There's Something About a View

The view from our porch

Another view from our porch

The view from behind our cottage

Our Swiss holiday is providing us with one breathtaking view after another.  It's amazing to drive on the windy mountains roads and come to a place where the entire valley opens up before you eyes.  It's really something special when you turn a corner and the peaks and rock faces of the Alps rise up majestically around you.  A grand view puts things into perspective, allows you to consider that life is so much bigger than your little viewpoint.   The vastness of a sprawling view soothes the soul and brings a sense of calm and wonder to my life.  I am so thankful for these days in the mountains where every morning I'm treated to a wonderful view out my kitchen windows.
Last night after dinner, I decided to walk up the hill to see what lurked above our cottage.  I wasn't disappointed as the evening sunset was wild with pink and the setting sun was casting a magical light on some of the mountain peaks. 

The last shots of a beautiful day

I sit here now considering the day ahead, wondering what we'll be doing but confident that awe-inspiring views will be a part of it and I am thankful.

First Hike: Mille Pattes

After studying the walking and hiking routes, Doug decided that a less ambitious walk on our first day might be the best decision for overall health of the trip!  The weather was dry but cloudy as well and we felt that taking the gondola to the top would be better saved for a clearer day. The walk he chose took us through forests, near lakes, alongside of the famous golf course here, Crans-sur-Sierre, where the European Masters are held, along with giving us sprawling views of the surrounding mountains, ski areas and general beauty. 

The flowers that are everywhere just take your breath away with their color and vibrancy. 

It's so nice to see how everyone tends to beautiful flower boxes that the rest of us can enjoy. 
It was easy enough to simply enjoy being out and tough enough that catching one's breath at higher altitudes was a bit tricky on the uphill climbs.  Because our cottage is located 2 kilometers above the main town, clearly the last straight uphill climb before we arrived home was most challenging!
We had a great day. 

We started with this lake view in the center of town and followed the well marked path along our route.  We came across an extensive high ropes course that was very cool.  We've both been on high ropes so felt that we could skip this adventure.  But it was one of the most extensive either of us have seen and the people using it were having a great time!

The walk began by heading straight downhill and in the back of my mind all I could consider was the final road back up.  About half way through we stopped for lunch by one of the lakes and a group of seniors were sitting at the picnic tables obviously enjoying a break from their trek. It appeared that it was perhaps a walking group or even a tour group, but most were 60 and older and it was great to see them outdoors enjoying the physical activity and taking in the beauty of the area.  The area that we are in of Switzerland is the French speaking area and all you meet on the trail greet you with a warm bonjour.  We return the favor in spite of our miserable French.  Merci, parlez-vous anglais, au revoir and bon jour are about the extent of it! But it's amazing what a simple bonjour and a smile can communicate!

After lunch we knew that, for the most part, the rest of the hike was uphill, so fortified by Swiss chocolate we set out.  Upon arriving back in the town, the incredible smells of a nearby bakery drew us in.  Doug enjoyed a chocolate croissant while I indulged in a strawberry/lemon pastry.  A fine reward for a good hike.
As we prepared to head up the hill to our home, something went pop in one of Doug's knees.  This was a very sad part of our day as we are not sure how extensive the injury might be.  I hope it's a strain, but at any rate, it has put a damper on his outlook for taking a more rigorous hike.  We'll see what a new day brings.
It had started to rain for the last little bit of our hike so that combined with the steep climb made us very happy to see the house.  We took our boots off, got Doug icing his knee, had a beer and fell asleep!
We had gone grocery shopping before the hike so had many lovely things awaiting us.  We wanted to try the Swiss dish Rösti and had bought a ready to cook package.  The only problem was that of the three languages the directions were in, (German, Italian, French), sadly, I speak none of them.  But I did come up with an industrious solution!  I grabbed my computer, typed the directions into Google Translate and  voilà, I knew what to do.  The result was a grilled bratwurst dinner accompanied by Rösti, a green salad, and grilled onions.  Delicious.

We ended this wonderful day by watching Glee on DVD!  It was a near perfect day...I just hope Doug's knee feels better when he wakes up.  Our plan is to head to the thermal baths today in Leukerbad and perhaps that will supply enough healing to get him hiking again by tomorrow. 

Beautiful Switzerland

The front of our complex. 

The terrace right outside of our lovely living room and dining area.

After a long and at times challenging drive, we were happy to find our beautiful cottage snuggled against the mountains up the hill from Crans Montana in a little area called Vermala.  The buildings in this area are stunning.  The craftsmanship and attention to detail are amazing, the beauty of the wood, the eye popping color of the prolific flower boxes assure you that while here, you will be surrounded by beauty and relaxation.  From our terrace we have mountain views in two directions and we were lucky to have a reasonably clear evening for our arrival. Thank you Leigh and David for the opportunity to stay here!

The view from our terrace and dining room table.

While reveling in our vacation digs, we enjoyed a glass of wine accompanied by potato chips, gourmets that we are. 

 

As we enjoyed an amazing sunset that kept getting prettier by the minute, we got word via Facebook that it was raining buckets in Stockholm.

What a wonderful display of God's handiwork.

  Our timing was good.  We spent the rest of the evening studying maps, planning hikes, discovering what there is to do and see in the area.  Best of all, we realized that in the end, there's nothing we have to do and the relaxation of taking a break while surrounded by beauty began to sink in as we fell into the delightful feather bed that awaited us.

Being There More Fun Than Getting There

We love to travel and we've been fortunate to enjoy some pretty amazing places during the time we've lived in Europe.  I should however amend that first comment.  I like seeing other places, I hate getting to other places.
Yesterday we flew to Bergamo, Italy and everything was actually pretty pain-free even though we were flying on a low cost airline that strictly limits luggage weight.  After fighting with our bags, we finally got them to the required weigh limit by wearing some of the clothes that weighed more!  Silly.  Once through security, I just went into the bathroom and changed.  We got good seats, with a middle seat between us for extra room and we were happy.  The flight was on time, our luggage arrived and we thought, wow, smooth trip.  Then we went to pick up the rental car and that's when the fun really began.
As a prelude to the event that ensued, let me say this.  About a month ago, when I made the actual rental car reservation, Citibank flagged our card as a security risk.  The only reason I knew this was because I went on-line to check some things out.  So I called to find out what was going on.  Apparently, renting a car in Italy was considered suspicious.  So I told them that we would be taking this trip between August 17 and 24 so there was no need to be alarmed.  So you can imagine how surprised I was when the rental guy said that our card had been denied.  Now, we were using the US card because it has auto insurance built into it.  And because we had booked ahead of time, the rental was always paid for and we simply had a voucher for that so to walk away would've been costly.  So we decided that the only thing we could do was to call Citibank which I was really excited to do from my European cell phone.  Of course, the conversation begins with an automated menu.  Finally a live human voice came onto the other end.  After a lively exchange, the woman finally said, the only way we will undue this block is if you can tell me the last 4 digits of the bank account that you use to pay off the card.  OK...we use automatic payment so the money just zips right out of bank account every month without me doing a thing.  Do you have any idea how little attention I pay to actual numbers now?  Everything is on-line and then you just use passwords and so forth.  I took a wild stab in the dark and I had the correct numbers but in the wrong order.  Of course, she couldn't say anything and also could not verify.  So, then I realized that what we needed to do was to get off the phone, access the internet, get onto my bank site, get my bank account number and call them back.  Which we did.  Thankfully the Bergamo airport had a public computer and I happen to have a 1 Euro coin in my pocket.  So I called back and as soon as the automated voice came on I shouted, "Need to speak to an agent."  Doug said, "Jodi, if you are nicer, they will be more helpful."  I said, "It's a machine."  He offered no other suggestions.  At last, the block was lifted and we could use the card, but it was kind of hairy there for awhile.
I will speak with Citibank when we return.  Why would this be a security risk?  Don't people travel?  And why wasn't it noted when I called the previous time?  So many questions...oh well.
We finally got on the road and the scenery was amazing and the drive lovely and all that credit card stress just melted into the passing landscape.

Love being in new places.  But I hate getting there.

Just A Little South of Stockholm

After a few days of rain and less than summery weather, a feeling of panic and dread began to sweep over those of us who live in Stockholm. It was only early August...could "summer" really be over? The prayers of the faithful went up: "Please God, not yet." Thankfully, God answered in the affirmative! The sun and the warmth shone forth once again on Thursday and Friday and we took advantage of it on Friday afternoon and evening. We hadn't been out on the boat in really good weather for at least a couple of weeks so we were anxious to get out in the bright sunshine and hopefully even have a chance to swim once again.We decided to go south through some narrow canal passages and we were not disappointed. Good thing we have a trusty navigator to guide our ways. Ha. We're lucky if we can keep him from jumping into the water at any given moment!

It is just so lovely when you get out in the wonderful waterways of Stockholm. Some of the canals are so narrow it's a wonder boats can glide through. There are many, many homes that would be a wonderful place to stay a few days or weeks.

This one is for sale. All it take is a little pengar...that's Swedish for money.

There were many, many boats out yesterday, a sign that all of us who treasure life on the water are hanging onto every second the Swedish summer sun will give us!

We found this great little spot, pulled in, anchored the boat, and spent the next little while perched on the rock, like so many other Swedes were doing on this sunny Friday afternoon.

Nice view for an afternoon fika.

Tanner was fast in the water and enjoyed getting in and out, chasing sticks, running free, and generally enjoying being in the "wild." I too decided that I had to swim and was surprised to find the water reasonably comfortable, perhaps the warmest water I've been in all summer. Doug wasn't feeling 100% so he was content to study the maps and figure out where in the archipelago we had landed.

On the way back in we spotted this old wheel house. Beautiful place. Would love to see the interior.

Tanner gave us a bit of excitement when we stopped to buy gas. He kind of freaks out when we stop the boat...he starts to bark and gets all excited about either going swimming or running on land so when we are going to make a stop, we hook him up to his leash which is tied to the boat in order to keep him from jumping ship. Well, something misfired yesterday and when we pulled into the gas station, he thought he could just jump off so he tried to...but the leash was hooked to his life jacket (thankfully not his collar or he would've choked) and so there he was, all 42 kilos of giant dog, hanging between the side of the boat and the dock. Stupid dog. At least the guys at the gas station were super nice and not afraid of the beast so they helped us get him unhooked and he scrambled to safety. Photo op was lost in my panicked state!Here he is, resting mode, with order re-stored, ready for a snooze after a very busy and action packed day!

We took our time getting home and enjoyed the only slightly lower August sun. I worked hard to keep the sadness of the waning Stockholm summer from overriding the enjoyment I was experiencing on this particular beautiful summer day.
I'm hopeful for a few more warm outings even though today the clouds and rain have returned. I am definitely not ready to be done wearing shorts, going barefoot, swimming in the Baltic and feeling the bright sunshine on my face.This bench seemed like the perfect spot to enjoy the waning Stockholm sunshine. Perhaps I'll find myself there on another beautiful day.

Our Friend Chris Got Married

On Saturday, 24 July 2010 our dear friend and colleague Chris Peterson got married. We were co-officiants and it was a special day.

Us with Chris at the rehearsal.

Other than our parents and siblings, Chris is likely the closest thing to blood relative we have on earth...I'm too young to be his mother and yet there are enough years between us that older sister seems unlikely as well...suffice to say, he feels like family to us so it was meaningful to be involved in his special day. Of course weddings are great and you are always happy for the couple and the love between Hanna and Chris was obvious, but in my opinion, the real stars of this day were the members of our church. The International fellowship, along with members of Hanna's church, put together a grand affair for the newlyweds. They made all the food that came from every corner of the world, the youth served and worked very hard as a kind of thank you to Chris for the ways he's poured into their lives through the years, and the blending of traditions and cultures from across the globe created an amazing atmosphere in which Hanna and Chris could begin their journey as husband and wife.
Dances from various countries were performed and participated in, a Nigerian band led us in some great music, and everyone ate to their hearts' content. Now when I say everyone, I mean all 500 plus of the guests that attended!

A glimpse of the wildly full sanctuary, all present to celebrate this special union.

This was one for the ages and seriously, I was so happy to be a part of it all. To see the ways in which our fellowship served Chris, went all out for him to give him a day that he would always remember was deeply touching to me. To see the church in action, loving one of their own, making sacrifices of time, money, and energy was a tremendous blessing to us as pastors of the church. Our church is a serving church and this was never so obvious than on the day of Pastor Chris's wedding.
I was happy that I got through the wedding without tears! My voice cracked a wee little bit when I pronounced them husband and wife, but then the place erupted with shouts of joy and applause for at least 3 minutes so I had a moment to gather myself and finish what I saying! It was a beautiful ceremony that was quite reflective of Chris and Hanna, and also honored the place that God holds in their lives.
It was also great fun to have so many from Chris' family and close friends around for the days before and after the wedding as we have known his parents and brother and sister in law for many years.

Chris' mom and good friend of his and mine Kari Johnson. We had fun before and after the wedding!

It was truly a great time of coming together around a joy-filled event and enjoying it all together.
We wish Chris and Hanna much joy in their marital journey and we are forever grateful that we were chosen to be a part of it all.