Photography from Life World Library – Switzerland, 1964. via Peter Surrena.
June 29, 2014
Rainbows after a rainstorm
I took this photo from our balcony this evening after a heavy rainstorm. It's a beauty!
June 23, 2014
Art Basel
Yesterday we took the girls to Art Basel. I have wanted to go to this show since moving here and luckily for us it's an annual event. There are over 300 art galleries from all over the world in attendance as well as many emerging artists. There's an "Arts Kids" for children. Arts kids is a huge space and play area where kids can make their own art and let off steam while their parents tour the exhibition spaces. We took the kids to see a few exhibits.
Walking Coco
Rob is currently training for the Zürich Ironman (sprint) triathlon which means he has to start doing his bricks. Bricks are when you train by completing two out of three (biking, swimming and running) tri events back-to-back. While Rob trained on Saturday the girls and I went for a morning walk with my friend Laura and her crew which included her black Labrador Coco. Everyone weekend should start with walking a dog! I also took a picture of a random horse that passed us on the trail. We often see horses walking through our neighborhood and seeing them never gets old.
Owning an animal in Switzerland is a little different than in the U.S. For example, everyone who wants a dog has to take a class prior to bringing one home. There are classes you have to take afterwards and dogs are required to go to obedience school. Tough rules and regulations means you don't see many people with dogs and the dogs you do encounter in restaurants, on trains/trams/buses, along trails are usually really well behaved. I think folks should have the same requirements for having children ;-)
A friend of mine bought a dog while living in Zürich and she was contacted by the authorities. They wanted to know if she'd filled the mandatory class obligation yet. She mentioned that she'd owned dogs before and had even cared for them in a professional setting. The reply by the officer was to ask if she'd owned dogs in Switzerland before? Ha!
Owning an animal in Switzerland is a little different than in the U.S. For example, everyone who wants a dog has to take a class prior to bringing one home. There are classes you have to take afterwards and dogs are required to go to obedience school. Tough rules and regulations means you don't see many people with dogs and the dogs you do encounter in restaurants, on trains/trams/buses, along trails are usually really well behaved. I think folks should have the same requirements for having children ;-)
A friend of mine bought a dog while living in Zürich and she was contacted by the authorities. They wanted to know if she'd filled the mandatory class obligation yet. She mentioned that she'd owned dogs before and had even cared for them in a professional setting. The reply by the officer was to ask if she'd owned dogs in Switzerland before? Ha!
La Paz, Bolivia
I ran across these beautiful photos of La Paz, Bolivia while looking for content for my tumblr blog. The photographer, Horst Hammerschmidt, won a Swiss 2014 Photo award for his "Brick Labyrinth La Paz Bolivia."
June 18, 2014
Serfaus Fiss Ladis, Austria
Last weekend we took a mini vacation and headed to the mountains of Austria for four days. We stayed at a kinderhotel and spent the days hiking and playing in the mountains.
On the last day of our trip we stopped by an adventure park in the town of Fiss which is next door to Serfaus. The girls played in the snow(!), rode horses, and Grace jumped from a very high platform onto a very large inflatable mat. It was one long gondola ride up to the play area and what seemed like an even longer ride back down the mountain via the rutschbahn and a sled. Grace maneuvered her very own sled and only crashed into me once.
The views hiking back down the mountains were beautiful. We saw rolling green hills and snow covered peaks. The clouds seemed at eye levels at times. There was even a bike park at the top with trails all the way back down the mountain. The girls spotted orange and blue butterflies along the trails and it was one of those moments I wish would last just a little longer.
On the last day of our trip we stopped by an adventure park in the town of Fiss which is next door to Serfaus. The girls played in the snow(!), rode horses, and Grace jumped from a very high platform onto a very large inflatable mat. It was one long gondola ride up to the play area and what seemed like an even longer ride back down the mountain via the rutschbahn and a sled. Grace maneuvered her very own sled and only crashed into me once.
The views hiking back down the mountains were beautiful. We saw rolling green hills and snow covered peaks. The clouds seemed at eye levels at times. There was even a bike park at the top with trails all the way back down the mountain. The girls spotted orange and blue butterflies along the trails and it was one of those moments I wish would last just a little longer.
June 06, 2014
Learning to Ride
Ally is riding a bike (sans training wheels) and we are so proud of her! She can get on and take off by herself but what the picture doesn't show is that she can't stop or properly dismount her bike. She's developed this technique where she coasts until the bikes slows down and then she jumps from it. So far unscathed. It's quite a sight and we are all convinced she may have a future as a stunt woman.
Homework Assignments
Grace's homework assignment yesterday was to write a letter to a classmate who'd written to her. Her friend, Kenzo, wrote to her and asked if she had an electronic toy (I am assuming he meant toy/ipad) and if she would like to play a game the kids call Cat & Mouse during recess (Pause) at school. Her response was "yes" to both questions. I like how the children are being taught the correct structure for writing a letter with the salutation, body, and closing sections in their correct places.
The homework assignments are of course different every day and include math, writing, reading and comprehension. One of my favorites this week was when she brought home a piece of string approximately 24 inches long. She had to find and write down 24 things (in German) that were shorter, the same length, and longer than her piece of string. She wandered around the apartment measuring and Ally made the list :-)
The homework assignments are of course different every day and include math, writing, reading and comprehension. One of my favorites this week was when she brought home a piece of string approximately 24 inches long. She had to find and write down 24 things (in German) that were shorter, the same length, and longer than her piece of string. She wandered around the apartment measuring and Ally made the list :-)
Biking Season
It may not be Summer just yet but it sure feels like it. Tomorrow we're supposed to hit 90! I still miss central air conditioning! Last weekend we went for our annual bike trip around the Greifensee which is about 10 1/2 miles and while we really enjoy biking together as a family we are tiring of seeing the same scenery. We are currently looking for new places to explore.
Next week we are visiting a kinderhotel in Austria for a long weekend and the weekend after that is ART Basel.
Next week we are visiting a kinderhotel in Austria for a long weekend and the weekend after that is ART Basel.
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