This morning we woke up to cloudy skies and rain, which was disappointing considering we had planned to spend the morning on my mini-version of an Anabaptist study tour. In the end, we toured the Grossmuenster church, saw Zwingli’s statute, and saw the home of Conrad Grebel, located just a few blocks away from the Grossmuenster. Our drive south through the Alps was fairly dreary, although we were able to see some nice sites here and there. We arrived in Bellinzona, a small town in southern Switzerland, in the middle of the afternoon and settled in to our hotel. The cheapest hotel I could find with fairly decent reviews was located right in town. For $200 CDN we got one whole room with a bathroom just a bit larger than a porta-potty. Our keys were in an envelope in a box outside the front door, and we helped ourselves to the room. We had paid through Expedia, so I guess they had all the information they needed, including our credit card, so they didn’t see the need to check us in. Kind of strange, but it worked.
We had not had any lunch so we wanted to have an early dinner at around 4:00 p.m. before doing some exploring. Unfortunately, all of the restaurants we checked told us that they couldn’t serve us until 6:00 or 6:30! I couldn’t believe it, but we grabbed a snack and headed off for some touring.
Bellinzona is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and famous for the three medieval castles in and above the town. It was a little cool and breezy, but we ventured to one of the castles and had a great time exploring the grounds and part of the long wall that surrounds much of the city. From the one castle we could view the two others, and it made for a spectacular site, with the Swiss Alps rising in the distance.
Dinner was a simple pasta dish for each of us, with three soft drinks and a litre of water. Total bill? $125 CDN. I don’t care if there is anyone here reading this who is from Switzerland – this country is nuts in terms of the cost of items. How anyone can justify charging $10 for a litre of water (they simply don’t provide you with water from the tap) is beyond me. It is obvious to me that the country’s economy is completely out of sync with the rest of Europe in terms of salaries and the cost of goods in the country. Diesel fuel that is just over a Euro a litre in Germany and Italy is 1.60 Euros in Switzerland. I’m glad I didn’t have to fill up driving through the country.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
July 6, 2009
This morning our boys were treated to their first official continental breakfast at the hotel in Kirchzarten. Of the three boys, Solomon is the most taken by it all. He thinks that we should have meat and cheese for breakfast every day now, just like the Germans. It would have been nice to explore the Black Forest area, but instead we headed east and then south to Schaffhausen, Switzerland. The town is beautiful with murals painted on many of the buildings, built in various architectural styles. We climbed up the top of the castle tower and had a nice view of the town and the Rhine river.
Lunch was another learning experience for us. We decided after yesterday that it probably makes more sense to have a light lunch and a light dinner instead of a snack or two and then a larger dinner. So, we found a pizza place and chose what we thought were five individual pizzas, each around $4.00 CDN. Well, when the pizzas came, we were surprised at the size, but most of us were able to polish them off, so we thought we had made a good decision. Well, the bill came and it was $80.00 CDN! We have found several times now that for some reason we are being misinterpreted when we order, even though Karen is pretty good with her German (I am pretty pathetic, but I try). Needless to say, we are drastically changing our eating approach while in Switzerland. I cannot believe how expensive everything is here. But enough of that.
After Schaffhausen, we drove a few kilometres west to Rheinfall, the site of the largest waterfall in Europe. Well, it is nothing compared to Niagara Falls or some of the smaller waterfalls we have seen, but it was scenic nonetheless. We then drove 20-30 kilometres east to Stein am Rhein, also in Switzerland. This town is absolutely beautiful. Many of the buildings on the major street are elaborately decorated like no other town I have seen. While here, we purchased Swiss army knives for each of the boys, as we had promised back in Canada. The boys were all very pleased with their gifts.
After Stein am Rhein, we drove around a half an hour south-west to Zurich, and checked in to our hotel. I wasn’t expecting much, given the ridiculous prices of hotels in Zurich, and our quoted price of 200 Francs (around $220 CDN). However, when we opened the door we were surprised to see three bedrooms and a kitchen. At that point we were off to the grocery store across the street to pick up food for this evening and tomorrow morning (we could eat breakfast here at the hotel, but the price is 14 Francs per person - $15 CDN). I wasn’t feeling very well (too much sun and not enough fluids I think) so Karen and the boys explored the neighbourhood in the evening while I prepared for tomorrow.
Tomorrow will be my version of a mini-Anabaptist study tour as we roam around Zurich. I am totally pumped, but I have picked up some vibes that other family members aren’t feeling the same level of excitement!
Lunch was another learning experience for us. We decided after yesterday that it probably makes more sense to have a light lunch and a light dinner instead of a snack or two and then a larger dinner. So, we found a pizza place and chose what we thought were five individual pizzas, each around $4.00 CDN. Well, when the pizzas came, we were surprised at the size, but most of us were able to polish them off, so we thought we had made a good decision. Well, the bill came and it was $80.00 CDN! We have found several times now that for some reason we are being misinterpreted when we order, even though Karen is pretty good with her German (I am pretty pathetic, but I try). Needless to say, we are drastically changing our eating approach while in Switzerland. I cannot believe how expensive everything is here. But enough of that.
After Schaffhausen, we drove a few kilometres west to Rheinfall, the site of the largest waterfall in Europe. Well, it is nothing compared to Niagara Falls or some of the smaller waterfalls we have seen, but it was scenic nonetheless. We then drove 20-30 kilometres east to Stein am Rhein, also in Switzerland. This town is absolutely beautiful. Many of the buildings on the major street are elaborately decorated like no other town I have seen. While here, we purchased Swiss army knives for each of the boys, as we had promised back in Canada. The boys were all very pleased with their gifts.
After Stein am Rhein, we drove around a half an hour south-west to Zurich, and checked in to our hotel. I wasn’t expecting much, given the ridiculous prices of hotels in Zurich, and our quoted price of 200 Francs (around $220 CDN). However, when we opened the door we were surprised to see three bedrooms and a kitchen. At that point we were off to the grocery store across the street to pick up food for this evening and tomorrow morning (we could eat breakfast here at the hotel, but the price is 14 Francs per person - $15 CDN). I wasn’t feeling very well (too much sun and not enough fluids I think) so Karen and the boys explored the neighbourhood in the evening while I prepared for tomorrow.
Tomorrow will be my version of a mini-Anabaptist study tour as we roam around Zurich. I am totally pumped, but I have picked up some vibes that other family members aren’t feeling the same level of excitement!
July 5, 2009
This morning our first stop was Baden-Baden, the site of several famous baths and a casino. We toured the casino and spent a couple of hours wandering around the city. Baden-Baden is a beautiful little town with many attractive buildings. We took a peek into the grounds of one of the baths or spas and were quite envious of the people getting their treatments.
Our next stop was Strasbourg over the border in France. The highlight was, yet again, another cathedral. The cathedral in Strasbourg is absolutely spectacular, especially from the outside. It has literally hundreds of various figures carved into the walls, and the interior is also very impressive, although we thought the stained glass windows in Speyer were more attractive. We splurged a bit and had various cheesecakes at a bakery.
We then took a more scenic drive off of the autobahn to Freiburg and then to a little town in the Black Forest called Kirchzarten, where we checked into our first hotel during our time in Europe. We are using credit card points for most of our hotels, which is really saving us a lot of money. In many cases we need to book two rooms because most hotels in Europe only have double or triple rooms. We had a typical German meal and then had some ice cream before retiring for the evening.
The weather has been quite warm while in Germany, and often fairly humid. I would say the average high temperature has been around 30 degrees Celsius. A few clouds roll in and we might have a sprinkle or two, and then we are back to sunshine again. It sometimes feels warmer here than in Ethiopia, due to Ethiopia’s high elevation and dry climate. Oh well, we can’t complain at all. We are having a great time, although we need to be a little more deliberate in planning kid-friendly activities a bit more. The cathedrals and castles are getting to be a bit much for Isaac, although Richard can’t seem to get enough of them!
Our next stop was Strasbourg over the border in France. The highlight was, yet again, another cathedral. The cathedral in Strasbourg is absolutely spectacular, especially from the outside. It has literally hundreds of various figures carved into the walls, and the interior is also very impressive, although we thought the stained glass windows in Speyer were more attractive. We splurged a bit and had various cheesecakes at a bakery.
We then took a more scenic drive off of the autobahn to Freiburg and then to a little town in the Black Forest called Kirchzarten, where we checked into our first hotel during our time in Europe. We are using credit card points for most of our hotels, which is really saving us a lot of money. In many cases we need to book two rooms because most hotels in Europe only have double or triple rooms. We had a typical German meal and then had some ice cream before retiring for the evening.
The weather has been quite warm while in Germany, and often fairly humid. I would say the average high temperature has been around 30 degrees Celsius. A few clouds roll in and we might have a sprinkle or two, and then we are back to sunshine again. It sometimes feels warmer here than in Ethiopia, due to Ethiopia’s high elevation and dry climate. Oh well, we can’t complain at all. We are having a great time, although we need to be a little more deliberate in planning kid-friendly activities a bit more. The cathedrals and castles are getting to be a bit much for Isaac, although Richard can’t seem to get enough of them!
July 4, 2009
This morning we headed out from Frankfurt and began our drive south. Our first stop was Worms, the site of a well-known cathedral and a place famous in Reformation history. This is where Martin Luther was called to appear before Emperor Charles V and the Diet of Worms in 1521 and supposedly uttered the famous phrase “Here I stand. I can do no other.” He probably didn’t really say these exact words (in German of course) but the sentiment is probably close enough. We had a little shower during our time here, but had a good look around the town centre anyways.
After Worms we continued our drive south to Speyer, the site of another well-known cathedral. We all agreed that this cathedral was fantastic, especially the stained glass windows. After touring around the cathedral, we headed back into the van and drove to McDonald’s. We had promised the boys that after two months in Ethiopia we would hit a McDonald’s as soon as we could. Over 30 Euros later (that’s close to $50!) I made it clear that this is probably the last time we will do this.
We continued our drive south and stopped in Karlsruhe, where we parked downtown and toured the palace grounds, which include a large park. We took a little train ride around the park, which Isaac really enjoyed. The only driving “incident” we had that day was when, while being guided by the GPS, Richard ended up driving down a pedestrian mall meant only for the tram. After a few pedestrians made their feelings quite clear to us, we quickly found an exit and were no worse for the experience.
We then met our host family for the evening, arranged through Mennonite Your Way. It was a Funk family from a Mennonite church in the area. They were very hospitable and had a nice room for the five of us. We showed them some of our Ethiopia pictures and talked about people we knew in common (the Mennonite world tends to be pretty small – one of their former pastors was one of our seminary professors, and we knew the brother of one of the church members!).
After Worms we continued our drive south to Speyer, the site of another well-known cathedral. We all agreed that this cathedral was fantastic, especially the stained glass windows. After touring around the cathedral, we headed back into the van and drove to McDonald’s. We had promised the boys that after two months in Ethiopia we would hit a McDonald’s as soon as we could. Over 30 Euros later (that’s close to $50!) I made it clear that this is probably the last time we will do this.
We continued our drive south and stopped in Karlsruhe, where we parked downtown and toured the palace grounds, which include a large park. We took a little train ride around the park, which Isaac really enjoyed. The only driving “incident” we had that day was when, while being guided by the GPS, Richard ended up driving down a pedestrian mall meant only for the tram. After a few pedestrians made their feelings quite clear to us, we quickly found an exit and were no worse for the experience.
We then met our host family for the evening, arranged through Mennonite Your Way. It was a Funk family from a Mennonite church in the area. They were very hospitable and had a nice room for the five of us. We showed them some of our Ethiopia pictures and talked about people we knew in common (the Mennonite world tends to be pretty small – one of their former pastors was one of our seminary professors, and we knew the brother of one of the church members!).
Sunday, July 5, 2009
July 3, 2009
We spent the day driving along the Rhine exploring the many small towns and castles. We stopped in Ruedesheim and took a two hour river cruise. It was very beautiful and so relaxing that Sol actually fell asleep. The day started off incredibly hot but in the early afternoon the clouds rolled in and we even had a short shower which was a welcome relief. In the afternoon we explored Marksburg which is one of the bigger castles along the Rhine in Braubach, just south of Koblenz. It is the only Rhine castle that has not had to be restored due to damage from a war. The tour was interesting and would have been even more informative if it has been in English!
On the way home, we finally mastered the GPS in our van and were able to get home without opening a single map. This is a great relief for me since the pressure of navigating was starting to stress me (and Richard!). We got back to the house and of course, Elvira had more food waiting for us! They have been incredibly hospitable to us.
On the way home, we finally mastered the GPS in our van and were able to get home without opening a single map. This is a great relief for me since the pressure of navigating was starting to stress me (and Richard!). We got back to the house and of course, Elvira had more food waiting for us! They have been incredibly hospitable to us.
July 2, 2009
We have begun the next phase of our journey as we arrived in Germany this morning. We managed to get a few hours of sleep on the overnight flight from Ethiopia although we certainly didn’t feel rested. We rented a van at the airport and managed to find our way to Sasha and Elvira’s house (Sasha is a cousin of Richard's father) here in Frankfurt. They have welcomed us very warmly despite their lack of English. My rusty German is certainly getting a work out! However, they do have one son who is studying Engineering and who is quite proficient in English so he helps us out when the language barrier gets too overwhelming.
The biggest culture shock has been the abundance of marvelous food around us! Elvira seems to get great joy out of feeding our boys and she has been doing that continuously since we arrived. And the boys have obliged by eating more than I’ve ever witnessed them eat before. Simple things such as sliced meats and cheese to make sandwiches are such a special thing now. We will need to make sure that the weight that some family members lost in the past two months isn’t gained back in the next two days!
We spent the afternoon sightseeing in Frankfurt. Sasha and Elvira’s house is located a block away from the U-Bahn so we were able to use public transportation. There is not a lot of history in Frankfurt since they entire city was completely bombed in WW II and has had to be rebuilt. However, we enjoyed doing some shopping and checking out the few historical buildings that remain. In the evening Elvira took us to a nearby mall where they were showing all sorts of Ferrari’s at some sort of special show.
Tonight I will finally sleep well again since the malaria medication is now entirely out of my system. After reading that the possible side effects that include insomnia and anxiety I realized that my sleep issues and feelings of panic started in Arber Mench when I began taking malaria pills. Now that I have discontinued for the past few days, I’m feeling like a new person!
The biggest culture shock has been the abundance of marvelous food around us! Elvira seems to get great joy out of feeding our boys and she has been doing that continuously since we arrived. And the boys have obliged by eating more than I’ve ever witnessed them eat before. Simple things such as sliced meats and cheese to make sandwiches are such a special thing now. We will need to make sure that the weight that some family members lost in the past two months isn’t gained back in the next two days!
We spent the afternoon sightseeing in Frankfurt. Sasha and Elvira’s house is located a block away from the U-Bahn so we were able to use public transportation. There is not a lot of history in Frankfurt since they entire city was completely bombed in WW II and has had to be rebuilt. However, we enjoyed doing some shopping and checking out the few historical buildings that remain. In the evening Elvira took us to a nearby mall where they were showing all sorts of Ferrari’s at some sort of special show.
Tonight I will finally sleep well again since the malaria medication is now entirely out of my system. After reading that the possible side effects that include insomnia and anxiety I realized that my sleep issues and feelings of panic started in Arber Mench when I began taking malaria pills. Now that I have discontinued for the past few days, I’m feeling like a new person!
June 30, 2009
Our last full day in Ethiopia..... We awoke to a huge thunderstorm outside with lightening flashing magnificently and rain pouring down. Rainy season has definitely arrived and makes us ready to move on to Europe where we hope to encounter summer again!
We spent the day completing tasks in the library, cleaning out the apartment and packing. Sol and I got to go for one more long walk together and Isaac spent time taking final pictures of the campus. We have certainly had an amazing experience here in Ethiopia and will treasure these memories forever. Isaac is convinced that he will come back here since he thinks he likes Ethiopia even better than Canada! We are so grateful for this opportunity.
Tomorrow morning the College says farewell to us at their morning chapel and then we head in to Addis for the day to spend some time with friends and get a few things done. We fly for Frankfurt at1:45 a.m. (technically July 2nd). We are looking forward to some personal holiday time in Europe tracking down long-lost relatives in Germany and introducing the kids to some amazing sites and rich history.
We spent the day completing tasks in the library, cleaning out the apartment and packing. Sol and I got to go for one more long walk together and Isaac spent time taking final pictures of the campus. We have certainly had an amazing experience here in Ethiopia and will treasure these memories forever. Isaac is convinced that he will come back here since he thinks he likes Ethiopia even better than Canada! We are so grateful for this opportunity.
Tomorrow morning the College says farewell to us at their morning chapel and then we head in to Addis for the day to spend some time with friends and get a few things done. We fly for Frankfurt at1:45 a.m. (technically July 2nd). We are looking forward to some personal holiday time in Europe tracking down long-lost relatives in Germany and introducing the kids to some amazing sites and rich history.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
