Sights and sounds from Switzerland

_MAL1107, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

Ethan and I are having an absolute blast hiking in the Alps. I have posted photos and videos from the trip.

Ethan’s photos and videos from Switzerland

Ethan has a new iPhone 3G S, and has been using it to take photos and videos on his adventures here in Switzerland. With the new iPhone, it’s possible to upload photos and videos directly to a MobileMe account, and Ethan has been doing just that.

Ethan’s photos and videos from Switzerland are pretty good, so take a look!

Hike up to Schilthorn

This morning after breakfast, Ethan and I headed up to the waterfall near here. From there, we continued up to the Rotstockhütte, where we had a delightful lunch: vegetable soup, bread, dried meats, and cheese from the Alps.

After lunch, and quite on the spur of the moment, Ethan and I decided to try to make it up to the Schilthorn. The proprietor of the hut must have thought we were better hikers than we really are, because he said he didn’t think we’d have any trouble completing the hike in two and a half hours. It just so happened that we had just two and a half hours before the last cable car was scheduled to leave the peak and return down into the valley.

The hike was quite challenging, and we wavered between confidence that we would reach our goal in time, and certainty that it was a fool’s errand. We pushed each other and encouraged each other, and somehow made it to the top with ten minutes to spare. The 22 Sfr tickets to ride the cable car down saved us a four hour hike. We were already quite tired by that point, so we were very glad not to have to hike any more!

We had a nice dinner with Tim at the Hotel Mittaghorn, and then retired to the Moutain Hostel for a beer. Now we’re comfortably settled back into our room in the hillside hotel, and preparing for bed.

I think we’ll go to see the falls at Trümmelbach tomorrow, and perhaps take it easy instead of hiking for 6 hours.

We got lots of pictures and videos; we hope to share them soon!

In the Alps with Ethan

Ethan arrived last Tuesday morning, and we’ve already had a full week. He hung out with me on Tuesday, saw Luzern on Wednesday, went to the Rhein Falls on Thursday, and took a walking tour of Zürich on Friday.

Saturday after lunch we caught the train to Lausanne, and then a connecting train back along the lake to Montreux. There, we saw Steely Dan in concert and met some of the band members backstage after the show. I had a nice chat with Jim Pugh, Steely Dan’s talented trombonist. We also met and visited with some of the guys from Dave Matthews Band and Chickenfoot. At one point, I took out my U.S. flag (that I always have on hand for just such an occasion), and draped it around my shoulders, Stephen Colbert-style. My patriotism caught Sammy Hagar’s attention, and he stopped to chat with me for a while. At his invitation, I even took part in Chickenfoot’s pre-show huddle. Cool! You rock, Sammy! It was a great Fourth of July.

Sunday we caught the train to Interlaken and then another train, bus, and cable car up to Gimmelwald, where we spent the night. We’re staying in Hotel Mittaghorn, a charming place just ten minutes’s walk uphill from the cable car station. Today we’ll take a nice long hike—either up to Schilthorn, or perhaps down into the river valley below Gimmelwald.

I left my USB cable at home in Zollikon, so I haven’t been able to upload any photos yet. But if I can, I’ll buy or borrow a cable soon. So with luck photos will be online within a couple of days.