Flughafen

Ok, so my last week didn't actually involve any airports, but I have, however, decided that that is my favorite German word. And seeing as how I spent a good deal of time learning the necessary things to get by in Bavaria (just ask me what time it is, I'm up to 5 languages now, although it might take me a while to get there...defeating the purpose of telling time?) , voila the title.

Olivier, as he came to be know avec host family, paid a visit back to his homeland to renew his visa over the Easter holiday. Turns out, we live in a very silly country (who knew?), and the US won't let you renew a US visa in the US. But Swizterland, being the carefree country that it is, lets you renew the visa AND pick it up in person (apparently rare?) at their consulate in Bern, about an hour north of Geneva.

Oli arrived early on the morning of the 2nd, to be introduced to the wonderful world of Yens, the BAM, the trek up the hill (with luggage), and finally, host family. That afternoon, amidst jetlag and exhaustion, we trekked through the fields behind my house and met Gabriel, T.Chang's host dad and the jolliest man you'll ever meet, to go for a ride in his horse-drawn cart with the other kids on my program who live in Yens. It was wonderful and finished in the middle of the woods around a fire with cups of hot tea and fresh bread. We also found our future campsite for this next weekend...

The next day, we woke up and, due to a certain someone's acute asthma and allergies to pet hair (Igor), dust (my basement room), and down (duvet and pillows)-my room was a fail, we decided it was time to leave. So, I was introduced to a magical website called lastminute.com. We contemplated Paris but had both already been, and Oli had yet to see Italy. Milan has gotten a bad rap from pretty much everyone I know, but it was reachable by train and the price was right, so Milan it was. Lastminute.com has these deals called "top secret hotels" where they don't tell you the name, phone number, or reviews of the hotel. Just the location and the star rating. Kind of sketchy BUT, search Milan and find a 5 star hotel in the center of the city for 120 pounds for 2 nights. Booked it. Minutes after, we got an email thanking us for our reservation at the Westin Palace. Within an hour we had packed bags with clothes enough for 2 days in Italy (with intentions of coming back to Geneva before going to Bern for the visa appointment) and were off to the train station for tickets and to the Old City for lunch. Such jet(train)setters.

We pulled in to Milano Centrale around 10:30 that night and, having been idiots and not written down the name, number, or address of the hotel, wandered around aimlessly for over an hour looking for the place, only to find out that it was a 5 minute walk from the station...we had just come out the wrong side. We walked in to the marbled lobby, checked in, were upgraded to a deluxe suite for free, and went to our room (palace?). It had a foyer, jacuzzi, bathrobes, a huge window that opened out to a quaint side street, and a bed bigger than my house. I was in heaven. We decided to take advantage of the place and use the concierge, granted with some hesitation because our aim was cheap authentic Italian food. After calling about 5 places to hear that they were closed, the concierge finally got through, said some magic words, and told us where to go. Smoked salmon and goat cheese, 2 plates of pasta, tiramisu, and a carafe of wine later, we were full, satisfied, and not much poorer. Way to go, Westin man, you did us well.

The next day, we woke up to rain and Easter morning church bells. Again taking the advice of concierge-man, we went to Bianco Latte, one of the few cafes open that morning and ate a fantastic breakfast before heading out to see what Milan actually had to offer which, despite the rain, was actually quite a lot. I don't know if it's because I'm a city person, because I love Italy, because I love shopping, whatever...I think Milan is great. We saw La Scala theatre, Il Duomo, a huge old castle, a museum (that was FREE) that we stumbled upon completely by accident, and just wandered through the streets past stores I'm too broke to even walk in to. It's no Rome or Venice, but in many respects, I think that's exactly why I liked it. The other cities obviously have their draw and should be seen, but I wouldn't be so quick to discount Milan. There were very few tourists, and you pretty much had to fend for yourself as far as getting the most out of the day...no hoards of tour groups marking an obvious attraction and no men trying to sell you things on every corner. Finally. On the way back to the hotel before dinner, rain-soaked and sodden, we stopped and bought a huge tub of gelato to take back. Biscotti is officially my favorite flavor. Back in the hotel and out of the rain, we took a break to eat the gelato and relax a bit. The only 2 tv channels in English were MTV (and after watching one-i.e. one too many-episodes of "Rock of Love" the night before, that wasn't an option) and some channel showing a Disney movie about golden retriever puppies being lost in Alaska and racing in the Ididerod as a result of eating ice cream and ...sled dogs it was. Dinner that night was more pasta and greatness.

The next morning on the way to the train, we passed an open-air market and bought pastries, risotto cakes, and coffee and ate a wonderful breakfast en route to Bern (in the German part of Switzerland...begin Oli's lifesaving in speaking German, I've never felt more clueless...or ignorant). Turns out that it was much cheaper to go straight there and would save time rather than passing back through Geneva. Standing on the balcony of the hotel, overlooking the main street and station in Bern, we decided what to do that evening and settled on going to see the bears (they have 2 babies and 2 parents who roll around on the hillside by the river all day because the bear is the symbol of Bern), finding the American embassy, and getting some dinner. We walked for a while and finally came to the embassy, only to discover once again that it was about 5 mintues from the hotel, and that night at dinner, I had my first encounter with spetzel. I'd equate it to Bavarian macaroni and cheese? Mmm. I also tried "white sausage," but wasn't too keen on the rubbery links served in a bowl of hot water...

The next morning, I went to the Starbucks to use the free wifi (although when you have to pay 4.50 swiss francs for a tall tea, I don't know how "free" the internet really is...) with the expectation of being there for hours and hours while Oli was at the embassy for the visa appointment. Au contraire, an hour later he returned with the news that he could pick it up after 4 the next day. Easy as pie. Deciding that we had pretty much seen what there is to see in Bern, we debated another destination in Switzerland that wasn't too far, decided on Interlaken, and again paid a visit to lastminute.com. An hour later, we were on our way. Turns out it was again much cheaper to just do that than go back to Geneva to get more clothes, etc. After all, what was an extra day away, right?

We got to Interlaken, found our hotel (not a hard task since it was the biggest, ugliest building there...not to take anything away from it), and sat on our full balcony with our "imported" Italian wine we had from Milan, surrounded on all sides by Alps. It's a rough life we lead. The next day, we took a train, cable car, and smaller train up to the little ski village of Murren and found a magical cafe with a huge terrace RIGHT in the middle of the Alps with an perfect view of Jungfrau. I don't think the splendor of those mountains will ever get old. There's something so terrifyingly intimidating and imposing about them that is absolutely awe inspiring-not really sure how else to describe it. And while we couldn't go skiing, there was still tons of snow on the ground, but it was hot enough for short sleeves. Perfection.

It was back to the familiar sights of Bern that afternoon, picked up a brand new visa, and were off again to book tickets to Munich. It was once again cheaper/faster to go straight there rather than pass back through Geneva, so we took our bags with clothes enough for 2 days and caught a train to Munich. Sitting across from us was a nice young girl who lived there and told us all the best places to go for currywurst, beergartens, and electronica music (no, we never quite made it to the latter suggestions...). It was nice to have all sorts of connections in Munich (next time, Kristin), including Oli's sister and boyfriend-fluent in German and former inhabitant of the city. The one time lastminute.com failed us was in saying that our hotel here (another "top secret") was close to the city center. After getting to the hauptbahnhof, realizing that our U-bahn was no longer running, taking a different one, and walking 20 minutes through residential Munich from the last stop on our line, we were at our hotel...the Holiday Inn. Granted, it was a very nice Holiday Inn, but nonetheless, not the 4 star super secret deal we were hoping for. We could have said this week had been roughing it but then decided that being disappointed by a Holiday Inn didn't quite meet the requirements.

The next morning, we met Kate in the Marionplatz (main square) and let her take us around for the day (only after stopping at one of the 5 H&Ms on the main street to buy some new pants for Oli that didn't have a hole in the crotch and some new clothes for me that were...clean? Right. Anyhow, we climbed to the top of the cathedral, ate goat cheese and thyme-honey salad, saw the cuckoo clock go off, and stopped at the outdoor market to buy fresh dips, bread and fruit to bring to the beergarten that evening. Beergartens are really something that America needs (or maybe not?). Essentially, you order a liter of beer that comes in mugs too heavy to hold and bring food, sit at picnic tables outside, and just talk and enjoy...no rush, no waiters, no reservations. It was really a wonderful atmosphere.

Day 2, we went to the bahnhof in the morning and bought a group ticket (25 euros for up to 5 people and a return trip...get with the program, Switzerland) to Garmisch, a little Alpine town an hour and a half outside of Munich. We walked up a mountain to a cafe (alm?) probably about halfway up, but given my lack of preparedness for the trip, in general, my pathetic little Tory Burch flats made my feet feel like I had just climbed Mt. Everest. It was completely worth it, though. More spetzel and a view of the entire town below and surrounding Alps. That evening, after literally INHALING two loaves of Turkish bread and what Oli falsely translated from German as "chicken" (fish) for fear of missing the show, we sprinted to the venue where Frightened Rabbit was playing that night and made it, feeling like I was about to vomit, with...20 minutes to spare. False alarm.

Bavarian breakfast at a cafe, nearly being mauled by a very angry St. Bernard, finally buying some Mozart Kugeln (literally, Mozart balls...hazelnut, chocolate, and marzipan), and we were back on a train to Geneva. What was originally supposed to be a 2 day trip turned into a week long adventure, but covering 5 cities felt like quite the accomplishment...