the autumn goods fair, the wine fair, and the big market on the Petersplatz. They have hundreds of stands selling goods and craftwork, as well as eating stands and show booths. The range of fairground rides is also large and extremely varied and spread out all over the city. This fair has been around for 535 years - it must be pretty good =)

Basler Half Marathon (aup, aup, aup!)

Ah, another half marathon under our belts: 13.1 miles or 21.5 kilometers, either way, it's a long way. We had a perfect day to run outside, enjoy the weather, and the lovely views during the run. We picked up our numbers and tracking chips on Friday afternoon and the race started at 10:15 on Saturday morning. The Swiss are known for being quite layed back - there was no fan-fare, no music, no pre-race pep-talk...nothin'. Nancy fell on her knee the day before the race, but it was fine by morning - Robert had been talking of 911 and ambulances all week, but made it thru ok. We did a lot more training last year that we did this year although Robert indicated this will be his swan song running event (I don't think he'll miss it). All the people, young and old along the course yell 'aup, aup, aup!' when you run by - we figured it was something akin to 'go-go-go!' =)

Berlin (Day Two)

It was another beautiful day so we decided to visit the Botanical Gardens. They were a little bit off the beaten path but the S-Bahn took us right there and we were able to enjoy terrific fall colors and lovely scenary inside the enormous greenhouses and outside in a 126 acre park. Several web sites suggested that we try to find a bagel when were were in Berlin (I haven't seen one since I stepped foot in Europe). After searching for a little while we found a bagel place and agreed that they were the best bagels we had ever eaten! A disappointment came when we arrived at the Neue Nationalgalerie only to find it closed while they setup thier new exhibit =( Next we went to see The Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie. There was also an 'outdoor' museum Topography of Terror dedicated to remembering what happened during WWII. It is located on the site where the original SS headquarters stood (which is now just an empty lot). Nancy wanted to see the Jewish Museum building, so we wandered over to see the outside of this unusual place, but didn't have time to go inside (we saw the architect, Daniel Libeskind, speak at the JCC in Indianapolis two days before we left). Another great meal and we were off to the train station for our journey home. We were able to watch Michael Schumacher's last F1 race at a nearby bar before we ended a great trip. You can see our pictures from Berlin here.

Berlin (Day One)

For Robert's geburtstag (birthday) we went to Berlin on the city night line train. We left Basel at 20:30 Friday evening and arrived in Berlin at 8:30 Saturday morning(it's quite a long way from here, but we were pretty well rested because we had a sleeper compartment). First on the list was the Reichstag and then a quick trip to the Brandenburg Gate. We had terrific weather both days so we spent a lot of time wandering around the city. Potsdamer Platz had been around for hundreds of years, but has just recently become an architectural fan's dream with many buildings by Renzo Piano. Next on the list was the Bauhaus Archives - FANTASTIC!!! The Bauhaus was only around for 14 years, but is internationally known for it's directors, curriculum, and influence on art and architecture even today. Next up was the Tiergarten and then to the sobering Memorial for Murdered Jews. We walked down the famous Unter den Linden and had a terrific dinner at a local steak house. You can see from the pictures that we had a great day AND FOUR beds in our unusual hotel room!

Are you ready for some FOOTBALL?

After missing all the great football games last year we have now discovered where to find American Football in Basel, Mr. Pickwicks. Since we are 6 hours behind Eastern time we can see one of the games broadcast at 1pm in the states. Last night we saw the lack-luster first half of the Saints/Eagles game, but it was terrific because now at least it's an option. A couple of beers at the pub cost 17CHF, it gets us out of the house, and it's cheaper than watching the new NFL/Yahoo service at home for $25/week (which I'm sure we'll try out in the weeks to come). GO COLTS!

Our Second Visitor!

Straight from Indianapolis, Cori F. came to visit for a very short week. Another visitor that has never been to Europe it was fun showing her around and getting her aquainted with the town. The weather was good for most of the week, but a bit cloudy on our trip to Luzern so she'll have to come back to see the mountains in full glory on a sunny day. We ate lots of great food, drank lots of great wine, tried our new olive oil from Italy and polished off a couple of bags of chips (paprika flavored!). Exceptional experiences included the full-view ladies toilet at the Bar Rouge (thankfully on the 31st floor), the journey 1/2 way up the Munster tower and some great pastoral views at the roman ruins that are very close by. We hope you had a great time Cori, you're welcome back any time!

Sat: Riccione / Hotel Dory

Our dream bike trip to Italy finally came together at the Hotel Dory in Riccione. The best description of it was a cruise-like atmosphere on land. Everything is arranged just enough that it’s flexible but you don’t really have to think about what to do or where to go. The owner and staff are hands on and very helpful, happy, and friendly. The hotel is 2 blocks from a fantastic beach and great shopping area. The owner welcomed the new riders on Saturday evening and explained how the bike program worked. He spoke mostly in French and English, but there were people from all over Europe and North America staying at the hotel. We agreed by the end of the trip that this was the best vacation we had ever taken!!! Check out all the pictures and and read on…

Sun: Ride – Adriatic Coast

A lovely ride along the Adriatic coast was a bit difficult as the hills were short and plentiful, but provided great views of the sea. There are 4 groups of riders (super fast, very fast, fast, not-so fast). You choose the group that’s right for you – after an hour all the groups convene and you can change groups based if you desire. During our stay there were about 60-75 riders and they dropped the super fast group in favor of two fast groups. Part of the bike hotel service is laundering your bike clothes every day and they provide you with a snack (banana and small sandwich) for your ride. They serve 3 meals per day…beer along with a different local wine (red and white) each night are provided free of charge. We met a very nice gentleman, Donald, on our first ride. A native Scot, he’s with the army based in Moscow for years. We had fun talking with him before dinner about his job, where he lives and our shared passion for biking. See pictures from our bike vacation here.

Mon: Ride - San Marino/Picnic

A beautiful sunny day started our ride to San Marino (which is located on a VERY high hill/mountain). We had two areas of assent that were 10% and one that was 18% - the ride was very challenging, but most of the hills were long with a steady climb which makes it very scenic. At the top everyone stopped for coffee and a rest before the decent. Half way down we were treated to a picnic at the hotel owner’s house: pizza, bread, spaghetti, salad, and wine were all a tasty treat. Dessert consisted of a flat yellow cake followed with two types of grappa (one similar to lighter fluid, the other – lemon flavored lighter fluid). That evening we invited a single traveler, Bill from California, to our table. He shared some great suggestions for other fantastic biking vacations in Europe. What a fantastic day!! Check out the pictures.

Tues: Day Off - Sansepolcro

Our initial plan was to drive to Siena, supposedly only 2 hours away, but our navigation system took us the back way and three hours later we weren’t even half way there so we stopped at the nearest town for lunch, Sansepolcro. This is a very old, walled city that, like the rest of Italy, shuts down between 13:00 and 15:30. We took a chance at the first restaurant we saw and had FANTASTIC Italian lunch…we both wanted to take ‘mamma’ home with us! We found the right road back home and arrived in 45 minutes. After dinner, we had a great chat with two school-teachers from Germany. Turns out they decided to ride today and took a very hilly route over 180km! I’m glad we took the day off =) See the pictures here.

Wed: Ride – Hills of Riccione

Today the weather was a bit iffy, but we only got slightly damp. Since it was threatening rain the whole day, our guide decided to show us the high-points and get us back to the hotel by 2pm. With plenty of time to spare we helped ourselves to the lunch buffet, had a beer and then ventured out for gelato (Robert has recently discovered gelato and had a HUGE serving). We waddled over to the beach to try to compensate for over-eating, but figured that’s what you’re suppose to do on vacation =) Bon appetito! See the pictures here.

Thurs: Ride – Flats of Riccione

The ride was a little flatter today than most because we decided to go in the no-so-fast group. We met some very nice, new people and took it easy, but found that we preferred to go a little faster so moved back to our normal group after the coffee break. Over lunch, we talked with a Dutchman who turned out to be a male nurse working in a children’s hospital. A very charming and engaging fellow we both agreed. In the evening the hotel had a traditional dinner from the area with an enormous banana dessert that was absolutely fantastic. Our waitress succumbed to our begging for a second piece for each of us because it was so tasty! Afterwards, we were able to enjoy the hot tub for a relaxing end to a great day. See pictures of our bike vacation here.

Fri: Ride - Wine Tasting

We’ve heard about this day from lots of others on the trip…a trip to a local vineyard and olive grove. This special place is owned by a family that runs wine tasting out of a building near their house. We all sat at a huge table (20+) with a few stragglers in the other room to sample terrific red and white wine, several flavors of balsamic vinaigrette, a variety of cheeses, breads, olive oil and appetizers. We had a terrific time and were half popped when we had to leave to ride another 15km back to the hotel. That evening we invited a single visitor, William, to eat dinner with us. Turns out he’s a retired British construction superintendent and talked of his last job renovating Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre. We had a great time getting to know each other and enjoying the seafood specialties of the region (NEO had an omelet which was perfect). After dinner the hotel owner collected the photos from all the rider’s group guides and presented a sensational 45 minute slide show (with funny commentary, etc.) and concluded by giving a bottle of wine to a special person in each group (decided by the guide) for being helpful or strong or in one case, pretty =) A special cycling jersey was presented to the strongest rider in the group which turned out to be a very nice Dutchman. See our pictures here.

Sat: Bologna

Today we drove to Bologna, home of the world’s oldest university. We wandered around the streets, looked at the very old buildings, towers and the covered terrazzo sidewalks. After a lovely lunch at a local trattoria complete with wine and pasta, we wandered thru an outdoor goods market that had everything from shoes to sun glasses at flea market prices (we understand they have very good bargains, but didn’t find anything we couldn’t live without). Robert wanted to see the local theatre and it wasn’t open in the afternoon, but it was open for an orchestral concert in the evening. As it turns out, the city of Bologna was appointed a UNESCO City of Music on 29 May 2006 so they were celebrating with a series of free concerts. Afterwards, the streets were packed with people enjoying their weekend and we decided on a fantastic place to eat dinner and followed it up with gelato (yummy!). See the pictures.

Sun: Bellinzona

On our way back home with drove on the A1 in Italy and just before you get to Milan, there is a fantastic Santiago Calatrava bridge spanning the autostrada (unfortunately, I cannot find a suitable photo and we weren’t able to take one either =( We have passed Bellinzona several times on our way back from Italy and have never stopped, so lunchtime looming we stopped for a bite and to check out the town. The city is famous for its three castles (Castelgrande, Montebello, Sasso Corbaro) that are now part of the UNESCO world heritage. We didn’t realize we would need so much time to explore and made a note to make a return visit. Here are the pictures.