Saturday, March 28, 2009

The Swiss Alps

We have just returned from our trip to Switzerland. We had a wonderful time, and both Jason and I feel it is the prettiest place we have ever visited.

This was the first Bed & Breakfast we stayed at, called Sunny Days. It's located in Interlaken, a city that sits right between two beautiful, blue lakes.

From Interlaken, we took the train and then cable cars to Murren, a ski-resort city. Lodges and chalets such as this one were everywhere. Supposedly, people aren't allowed to build homes of any other style.
Jason on top of a bench in Murren. Impressive.
We took this picture ourselves from a city across the valley from Murren called Wengen. It had the most incredible view of the valley and the mountains across the way.
The second place we stayed was in Lutschental, a country B&B outside of the touristy towns. It was definitely "homey."

Today we went up to the Shilthorn. We are packed in this cable car going up the mountain. I may look composed but these cable cars scared me every time.
Cable car going up to the Shilthorn.
J&A on top of the Shilthorn. It was about 0 degrees outside, which isn't bad locals say.
J&A in a cute town at the base of the Alps called Grindlewald.

The last couple days we spent in Luzern. We took a gorgeous train ride into the mountains. Here are a couple photos Jason shot from the train.

This is where we stayed at in Luzern, our final destination. It wasn't a Bed & Breakfast, but it did have an open, sunny dining area enclosed in glass where we ate the first night.
This track is surprisingly right next to a massive wall that served as a fortress in Luzern. Jason would have been a great track star. Look at that stance.
Our lunch in Luzern, with our legs hanging over the edge over the water. Sandwiches, apples, bananas, granola bars, and of course swiss chocolate and swiss cheese--it doesn't get any better than that.
The famous bridge in Luzern.
In Switzerland fondue is a common dish. They had chocolate fondue too, but we just got cheese. Hashbrowns and bratwurts usually accompany the fondue, which we also had.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

The Three Amigos

Meet Nacho, Rodrigo, and Fedrico. They're part of a less-active family who happen to be our neighbors. We've played soccer with them on a number of occasions. Their parents are separated, but their Mom--who is a member--has taken the initiative and started taking her family to church again (with the help of the Sister missionaries). Since the three youngest boys aren't members, the Sisters have been teaching them the discussions, and Jason and I have been fortunate to attend some of the lessons. On Sunday, Rodrigo and Fedrico were baptized. It has been wonderful to see how happy their mom is now that her boys have been baptized. They are such a sweet family.

They asked Jason to baptize them. Left to right: Fredrico, Jason and Rodrigo