July 1 - 7 Corrie came to town

Corrie visited!

Corrie is my only friend who visited me at every one of my apartments since she has known me (we are working on a Portland meet-up), which I consider to be some pretty amazing dedication to our friendship and travel. We only lived in the same state for about 2 months and I have lived in 7 different places since we met, so most visits required air travel, including the Swiss trip. And surprising as it may seem, there are no direct flights from Albuquerque to Zurich. (Corrie, just so you know, I spelled Albuquerque correctly on my first try. I'm pretty proud of myself!) Obviously, I was thrilled when she told me she was going to visit.

We packed so much in her week visit and the time flew by. We hiked around Uetliberg, toured Zurich, took a boat cruise to Rapperswil, went to a huge Google office bash, saw Snoop Dogg, experienced Zurifest, had two nights of astounding fireworks, stayed up until 2 am more than once, watched Napoleon Dynamite for old time's sake, and took a day trip to the Rhine Falls. Corrie's college friend David came to town from London for a long weekend to catch up. They hadn't seen each other for years and it was lots of fun. We ambitiously planned a 10 mile hike for her last day in town, but poor weather and exhaustion prevented us from attempting the hike. Oh man, I'm so glad we didn't try. Our trip to Schaffhausen & Rhine Falls was the perfect substitution. For some reason, this town has super cheap stores and we had fun shopping. Corrie even scored a few new low priced tops, swiss army knife shaped chocolates, and a gelato.

It is difficult to pinpoint highlights because it was all so fun. I did love seeing Corrie mix some records on Google's dj equipment and riding a giant ferris wheel at 1 am above the revelry of Zurifest was pretty epic, and a tad scary. Nate wanted so badly to spin our car, but Corrie and I could only hand a few revolutions before begging him to stop. Puking on the crowd might have hurt the party spirit.

Also, the two nights of fireworks were mind blowing. They had fireworks shooting from helicopters, ground, and the lake all perfectly choreographed to music. We were able to have our own makeshift 4th of July celebration a few days early. All in all, another awesome week with a great friend!

More pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/bodenstab/SwitzerlandCorrie#

June 21 - 28 - Lazy week

We had a very low key week and made up for it with a full weekend of exploring Zurich and hiking around the alps. It was nice to have a relaxing week especially since we were both battling colds. We went through a lot of tissues and Nate may have passed on his cold to an office mate too. But, our nasal passages cleared and our bodies were less achy by Saturday, so we spent the day out on the town. The weather was great and we went for a walk around the lake and eventually made it to a mall so I could buy some yarn. Did you know I started knitting? I made a scarf with some amazing yarn my mom brought me. Initially, it was going to be for Nate, but it is so pretty that I think we will have to share it. Now, I am just practicing some things from a book (also from my mom): knitting for dummies. I like it! Plus, we got the yarn for 50 percent off. After yarn bargaining we went to Google to play a little pool and escape the heat before heading back to relax by the lake.

On Sunday, weather was predicted to be clear in the mountains so we got up super early, caught the 7:30 train and hiked around Gimmelwald & Murren. We have been here before, but we wanted an experience without rain and clouds. It was beautiful!

(The start of the hike)

We went on a hike following the river into a valley that ended at the base of a mountain. We had a picnic, explored the valley, and then made our way back to town. We walked around Murren for a bit, took a cable car back to Lauterbrunnen and watched some of the England vs. Germany world cup game before hopping on the train home. The game was a nightmare for England, good thing I don't care about the world cup. But I do care about fries and we had a nice big plate of them while we watched the game. It was an excellent end to our trip to the mountains.

(Don't worry, he's not super sweaty - he just got out from taking a "dip" in the glacier fed river)

(We finally reached our destination)

Then, after getting home, I finally broke down and cut Nate's hair. I am not a big fan of cutting his hair since I don't know how, but he always charms me into giving it another try. This time, I only had a dull pair of kitchen scissors and no comb. Really, I just blindly chopped away hoping for the best. I left a rat tail for a bit, because it made me laugh, don't worry it's gone now. And, I accidentally cut a chunk off way too short, but he doesn't mind. What do you think?

My friend Corrie arrives on Thursday for a week! It's going to be great. And, we just learned that Zurich is having a huge festival with a carnival, free concerts, and even two nights of fireworks while she is here. Good times will be had by all!

June 8 - 17 Sister time

Where to start? Sarah came to visit us for 10 days and it was wicked fun, of course! We did so much stuff. Nate suggested that I just write this in bullet point form to keep this post under control. I fear that bullet points may not fully capture the awesomeness of our adventures, but it will at least give you a taste. Which is probably all you want :) (And, these bullet points are in no particular order. I like to keep you on your toes).

* Most importantly, Sarah cooked homemade popcorn on the stove every day. She's a pro and it was amazing. I want some right now.

* We went to Italy, Germany, & Austria!

* We hiked all over Switzerland. In fact, the first day she arrived we went on a 5+ mile hike around Uetliberg just to break her in :)

* We hiked 10-12 miles after a trip up Mt. Santis. We both agreed it was the most scenic hike we had ever been on. And one of the longest. The sun was shining, we had incredible mountain views the entire time, the Swiss farmers were out in full force haying and it smelled so deliciously fragrant, and we seemed to be the only hikers on the trail which made it seems as though the glorious weather and breathtaking vistas were just for us.

* We explored Bavaria (southern Germany) and toured the Nieuwenstein Castle. Our tour guide was very strange and Nate's impression of him kept us laughing all day.

* Sarah's one wish for her trip to Germany came true - we were able to relax and lay out by a lake while having a picnic. It seemed blissful, but that may just be the nutella talking.

* We went to Como, Italy, took a ferry across the lake to Bellagio. George Clooney has a home here. He invited us in for lunch, but we had a lot to do so we politely declined. The town was so cute and so different from the Swiss towns we had visited. Sarah felt it was truly an "Italian" experience. Eating some scrumptious pizza followed by gelato was icing on the cake.

* We were both astounded by the lack of quality public bathrooms in Como. They had actually squatty toilets in the train station. Sarah was worried that we had made a wrong turn and arrived in Calcutta. Switzerland has definitely spoiled us with its clean bathrooms and never ending fresh water supply around town and on remote hiking trails.

* I learned that Sarah seems to be a good luck charm in terms of weather. Everywhere we went the sun came out. Seriously, squalls and storms were predicted for our day trip to Italy. We only experienced a light drizzle with sun breaking through the clouds.

* We realized we do not have strong skills in estimating distance or time. Sarah stopped asking me how far of a walk we were in for because I would always answer "about twenty minutes" no matter what the distance. I don't know. It always seems like twenty minutes to me. Turns out it is usually much, much longer than that.

* We had evening picnics on Zurich lake to watch the sunset and relax. One night we were serenaded (indirectly) by a jazz trombonist accompanied by a guitarist. Sounds lame, right? That was our first thought when we saw them parking themselves along the water. We were so wrong. They were surprisingly talented and the music was beautiful.

* She got the full Zurich tour and we had coffee at a cute little cafe.

* Naturally, she got the google tour and snagged a few tasty mini quiche things that were available in every room.

* We had a great day around the Rhine Falls. We went expecting rain and were treated to great weather. We also got hit on by a few weird & awkward English speaking guys. Don't worry, we turned them down.

* We had a Callnan/Bodenstab party with almost all the kids from both sides of the family (Jake & Whit & Dylan were unable to join us). We got to see all the pictures from Jake, Nikki, Laura & Zach's trip and eat some tasty food together.

Phew, see, we were very busy. I think we had two full days when we just crashed by sleeping in late, watching bones episodes, and staying very close to home.

I really loved having Sarah here. The ten days flew by!

Here's more evidence of our good times:

http://picasaweb.google.com/bodenstab/SarahVisitsSwitzerland#

June 5 - Rhine Falls

Another sunny Saturday! I swear our guests will never believe us that we have good weather here. But, it is true, the sun does shine in Switzerland. We decided to check out the nearby town (well, and hour away by train) of Schaffhausen and the Rhine Falls. Despite it being close to 80 degrees and sunny, the town was surprisingly lacking in tourists. The old town was beautiful and manageable. By manageable, I mean it was easy to navigate and it was small enough that we didn't get overwhelmed. Sometimes, there are only so many old buildings you see before you get history fatigued.

We also explored an old castle/fort with a pretty cool dungeon area. Well, it is really just the dark dank inside, but we like to think it was a dungeon.

After treating ourself to a gelato (a bit of a theme for us while traveling) we walked a few miles along the river to Rhine Falls.

Rhine Falls claims to be the largest falls in Europe. (But, Switzerland always seems to be claiming these kinds of things). Nate and I decided that Oregon offers far more dramatic falls, but the Rhine Falls may win for absolute widest falls. It was gorgeous and absolutely worth the trip. We had a picnic lunch nearby.

Before catching the train home, we checked out the hostel at the top of the falls where Doris stayed when she was in college. What an amazing location!

June 3 & 4- The Fam arrives!

Nikki, Laura & Zach arrived in Zurich bright and early to start their grand European tour with Jake. I met them at the airport and they all came back to the apartment to crash for a bit. It is amazing how an hour and half of sleep can perk up a person :) Due to a packed travel schedule, they only had one day planned to be in Zurich so we decided to make the most of it even though the rain was trying to dampen our spirits. But these West Coast folks are not daunted by a little drizzle, they ate a vegetarian lunch for sustenance, threw on their hoodies, and were rip roaring and ready to go!

I gave them a somewhat unofficial tour of the old city, lake, and famous sites. Statures were mimicked, swans were startled, fountains were slurped from, many pictures were taken, and some feet got sore. I tried to break them in gently to my extreme walking style, but perhaps I should have taken it down a notch.

I did receive a little bit of protest when I made them hike to the top of Uetliberg, but everyone agreed that the view was worth it :) Well, Nikki did after she woke up from her short nap on Laura's shoulder.

We finished our whirlwind Zurich day with a tour of the infamous google office. Let's just say that the fire pole & slide were a huge hit! Of course, dinner couldn't be missed. Everyone ate their fill and we waddled home for a relaxed evening. What a full day!

The next morning I took them to the train station to start their trip to Paris with bags full of snacks. A minor eurail ticket disaster was adverted and they were on their way! Can't wait to see them again in a little over week when they fly home.

Till we meet again!

June 2 - We have a niece!

Emma Elizabeth Callnan was born early this morning after 34 hours of labor. Obviously, Whit is a champ! She is a few weeks early, but she is doing great! Jake is over the moon and the entire family is smitten. Of course, she is extremely beautiful, not that we're biased :) She's the first grandbaby on both sides and both grandmothers were there for the entire birth. I even got to be part of the action via skype. I kept running to the computer every few minutes for updates. Jake B is staying with us and was very patient with me as I was glued to skype the past few days. I can't wait to meet her in person!

http://picasaweb.google.com/bodenstab/Emma#

May 29 - May 31 Germany trip

We had an amazing weekend in Northern Germany with Nate's relatives. We boarded our train at 8:30 PM Friday in Zurich and arrived in Bremen, Germany at 9:30 am Saturday. It was my first time on a night train. We arrived in Bremen a tad weary, but ready for adventure. Jake made it all the way from Salzburg, Austria to meet us there. Nate's cousin Nicole and her boyfriend Sven picked us up and took us back to their apartment for much needed showers and a fabulous breakfast spread.

We ate far too much and then took on Bremen: we had a tour of the old town, squeezed through the smallest street, partook of some ice cream, saw the sites, and of course, rubbed the feet of the Bremen town players while making a wish. It's tradition!

Another fine German tradition, at least for our relatives, is to eat amazing meals together. We finished the day with a traditional (the buzz word of the weekend) meal provided by Thea & Hermann in Neubruchhausen. Lots of meat, cheese, bread, salads, and yes, meat with an egg inside thanks to German cutting edge meat production practices. We went to bed early due to travel exhaustion and the rest of the family settled in to watch Europe's international version of American Idol (except it has been around since 1956): Eurovision Song Contest. I won't keep you on the edge of your seats, Germany's contender Lena won. How could she not with a song like this, plus she's pretty cute: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmOeISUYXuI

Sunday was filled with more family fun. Hermann took us on a walk through the town and we saw a town poster featuring Nate & Jake's great grandfather Fritz Bodenstab.

We did a little exploring on our own and then met up with the extended family at Nicole's parents house for a bbq. Nicole and Domenik (cousin) did double duty with translating and we had a fine time depiste the rain. But, the best part of the weekend was due to our current favorite computer program Skype. We busted out the lap top and Hermann and Thea were able to chat with John and Rose. (Despite it being earlier than 6 am west coast time, John & Rose were not only awake to chat, but they were fully prepared for church as well. Impressive!) All the family took turns saying hello and it seemed to be a great moment for Hermann & John.

In the evening, Nicole & Sven brought us back to the train station for our twelve hour journey home. We settled into our sleeper car and just as I was was ready to open my book, we got sucked into a three hour long discussion with our professional vedic astrologer sleeper car mate. He was a friendly and strange guy earnestly trying to explain to us the real meaning of life. It was interesting for a while, but sleepiness set in and I politely ended the conversation. Oh, the people you meet on a train. On the way to Bremen, Nate and I met a Columbian working in Amdseteram as a massage therapist who just had his heart broken by the love of his life. But, that is a much longer different story :) All in all, it was another awesome weekend!

May 24

Again, we had amazing weather and decided to get crazy and take the train to the Mt. Santis/ Appenzell area for a hike. We caught an early train for the two hour trip. The travel was definitely worth it. The sun was bright and the views were astounding.

We arrived at Mt. Santis, along with a billion of bikers (this seems to be a favorite location for serious bikers - leather everywhere!), and could not resist taking the cable car to the top immediately. (Our half price cards are coming in really handy). The cable car doors opened and we were greeted by a cold gusty breeze. Hmmm, seems we were a tad under-dressed for the snowy top. Our freezing legs did not keep us from fully enjoying the experience. Plus, you can run back inside anytime to warm up. Trust me, I ran in few times to bask in the warmth before returning outside for more pictures. We were picture taking fools at the top and pretty much all day. We even treated ourself to a snack at the restaurant at the top.

(Panoramic!)

We returned to the base, grabbed a hiking map, and started out on the wanderweg (path) . We started off with a picnic and both decided that brie & raspberry jam sandwiches are delicious and travel surprisingly well. Our four hour hike took us through fields, woods, hills, and scenic farm land. The views were stunning and we had the mountains always in view.

We finished our hike at a small town and took a train to the town of Appenzell. At this point, we were quite tired, but we still took a stroll through the town. It was cute, but because of the holiday, everything was closed. We hopped on the train again to the next bigger town and bought our tickets to get to Zurich. We couldn't believe it was already 8:30 pm. We were starving. We grabbed some bread, chocolate, and what we thought was butter. Disaster, it was actually some horrendously stinky French cheese. Nate took his chances with time and made a mad dash to the store (after we boarded the train) and returned with the best butter we have ever had. We used his half price card to spread it. See, those things do come in handy!

We arrived back in Zurich close to eleven and ready to drop. It was such a great weekend. We truly conquered the city, countryside, and even a mountain!

Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/bodenstab/Switerland#

May 23

Sunday, the adventures didn't stop. We woke up early, hustled to the free bike station, and signed out bikes for the day. It's a sweet deal: $20 per bike that you get back when you return it in good condition. Naturally, this is pretty popular so you have to be there around opening to snag some wheels. We biked along the river for miles and finally found the Kloster Fahr we tried to hike to a few weeks ago. We never would have made it there and back on foot - it is about 15 miles round trip and far too ambitious for a day walk. But, with our trusty bikes, we made it there easily. After enjoying the buildings and pretty surroundings, we biked back to the city to a lakeside trail. I realized that biking in traffic with speedy cars in a foreign city is not my favorite activity. I was relieved to make it back to a bike path.

We found a park that wasn't completely mobbed, unpacked our blanket, had a little ice cream, and relaxed in the sun. We made it home in time to quickly shower and then head to a bbq with some of Nate's google pals. It was fun and the food was tasty!

May 22 - The start of a long weekend

Nate has a holiday on Monday so, you know what that means, a three day weekend! And, for once, Switzerland was more than generous in the weather department. Instead of drizzle and clouds, we had sun, sun, sun & some more sun. We woke up and decided to go for a morning "stroll" before breakfast or showering. Our morning stroll turned into a four hour walk. We went all over the city and discovered a few new gardens & parks, saw a circus elephant, and did not run into any nudist (this is always a treat). We grabbed some bake goods on the way to snack, but made it home for a late afternoon lunch. We followed up our day with a few hours in the sun by the lake. We weren't the only ones with this idea, the lakeside was swamped with people. We were amazed. Where do all these people come from? To end the perfect & relaxing day, we watched a Bourne movie.

May 17 - 19

My cousin Natalia and her boyfriend Kyle came to visit for two nights while on their "take on Europe" tour. They arrived around midnight Monday night dead on their feet and promptly went to bed. Sadly, there were no seats available on the fast train from Paris, so they had to go slow-mo style which took almost the entire day. So exhausting.

Tuesday was our only day to explore because they had a Wednesday morning train to catch to Italy. But we took full advantage of the day and made our way all over Zurich. Kyle only dozed off a little once on a train ride. I took them on a mini tour of Zurich (trying to recreate the city tour I was given). We saw the sights and tons of pictures were taken- they were even documenting their adventures video style. We had lunch back at the apartment and Natal was thrilled to eat some fresh vegetables. Bread & cheese is economical while travelling, but not super exciting.

The clouds were heavy, but there was no rain so we decided a trip to Uetliberg was in order. (I am determined to pose with all our guests at the Uetliberg lookout). It was beautiful and worth the trip.

After the mountain, we went to Google for a tour and even dinner! We weren't planning on eating there, but it smelled so good :) I think that the Google tour was Kyle's favorite part of the day, hands down. He mentioned several times that he "loved google and that his family loved the internet." Of course, we all went down the fire pole and ate a few banana chocolate chip cookies that were out fresh in every room.

We had plans for a movie night but ended up talking (and eating swiss chocolate, bread, & an assortment of cheese) into the wee hours of the night. It was an awesome day!

The morning came too quickly and we sent Natalia and Kyle on to their next adventure. It was so crazy and random to be able to meet up in Europe. We loved it!

May 15 & 16

Needless to say, after all that travel, walking, hiking, eating, and exploring, we were exhausted. Saturday was our down day... well at least for Nate & me. We did a few errands and then crashed, but my parents kept going strong. They traipsed around Zurich, revisited the old town, had lunch out, and took no pictures :) We opted for a movie night with none other than the famous Bond film: On her majesty's secret service. Well, I had never heard of it, but it was filmed in Switzerland where we hiked yesterday, so we had to watch it. It had all that we hoped for and more filled with: cheesy fight sequences, tons of male chauvinism, bizarre plot, Bond's wedding, and beautiful scenery. We couldn't believe that mom and dad bowed out only half way through to go to bed. Nate and I soldiered on and watched the whole thing. Not exactly a top ten (or top fifty!), but fun.

We woke up early to get to the airport. Everything went smoothly and Mom & Dad were off! We loved having them here! After, we went directly home and both fell asleep for an unplanned 3 hour nap. Those old folks wore us out :)

You want more pictures? Ok, here you go: http://picasaweb.google.com/bodenstab/ZurichPaulAndCindy#

May 14

We started our day off right by fully taking advantage of the tasty breakfast buffet spread included in our hotel stay. So much bread, cheese, granola, yogurt, fruit, cereal, eggs, strange meats, croissants, and most importantly - american style coffee. They had an actual pot of coffee brewing. My parents were thrilled and we left stuffed.

Our entire day was dedicated to exploring the area. We hiked a few miles in the Lauterbrunnen valley. We saw tons of waterfalls and faint glimpses of the snow capped mountains. Sadly, it was again very cloudy. We hiked to Trummelbach Falls - a series of glacial waterfalls inside a mountain accessed by an elevator. It really was amazing.

We continued our hike through the valley until we reached the gondola to Murren. (No car access in Murren). Murren was cute but almost like a ghost town. The poor weather and weird timing (ski season over and summer hiking just starting) kept the place empty and it felt a little eery. We considered taking a gondola ride to the top of Shilthorn Mountain for a view because a James Bond movie was filmed at the top of Shilthorn in the revolving restaurant. We were so close! But our Bond experience was thwarted by the heavy blanket of clouds (and the hefty price for the ride).

(The view we should have seen. Maybe next time!)

We continued our hike high above the valley through a few towns and then caught another cable car to Lauterbrunnen. It was cold! We could see some snow on the peaks and winter hats were unpacked. We made it back to Lauterbrunnen station in time to grab a few snacks for the road and board the train back to Zurich. We we exhausted and slept well that night.

(You have to click on this picture, it's a panoramic meant to be appreciated in all its glory)

May 13

Today is Ascension Day, a Swiss holiday celebrating Jesus' ascension into heaven. Due to the holiday, Nate has today and tomorrow off. So, we decided it was a perfect time to take a trip to the Bernese Oberland (mountain area about 2 hours south of Zurich). We started our trip early so we could spend some time on the way in the picturesque town of Luzern before making it to our final destination of Lauterbrunnen. Luzern is famous for being the epitome of a Swiss city. It is on a lake surrounded by mountains, with a scenic river, a few covered bridges, gorgeous old buildings, and a huge medieval wall with 9 towers overlooking the city. Sadly, it was raining and cloudy the whole time we were there, but a lack of mountain views did not keep us from appreciating the city.

We hiked to the wall and made our way to the three towers open to the public. Because of the holiday, everything seemed to be closed, but not McDonald's! Yes, there are McDonald's everywhere over here. Sad, but true. But, lucky for my parents, they serve the closest thing to American coffee we could find and they have excellent bathrooms so we visited 2 different McDonald's in Luzern.

After a few hours of sight seeing, we boarded our next train to Lauterbrunnen. We were on a special panoramic train with huge windows and the views were lovely and pastoral. We arrived in Lauterbrunnen in the early evening with time to explore (the sun sets at about 9:00 pm). We checked into our adorable hotel and couldn't resist having hot drinks on the balcony before we started our tour. Our outing started a little later than expected because Dad accidentally locked us all on the balcony while he went to the bathroom and to refill his coffee downstairs. Nate was considering some ninja like plans to scale down the wall Bourne style to save us. Thankfully, Dad came back to free us and we were on our way.

Lauterbrunnen is in a valley surrounded by huge mountains and has 72 waterfalls. We walked to Staubbach falls the first night and fell in love with the area. Small houses, little farms, sheep everywhere, and huge mountains.

We ended our short walk at a local restaurant. Mom and Dad treated us to an amazing meal! (The first time we have eaten out in Switzerland. The prices are a tad high here). Mom & Nate had traditional rosti dishes (a type of potato hash) and we all finished the meal with some tasty Swiss apple strudel and vanilla ice cream. We were stuffed!

(Nate's Rosti smothered in cheese topped with an egg. MMMMmmm)