Our guests left this morning after a very full 10 days of Swiss touring: they walked Bern, rode the Golden Pass Train, toured Chillon and Lausanne, visited Murten and Avenches, hiked to Kleine Scheidegg, snow-tubed on the Jungfrau, hiked in Zermatt, toured Neuchatel and Lucerne. And most evenings found them eating very well: either they were making Indian-style food for us or were invited out for BBQ.
Patel Family cooking in our kitchen
Jon knew Anil from working together in San Rafael. But neither of us knew his family: wife Beth and sons Zachary and Austen. They have traveled a lot, including trips to India and China that were decidedly not luxurious. So having a home base to work from made it a relaxing vacation for them. And they are easy to be with, consistently agreeable and considerate making it a relaxing visit for us.
Anil and Jon outside Autodesk in Gumligen
Jon and I were able to join our guests on the weekends:
Typical Swiss Farmland, taken from the Golden Pass Train
At Chillon, Jon & I consider the benefits of a larger kitchen
Vineyards above Lausanne by Lake Geneva
We happened to arrive at Lausanne at the end of a World Orienteering Race
Lucerne's Kapellbrucke "Chapel Bridge"
Lucerne's famous covered bridges are decorated inside with 16th cen. paintings
Lion Memorial commemorating Swiss Guards massacred during the French Revolution
BBQ at Hugues'
After a week and a half of guests and touring, we enjoyed a brisk 20 km on the bike through Swiss countryside.