Our World Tuesday

The story behind our trip to Switzerland is beautiful.  Fifty years ago (in 1964) my friend Barbara participated in an Experiment in International Living and was invited to stay in the home of a family in Switzerland for the summer.  She became good friends, as did her whole family, with the wonderful people who had welcomed her into their home and shared their lives with her as if she were one of their own.  She and her family traveled to Switzerland many times, over the years, to visit with this family.  The friendships have endured all of these years and it was her hope to go visit the family to celebrate their 50 years of friendship.  Barb has been my friend for many years as well (not near 50, but many).  We share many interests, not the least of which is working with the Raptors.  She kindly invited me to join her on this trip and I could thank her every day of my life and it wouldn't be enough to show my true appreciation.  So the Adventure began and flew by so fast that I have trouble collecting all of the memories.   I am hoping that my pictures will save them for me and I did keep a journal ... with much difficulty because it was hard to get the right spelling and meaning of words in a language I didn't speak.  But, I am learning ... Ich spreche ein bisschen Deutsch jetzt.

After a long flight we were met at the airport by her friends and we were off to Wadenswil a suburb of Zurich.  This is a beautiful little village and like all of Switzerland, the streets are very hilly.  I was struck by the fact that there were very few places that were level.  My legs were struck by it as well and quickly understood why the Swiss are so fit and healthy (among many other reasons having to do with lifestyle and a good medical plan ... the nurse in me is showing.).  Once there, we were taken to our apartment which belonged to the youngest brother in the family.  He keeps the apartment to stay in when visiting his sister and her husband.  It was a delight to have such good accommodations.  We walked daily from our apartment to the home of our friends who graciously shared their lives with us for two weeks. 

This is their home.  It was built in the early 19th century by a wealthy land owner.  The style is English as many wealthy English came to Switzerland during that period and built homes and hotels that still stand today.  We ate breakfast and dinner on the terrace when weather permitted.  I can't begin to express how much we enjoyed the time we spent with them.

We especially loved the little garden on the roof ...

The main entrance ...

Inside their home they have restored the original beauty of the ceilings with the help of the Historical Society.

The windows go all the way around from the living room, the dining room, the kitchen into the foyer.

Just a peek at their tasteful, artistically decorated  home ... trying not to intrude on their privacy.

 This is the ceiling in the kitchen ...

Out of the dining room window we are able to see another home.  This one was built by the son of the wealthy land owner.  It has been donated to the Village and is used much like a civic center where classes and activities are held.  It also overlooks the beautiful gardens that I mentioned in my "Good Fences" post.  That is for another day.

Our favorite part of this house is the chimney ...

The architecture in all of Switzerland was so beautiful.  I will be posting many more pictures over time ... this is just the beginning :)  Enjoy your week.