The Quinns: Auf Wiedersehen and Buon Giorno

Our last week in Switzerland was deliberately low-key. Not only had I kind of used up most of my ideas within an hour drive and a reasonable budget, but I also knew our last two weeks would be pretty intense and it would be good have fully charged batteries. There were a couple of days where we just stayed home and the kids played out in the yard, one day where we took a hike, and one day of driving to the LDS temple in Bern.

We did the hike with the congregation that we’ve gone to church with here. We were told it was a very family-friendly hike, which I think was pretty true. But it was a little longer than we had planned for, and it had snowed the day before--which made for some slushy/muddy trails in places.

We had been going for a while and were becoming less confident about whether or not our kids were really up for an outdoor picnic since it was cold and they were getting kind of tired. And Ryan’s shoes had gotten soaking wet, so he was highly promoting the idea of turning back and just eating in the car. But there was a mutiny among our kids about the idea of turning back before reaching the end, so onward and upward we went. I had to laugh about the fact that our kids finally got 100% on board with hiking once the parents were happy to turn around and go home.

One of the highlights of the hike was the “snake bread” that one of the other people there shared with us. You wrap the dough around a thick stick and roast it until it’s done. Everyone’s turned out doughy on the inside and crispy on the outside, so our technique was lacking. But it was still eaten with enthusiasm.

The views were incredible. We loved, loved, loved our time in Switzerland. It’s different than a lot of the other things we’ve done in Europe. Less historic buildings and less famous monuments, with more natural beauty and outdoor adventure. We loved having a house out in the woods that was by a river with a cow that was always there to great us each time we went to our car. I don’t miss hauling my groceries in, but I miss the walk to and from the house and don’t think I’ll ever have anything like that again.

We left after church this morning for a 6 1/2 hour drive to Venice. I filled up the car the night before we left, and we didn’t have to stop once on our way down. Yea for diesel! And for limiting the fluid intake of my children! We’re back to Eurocamp, which the kids were complaining about until we pulled in and saw the playground, swimming pools, etc. That always seems to make things better for everyone. It’s also right across from Venice, so we’ll take a ferry there in the morning.

But for tonight, we took advantage of the fact that it’s right on the beach of the Adriatic Sea and hunted for seashells. It was a pretty easy hunt, since they were everywhere. And now I’m off to sit in my car as close as I can to a hotspot in an attempt to use my 1-hour of internet to send this blog update. Seriously. Missing. Good. Wifi.

Our hike on Thursday

Swiss trail markers. They're all over the place,

On our hike. The picture of the dog below is of an Appenazell dog, which is a breed native to the area. The other picture below is a breed not native to the area, or to any other area. Just a cold little 3-year-old.