Round trip to Murzelen

May 16, 2016fitfor15in15 Leave a comment

Have you ever made plans to go for a long walk, somewhere spectacular, which involves getting in the car, and at the last minute think why waste time in the car when you can just start walking from your front door instead?

Leo and I had grand plans recently to go walking close to Spiez, on the Lake of Thun, doing a four-hour circular wanderweg. Spiez is probably only 45 minutes away in the car, but the whole thought of wasting 45 minutes of glorious sunshine sitting in a car put us off enough to search for a plan B. And luckily, where we live, there is always a plan B.

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Walking a new path with surprises

February 22, 2016February 22, 2016fitfor15in15 4 Comments

Yesterday, we ventured from our new home to a part of Wohlen we’ve never seen before. Well, we’ve seen it from a distance, but never walked through it.

The weather was crazy-amazing sunny and the path threw up plenty of surprises!

: As you leave the village of Wohlen on the road towards Bern, there’s a bridge across a small stream and gully. We crossed the bridge and walked up a steep path to the left

: A clump of houses are at the top. I’ve always wondered what else is up there

: Looking back down the hill towards the bridge and gully

: Someone has set up a sweet garden terrace

: A nicely renovated Stöckli

: Could be an art gallery or something?

: Love the yellow Wanderweg (walking path) signs

: With an amazing view over Wohlen to the Wohlensee

: Leo snapping the view from the main farmhouse. There was someone in there sanding wood, and a friendly dog on a chain

: Another home being renovated. What a view, all-day sunshine … it has it all. We’re moving in! Hahaha

: Renovations in progress

: This A-frame house is the fourth and final house on the hill

: Surrounding the houses on the other side is nothing but fields and forests

: If we walked on that path near the trees we would go to Liliane and Rene’s new house. They move there in three weeks

: A closer shot of the Alps through the trees. Magical day!

: Once we got to the top of the field, we had our bearings again and could see the main road that passes our house on the way to the next village of Uettligen

: It felt like all of Switzerland was out walking yesterday!

: We walked on another new section. The green sign means horses are allowed on the path too

: I’m always up for checking out a new path!

: Seconds later we saw the only two horses of the day. I was too in awe, watching them pass before I snapped out of it and took a photo

: We’re on Moosweg, which means Moss Path, so it was appropriate to see the lush green stuff

: Tall and proud

: We then came to a clearing of apple trees, farmland and houses

: This is in a very secluded spot of Wohlen, which may actually be Uettligen

: And surprise! Piggies! Big piggies!

: Snort

: Surprise 2

: Hidden cat!

: Surprise 3 … more piggies – little piggies going to market!

: Sunning themselves and scaring themselves. But oh so cute

: Panorama shot 1: The farmhouse with the pigs, and the amazing Alps behind

: Panorama shot 2

: Panorama shot 3, with the road going to Wohlen

: Walking towards our old house on Ballmoosweg

: A lovely rickety old house

: With an incredible view too

: We ran into our friend Hani who invited us in for a quick hello. She has an amazing view

: Perfectly framed art

: Walking from Hani’s house towards our old place. Warped panorama shot

: Past my favourite farmhouse, we saw the shepherd

: Surprise 4: He’s back again with his sheep!

: Words fail me! The shepherd has dogs, four donkeys and more sheep than previous years

: Dog at work

: Poor quality close up

: Then we arrived at our old house to collect the bicycle and Vespa

: And sob! My wildflower garden which I planted two years ago has started to flower. I’ll miss them all!

: Liliane and Rene are excited about their move soon, and not having to look after all this property (and woes from renters) anymore

: Our old view

: Leo pushed the Vespa down to our new apartment, and I pushed the bicycle, because the tyres were flat

: Down the hill, past the sculptor’s house. She has a new arch in her garden

: Home to the narcissus, crocus and iris plants … and more sheep

The shepherd and his flock have been sporadic visitors – one year they were in the field right next to our house. The sheep knew to scratch at the snow to find the grass underneath, so all I could hear was constant neck bells clanging, munching and scratching. Very cool.

Last year, there was a tiny flock nearby, but it wasn’t the same shepherd. Here’s that post from February last year – look at the difference in the weather!

Wishing you a wonderful day.

Oh and I forgot this photo! Home to the narcissus and more sheep yeah, but also a well-deserved beer in the sun! Tee hee!

The new apartment photo tour

February 17, 2016February 17, 2016fitfor15in15 7 Comments

The grand reveal. Are you reading, Mum?!

While we’ve been getting used to things like hearing people walking up the stairs or coughing in neighbouring apartments, I have been love love loving the brief walk to the bus and home again! The trip to work is a grand total of 20 minutes, instead of 40 minutes. Who doesn’t love a 50% reduction in travel time?!

Even without all the luxuries, like the grass, forest and pool, from our previous “castle”, we feel very at home here. Amazingly, despite upsizing from 2.5 rooms to 5.5 rooms, we didn’t have to buy too much stuff either. We bought a higher bed to see out the bedroom window (in the Stöckli we had a low bed because of the slanted roof), a cupboard, a clothes rack and two standing lamps. Everything else (except for the hammock!) was from inside the Stöckli too. It was a veritable Tardis!

So without further ado, here’s our new apartment. Sorry about the lack-lustre photography. I’m home with tonsillitis and couldn’t be arsed making art. And speaking of art, all the art work is by Leo. Clever chap!

: A blanket and neck pillow, along with a sudoku book and pen, live in the hammock, ready at all times!

: The hammock lives in my office. I love it. Call me a swinger; see if I care!

: Desk and drawers, from where all the ditties are delivered and divided

: Candles and lights, trying to be zen

: I may take the postcard board away … unsure … I like the distraction of colours and memories so it will probably stay

: A few of my favourite things

: The little bottle of nice smellies hidden at the back is definitely one of my favourite things

: Had my first bath today, since my niece’s in Melbourne, November 2014. Delish!

: There’s a sliding door between the bathroom and toilet, hence the two wash basins. Odd, but it will be good when visitors are here. The bathroom has it’s own entrance door too, but I keep it closed and just access via the loo. This downstairs bathroom has very quickly become mine!

: The divider between the rooms. Cleaning two basins? No problem!

: The hall outside the bathroom, with the linen cupboard and entrance to my office at the end

: I call this the middle room, which is the guest room, as it’s in between our offices. We store coats and shoes in this room too, and use it daily. As soon as we come home we walk into this room and take shoes off etc

: Shoes and coats, with hats and gloves in the white boxes

: Leo’s room is long. He’s still sorting things out as he’s spent all his time getting the whole house ready and left his room til last

: A nice space for Leo to create more paintings hopefully!

: The front door, which comes at the top of the second set of spiral stairs. You have to close the front door before you can walk upstairs to the gallery level

: Looking from the front door towards the kitchen, dining room, living room and balcony

: Love the big windows in the lounge area

: Can’t wait to cook pizzas in the wooden stove

: Oh hello skylight and plants up there!

: Standing near the balcony door looking towards the kitchen

: We have the space to keep the table extended now. Our drinks cabinet is an ex CD unit.

: Looking from inside the kitchen through the peep hole to the dining room

: From one end of the kitchen

: And the other end of the kitchen

: Looking from the kitchen door down to the guest room with Leo’s office and the front door on the right

: The stairwell to the gallery level. We need to hang the painting on the floor (which looks like a slim Winston Churchill running) on the blank wall but need a special ladder to access it

: This is our kids corner – Roberto Birdo, Freda Vogel and Roger (Rogu) the Rat have been part of our family since shortly after I arrived in Switzerland

: The gallery is a nice place to sit. I am planning a cactus and succulent garden for Leo

: Looking from the gallery into the lounge. How very 80s!

: Practical storage and a skylight which goes into the kitchen. Makes it much lighter in there

: Downstairs has red stripes in the tiles, upstairs has yellow accents. I like how we matched the bath towels to the Listerine colour 😉

: The open shower and towel-warming rail. I always wanted one of those

: Our bedroom

: Strange built-in wooden bench makes for a nice display space. I’m happy to keep it clear

: Creatures bring colour

: The window to the Alps

: Greenery, music and necklaces. The CD is from the buskers I watched in London last year, where the little girl danced along with her doll

: Our very dirty balcony which needs to be jet hosed and given some TLC. How appropriate that the bus came past! The tower is attached to the rural supermarket. Conveniences!

: I want to make the end wall into a vertical garden with herbs etc

: The bottom of the fields from Oberwohlen. We used to live up the hill to the right

So there you have it! Everything, apart from the balcony, is pretty much finished. Not bad for two schmucks doing it all on their own over three weeks. I think that’s contributed to my tonsillitis though. We’ve worked hard, carrying everything up two sets of spiral stairs to the front door and another set to the gallery level. No fights were had either, I promise!*

I’m really looking forward to working on the balcony and getting it established in spring. We’ll have an outdoor table and chairs and hopefully that vertical garden wall!

We look forward to welcoming guests. Will you be coming over?

Wishing you a wonderful day.

* I lie.

No!vember 10-30: Lust for life, lust to write

November 30, 2015December 7, 2015fitfor15in15 Leave a comment

No!vember came and went faster than I could put fingers to keyboard. I haven’t lost my lust for life, just my lust to write!

And exercise? Well you can pretty much forget about all that, just like me. I can’t even say I’ve been walking 40 minutes a day, because lately I’ve been getting a lift to work with a neighbour in the mornings and with Leo on the way home. Slack! But, happily, I haven’t had to walk too much in the cold.

Snow arrived when I was in Bonndorf, Germany, with the female Usual Suspects plus a few extras. Every year for about 15 years, this group of women has been going to the Black Forest for a long weekend of wellness and spa treatments. This year, I was lucky to be invited. And I’ve been sworn to secrecy – what happens in Bonndorf, stays in Bonndorf! I’m embarrassed to say I was the youngest of the group, and always the first one in bed. Ha! I think speaking German, and listening to Bern-Deutsch being spoken, for four days may have knocked the wind out of me a bit. But it was wonderful, and I can’t wait to go back next year, if they’ll have me. Must lift my game.

On the 30th, we went to see a unit for rent in the centre of Wohlen bei Bern (one minute to the bus and shop!) and we hope we receive a contract soon. Fingers crossed. If we get it, I’ll tell you all about it.

Here are some photos from the past 20 days. *shaking head in disbelief at how slack I’ve been with the blog.*

: Trio at dinner in a neighbouring village

: Nice sky

: Our place

: Morning light

: Crisp morning

: Bern at night

: Bonndorf in the Black Forest

: Torrential rain in Bonndorf

: The Usual Suspects +++

: First snow

: Annalise and Sharon (from Ireland) try to dance as well as the couple behind them. No luck.

: View from the hotel room

: Winter wonderland

: Always a church

: Pink and white snuggled together

: The heated pool by day

: And by night …

: Swimming in an outdoor heated pool while it’s snowing should be experienced by everyone at least once in your life!

: Back in Bern, walking to the bus

: Snow in Bern

: It’s beginning to look a lot like …

: White on white

: Shaggy hair

Wishing you a wonderful day.

October 28-31: Mum and Judy visit Bern, and the RWC

October 31, 2015December 7, 2015fitfor15in15 1 Comment

After months of talking about it, my mum and sister’s visit came and went in the blink of an eye.

They arrived about 9.30pm on the 26th, and left at 5pm on the 30th. Why would you come all this way for only a few days, I hear you ask? Well they’re now on a 36-day cruise from Athens to Singapore, and hopefully having a whale of a time. It was great they could fit in a few days with us beforehand – or as I like to say, do the obligatory family catch-up before the real fun began! 😉

They were here in summer 2012, and I was worried the cooler weather this time might be a downer, but the sun came out every day, and Friday was positively balmy!

Here’s a small collection of photos from their trip. I worked on the Wednesday, so Mum and Judy wandered around Wohlen bei Bern, then we went out for dinner Wednesday night; Thursday we drove to Thun and toured the castle, walked to the lake and then went to dinner and saw the light show in Bern; and Friday we walked the Lüggliweg path (the one I “discovered” in March) to Restaurant Kreuz in Wohlen bei Bern for lunch, and had a very cruisy afternoon before they jumped on the train to Zurich for their flight to Athens.

The autumnal colours were out in full force and it was nice they could visit the Stöckli again before we have to move. And they both fell in love with a very popular Swiss salad, called Nüsslisalat. Here’s a link about it in English. Do you know of this salad leaf too? It’s very yummy with chopped egg and bacon.

Saturday night we went to Evi and Paul’s for a lovely dinner, and to watch the Rugby World Cup final, where the better team, New Zealand, beat the underdogs, Australia. (Leo got quite into the RWC, and we watched many games each weekend.) I’m very happy for all Kiwis, and we will miss seeing Dan Carter on the field in the future. What a face!

Wishing you a wonderful day.

: Dinner on Wednesday night, where the restaurant owner was surly, but the food was great!

: My niece Melissa went to see a live recording of The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in New York and all I got was this excellent glow in the dark t-shirt! Love it!

: Judy inside one of the turrets at Thun Castle

: The view of Thun – worth the entry fee into the castle just for this! The Lake of Thun is in the background. Interlaken is at the other end of the lake, about 30km away

: The old town of Thun

: Oh, just one more shot of that gloriousness, c’mon!

: Looking up at the castle, which is now also a hotel as well as a museum

: Mum on the Aare river, which begins from Thun and runs to Bern and beyond

: Thun (pronounced Toon) also has two lovely wooden bridges with flowerbeds, like Lucern

: I see red, and green, and yellow, and orange, and …

: Wouldn’t that be a nice spot for a cup of tea?

: Parliament House in Bern was lit up in a 30 minute display, celebrating 150 years since the Matterhorn was first climbed

: Amazing and fun

: Clever use of shapes and colours. I’ll be back next year!

: Mum and Judy couldn’t believe they dressed in the same things again. They’ve nicknamed themselves the Bobbsey Twins, as it happens more often than not

: The sun really came out on Friday – perfect weather for a walk

: All that glitters is gold … Judy spotted this awesome leaf on our walk

: A lovely pot of gold at the restaurant

: Then it was a sad goodbye – won’t see them until Christmas next year

: Dinner at Evi and Paul’s

October 10-27: Mishmash of photos

October 27, 2015December 7, 2015fitfor15in15 2 Comments

Well, who’s been a slacker on the blog then, huh?! Me!

To make amends, I’m going to keep the waffle to a minimum and load up a photo gallery of all the lovely things that have happened in the past few weeks.

My job’s going well, I’m enjoying the brisk walk in the fog to work, but since we’ve lost daylight savings, I’m not enjoying the walk home in the dark. There are no street lights and I was nearly hit by an idiot driver who couldn’t see my torch shining in the night. So now I’m wearing a yellow safety vest on the walk home. Stop laughing! It’s pitch black! 🙂

July 15: Close encounters

July 15, 2015fitfor15in15 2 Comments

No, not on the bike! With the camera! 🙂 (I can hear my mother breathing a sigh of relief from here!)

Today, after work, Iva cooked a barbecue lunch for Pastora and I on the terrace at the office. And then Iva and I jumped in the Aare. I need a waterproof case for my phone so I can take some action shots as it truly is a wonderful experience I want to share! The water was a gloriously refreshing 19.5 degrees.

My 15 minutes of exercise today was walking along the river and then swimming back to the office. We were gone for about 40 minutes, and I think 10 minutes of that was swimming.

Here are my afternoon ‘close encounter’ snapshots from the garden. I enjoy the results of the olloclip we bought in Strasbourg for my birthday and should use it more. Several of the cacti have flowers at the moment. What a treat.

: Starburst

: Loner

: Wide shot

: Hiding ant

: Another angle

: The actual cactus plant

: Furry leaves

: This one was the size of a pea

: Wide angle with ant

: Hydrangea petals

: Close up of the hydrangea, a little out of focus

: This tiny bloom has sprung up by surprise in the garden. Hope it stays!

: Close up of the osteospermum …

: … which is in a blue pot on the terrace table

: Inside a yellow snapdragon

: Inside the pink snapdragon

: Inside a geranium

Wishing you a wonderful, colourful day.

June 27 and 28: Weekend wrap

June 28, 2015fitfor15in15 4 Comments

Saturday and Sunday served up plenty of sunshine so we made the most of it by being outdoors.

Saturday we worked in the garden and I did some small things around our house and Liliane and Rene’s too. Even though we’d spent the previous evening at dinner together, we all joined forces again in the afternoon for cards and dinner around the pool (for the first time ever, I didn’t lose a game!). I still find it so amazing to only turn the lantern on at 10.30pm.

Today there was an airshow in a neighbouring suburb, so we all stood in the garden and gawped at the heavens, watching the nine small planes do all their spectacular stunts. A forest blocked some of the view, over the Wohlensee, but all the loop-the-loops and high-up action kept us entertained for 20 minutes, and then they just all flew away again. It was almost sad – the way they couldn’t even wave goodbye!

We walked to Lotti’s house for her birthday gathering this afternoon, a good 40-minute wander in the sunshine on the path that I only ‘discovered’ earlier this year, that’s directly behind the house. Once home, a quick dip in the pool and a play on my new toy (see the last photo), ready for tomorrow’s commute to work, and two episodes of House of Cards wrapped it up.

Overall, it was a very social weekend, with maybe not the right sorts of foods consumed (Lotti’s birthday cake and a few other small sweeties) and not enough exercise completed to counteract the beer calories consumed, but wonderful fun.

In case you missed my post from yesterday, please click here to read the latest guest contribution to fitfor15in15, from personal trainer Richard Wheeler. He has some excellent tips, which I will be taking on board, for (re)starting your fitness!

Signing off with a mixture of photos from the week. Some wouldn’t load a few days ago, but most are from this weekend.

Wishing you a wonderful day.

: The team fly-by

: Love how the bird on the left looks like part of the show!

: Love wins – putting an arrow through the heart

: Like a bird, on a wire … or a falcon, on an electricity pole …

: Love the hay bales. Planes are an afterthought almost!

: Sunbathing times

: Dani and Claudia

: Leo and Dani often smoke a cigar when they get together

: Inside of a miniature rose using the lens for my iPhone camera

: This is the inside …

: … of this …

: An attempt to ‘capture’ a bee

: Healthy blooms

: The gang from Friday night, Saturday afternoon/evening (here) and Sunday afternoon

: The start of the walking path behind our house

: Leo walking the path behind our house. I had a photo from earlier in the year where this was all white

: Each season this gardener does something special in her garden. This summer it’s blue ceramic pots, blue ceramic turtles, blue, blue, blue!

: Leo, ready to make hay while the sun shines

: Cute little village. All the cows were hiding under the trees on the left

: A crystal-clear blue sky

: Boules competition at the local restaurant. Black and orange team against the green team. Serious business me thinks!

: And last but not least, my new toy – a Töfli – made in 1983, maximum speed 30km/hr. It’s Rene’s and he cleaned it up for me! I’m so excited! Of course, on the roads, I’ll be wearing a helmet 🙂

June 19: Work and play

June 20, 2015fitfor15in15 3 Comments

I didn’t write the blog yesterday because I was having too much fun! 😉

Work went well, I was there for four hours and played around on the ‘back end’ of the website, learning what does what. I’ll go back again on Monday to learn about the email orders.

Afterwards, Pastora, Iva and I went to Cafe Pyrennes, our favourite bar, and had another excellent afternoon which turned into early evening. Sandra and Kanjana joined us as well, and we saw Marion, who we’d met there a few months ago, and met Werner, who at 70 is still fighting fit and working as a stage designer in European theatres. All very interesting people!

On the way to the bus. I think that’s potatoes growing?

So many slugs and snails on the walk!

Looking back at the steps down to the Dojo. There’s another set this long at the top, to the right. They’d make a good workout

Recent rain has made the Aare brown again

Can you see the patterns in these pieces of wood embedded in a fence?

Iva and Pastora on the footbridge over the Aare

Sandro with Pastora. I forgot to get a photo with Kanjana, silly me

Werner, the theatre stage manager/designer

Pastora and Marion

Cows on the way home

Corn and lovely light over Wohlen

Wishing you a wonderful day.

May 31: The World’s Longest Staircase

May 31, 2015fitfor15in15 2 Comments

In Berner Oberland, a region of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland, lies the Guinness Book of Records’ World’s Longest Staircase.

Looking back at the terminus, heading straight up. The stairs are to the left of the track

A glimpse of what’s to come

With 11,674 steps going steeply to the top of the Niesen mountain, you’d be a fool to consider a running race on them, wouldn’t you?! But on June 6, crazies of all ages will huff and puff their way up in the 14th Niesen Stairway Race. I wonder if they ever stop and have a look at the amazing view behind them?

Somewhere around the middle I think

At all other times, people aren’t allowed to walk on the steps, because the funicular train goes up and down at 15-30 minute intervals – apparently it gets a bit tight in some sections. For any of my hardcore running fans, do you fancy entering in 2016? I’ll cheer you on at the start and have a cold drink waiting at the finish! 🙂

A clear view on the way down

The funicular was built 1906-1910 and takes you to 2362m. The first section of 2111m takes 14 minutes to complete, with a steepest gradient of 66%. You switch to another train for the second section, which is 1388m long, takes 12 minutes, and has a gradient of 68%.

Leaving the top station

The Niesen, also called the Swiss Pyramid because of its shape, is about a 45 minute drive south from Bern. We caught the funicular (no surprises there!) to have brunch on top today. It was Leo’s birthday present from our neighbours last year and we were shocked at how full it was! Sunday seems to be a popular day to sit and watch the clouds whiz by. It’s also popular with the paragliders who constantly fly past the viewing platforms and over the restaurant.

Below is a gallery of our photos and here’s a link to the Niesen official photos (some lovely shots in there in clearer weather).