Michels in Zurich

Friday, June 18, 2010

Mainau Island

In late May, we decided to take advantage of another school holiday (just one day this time!) and go to the island of of Mainau, an island in Lake Constance right on the border of Switzerland and Germany. Mainau is actually in Germany. It's the home of a Danish prince - he decided to marry a commoner and thus gave up his rights to the throne. His father gave him this island (complete with the castle on the island), which was a vacation home for the Danish royal family. The prince and his family dedicated their time to making the island beautiful, and it is now called the flower island because of all the beautiful types of flowers planted around the island. There are also some incredibly beautiful old trees there. The prince and his family still live there in the castle! And now it's open to the public to visit. In different parts of the island, there's a big playground, a petting zoo, a pony riding area, and even a butterfly garden. It was fun to visit the island (it's only an hour away from us), and enjoy the nice warm spring day. Elise also found it a photography bonanza!

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Will's Friend "Charlie"

William got to bring a special guest home from school one day in mid-May - Charlie! Each of the students in the class had a turn to bring Charlie home, take care of him and do activities with him. William had a lot of fun looking after him. And we took pictures and wrote about Charlie's adventures in Charlies journal so Will could share it with his class later that week.

And, it just so happened that the very same night, Nathan got to bring the special guest from his class, Curious George, home again too! They boys had a lot of fun taking care of their guests.

Of course, with all the uploading and printing of photos after the kids went to sleep, so we could finish their journals in the morning in time to take them to school, it's a bit hectic for me with these special guests! I told Nathan (jokingly) that Curious George (who has shown up about 3 times since January) must have a reservation the next time he comes!

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Lake Lugano and Lake Como, Italy

We took the opportunity over a bank holiday in May to visit northern Italy, just a 3 hour drive from our house! It had been raining a lot the couple of weeks before, and we saw so many amazing waterfalls on the drive down to Italy!

We stayed at an amazing hotel resort, Parcos San Marcos, on the northern shore of Lake Lugano, just a 10 minute drive from Lake Como. This area is absolutely beautiful! And the hotel complex was really nice (this is what perpetuates Nathan's love for hotel breakfasts in Europe). We stayed in a family apartment and had usually dinner on the resort. There was a kids club with kids activities (Dave and I went to dinner at the nicer restaurant one evening on our own while the kids were in the kids club). and various other activites for the whole family.

Nathan and Will tried Tai Kwon Do and Elise, Dave and I did rock climbing! I had never tried it before, and when I looked at the wall I thought I would just go a little ways up (I am, in fact, scared of heights). But as the other adults starting going up, they were all making it to the top and ringing the bell. So, of course, I wasn't going to stop in the middle! It was really fun - I made it to the top and rang the bell! It's really not so scary - since you are just looking at the wall and the next hold. Elise made it all the way up several times (there were 3 kids about Elise's age and they all took lots of turns). And Dave made it all the way up too. The beach here was really beautiful, although the rainy weather wasn't ideal for swimming! But this place is absolutely incredible.

One day we drove over to Mennagio, on the coast of Lake Como just across from Bellagio (apparently where George Clooney owns a hose). We then drove down along the lake to the city of Como where we did some shopping. They are famous for silk, so Elise and I each bought a silk scarf at a shop there. Even Will found some Ben 10 socks at the market!

I must say that I think Italy is my favorite country to visit. Every time we've been there, I have loved it. There's just something really special about the feeling there - relaxed, pleasant and exciting.

Menaggio, Italy. Beautiful!

Quotes from the kids!

"Living in Switzerland is like being trapped in a 5-star hotel!" - Nathan, saying that anywhere else you go would probably be worse or the same, but not better (there was also something about jumping out the window and breaking your leg, just to go to another 5-star hotel.).
"Riding the train is easy, it's making sure you're on the right train that's harder." - Meredith when she and Will made their way home from central Zurich on their own with trams, trains and transfers.
"Mom, don't panic." - Meredith, before she told me she had forgotten to take her completed homework to school...my kids know me too well!
"Man, they have a FAT goalie!" - William, as he saw the opposing unihockey team walk in. He was a big goalie, but he wasn't agile, so Will and Nate's team won. Hopp Meilen!
"What's a yardstick?" (I responded with, "a wooden stick with measurements on it.") "Oh, you mean a meterstick?" - William. Yes, he has grown up in Europe!
"I mean, Dad can keep us alive, but it's not really the same!" - William, when I told him I would be out of town a few days and Dave would have to fill out something for school.
"Do we have to go to America? They're always shooting people there! I wish our relatives lived somewhere safe like Switzerland." - Meredith. Sad, but true - this seems to be all the news we hear about the US.
"Mom, can't you make something a little more Swiss, so I know my friends will like it!" - Meredith, in response to my suggestion that we make Snickerdoodle cookies for her class treat at the end of school.
"That's really bad! You know, like how your teeth feel after a 14 hour flight." - Nathan (what other 10-year-old would use that as a definition for really bad?!)
"The zebra was legendary!" - Nathan, after eating an entree of zebra in Capetown, South Africa.
"I don't know what to ask for for Christmas...I'm provided with everything I need." - Nathan
"I hope the English-speaking country won...what was it called again?" Meredith, when I said we needed to check to see who won the US vs. Portugal game in the world cup. Uh, that English-speaking country is the USA! Good thing we're going to the US for summer vacation!
"Mom, drive as fast as you're allowed to!" - Meredith, when we were late for a birthday party. There are so many rules in Switzerland that of course Meredith wouldn't say to drive as fast as you can!
"That's just my accent." - Meredith, when I tried to help her pronounce her "R"s like rrr instead of www.
When driving from Willard, UT, to Logan, UT, to visit our friend Heidi, Nate and Will ask, "How far away does she live?" Mom answers, "About an hour." Nate and Will respond, "Is that in another country?"...(a reasonable question in Switzerland, as France, Germany, Lichtenstein and Austria are all within an hour's drive).
"I'm a selfer!" - Meredith, who wants to do things herself!
"Abra ta ga ga! Make the boys' room clean!" - Meredith, waving her princess wand to help the boys when I said their room needed to be tidy before we could go anywhere
"I'm a helper!" - Meredith
"No Mom, it's called playground judy!" - William ... I think he meant 'playground duty'
Dentist: "How often do you brush your teeth?" William: "Well, when I have a dentist's appointment, I brush them twice, but usually I just brush them once a day." (at least he's honest!)
"Mom, those aren't new shirts that Dad brings home, they're washed shirts." - William, who apparently thought Dave was doing a lot of shopping, not just picking up the dry cleaning! "I thought that too!" - Nathan!
"I just love Life! Life is so, so, so good!" - William (what a positive kid...actually, he's talking about the Life cereal Dave brought back from the US)
"When starts the party?" - Elise, reading the English writing on someone's shirt in Dubai. It's hilarious to see what is written on t-shirts, but as long as it's in English it must be cool!
"Mer, I've got a brilliant idea...it's just brilliant!" - William (love that British vocabulary!)
"Will, the US is having some issues right now!" - Nathan, in response to William saying he wanted to move back to the US (Nathan is quite informed about the economic situation and political gridlock, isn't he!)
"Daisy Duke Bikinis on Top" - William, reciting the words from the song, "California Gurls" which he learned when he did the Beach Party kids' show in Austria
"I want a 'bit-a-bit' more" - Meredith
"It's just like in America. They have all these really nice people around there." - Nathan, after I asked him how he liked his visit to a new dentist (an American).
"What's a dollar?" - William, who knows all about Swiss Francs, but didn't know what I meant when I said the word 'dollar'.
"What's so special about the 4th of July?" - Nathan, when I mentioned while we were on vacation in Austria that it was the 4th of July. I guess we still need to teach some American history!
What year is your birthday? "...every year!" - Nathan (of course, it's so simple!)
"So it turns out that nobody else eats the stem of a strawberry," - Elise (what? you eat the stem of the strawberry?)
"I want to pound it!" - Meredith, saying she wants to hit knuckles when saying goodnight
"Now that's how you do a proper trade." - Nathan, coaching Meredith on how to trade a lick of his lollipop for some of her candy
"Tschüss, ciao, ciao!" - Meredith, saying goodbye in a combination of German and Italian (it's common in Switzerland to mix German and either French or Italian)
"Where is my Lisie? Where is my guys? Where is my daddy?" - Meredith ("my guys" meaning Nathan and Will)
"Shh, baby sleeping!" - Meredith, putting her finger up to her mouth so we'll all be quiet for her baby dolls.
"See, I write things on my hand so I remember to do them...oh, no! I forgot to do that!" - Elise, as she confidently explained her system for staying organized, then turned her hand over to discover it hadn't really worked!
"Too tight!" - Meredith, referring to the seat belt even when it's barely fastened, her jeans, and almost all of her clothing when we put it on her, because she's quite chubby!
"You can move your porn first!" - Nathan, who just learned how to play chess from a British babysitter
"Can someone help me with the cutlery?" - William, loading the dishwasher with his proper British English
"Go make yourself a dang quesadilla!" - Elise (from Napoleon Dynamite)
"I really want to go to Greece!" - Elise ..."I'm dying to go to Canada!" - Nathan (huh?)
"Mom, spell, 'I cup...get it, I-C-U-P!'" - Nathan who is loving his newfound reading and spelling skills!
"Mom, how do you spell, 'Dear Mrs. Lillywhite, you are so beautiful'...?" - William who is always making gifts for people (writing a card for his teacher at school)
"Dad, can you teach me how to play Cricket?" - Nathan (...uh, that's not something Dave learned growing up in LA!)
"Jesus is in charge of the whole world, and he told me when I was in heaven that I can watch TV on a school night." - William, trying again after he had already told me that his teacher said he could watch TV, and I said his teacher was in charge at school but I am in charge at home...
"We're just HANGING OUT!" - William, in response to my asking what the kids were doing when they were supposed to be doing their chores.
"We have snacks in my class at church, except on Quick Sundays, then we don't have snacks, but on Long Sundays we have snacks." - William
"SmartCars rock!" - Elise
"That mom and her son are running because they're Swiss and they don't want to be late. If they were American they would be walking because they're fat and they don't care if they're late!" - Elise
"People say USA...'sucks'" - Nathan, referring to the US soccer team playing in the world cup. I asked him who said that (before telling him that's not a nice word), and he said, "The Swiss kids say that!" World Cup is huge here, and it's so much fun being at the International school where so many countries are represented.
"Mom, I like the breakfast in the restaurants...in the fancy ones." - Nathan as he sat at the kitchen table with a box of cereal and milk, thinking about the great breakfast buffets included at the hotels when we're on vacation
"A blackberry is not a food, it's a type of phone!" - William, who really believes this
"British speak proper English. We speak American English," - Nathan (obviously too heavily influenced by his British teachers and friends!)
"It's a manwo!" - Elise referring to someone she wasn't sure was a man or a woman...
"Dad, you've got to deal with this guy." - Nathan, referring to William when he is misbehaving
"My Pet Rat told me that..." - William, whose imaginary pet rat lives in a hotel in London, speaks German and English, and does many other things
"Let's do that straightaway!" - Nathan, who has added many British English expressions to his vocabulary
"Where are we going?...Is that in a different country?" - William and Nathan, as they realize how quickly one can be in a different country when you live in Switzerland!
"Can we pleeease play Ruckus?!" - Elise, talking abut a very fun and addictive card game we recieved for Christmas from Grandma and Grandpa Francis
"I prefer a different shirt!" - William, who wants to decide everything himself (and such proper vocabulary!)
"You hate Star Wars compared to me..." - Nathan and William (who love Star Wars, but also use this saying about anything they really love)
"Dad, do you want to hear me count from 40 to 100?" - Nathan (who thinks the 20s and 30s are hard)
"What do you do at work, Dad - play some games, and if you win you get some money?" - Nathan
"I'm the only kid in my class who knew how to do jumping jacks...because Elise taught me!" - Nathan
"eine kleine Puppe!" - nearly every Swiss woman who sees Meredith (means "a little doll" in German)
"Oh, there's that place with the W. What's it called?...that has really good food!" - Nathan (talking about McDonalds - you don't see them around very often, but Nathan has been there a couple of times)
"Otherwise, I'm going to have to tell the Bademeister" - Mom (when the kids misbehave...Bademeister means the pool superintendent, but it's just such an ominous sounding word!)
"This is just like a Disneyland ride, but the real thing!" - Elise (talking about our ride up the world's steepest cog railway to Mount Pilatus near Luzern)
"Dienstag!" - William (means "Tuesday" in German, but William uses it as an expletive)
"Nathan, when I hit you, you need to hold on tight to your water so it doesn't spill!" - William
"Mom, this chocolate makes me almost want to cry, it's so good!" - Nathan
"I got 74 out of 80 on the test…and all 8 of the questions I missed were subtraction!" - Nathan
"Hey, that's my jewelry box!" - Meredith, when she saw Elise opening her birthday present from William

Things that seemed strange when we first arrived in Switzerland, but are quickly becoming normal...

You have to pay for the ketchup at informal restaurants! (20-50 Rappen for each little packet)
Grocery stores close at 6:30 or 7:00pm during the week, 4:00 on Saturday, and are closed all day on Sunday.
Banks, government offices, and nearly all stores close each day from 12-2 for lunch.
The mailmen drive motorcycles!
You don't write checks for anything - everything is done through electronic bank transfer
Accessing your bank account online requires a user ID#, Pin#, and from a SecureID digital device a number that changes every few seconds (remember Mission Impossible?)
Buying tickets for the train is on an honor system (you don't have to go through a gate or insert your ticket), yet people run to the ticket machine to buy a ticket before boarding
Trains arrive and leave exactly on time
Kindergarten children walk to school on their own wearing orange and yellow vests
Most radio stations play American 70's music (picture driving through the green hills from Zurich to Luzern listening to "Staying Alive")
The voice on our SUV's navigation system is a British male
Traffic lights turn from green to yellow to red, and from red to yellow to green
You get a speeding ticket for 5 miles over the speed limit - there are traffic cameras and you receive the ticket in the mail two weeks after you were photographed speeding (if you see a "flash", you know you've been caught)
You need 2 sets of tires for your car - summer tires and winter tires. And everyone changes their tires in October and April.
Garbage must be sorted and put in a special bag purchased in your own village, and each 35 liter bag must have a sticker on it that costs SFr 1.80
You have to put a SFr 2 coin in the grocery cart to unlock it from the rest of the carts (then you get the coin back when you lock it back into the stack of carts after shopping)
Eggs are not refrigerated in the grocery store
Milk is not refrigerated in the grocery store
When buying produce in the grocery store, you put it on the scale and punch in the code for the product (#1 for bananas), then out comes a sticker with the price
You bag your own groceries in your own bag (or buy one at the store)