Mainau

My friend and fellow expat, Alicia, and I have been dying to go to Insel Mainau.  Which is a beautiful island renowned for its gardens and flowers. 

I wonder if my dad could pull this off?

Gorgeous Italian waterfall flowers.

Inside the butterfly house which boasts 80 different species. 

Thank you Penelope for taking a great picture of your mom and me outside of the castle!

Penelope with a goat in the petting zoo.  I'm not sure if this is the one we let escape out of the pen.  Whoops!  Nobody seemed to care, but as soon as that goat got out it was GONE.  Probably headed to some of the best tasting plants.   

Here are some of my favorite flowers:

Lantana camara or Spanish Flag

Hibiscus schizopetalus or Japanese Lantern

Justicia brandegeana or shrimp plant. 

So an Ogre, a Monk and a Virgin walk into a bar...

I've been so excited to see the Jungfrau (virgin) mountain and Grindelwald region of Switzerland and it did not disappoint!  We drove early Monday morning since Chris had the day off for Swiss National Day to Lauterbrunnen train station. We jumped on the "Jungfrau Express" and started our 1.5 hour train ride to the "Top of Europe". 

This is the North Face of the Eiger (Ogre) from the Kleine Scheidegg train station.  I didn't get great pictures in the morning and the afternoon was too cloudy hence the b&w. 



Kleine Scheidegg bahnhoff between Grindelwald and Wengen/Lauterbrunnen.

So this is a glacier!  It is viewed from Eismeer (sea of ice) Station between the Eiger and Mönch (Monk). 

 As you ascend in a cog-wheel train through the interior of the Eiger and Mönch to Jungfraujoch there are two stops and view points.  The Eiger Wall Station is directly on the north face and is an escape route for climbers in danger.  It is also where rescue missions depart.  The second stop is at 10,364 feet at Eismeer.

 

 

Inside the Sphinx observation deck.  The complex also has a high altitude research station.
 

Spot the helicopter?  Just a little perspective...

Top of Europe and the Mönch.  Fantastic views in every direction.  Got a little freaked out when I walked across a metal grate and looked down only to see nothing for 1000 ft. 

View of Aletsch Glacier and tent camp from Sphinx. 

On the glacier throwing snow balls at each other. 

Inside the Ice Palace. 

Chris and Jungfrau in the distance back at Kleine Scheidegg. 

Tell me again where happy cows come from?

Allez! Allez!

Immediately after our U.S. visit, we headed to France to catch the end stages of le Tour de France.  We almost killed ourselves doing it... We landed in Zurich at 9am and were on the road again by about 11:30.  After both of us woke up just before we hit a guard rail, we decided to pull over for 30 minutes for a nap. 

Poor Chris...  This was at the rest stop where we tried to get some shut eye.  What were we thinking?

The beautiful village of Saint Sorlin where we stayed.  We went over the mountain to Bourg d'Oisans where all the roads leading to Alpe d'Huez had been closed.  We hiked to a good, steep spot on the mountain side and took naps, ate a picnic and people watched.  I've included pictures of our favorite "characters" that we saw during the two days. 

Many people attempted to ride up Alpe d'Huez.  I guess it was too hard with a horse on his back. 

Nacho?

 Good thing he has a paper hat and a nice sweater to protect him from the sun.

 This is just insane!  Its one thing to walk or bike up the mountain, but this guy is cross country skiing up it!

Yeah, how are you going to sit down in that?

Every switch back is named after a famous rider, but there is also one named 'Dutch Corner'.  The road is painted orange and every one wears crazy orange get-ups and gets smashed. 

About an hour before the riders arrive, the sponsors put on a parade and throw junk at you.  This year our favorites included: Nesquick, cookies, and...

samples of laundry detergent thrown out by these gentlemen. 
Now on to the real reason to be there...

One of the fascinating things about going to the tour is that you don't know whats going on in the race until you see the first riders.  It was a complete shock to see Ryder Hesjedal (CAN) and Pierre Rolland (FRA) fighting it up the mountain.  Rolland went on to win the white jersey for best youngest rider at 24. 

What was that about being a 'fan' and not a 'fanatic'?

Second part of the peloton and Chris.  Mark Cavendish in the green jersey. 

Please no comments about the hair!  Long story short: our hotel didn't provide us with towels or soap so we had to use sweatshirts and face wash.  The only other negative was the crazy traffic jam after the race.  We ate dinner to see if things would clear out, but they just seemed to get worse!   It took us 4.5 hours just to get out of the small town and back to the hotel which was only 30 miles away.  Crazy!

Next day we headed to Grenoble for the individual time trial that would inevitably decide the winner of the race.  The day after they would head to Paris to finish.  We decided to stay in front of the podium and had a great view of the finish line 30 yards away.  At least you see someone cross the finish about every 1-3 minutes so not as much waiting around.  We were still standing for about 5 hours. 

This guy was from Luxembourg where the Schleck brothers are from.  He was singing "Wave Your Flag" from the World Cup songs.  Sorry, Andy lost again this year. 

Mr. Sammy Sanchez sporting the poka-dot jersey for King of the Mountains. 

Contador who?

And this year's winner: Cadel Evans!  Going into the race today he was in third place.  When he crossed the line he was leading by 1 min. 30. 

Second place again, Andy...

Cadel ready for the maillot jaune.  BMC is a Swiss bike manufacturer and the team is based in Santa Rosa.

Mark Cavendish collecting his green jersey for sprint points.

That's Chris and me. 

After all the excitement in Grenoble, we headed to Geneva for a little rest day before heading home. 

Lake Geneva or Lac Léman if we want to be critical.  The Jet d'Eau in the background (one of the largest fountains in the world).


More bikes?  Get me outta here!  The Geneva triatholon was going on when we headed to the city center.

Sir, where are your pants?

Anyway, another great year at the tour! 

Music, Mini-golf, Baseball, S'mores, and an Incredible View

I had a fantastic last few weeks.  I visited my family and friends in Utah and California for a wonderful two weeks. 
My sister had a great idea that if we were to go to a concert the day after I flew out there it would help with my jet lag.  We had a great time at the Gallivan Center seeing Toad the Wet Sprocket (one of our favorite bands).  I went shopping with Mom, made her run me around doing errands and even talked her into a spray tan! 
Since my visit I have come to realize how much I miss my friends and family since being away (1 year and counting).  Thank goodness for Skype!

My friend, Rachel, and her her girls (Ava and Maela) came from Pocatello, ID for a visit.  What else could we do on a warm, sunny day than play mini-golf at Mulligan's?  Brought back lots of memories!  I don't think I've laughed that hard in a long, long time!   

Cousin Scotty and Sis Angie at the baseball game in Brigham City

The family drove up to Ogden to see my cousin, Garren and Jessie's miracle baby, Zaddock and also to see my Grams Payne in Tremonton.  We headed over to Brigham City to watch an awesome double header featuring my cousin, Hunter. 

I love my family....  (Uncle Bob, Mom, Aunt Becky, Uncle Wayne, Cousin Rob and Cousin Scott)

Friends Day!  It was so great to catch up with these girls.  (Ashly Johnson and Heather Ferguson)

Hi, Dad!

Now for some S'mores in the backyard. This is one of my favorite spots on earth! Nothing beats laying on a blanket under the trees with a good book and a diet coke.

At the Santa Rosa farmers market.  I couldn't stop shoveling the fish tacos into my mouth even at 10am! 

Chris met me in Santa Rosa.  Too bad he had to work most of the time... We did get to enjoy a great trip to San Francisco with his parents and eat at one of our favorite places, Fog City Diner. 

Aimee (4 days away from baby day) and me at Coppola Winery in Geyserville, CA

I was lucky to get to see almost everyone I wanted to.  Its hard with summer schedules and vacations.  I feel very blessed to have such wonderful friends and family surrounding me!