Today was one of those mysterious, cloudy days, with rain here and there. The clouds and fog move in and out around the clouds, making a continually changing panorama.
The Lugano Lakers junior team played the team from Basel. Basel didn't have many players able to come to this game, so it began as a one-sided game and the Lakers were making easy touchdowns. At half-time the coaches decided to just practice with each other, since the Basel team was having to play both ways.
So needless to say, it was not an exciting afternoon of football!
However, I must say that often when it rains here in Lugano, it rains gently and straight down. I was able to stand outside at a rainy football game, holding my umbrella, and at the end, my shoes were not even wet! Not even the slightest breeze to push the rain onto my legs and feet. Everyone uses umbrellas here, because it is actually possible to use an umbrella! Not like in Chicago!
Sunday, April 28, 2013
April 26-27 Dodging the rain to play football
First of all, on Friday, April 26, Rick and I had lunch at the fashion school, STA, where he taught English 8 years ago. They really serve great meals in their cafeteria! We had lasagna, and we enjoyed our lunch with the school's director, secretary, and a few other employees. It was fun to see our friends again.
The rain has returned and we were hoping that no games would cancel because of it. Our game was cancelled last week due to snow in Zug and I think the boys were anxious to play. We drove up to Chur, which was about a 1 hour 45 drive throught the San Bernadino Pass. Although the sky was heavy and dark, the clouds were high enough to get good views of the mountains and valleys. This is really a beautiful mountain pass - which I've never seen on a clear day. On the south side of the pass in Mesocco, there is a castle up on a rock in the middle of the valley - which is usually the place for a castle! I took a quick picture from the car - sorry it's not that great of a picture.
As we approached Chur, the sun started peaking out, but also, to our surprise, the stadium where we were playing had stands with a cover over them, so even if it rained we could stay dry watching. Of course, because we had the cover and I brought as much rain gear as possible, the sun stayed out all afternoon! I'll take the sun anyway. It was a great game against the Calanda Broncos, in which we scored first on the opening kickoff. We won the game 34-13! Yeah! And once again, a beautiful field surrounded by beautiful mountains. Hard to get tired of this!
And I forgot to mention.... yesterday we stopped at the grocery store and I saw another interesting product I thought I'd share with you all. Picture is below. :-)
The rain has returned and we were hoping that no games would cancel because of it. Our game was cancelled last week due to snow in Zug and I think the boys were anxious to play. We drove up to Chur, which was about a 1 hour 45 drive throught the San Bernadino Pass. Although the sky was heavy and dark, the clouds were high enough to get good views of the mountains and valleys. This is really a beautiful mountain pass - which I've never seen on a clear day. On the south side of the pass in Mesocco, there is a castle up on a rock in the middle of the valley - which is usually the place for a castle! I took a quick picture from the car - sorry it's not that great of a picture.
As we approached Chur, the sun started peaking out, but also, to our surprise, the stadium where we were playing had stands with a cover over them, so even if it rained we could stay dry watching. Of course, because we had the cover and I brought as much rain gear as possible, the sun stayed out all afternoon! I'll take the sun anyway. It was a great game against the Calanda Broncos, in which we scored first on the opening kickoff. We won the game 34-13! Yeah! And once again, a beautiful field surrounded by beautiful mountains. Hard to get tired of this!
And I forgot to mention.... yesterday we stopped at the grocery store and I saw another interesting product I thought I'd share with you all. Picture is below. :-)
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| Ruined Castello di Misox (748 m/2,453ft), the ancestral castle of the Counts Sax von Misox, which was purchased by the Trivulzi family of Milan in 1483, destroyed by the people of Grisons in 1526 and restored by Swiss students in 1922- 26 (magnificent view of the deep trough of the Val Mesocco). (Info thanks to www.planetware.com) |
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| Getting ready to play the Calanda Broncos in Chur |
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| The Coach, enjoying lunch after the game |
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| Sliced cow tongue. Yes, it's a classic! Mmmmm! |
Friday, April 26, 2013
April 25 - Sunny day for a hike up to Cureggia.
Since we've had so much rain lately, on a sunny day like today, we wanted to be outside as much as possible. In the morning Rick and I went downtown to Lugano and had a cappuccino by the lakefront. Then after lunch at home, we started our hike up to Cureggia. This is a little town on the mountainside directly up from us - it is sitting there all alone on the mountainside! The first mention of Cureggia was from 1329. I can't imagine the people hiking up and down that far! But I think they were self-sufficient and stayed there on the mountainside.
Up from Pregassona is a nice path - all the way up to Cureggia it is paved with stones. Some areas have been re-done, and others are a bit crumbling, but it's great to have a definite path to walk on. The view from up above was wonderful today! There was the very old original center of town, as in most places, and then surrounded by new, modern houses. They were quite spectacular and magnificent views and swimming pools. Boy, I would LOVE to spend an afternoon lying by one of those pools with a view! There are also many other hiking paths that branch out from Cureggia, and even mountain biking paths. I can't imagine trying to ride a bike through the forest on the side of a mountain!
It took us nearly an hour to hike up (but we took our time), and then we hiked more in the town to check it all out. We relaxed in the afternoon at the Grotto da Pierino by having a beer outside on this splendid day. We took the bus back down to Pregassona - we felt walking down would cause havoc with our knees!
Up from Pregassona is a nice path - all the way up to Cureggia it is paved with stones. Some areas have been re-done, and others are a bit crumbling, but it's great to have a definite path to walk on. The view from up above was wonderful today! There was the very old original center of town, as in most places, and then surrounded by new, modern houses. They were quite spectacular and magnificent views and swimming pools. Boy, I would LOVE to spend an afternoon lying by one of those pools with a view! There are also many other hiking paths that branch out from Cureggia, and even mountain biking paths. I can't imagine trying to ride a bike through the forest on the side of a mountain!
It took us nearly an hour to hike up (but we took our time), and then we hiked more in the town to check it all out. We relaxed in the afternoon at the Grotto da Pierino by having a beer outside on this splendid day. We took the bus back down to Pregassona - we felt walking down would cause havoc with our knees!
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| Rick on the path up to Cureggia |
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| And now me! This stone path goes all the way up. I just can't imagine the work it took to make it. |
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| Our first view after reaching the town of Cureggia |
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| By far one of the best yards. Can I sit by the pool? |
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| The old church in Cureggia |
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| A true view of springtime from Cureggia. Lake Lugano and Mt. San Salvatore can be seen. |
April 23-24. More sun, time for more hikes in old towns
On Tuesday evening Rick and I were meeting our friends, Roberto and Giovanna, for a drink late in the afternoon. We walked along the Lugano-Cadro-Dino old train path up to Soragno, where they would meet us in their car. We headed out a little earlier to get more walking in, and we checked out the old nucleus of the town of Soragno. The first recorded history of this town was in 1335. One house had a date on it from the 1700's. We came upon an old wash pool, where they met to wash clothes and get water. During the year we lived here, we had only come upon one of these, so it was a real treat to see! It's part of an artesian well, so there is always water running into the basin.
Along another old path we found an old tree in which someone had done a carving of Mary. It never ceases to amaze me how many surprises we find no matter what street we walk down!
Our friends Roberto and Giovanna brought us to a town further into and up the valley called Villa Luganese. It also had a wonderful ancient center. We enjoyed some wine, bread and meats outside at a Grotto. A grotto, which literally means a cave in Italian, is a rustic restaurant, usually serving homemade food. Many towns have at least one grotto. They tend to also be very picturesque. I'm sorry I didn't take a picture! I promise I will next time.
On Wednesday morning Rick and I headed out in the same direction, since we wanted to see the old center of the next town, Davesco. There, we found another old wash center. From Davesco we walked to the beginning of the next town called Cadro, where we stopped at a cafe/restaurant for a drink outside. This was a long walk, and we decided to walk home too, instead of taking the bus. My body is still aching from this long walk! Phew! We are trying to enjoy the outdoors as much as we can these few days, since rain is in the forcast for the entire week after that. :-(
This evening I took pictures out our kitchen window again. I know I already posted a similar picture, but the 3 dimensional view I see is so beautiful, so I keep trying to capture it, although it will never be like in real life. Hopefully you can see what I mean - I think the light was right at the moment I took the picture.
Along another old path we found an old tree in which someone had done a carving of Mary. It never ceases to amaze me how many surprises we find no matter what street we walk down!
Our friends Roberto and Giovanna brought us to a town further into and up the valley called Villa Luganese. It also had a wonderful ancient center. We enjoyed some wine, bread and meats outside at a Grotto. A grotto, which literally means a cave in Italian, is a rustic restaurant, usually serving homemade food. Many towns have at least one grotto. They tend to also be very picturesque. I'm sorry I didn't take a picture! I promise I will next time.
On Wednesday morning Rick and I headed out in the same direction, since we wanted to see the old center of the next town, Davesco. There, we found another old wash center. From Davesco we walked to the beginning of the next town called Cadro, where we stopped at a cafe/restaurant for a drink outside. This was a long walk, and we decided to walk home too, instead of taking the bus. My body is still aching from this long walk! Phew! We are trying to enjoy the outdoors as much as we can these few days, since rain is in the forcast for the entire week after that. :-(
This evening I took pictures out our kitchen window again. I know I already posted a similar picture, but the 3 dimensional view I see is so beautiful, so I keep trying to capture it, although it will never be like in real life. Hopefully you can see what I mean - I think the light was right at the moment I took the picture.
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| Rick in front of the wash basins in Soragno. Notice the old stone floor. |
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| Me by the wash basin in Soragno |
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| See the water coming out of the face? |
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| Carving right from the living tree. In Soragno. |
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| Zoomed in from our kitchen window... the church in Porza on the other side of the valley - and then look beyond this town... there is another valley behind it, and we can see the town of Arosio on the mountainside back in the distance. |
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| Another zoomed in shot - just because I love it! |
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| The washbasin in Davesco. |
Monday, April 22, 2013
April 22 - This past weekend and walking tour of Lugano
A quiet weekend in Lugano as it RAINED all weekend. On Saturday there was supposed to be a football game in Zug, and the evening before a message came that the game was still on. So Saturday morning the team got on a bus and were on the road a few minutes into their 2 hour road trip when word came in that the game was cancelled. There was so much snow on the ground up in Zug! And as you can see from last weekend's posts, when Rick and I stopped in Zug last weekend, it was summer - this weekend winter again.
Since we were not in Zug, we were able to attend a party Saturday evening at Berny's house. Berny is the Swiss teacher with whom Rick did a Fullbright exchange 8 years ago. There were about 12-14 people and we all ate Raclette - special Raclette cheese grilled on a special Raclette machine on the table, which we scrapped the melted cheese over little boiled potatoes. (it IS really good!)
On Sunday morning we walked to the Catholic church here in town. The priest spoke very clearly, so we were able to understand the mass quite well. I remember trying to go to church 8 years ago here. We didn't understand anything, but would get a chuckle out of every time they said "benedetto", because it means "blessed" in Italian!
Fortunately the rain stopped for a bit on Sunday for us to take a nice walk. On Sunday evening Rick and I had invited Berny, my friend Sara and her family, and the Volpi family (head coach of the Lugano Lakers and our landlord) out to dinner at the Ristorante del Sole across the street. A good dinner with good friends!
Today, Monday, in downtown Lugano they offer a free, 2-hour walking tour of the city. This is a little like my Chicago Greeter tours, but here, everyone meets in front of the tourist office and we do the tour - no matter how big the group. The tour guide usually does the tour in the 2 predominant languages of the group, so that was going to be Italian and German, but there were some English only speakers so she repeated everything in the 3 languages! I enjoyed hearing it all in German too - what a treat! And she was quite easy to understand.
Here are a couple of pictures of a famous church along the lakefront in Lugano. It's called Chiesa di Santa Maria degli Angeli (Saint Mary of the Angels) It was begun in 1499 and it contains a wonderful fresco by a disciple of Leonard da Vinci, Bernardino Luini, painted in the early 1500's. After all those years, the colors in this fresco are all original! He also painted the fresco of the Last Supper on the side wall (this was actually moved here from a monastery that used to be next door.
We also learned that the oldest building in Lugano, which has been totally restored, dates from 1425!
Since we were not in Zug, we were able to attend a party Saturday evening at Berny's house. Berny is the Swiss teacher with whom Rick did a Fullbright exchange 8 years ago. There were about 12-14 people and we all ate Raclette - special Raclette cheese grilled on a special Raclette machine on the table, which we scrapped the melted cheese over little boiled potatoes. (it IS really good!)
On Sunday morning we walked to the Catholic church here in town. The priest spoke very clearly, so we were able to understand the mass quite well. I remember trying to go to church 8 years ago here. We didn't understand anything, but would get a chuckle out of every time they said "benedetto", because it means "blessed" in Italian!
Fortunately the rain stopped for a bit on Sunday for us to take a nice walk. On Sunday evening Rick and I had invited Berny, my friend Sara and her family, and the Volpi family (head coach of the Lugano Lakers and our landlord) out to dinner at the Ristorante del Sole across the street. A good dinner with good friends!
Today, Monday, in downtown Lugano they offer a free, 2-hour walking tour of the city. This is a little like my Chicago Greeter tours, but here, everyone meets in front of the tourist office and we do the tour - no matter how big the group. The tour guide usually does the tour in the 2 predominant languages of the group, so that was going to be Italian and German, but there were some English only speakers so she repeated everything in the 3 languages! I enjoyed hearing it all in German too - what a treat! And she was quite easy to understand.
Here are a couple of pictures of a famous church along the lakefront in Lugano. It's called Chiesa di Santa Maria degli Angeli (Saint Mary of the Angels) It was begun in 1499 and it contains a wonderful fresco by a disciple of Leonard da Vinci, Bernardino Luini, painted in the early 1500's. After all those years, the colors in this fresco are all original! He also painted the fresco of the Last Supper on the side wall (this was actually moved here from a monastery that used to be next door.
We also learned that the oldest building in Lugano, which has been totally restored, dates from 1425!
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| Raclette at Berny's house! |
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| View during our Sunday afternoon walk - avoiding the raindrops, and new snow on the mountaintops! |
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| Incredible wisteria vines in Lugano - so beautiful this time of year. |
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| Santa Maria degli Angeli Church, Lugano |
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| Fresco by Bernardino Luini in the early 1500's |
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| The Last Supper by Bernardino Luini in the early 1500's |
Friday, April 19, 2013
April 18-19 Dinners with great friends
April 18 was another beautiful day in Lugano. It was a perfect temperature, although the skies were not clear - just a hazy sunshine. Rick and I walked downtown so I could shop a bit - I needed some shorts for hiking. Now, why I didn't bring any - I can't figure that one out! This weekend is "AutoNassa" in Lugano. There is a famous shopping street called Via Nassa, and on this street but also in all the piazzas there is a car show. Every fancy car is on display -kind of like the Chicago auto show, but much more scenic!
In the evening we took the train to Mendrisio, which is the main town north of Chiasso - which is on the border of Switzerland and Italy. We were invited to dinner at the Fasol's. Signor Fasol was the director of the school where Rick taught 8 years ago. We enjoyed an aperativo with Rino and Manuela - it was absolutely a dreamy evening outside. They are always so nice to us and we truly appreciate their friendship!
April 19 - It was supposed to rain all day, but the rain held out until evening. Earlier in the day Rick and I were walking to the grocery store when we ran into my friend Sara. We had a cappuccino together before doing our shopping! In the afternoon I discovered new old pathways through the town, which lead to new trails in the mountains. I can't wait to further explore them!
My friend Patrick, from my French club back in Illinois, was going to be passing through Lugano late this afternoon. He was in Milan for work and was driving back to France. He finally made it here - right in the middle of a fierce thunderstorm! Rick had to go to football practice, so Patrick and I went across the street to the Pizzeria del Sole to enjoy great pizza before he had to get back on the road. Thank you Patrick for taking the time to stop by! So fun!!!!
In the evening we took the train to Mendrisio, which is the main town north of Chiasso - which is on the border of Switzerland and Italy. We were invited to dinner at the Fasol's. Signor Fasol was the director of the school where Rick taught 8 years ago. We enjoyed an aperativo with Rino and Manuela - it was absolutely a dreamy evening outside. They are always so nice to us and we truly appreciate their friendship!
April 19 - It was supposed to rain all day, but the rain held out until evening. Earlier in the day Rick and I were walking to the grocery store when we ran into my friend Sara. We had a cappuccino together before doing our shopping! In the afternoon I discovered new old pathways through the town, which lead to new trails in the mountains. I can't wait to further explore them!
My friend Patrick, from my French club back in Illinois, was going to be passing through Lugano late this afternoon. He was in Milan for work and was driving back to France. He finally made it here - right in the middle of a fierce thunderstorm! Rick had to go to football practice, so Patrick and I went across the street to the Pizzeria del Sole to enjoy great pizza before he had to get back on the road. Thank you Patrick for taking the time to stop by! So fun!!!!
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| Cool mushrooms and moss during my hike today. |
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| My friend Patrick ready to dig in to his pizza!! |
April 16 Back to Lugano. Zug and Fluelen
We took our time getting back home. When you buy a ticket in Switzerland, you can stop as many times as you want on the route during that day. So we got off in Zug, locked up our suitcase at the train station, and took a walk and enjoyed the lakefront and old city, (along with some ice cream!) I recommend a stop in Zug - a very nice town with a beautiful lakefront. We stayed there 1 1/2 hours before continuing on.
Our next stop was Fluelen, which is at the complete opposite end of the same lake that Luzern is found on. There was no particular reason to stop in Fluelen, only that often we pass these beautiful towns by train without ever stopping, so this time we planned to stop! We were so tired from our time traveling that we sat at a cafe by the lake and relaxed and enjoyed a beer. We have also discovered that the several brands of Swiss beer that we have tried are all VERY GOOD!
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| Zug, Switzerland |
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| One of the doors of the old city of Zug |
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| A tiny alley in the old part of Zug |
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| Old town Zug |
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| View looking north in Fluelen, where we sat and had a beer |
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| View looking south in Fluelen |
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| Fleulen |
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
April 15 - SECHESLAUTEN! in Zurich!
On Monday April 15, there was the annual Sechesläuten celebration in Zurich. The parade was beginning at 3pm. Rick and I wanted to have breakfast in a cafe, but there was nothing open in the morning. All of Zurich is closed for this festival (although by afternoon there were many food stands and all restaurants were open).
So since the skies were clear again, we decided to take the bus up to the Die Waid restaurant again! It was so nice and warm out. We sat out on the terrace in the sun, looking at the beautiful view of the Alps and had some coffee and croissants.
There are also nice hiking paths through the woods behind the restaurant, and also in this area are some gardens. Throughout Switzerland people have little plots of gardens with little garden houses. They are very cute, and almost like little vacation spots! We took a walk in a nearby garden area to enjoy.
We still had time to explore before the Sechesläuten festivities began, so we took the bus up another mountainside by the Zurich Zoo. It gave us another view down on the city and of the Alps. I love Zurich because it is so easy to get around by public transportation! Actually, the two couples we met the evening before live there and don't own cars - they don't need to!
Back in Zurich, we found a good spot to watch the parade. It features members of the many guilds in the Zurich area, which date back to Medieval times. The parade follows a route throughout the city and finally ends in a large area by the lake (Bellevue). In the center of this open area there is a big pile of wood/sticks, with a snowman on top, the Böög. At 6pm the bonfire is started. It eventually reaches up to the snowman, where firecrackers start popping. Eventually the snowman's head blows off. This is their official end to winter, and a fast burn and head off indicates a good summer to come. Unfortunately it took 35 minutes for his head to blow off - the longest since 1988. It doesn't look like a good summer in Zurich, but at about 75 degrees and sunny, it was a great day for the Sechesläuten!
So since the skies were clear again, we decided to take the bus up to the Die Waid restaurant again! It was so nice and warm out. We sat out on the terrace in the sun, looking at the beautiful view of the Alps and had some coffee and croissants.
There are also nice hiking paths through the woods behind the restaurant, and also in this area are some gardens. Throughout Switzerland people have little plots of gardens with little garden houses. They are very cute, and almost like little vacation spots! We took a walk in a nearby garden area to enjoy.
We still had time to explore before the Sechesläuten festivities began, so we took the bus up another mountainside by the Zurich Zoo. It gave us another view down on the city and of the Alps. I love Zurich because it is so easy to get around by public transportation! Actually, the two couples we met the evening before live there and don't own cars - they don't need to!
Back in Zurich, we found a good spot to watch the parade. It features members of the many guilds in the Zurich area, which date back to Medieval times. The parade follows a route throughout the city and finally ends in a large area by the lake (Bellevue). In the center of this open area there is a big pile of wood/sticks, with a snowman on top, the Böög. At 6pm the bonfire is started. It eventually reaches up to the snowman, where firecrackers start popping. Eventually the snowman's head blows off. This is their official end to winter, and a fast burn and head off indicates a good summer to come. Unfortunately it took 35 minutes for his head to blow off - the longest since 1988. It doesn't look like a good summer in Zurich, but at about 75 degrees and sunny, it was a great day for the Sechesläuten!
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| A beautiful spot for breakfast |
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| Little Swiss garden plots |
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| More Swiss garden plots |
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| From up by the garden plots - darn smoke stack! |
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| Add caption |
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| View from up another mountainside near the Zurich Zoo |
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| Before the parade |
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| In Swiss costume! |
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| Waiting for the parade to begin |
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| Secheslauten Parade |
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| Now, here is the funny thing.... Earlier in the day when we took the bus up the mountainside by the Zurich Zoo, I looked out the bus window when we were almost there and I said "Rick! Look! Camels!" I figured they were on their way down to the city to walk in the parade - they brought them from the Zoo! |
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| Obviously the blacksmith guild - these guys are pounding out the metal. |
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| I don't know what a "Trotte" is, but this one is from 1631 ! |
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| View from down by the lake. Such a beautiful day! |
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| The Böög beginning to burn |
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| Fire finally reaches the snowman |
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| Head almost ready to explode! |
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