Grindelwald, Switzerland

Another team event allowed Nancy to visit quintessential Switzerland for three days - Grindelwald. This village is surrounded by terrific mountains (Mönch, Eiger and Jungfrau among others) and the Roche team was able to participate in several outdoor activities while we were there. Our first evening out, we took a bus up to Bussalp to start the Big Pintenfritz: the longest toboggan run in Europe (15km). Everyone got a sled, a light for their head and some simple instructions before we left. Mid-way we stopped at a terrific place for a wonderful fondue dinner before finishing the sledding. The next day we took the train to Kleine Scheidegg and started downhill on traditional velogemels (snow bikes). Before we got to the bottom we created some snow sculptures like the ones they create for the winter snow festival every January. Robert joined us on Friday evening so he could go skiing on Saturday. See the skiing pictures here, see pictures from the "workshop" here.

A sunny day in Switzerland!

Today was a warm and sunny day in Switzerland, so we decided to go for a short tour in the middle of the country. The first stop was the town of Zug. It's a small town of approximately 25K and located on a lake with the same name. It provides fantastic views to the snow covered Alps just a few miles away. We enjoyed walking through the old town and seeing the buildings, shops, narrow streets, and even caged birds including Owls. (Nancy's favorite). Next up, a cogwheel train took us past the sledders and skiers on the way to the top of a mountain called Rigi. After a few beers, we took in the breathtaking views and took pictures and a video of the surrounding mountains and lakes (Robert's favorite). You can see pictures of Zug here, and from Rigi here.

Basel Museum Night 2008

For such a small town (~150,000 people), Basel has over 35 terrific museums to visit and they are all open from 6pm-2am on Museum Night. We took it easy and saw only two new ones this year: the Firefighter Museum and the Pharmacy Museum. The fire museum had terrific displays of old ladders, buckets, fire hydrants, fire trucks, helmets, etc. The 3-man bike from 1899 was of particular note. The pharmacy museum made us thankful to live in modern times. There were many jars and bottles of things like frog tongues and dog teeth that made you wonder if it was a voodoo shop or a animal center. See Museum Night pictures from the last three years here.

Curling

Last week my project team met for a 4-day workshop and we arranged to go curling as our team event. Only 5 of us were able to participate, but we had a great time. There is a curling center about 10 minutes from Basel and an instructor was there to tell us about the history, rules and techniques of the game. Lying prone on the ice I could tell that this sport is a lot harder than it looks! See Curling and other Basel event pictures here.

St. Gallen, Switzerland

St. Gallen is the 7th largest city in Switzerland. We decided to take the city tour to see the Abbey District (a UNESCO world heritage site). The church and library are absolutely stunning! The Stiftsbibliothek has never been renovated since it was built in 1758, but it was in perfect condition. Along with terrific bookshelves and a wood inlay floor, we saw a mummy from 700 B.C, 150,000 books and a book containing the first written musical notes! St. Gallen is also known for its oriels(bay windows) and textiles. The textile museum had lots of great examples and the history of textiles in Switzerland (even a dress that Napoleon's wife wore!). It was a very wet and cold day so we left right after the tour - we need to go back to visit Switzerland's oldest brewery and a couple of Santiago Calatrava structures (bus stop and emergency service center). See our pictures from St. Gallen here.

Basel Architecture Museum

Today we took a short trip... A ten minute walk to the Architecture Museum in Basel. It is currently featuring an exhibit from Pancho Guedes. He's a very creative Painter, Sculptor and Architect from Portugal. Although small, the exhibit has a little of everything, but we were most impressed by the architecture. Take a look at some of his drawings here. Overall, we enjoyed the short trip, and it was a perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon. See all of our Basel pictures here.

Christmas 2007

Another year has come and gone and our only trip back to Indy this year was packed full of family, friends and shopping! We were able to take in the new Marion County Public Library, the Roman Art exhibit at the Museum, and took a peek at the new Colts stadium as well. Qdoba was on Robert’s list and Nancy was able to enjoy some Cracker Barrel favorites - we both miss Taco Bell (if you can believe that) and Quiznos too, but somehow we didn't make it to Dairy Queen. We were reminded of the appalling amount of trash generated at the fast food places. We went out of our way to visit our old gym just about every day, watch several football games and were also able to stake out the outline of our new house on the lot. 2008 will bring lots more work, travel and good times –this will be our third and final year in Switzerland and we still have tons of things to see and do. Here’s wishing you a healthy and prosperous New Year!! See our Christmas pictures here, and our house pictures here.

Stadtkeller Basel

We took our German language teacher out for a holiday dinner and he got to choose the location. His other students recommended a place called the Stadtkeller (literally: city cellar) recently and really enjoyed it. Apparently this establishment is well know and it was very crowded when we arrived. Mid-way through our salads, a deep voice sounds over the room, the lights dim, and the music comes up. A spot light directs our attention to a curtain in the corner that is pulled back to reveal an animated Freddy Mercury doll surrounded by furry dogs who proceed to belt out a non-Christmas Queen song of days gone by. Next, another curtain opens with a Tina Turner doll complete with sax-playing reindeer and a disco ball. Two additional curtained areas contained Fats Domino (who looked more like Little Richard) with hula-like Christmas trees, and Docelli with Rattitui directing his performance. We were completely stunned by these elaborate displays and of course stayed for the 2nd set. It was a great time and Robert is still kicking himself for not taking his camera.

Middle Germany - Nurnberg/Bamberg

Nurnberg is a large city with (supposedly) the best Christmas market in Europe. We arrived on a Saturday evening and were amazed at the number of people and shear number of shopping opportunities. Once we found the Christmas market, it was in full swing - wall to wall people eating bratwurst (which was invented in Nurnberg), drinking Gluehwein and wandering around the market. It was so packed in some places that we couldn't even move! The most special items were nutcrackers and smoke men which both come from Germany. We went back the next day to visit the city and were delighted with the churches, streets and castle that are still contained within the city walls. Last stop, Bamberg. This is another great town that is a UNESCO world heritage site. The weather was a bit rainy so we decided to visit a local brewery for lunch: Klosterbrau. Afterwards we toured their beautiful town (which was barely touched during the war), visited their Christmas market, and dodged the raindrops before returning home. If you ever get the opportunity to visit middle Germany during the Christmas season, it will provide memories for a lifetime. See pictures of Nurnberg here and Bamberg here.

Middle Germany - Wurzburg/Buttenheim

Wurzburg is the home to the famous Wurzburg Residenz (that's okay - we had never heard of it either). It was a fantastic castle, and had very interesting displays about how it was beautifully renovated after nearly being destroyed on March 16, 1945. The Marienberg Fortress sits on a hill over looking the city- we were so lucky to be there during Christmas time because they were having a medieval Christmas fair and market complete with traditional clothes, music (see video) and even a live nativity. The coolest thing about the fortress was the the view and the 101 meter deep well that was dug many centuries ago. A short trip down the road brought us to the birth place of Levi Strauss, Buttenheim. They made a terrific museum of his residence and we learned most everything you could ever want to know about jeans. See pictures of Wurzburg here and Buttenheim here.

Middle Germany - Ulm/Rothenburg

We ventured out for a three-day weekend during our last Christmas season in Europe to experience the best of the best, Christmas markets...We were not disappointed! Ulm made the list not because of its Christmas Market, but because it's home to the world's tallest cathedral and it's the birthplace of Albert Einstein! The cathedral was indeed very impressive and on the windiest day of the year, we climbed all 768 stairs to the very top (whew - that was a lot of stairs!). Most of the buildings were destroyed during the war, including Einstein's birthplace, but there is a small plaque commemorating the site. They had an unexpectedly great Christmas market complete with a live animal nativity scene and we enjoyed our 3 hour visit immensely. Next stop, Rothenberg ob der Tauber - it's a walled city, ya know. This city has so much charm it's hard to believe it's real. We visited the city in the evening, walked around the market, drank some gluehwein and ate at a 700 year old restaurant! See Ulm pictures here, and Rothenberg pictures here.

Jura Watchmaking Road

Western Switzerland is home of the Swiss watchmaking industry. From Geneva to Chaux-de-Fonds the road is paved with all the greats: Rolex, Omega, Tissot, TAG Heuer, Breitling, Swatch...the list goes on and on. Today we visited the International Museum of Horology (the science and study of timekeeping devices) and we were amazed at the collection, the layout and the scope - it was terrific. They profiled the history of Swiss watchmaking, the development of the trade and tools, and displayed stunning examples of Swiss clocks and watches thru the centuries. One exhibit featured new technology in GPS clock synchronization, and another featured the CERN project (the largest particle physics laboratory in the world) which is located underneath this and several other cities in the area. Our drive home took us thru lovely Neuchatel and Yverdon les Bains with a terrific view of the alps over Lac De Neuchatel. See pictures - Neuchatel, Yverdon and the Museum.

Basel Christmas Market

Every year most major European cities set up Christmas markets for the holiday season. On Saturday we visited Switzerland's best - Basel. The market is a feast for the eyes and the stomach. The smell of traditional Swiss food along with warm Gluehwein fill the air and the market is packed with men, women and children of all ages and nationalities. The booths have everything: hand-made wares, Christmas decorations, children's toys, candles, jewelry and Swiss confections. It was sprinkling, but very mild from previous weather and we had a great time wandering around and enjoying the sites. Other great Christmas markets in France include Colmar and Strasbourg, but the most famous ones are in middle-Germany. We are taking a 3-day weekend next week to visit them...stay tuned! See pictures from the Basel Christmas Market and other Basel events here.

French Wallpaper Museum

Since the first time we passed the sign, Robert has been begging me to go to the Wallpaper Museum. Well, today was the day - cold and cloudy - THIS was the perfect opportunity. Everything you ever wanted to know about wallpaper (in French, no less) is contained in these 4 walls. The paper, the printing machines, the designs, the scenes - it was FASCINATING and I was barely able to drag Robert away. It's no wonder - the history of wallpaper is compelling to many and there is even a wallpaper history society! See our pictures here.

Basler Stadtlauf (City Run)

To kick off the holiday season, Basel holds a charity run. Young and old alike participate in this 5.5k event which takes place in the evening. Each gender is broken up by age group and start at 1/2 hour intervals; fans along the route cheer, ring cowbells and shout encouragement to the participants. Near the starting line a stage is set up and every hour a 'warm-up' session takes place with trainers to lively music. Robert and I both ran this year - after the race we donned our medals and drank a Gatorade toast to a job well done! See our Basel events here.

Basel Christmas Tree Lighting

On Tuesday, Basel's Christmas lights were switched on. The festive season has begun! Throughout Basel's streets and squares, some 100 Christmas trees were illuminated at the same time. The Brass Ensemble of the Boy's Choir together with an additional choir from Theater Basel provided musical accompaniment to the event, staged at Market Square. We enjoyed the evening with some of our work colleagues and finished it off with dinner at a Spanish restaurant on the Rhine river. Nothing says Christmas like tapas in Switzerland! See pictures from Basel here.

Foundation Beyeler

A quick trip to our favorite museum, Foundation Beyeler. Located on the edge of Basel, it's just ten minutes away in the car. The museum is currently featuring a "Forests of the World" exhibit with great pictures from photographers like Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, Ernst Haas, Frans Lanting, and numerous others. We were shocked to see that some of Robert's best pictures weren't featured. Unbelievable. Anyway, the building was designed by Nancy's favorite architect, Renzo Piano, and anytime we have an excuse to go there, we will. See pictures from Basel here.

FCB: Football Club Basel

Today we went to a soccer game for the home team: Football Club Basel (FCB). It takes place in a stadium designed by the world famous Herzog and de Meuron. One of our neighbors plays on the team: Koji Nakata - it's similar to having a Pacer or a Colt living in your neighborhood. It's a bit surreal to see the riot police with their batons, shields and helmets before the game - they are there to make sure the hooligans do not start any trouble. Soccer is THE sport in Europe, but for us, it's a good reason to eat sausage, pretzels and drink beer! See pictures from the game and other Basel events by clicking here.

Basel Autumn Fair

Every year since 1470 Basel has held a their annual autumn fair. It is held across the city in 7 different locations. Each location has food and rides and some even have markets to buy hand made items. It was in the low 40's today so we just hit the high-lights: Barfuser Platz, Munster Platz and Peters Platz. Peters Platz has the best market with everything from pottery to puzzles and vegetable peelers to window squeegees. They have tons of food booths and we tried cheese quiche, wurstli (sausage) and magenbrot (literally stomach bread). It was all very tasty and we soaked up all the kids enjoying the rides while we walked thru the other areas. Munster platz has a GIGANTIC farris wheel that can be seen from all over the city. After 537 years, they must get something right - it was a great way to spend the afternoon! See lots of pictures from around Basel here.

Cirque du Soleil - Delirium

We ventured out of town on a 'school night' to attend the latest Cirque du Soleil show in Zurich. Delirium offers lots of the same acrobatics that makes Cirque shows famous, but offered more music and singing than usual. Delirium was produced specificlly for short runs (3-5 nights in one city) before it packs up and moves to a different location. They did a terrific job with the special effects and really captured a dream-like quality the story line required. Another bonus was that everything was in English! We had a great time and enjoyed our night out - it was a nice change of pace.