Grant and I took a break from posting on the blog. The election in the states really caught us off guard, I didn’t think Trump was going to win (regardless of whom we were more supportive of), and so I took some time off to process everything. Being an armchair philosopher, and not one to shy away from discussions on how to save the world, those who know me know exactly where I stand on things.

Emotions are definitely running high, not to mention the run-up to the election has definitely captured the world and everywhere we’ve traveled, the people we meet have all had questions about it and in turn have wanted to express their opinions and feelings. It’s definitely been an interesting and exciting experience to learn that this election in America has had such an impact and has captured the hopes, dreams, and attention of the international community. This is an aspect of travel that surprised us but we are delighted to have these conversations over beer or coffee.

So I’m back to posting, and thus, the real world. I have a few posts to catch up on and I will be working hard to make these happen in the next few days. I thank you all for your patience.

August 28, 2016 (Zürich, Switzerland)

Uetliberg is a mountain overlooking Zürich and provides beautiful panoramic views of the city and lake. It is so accessible that it’s a must-see for anyone visiting Zürich and wants a quick venture into nature. One can easily hike up the mountain, as there are several hiking trails, but Grant and I cheated on this day and caught the train up from the city center. Shhh….. don’t tell!

The train dropped us off at none-other-than Uetliberg station and, just to highlight how not a day of exercise this was, we purchased ice cream popsicles to eat on the short trail to the summit (the popsicles were a passion fruit creamsicle with vanilla ice cream filling, very delicious).

Along our hike up to the summit, Grant and I got a kick out of these moose lamps:

Uetliberg stands at 869 meters (2,851 feet) tall and is part of the Swiss plateau which, according to wikipedia, makes up part of the three major geographical landscapes of Switzerland; the others being the Jura Mountains and the Swiss Alps.

The mountain provides many activities for visitors including hiking trails, a downhill mountain biking track, a launch point for paragliders, camping spots, and water fountains next to benches. There are two towers at the peak, one is a look-out tower rebuilt in 1990 (that costs 2 Francs) and the other is a 186 meter TV-tower.

When Grant and I got to the top, the view of Zürich included a sweeping vista of the whole metro area. Grant wanted to go to the top of the look-out tower. I was hesitant to do this because my stomach felt fluttery climbing up the wood and steel structure. And being windy that day, you could feel the movement of the stairs below your feet with every gust of wind. But the view was too enticing to stop the climb and I finally made it to the top. This was totally worth it!

Trains run about every half-hour or so and take about 20 minutes to get back to the city center.

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