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Archive for the ‘Switzerland’ Category

Swiss National Day

We live so close to Switzerland that sometimes we like to consider ourselves half Swiss and half German. Probably not the proper thing to think if you actually are one of those nationalities, but we can do that because we’re neither! ‘Strayen all the way. So anyway, when Switzerland puts on a party, we just go ahead and invite ourselves. And our friends.

Last Saturday Switzerland had their National Day, which is celebrated with fireworks and drinking and more fireworks (in Basel at least), so we headed to our nearest beach (on top of a parking garage – also blogged here), settled in with some beers and mojito’s and waited for the fireworks. 6 hours later, the fireworks appeared, closing out the most fantastic summer day yet. Hopefully the photos can give you some sense of how beautiful a day it was.. and can pass on a little bit of sunshine for those of you playing in ‘Straya. Enjoy!

loungingAlex and Ally loungingAllySunsetreedsstaking out our spaceCity BeachAlly and Iphoto of a photoCity Beach watchinglittle sparkly things released as part of a charity fundraiser - extremely beautiful and mesmerizingThe little sparkly things reflected in the building

Easter weekend

Some photos from the long weekend just gone.. we spent a few lazy days around home before heading to Zürich to spend time with some great friends. And I only just noticed that every photo either has to do with food, or with animals. hm!

Little bird on our balconyAnother little bird on our balconyIce cream and a movie for Dave's birthdayPigeon-toed PieHousewarming giftLatte Macchiato with Alpencaramel.. um.. yum! From Cake Friends in Zürich.Stack of Alex's blueberry pancakes. Super Lecker!Dave's breakfast creation

Die Schweiz

After France we spent a bit of time in Switzerland, as you can see below :)

Creux du VanCervelas on the fireFriend in the shedPlumRiederalpAletsch GlacierAletsch Glacier

A visit from some old friends

Wow, ok… I’m running a bit behind with the blog! Sorry! We’ve had a pretty crazy couple of weeks here.. between 2 lots of friends visiting, work, German lessons, driving lessons and taking a trip to France, we haven’t had much spare time at home. But no excuses! I’m going to make up for all that lost time now..

So, two weekends ago we were lucky enough to have two of my friends from primary school come and visit. I was a little bit nervous going into this weekend, because, while I’ve kept in contact with one of the friends (now living in Paris), I hadn’t seen the other friend for about 14 years. As it turned out, I had no need to be nervous because we all still got along like we did in primary school, and we had a great weekend! We couldn’t help but find it funny that we’d never kept in contact while we were living in the same country, but now that we’d all moved overseas it came more naturally!

Here are some photos of our weekend/mini reunion.. (yes.. more raspberry picking! This time at a proper berry farm though)

Me and AnnaOur stashAnna, Me and SimonLuzern

City Beach

City Beachsand and cocktailCity Beach

For us here in Germany, Summer seems to have only just arrived. We’re finally getting some nice warm weather and sunshine, which is lucky because we’ve just found the perfect way to spend these warm evenings!

City Beach (not to be confused with the surf store in Australia) is someone’s brilliant idea to bring the beach to those of us who live no where near one, but wish we did! I guess it would be classified as a bar, but the emphasis isn’t so much on drinking as just relaxing and enjoying the sun while it lasts. Strangely enough, they have installed it on top of a parking garage in Basel.. and have not only included a bar, but also piles of sand, a pool, volley ball courts, and loads of day-beds/cushions to really get into the spirit. Even on Wednesday night it was busy, and we had to be super sneaky in order nab ourselves a Fatboy hammock the second it was vacant :)

Swiss National Holiday

Beer on the RhineThe RhineSunset Fireworks over Basel

This weekend Switzerland celebrates their National Holiday, and last night it kicked off in Basel with a bunch of festivities (much drinking, boat races, more drinking), and finished with a fireworks display over the Rhine. Dave and I, as well as our two lovely American friends Alex and Ally, decided to brave the crowds in Basel for a beer or two overlooking the Rhine as the sun went down. It really was a beautiful night for it, and considering it’s one of only two nights that the Swiss are legally able to set off their own fireworks (I think – second only to New Years), it was a pretty fun atmosphere.

We decided not to stay in for the fireworks, but instead drove back into Germany and found ourselves a patch of grass on a hill in Lörrach that overlooks Basel. What a great night!

Oh Dahlia…

Dahliasomeone's amazing drivewayDahlias in pink and redwild flowers

This is the first summer we’ve spent here in Europe, and so far it’s been fantastic! We moved here just in time for winter last year, so are only just (finally!) starting to experience the outdoor culture that comes with Spring and Summer. At the moment there are ‘Stadtfests’ (town celebrations) happening in all the villages around this area, as well as ‘beach’ parties, outdoor movies, and even a big music festival here in Lörrach called Stimmen in a couple of weeks.

In an attempt to be outdoorsy today, Dave and I headed just across the boarder into Switzerland to get some flowers from a self-service flower field. I’d never seen anything like it before coming here, but think it’s a wonderful idea and should be adopted in Australia too. The field we went to had about 30 different varietites (the biggest I’ve seen so far), payable per flower. If you would like to see more photos, just head to my flickr page!

Saturday in Zürich

storefrontD is hungry!cakesmacaroons

Can you believe that in the 9 months we’ve been living here, we had never made the 1 hour drive over to Zürich? Well, on Saturday we decided it was time to rectify the situation! Unfortunately we picked a pretty poor day weather wise, but still made the most of a day there, exploring the streets.

Above are some pictures of a dessert/confectionary store on the main street of Zürich called Spruengli. It has the most beautiful window display on the whole street.. we spent quite a bit of time just starring at their creations in the window. If you’re in the area its worth having a look in – the Luxemburgerli macaroons are to die for!