Switzerland. Seems like ages ago, but it wasn't. My life is whizzing by at the speed of light right now. Living in the moment? Bah! Being present? Not a chance. I'm riding the roller coaster and holding on tight. It's going fast. I like the ups more than the downs.We went to Grindelwald, Switzerland. We spent 4 nights. We went with my in-laws. I think that's all the background info you need.
Switzerland is probably the most beautiful country in Europe. So picturesque, green and clean. Bryce and I went there in 1996, right out of college. At that time Bryce was chasing the Matterhorn. This time the Eiger was calling his name. The mighty Eiger. It didn't disappoint. It couldn't disappoint. All we had to do was go out to the terrace of our chalet to take in it's glory. And we did. In the morning with coffee and in the evening with beer or wine. Sometimes both.I will remember this trip to Switzerland for a few different reasons - today I'm going to share the first reason with you - WILD FLOWERS!
Much to our surprise the wild flowers were in full bloom during our trip. There must have been over 20 varieties that we observed. They were so beautiful. A perfect accent to the massive and jagged Swiss Alps.
The wild flowers became even more wonderful when I saw how much the girls were enjoying them. Picking bouquets along our walk to see Switzerland's largest waterfall. Oooo and ahhing over the pink Queen Anne's Lace, deciding that forget-me-nots were Mom's favorite.
I loved their curiosity and interest in nature. We found a handful of flowers that we couldn't identify. This one was so strange and beautiful I had to photograph it. Thanks to my stealth googling skills, found out it is Silene Vulgaris or Bladder Campion.
Eva also endured another childhood right of passage during her bouquet making - her first nettle sting. Actually she got stung quite badly but she handled it like a trooper. It was most impressive.
I looked through the stores in Grindelwald for a wild flower guide or poster or something that would remind the girls of the wild flowers. No luck. Maybe someday they'll read this post and remember.Tomorrow - more Swiss impressions.
9 comments:
My great-great grandpa left Switzerland when he was sixteen to come to the US for a better life (back in the 1890s). I can't imagine leaving my whole family behind at the age of sixteen. I couldn't even do it now, and I'm 30! Apparently he got so sick on the boat, that he said he would never made the voyage again. He stuck to his word; he had twin sisters born after he left that he never got to meet.
I would love to go to Switzerland and see where he was from and perhaps meet some of my distant relatives.
love love love Lucerne- my fave- I wrote about S this year too- a perfect place!
Definitely on my Top 10 places to visit list and maybe after your post it went up a few more spots! Looks amazing!
so jealous!! yet again!!! LOL my neighbour is swiss.. so I get the descriptions from her too!! I love the flowers in the 5th photo.. the bell type looking ones.. i have never seen anything like them... wonderful photos...
love switzerland! i was there in 2001 and it is my all time favorite countries in europe next to germany and austria. lovely pictures
Gorgeous! And I loved your description of roller coaster ride....hang on and enjoy every minute that you can!
Switzerland and Seattle are on the absolute top of my "to travel to" list. My best friend went to Switzerland in high school and I've been swooning over the country ever since.
Thank you so much for sharing the pictures of your trip to Switzerland. The pictures are beautiful ! I am already counting down the days until little Eric and I go there...we're leaving on July 3rd and will most likely stay for about 10 days.
By the way, if you go to www.amazon.de and search for "wildblumen" you can find many books about wildflowers, for as little as 4.95 Euros.
Oh my gosh, I'm so happy to be back on this roller coaster with you!!! Beautiful posts.
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