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Annoyances, Celebrations

Older and wiser in Die Schweiz… (part three)

Featured photo is one I took in Bern on my birthday.

Now it’s time to get down to the business of actual travel. We decided to use trains on this trip to Switzerland. The main reason we decided on train travel is because it’s convenient, especially for our destinations.

I mentioned in yesterday’s post that both of our hotels are within a few minutes’ walk from train stations. While it not feel like they’re that close when you pack as much as I do, they are actually super easy to access. Train travel means not having to deal with traffic, or expensive parking. And it also means Bill can do this…

Beer drinking is easier on trains.

Bill bought us first class tickets from Frankfurt Airport to Bern. Then he bought first class tickets from Bern to Küsnacht. Finally, we have first class tickets from Küsnacht to Frankfurt Airport. We took a cab to the train station from our house, and we’ll take another cab home on Saturday.

The trains going to and from Switzerland are Deutsche Bahn, while the train between Swiss destinations was SBB (Swiss Federal Railways). This is an important note, given what happened on the way to Bern. I’ll explain that down post.

On Friday, June 19th, we headed to the Frankfurt Airport train station. Our cab driver showed up in a Tesla, and we had to figure out how to open the door. We were a bit early, and I had a headache that turned out to be because I was hungry. We stopped by Burger King, where we saw a man who was the spitting image of our village’s manager. I don’t know if it was him, but it sure looked like him… or maybe his long lost twin! We also saw the cab driver in there!

Below are a few photos from on the platform… It was a hot day!

We managed to get two seats next to each other, going in the correct direction of travel. As I sat down in my first class seat, I realized how much more comfortable train travel is than most airplane travel. We had plenty of legroom, a large window, and a tray table that didn’t poke me in the beer gut.

One thing I didn’t like about our trip down to Bern was the noise in the train car. I like to sit in the quiet cars, but I guess we got one where it was okay to use one’s cellphone. A group of loud French speaking men were on their phones almost the entire four hour trip to Bern. We were also a little bit delayed, on account of something that happened before Bill and I boarded.

I noticed the air in the train was a little stinky. It smelled a little like halitosis. Maybe it was from all of the people talking so loudly. Anyway, I tried not to let it make me grumpy. The beer definitely helped.

This is an Erdinger beer. Our ex landlady was from Erding. I like the beer a whole lot more than I liked her.

By the time we got to Basel, Switzerland, we were about eleven minutes late. The Zoll (border patrol) guys came on, got one look at us Euro-looking Americans, and walked on by.

I think the train drivers changed, too, because I noticed a different voice on the intercom. He spoke perfect German, French, and English. And he made a point of telling everyone that we were delayed because of an incident that had occurred in GERMANY. 🤭 The way the driver said it was funny. It was like he was disgusted that we were eleven minutes delayed. I noticed that he also encouraged people with connecting trains to hurry, because the trains were waiting for them. The Swiss take punctuality VERY seriously, especially when it comes to public transportation.

I noticed after we got going in Basel, the train driver started to really haul ass. We we were going noticeably faster, and Bill and I were, at that point, riding backwards. Fortunately, we only had to do that for a short time. Bern isn’t all that far from Basel.

When we arrived in Basel, it was almost 6:00 PM. Rain was falling, and the driver had made up about five minutes of the delay. I noticed the beautiful Aare River, as the train pulled into the busy station. We got off the train and followed the crowd… and wound up exiting the station on the wrong side, which meant we had to walk the long way to the Schweizerhof Hotel.

I also didn’t know that from June 19-21, there was a Stadt Fest going on in Bern. The city was teeming with people, and there were DJs everywhere, blasting music. Although I usually enjoy a good city party, I was kind of hoping for quiet after listening to French business calls for four hours. Nevertheless, we made our way to the hotel, where we were welcomed by a lovely young lady named Lavina, who checked us in and gave us access to Room 516.

I booked a junior suite, which came with two bathrooms. They actually came in handy for Bill.

The sink in the guest toilet.
Spare toilet
Sitting room… note the bright chandelier lighting!
Another view
Bed
Main bathroom
Bathtub… it even had a TV
Rainfall shower
Hallway

The bathtub in our suite was pretty fancy. It even had a TV mounted into the wall, and a remote control. We didn’t use it, but I was kind of impressed, nonetheless. The hotel left us bottled water and two green apples, which later came in handy in Küsnacht.

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, the hotel is a rare property in Switzerland with air conditioning. And unfortunately, the room had chandeliers that we couldn’t turn off, if we wanted to use the lamps. I don’t like overhead lighting, especially when it’s really bright. But we were only there for two nights, so it was no big deal. Naturally, there was also a well stocked minibar, but there was enough room in it to store the lovely chocolate mousse birthday cake I got at our first breakfast.

Below are a few shots of the “party” going on in Bern on June 19th…

Since it was evening when we arrived, we changed clothes and headed out to our first dinner reservation. It was a chain steakhouse called Williams ButchersTable. Bill picked this location before we left Germany, and I probably would have enjoyed it a lot more if not for a few things.

  • There was a huge DJ setup outside of the restaurant, blaring music so loud we could barely hear each other.
  • The chairs were not very comfortable, and wouldn’t have been, even if I had a smaller ass.
  • The restaurant is also a “Metzgerei”, and one of the gimmicks they have is that you go to a meat counter and choose what you want. I felt uncomfortable standing behind a group of several men, picking out their cuts of meat. It was crowded and awkward, and I eventually told Bill to just pick something for me.
  • I had been eating leftover steak all week, prior to our arrival, and was really sick of red meat.

I know I shouldn’t complain, though. I am very fortunate that we were able to go to such a restaurant for dinner. I probably would have liked it a lot more if not for the loud music outside. I did lighten up a bit as we drank some nice Chianti Classico. And I have to admit, the steaks were good. I also had a dry baked potato, because I prefer potatoes with butter, rather than sour cream. Below are a few photos of the restaurant and food we enjoyed. Bill and I both had Swiss steaks, but his had cheese on it. He also had truffle fries instead of a baked potato. This restaurant does have vegetarian options, but you have to request them. They aren’t listed on the menu.

Choosing the meat.

By the time we finished dinner, we were in a slightly better mood. The music had switched to 70s and 80s dance music, and I was enjoying watching the white people dance. Also, a lot of people were ordering bone marrow, which is apparently a popular specialty at Williams ButchersTable. I watched people holding a big bone to their lips as the wait staff poured vodka down the middle.

We ordered dessert. Bill had stracciatella tiramisu, and I had Ovo Mousse, which turned out to be mousse made from Ovaltine! I used to drink Ovaltine when I was a kid, but it was introduced to me by a former friend of mine. My mom didn’t buy it for me until I tried it at my friend’s house. I guess Ovaltine is popular in Switzerland. I did enjoy the malted dessert made with it!

Ovo Mousse!
Stracciatella Tiramisu
These guys all had the bone marrow.

After dinner, we headed back to the hotel. We were both kind of tired and cranky. On the way back, I took more photos of the rowdy crowds! All kinds of people were there… including what some might call “Jesus Freaks”. Check out their signs!

These people were holding up signs about Jesus.
BONGS!
Lovely chocolates

We were ready for bed, but the rest of Bern wasn’t. The windows in our room were not quite a match for the loud, pulsating music. It went on until the wee hours of the morning. I looked up the schedule of events, and I noticed that something was planned until 5:00 AM! We were told this is NOT the norm for Bern, so we’ll have to visit again on a less rowdy weekend.

Fortunately, I had Advil PM, which helped me doze off at some point… I needed to rest up for my birthday, which I will write about in the next post!

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Labor Day weekend in lovely Lesa, Italy on Lake Maggiore… Part four

All too soon, Monday morning arrived and it was time for us to head back to Germany.  After breakfast, we cleaned up the Rose Apartment and I sent a message to the property owner, who came by to pick up the keys and the six euros of tourist taxes we had to pay.  In Lesa, the office of tourism collects one euro per person over age 14 per night.  There are a few other exceptions to this tax, which the owners had posted in the kitchen.  Apparently, Lesa is pretty serious about collecting this tax and will supposedly hunt you down and charge interest if you don’t pay.

It was nice to meet the owner, who advised us that next time we want to visit, we should simply give him a call and bypass Booking.com.  This is not the first time a property owner has told us that.  I guess Booking.com charges a lot of fees for finding guests.  I would definitely not be averse to going back to Lesa if we have the chance.  It’s a nice place to unplug for a few days.  I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily a place to go if you want to stay super busy, but if you’re looking for peace, quiet, good food, and relaxation, it’s not a bad place at all…  and it’s definitely less hectic than tonier Lake Como is.

We got on the road at about 9:30am and reached Unterjettingen by 4:30pm or so…  Here are a few photos I took on the way back.

Here’s a view of where the lake is compared to where Rose Apartment is.  As you can see, it’s only steps away.

Goodbye Italy… until next time!

Some guy was parachuting over the highway.  I was glad when he managed to cross it without landing!

These are pictures of Lake Lugano, in Switzerland.  Lugano is also gorgeous and worth a visit.  There are too many places to see in Europe and not enough holidays!  I had to take these as we were passing through.

A bird’s eye view of Switzerland?

Our drive back was pretty uneventful.  We stopped at a couple of Swiss rest stops for pee breaks.  Word to the wise.  It’s a good idea to have Francs for the rest stops.  Just like in Germany, you have to pay to pee, unless you stop at one of the more rustic (and disgusting) public toilets.  The ones with restaurants and such usually charge.  However, they are generally very clean and well stocked.

Against our better judgment, we stopped at that crappy Burger King again in Altdorf, but this time, Bill got chicken strips and mozzarella bites.  No mayo!  It always amazes me that such a crappy Burger King could be by such beautiful country.  Right after the fast food break, you enter a tunnel and come out in insanely beautiful Sisikon, Switzerland on the shores of Lake Lucerne.  I keep meaning to stop there for a photo break and lunch.  Look at these pictures!  Maybe sometime, we’ll rent a house there and spare ourselves the pain of traffic.  Sisikon is probably around the halfway point to Italy.  I have actually tried to find places near there but so far, I’ve not been lucky.

Anyway… that pretty much does it for this short series on Lesa.  I can’t say it was one of our most exciting road trips, but we did enjoy our too brief time in Italy.  I really would like to go back again.  If anything, this trip reminded me that it’s usually worth it to book one more day than you think you’ll want or need on a long weekend.  I could have used more than two Italian lunches.  Oh well… there’s always next time!

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Labor Day weekend in lovely Lesa, Italy on Lake Maggiore… Part one

Bill and I usually go somewhere for the long Labor Day weekend, although last year we didn’t do anything because we had a cruise planned for Scotland and Northern Ireland.  This year, we hadn’t really talked too much about it, since Bill had a big business trip to Morocco the week prior.  We also just found out that we might have to move and the need to secure a job and potentially new housing has kind of dominated our thoughts.

I got to thinking about it, though, and decided I did need a short break from Germany.  So, a few weeks ago, I casually asked Bill what he wanted to do for Labor Day.  He said he wouldn’t mind a quick trip, despite having to travel to Africa the week prior.  I had been looking at going to Ticino in southern Switzerland, which is near Lake Lugano, but I knew we’d need to bring our dogs with us and I wasn’t finding any appropriate self-catering properties.

Then I looked at all the places I had saved on Booking.com and most of them were already booked.  Suddenly, I remember that my German friend, Susanne, had recommended Lake Maggiore.  This lake is close to Lake Como, which we’ve visited a couple of times, but was rumored to have a quieter vibe.  Also, although I had been looking at Ticino, Switzerland, when it comes down to it, Italy is much cheaper.  And if you’re going to be that close to Italy, you might as well just go there.  So I searched Lake Maggiore on Booking.com and found the Rose Apartment in Lesa.  Bill flipped a coin; it was between the Czech Republic and Lesa.  Lesa won.

The word “apartment” is kind of a misnomer for this property.  When I think of apartments, I think of small rented quarters sharing walls with other people.  The Rose Apartment is, in fact, a good sized house, complete with a huge fenced in yard.  I noted that it was very close to the lake and the price was right, so I booked it for three nights.  In retrospect, I should have booked it for at least four nights.  Our break in Italy wasn’t long enough.  However, we were in Lesa long enough to get a feel for the low-key town.  I now know that I don’t have much of a reason to go back to Lake Como.  Lake Maggiore is definitely more my style.  It’s less flashy and more homey.

First thing’s first.  How do you pronounce Lesa?

No, it’s not like “Lisa”.  It’s more like lay-zuh.

Bill got home from Morocco late Thursday night.  Friday morning, we considered waiting to pick up the mail before starting our journey south.  Fortunately, I realized that waiting for the post office to open would really put us behind.  We set off from Germany at about 9:30am or so, expecting to arrive in Lesa by 4:00… maybe 5:00 at the latest.

The drive to Italy through Switzerland is very beautiful.  You pass through stunning mountains and lakes that will take your breath away.  I probably should have been enjoying more of the scenery, but I also got to try out the cellular capability on my new iPad.  I signed up for a month of data from GigSky for 50 euros (5 GB).  It worked very well and I only used one gig to and from Italy.  Sometimes I’m surprised I was born in the 70s.  You’d think I never had to live without Internet access.  But for a small country, Switzerland takes a long time to get through and since it’s not in the EU, roaming charges are a bitch.  Gig Sky worked well enough that I’d use it again.

This lake is so beautiful.  We need to stop sometime so I can take proper photos.  We had sun on the way back today and the lake was even more gorgeous.

Sadly, because we had our hoodlum dogs with us, we ended up eating lunch at a Burger King, where we both had sandwiches that were sodden with mayonnaise.  I don’t know why, but fast food restaurants in Germany and Switzerland really overdo the condiments, especially mayo.  Next time, maybe we should pack our own sandwiches.

Way too much mayo!!!

Then… fate conspired to keep us on the road much longer than we originally planned.  First, we hit a ton of traffic in Switzerland near the Gotthard Tunnel.  It took awhile to get through the 16.9 kilometer passage.  Once we were through that, we hit more traffic in Italy.  We got there just as rush hour was starting.

Just over the Italian border.  It was like this the whole way.

And then, we hit a section of the autostrada, really not that far from Lesa, and ended up sitting for in traffic that was pretty much at a standstill.  We were stuck there for well over an hour and, when Bill honked at a young woman who was apparently asleep at the wheel, she flipped him off.  In Italy, it’s not illegal to flip people off like it is here in Germany.  I wouldn’t ordinarily do something like that, even though we were really tired and our tempers were very short.  When you’re sitting in traffic that has come to a standstill after you’ve been driving for hours, you tend to have less patience.  Bill was amused and surprised by her vehement response.

We paid just under three euros in tolls to drive on the autostrada.  Bill remarked that it was very cheap.  I turned to him and said, “You would have wanted to pay more for that experience?”  He had a good laugh at that.  While we were stuck in the Stau, we managed to stop into an Autogrill (Italy’s rest stop chain) and the gas station attendant pointed out that the back wiper on our RAV 4 was slightly cracked.  The attendant offered to replace it for us.  Bill got the sense he might have cracked the wiper himself, looking for extra euros.  We’ve been to Italy enough times that we’re seasoned when it comes to small time scams.  Unfortunately, this was not the only calling card our car brought back from Italy.  More on that in the next post.

Bumper to bumper traffic.  Turned out the holdup was a very bad accident.  My mouth dropped open as we passed what appeared to be an overturned truck.  I’d be surprised if the driver walked away from that with his or her life.

 

First view of the lake.  I was so glad to see it!

 

By the time we got to Lesa, it was about 7:30pm.  Since he and his wife had dinner plans, the host sent his two very beautiful and charming teenaged daughters to give us the keys to the house.  They got to try out their English skills and our dogs, Zane and Arran, got lots of welcoming pats.  I don’t think I could have picked a more dog friendly rental!

Below are some pictures of the inside of the Rose Apartment.

Huge chestnut tree in the yard.  There are swings.

 

Sliding board next to a pavilion where you can grill.

Crib in the master bedroom.

 

Master bed.  Fairly comfortable mattress.

Laundry room in the basement.  There’s a washer and an ironing board.

 

Hall bathroom.

 

Kids’ bedroom has four beds.  There’s also a twin bed in the living room and in the basement.

 

Basement bed.

 

Basement half bathroom.

 

Couches in the living room and another twin bed.

 
 

Nice sized kitchen.  Opens to a lovely terrace with an awning.

We were too tired to go out to eat, so Bill found a local pizzeria and got a margherita pizza and tortellini with sage.  

Then he tried on the hat that was left behind.  I’m not sure the Italian look is for him.

This is a post office we passed in a big town on the way to Lesa.  I thought it was an interesting mix of dramatic art and 60s kitsch.

  

We didn’t stay up long after we had dinner.  The drive down was very exhausting.  I was kind of bummed, since we might have found a nice restaurant if we’d had a little more time on Friday.  Food, wine. and a change of scenery were pretty much what this trip was all about, anyway.

I should mention that the Rose Apartment has old style Italian three pronged L outlets, which means that our regular electronics didn’t fit.  However, the owners did provide a power strip in the kitchen that gave us enough outlets that we could charge up our phones and such.  Also, WiFi worked great, which is more than I can say about our experience in the last Italian rental we stayed in last year.

I will continue this series tomorrow, after I’ve had a good sleep.  The drive back to Germany today wasn’t quite as exhausting or obnoxious, but I could use a drink.

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