Warning: gratuitous photos of scenery

Sunday we woke up, did the chore thing, loaded the squeaky raccoons into the washing machine and then looked at each other and said. "Now what?" It was 11 AM, so we had an early lunch and then since it was heavenly outside, we decided to take our favorite walk to Lutry and poke around a bit. 

On the way, I met a swan and we sized each other up. We then decided that a mutual disdain from afar would be appropriate. Friendships are complicated and you can't force things. Plus the bastard was the size of a three-year-old and after seeing the evil glow in its eye I had no intention of coming any closer.

Our destination in the distance.

Once in the town, we began poking about some of the mysterious little streets. One of them led us to the scene above: an archway straight out of Middle Earth. Or, you know, Medieval Switzerland.

I die.

Because we did not feel as though we had walked enough, we saw a nearly vertical hill and were all like. Yeah, let's see what's on top of that. Here I am awaiting a coronary.

Castle turned vineyard

Seriously. This is real. I KNOW. I don't believe it either.

On our way home, we stopped and had some coffee at a sidewalk cafe. I am rapidly developing an appreciation for the art of foamed milk atop coffee. It really takes away that nasty, bitter, oh what is it...right...coffee flavor. The sugar helps too.

Montreaux Part 2

Okay, we left off right when we saw the castle and I started hyperventilating about princesses and childhood dreams of living in a giant stone refrigerator. Whoops. The cynicism is supposed to come later. Along with what I learned about witch hunts and torture in thee olden dayes.

Giant stone clock - a nice touch for any imposing domicile. 

Just the cutest little tower EVER.

Interior shot...where I had a Game of Thrones moment. 

The great thing about Chillon was that you could walk through almost the entire building. There were all sorts of twisting staircases and long passageways and a hidden rooms. It was many magnitudes of awesome. Being that it was built entirely of stone, wood and metal with little access to sunlight, it was also freezing. And since I had decided to leave my trusty puffer coat at home in favor of a more professorial look, I was smote.

After climbing many steep and daunting staircases, we were treated to this view (note: all epic shots in this post were taken by Anthony).

I don't know what this thing is, but it's adorable.

There was a display of medieval armor in several of the rooms. Which inevitably begged the question if the enemy were storming the castle which weapon would you choose to defend yourself? Anthony chose the mace which, from the photo above is clearly a ball of evil and I, having read far too much George RR Martin, chose the giant broadsword...you know, because it's subtle. Later in the gift shop, Anthony had to talk me down from buying a replica broadsword. I relented only after realizing that the edges weren't even sharp. How would a dull broadsword help me in the event of the End Times?

Some interior details

Okay, so, witches. They had a special exhibit going on with lots of relics of the period and while I have watched The Crucible, know a decent amount information about the general horrors of witch hunting, it is much more poignant to see handwritten documents detailing the various interrogations and sentencing of innocent people. And just to drive the exhibit home, when you walked outside into the inner courtyard there were some example pyres that had been erected. Yeesh. 

Oh, and in case you were wondering, yes, the amulet pictured above does indeed have abracadabra engraved on it. I predict it will be the Next Big Thing in accessorizing this fall.

Back to pretty things: doorhandles

Cool typography

The incredible view from the highest point of the castle. 

All in all, this was a great little daytrip and I can't wait to come back here with my family in August. We also found out that Montreaux is the start of the Golden Pass which provides several incredible rides through the mountains. When the weather gets a little warmer, I think we will definitely be checking this out. 

Montreaux Part 1

I had passed Montreaux on the train to Milan earlier in the week and it peaked my interest. So on Saturday, we decided to take the quick train ride over and check it out.

Anthony had heard about a castle perched on the lake's edge within walking distance of the town, so we decided to make that our destination. We set off along the quay.

Montreaux was very quiet. Except for some exuberant jogger-types it was just us and the waterfowl.

Luckily, they were cool. 

The mountains are a lot closer in Montreaux.




After a healthy (and gorgeous) walk, we saw it in the distance. For real, that is a castle on the water. Like in a storybook.

More photos to come.

Work travels

This week I had the opportunity to travel to Milan for a day-long meeting. I left Lausanne late Monday evening - just as the sun was setting over the lake. I have seen some lovely sunsets in my life, but this was magical...as in I was waiting for the herd of unicorns to descend from their mountain lair and take wing over the water magical.* Alas it got dark much to quickly for me to see the unicorns, but that does not mean they weren't there. The other people in the cabin must be jaded towards sunsets and mythical creatures as they all seemed rather more interested in their various gadgets than the rainbow colored delight out our window.

(The only strange part of the journey involved a girl sitting across from me who sang and laughed to herself in a baby voice for a solid hour. Creepers. They be everywhere.)

My train got in pretty late to Milan so I decided to get up early on Tuesday so I could explore for a bit before work began.

As I was crossing the street from my hotel the next morning, a looming brick wall caught my eye. It was a castle. In the middle of the city. (Insert something about Kansas and small dogs here.)

I walked through the gates into a huge courtyard. The castle is now home to a museum. Note to self: check this out in its entirety at a later date.

I walked around and admired the decorative patterns covering some of the inner walls. I am sure there is a proper 'arty' term for decorative patterns, alas I do not know it.

Later that day, I had about 30 minutes to stroll around before catching my train home. The evening sun was casting a golden glow on all the buildings.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw this:

I had accidentally stumbled upon the Duomo di Milano and was transfixed. It had the trifecta of ornate detail, perfect light and contrast against the sky that rendered me pretty much speechless.

I stayed there, compulsively photographing it until I had to tear myself away and find a cab. I can't wait to go back to Milan. From some of the other people in the office, I have heard that the Design Week that takes place in April is a must see. Time to start making plans.

*Do unicorns live in lairs? Lairs sound so ominous. But then again so does a giant pointy horn sprouting from a horse's forehead.

Aaaannnddd we're back!

A particularly lovely sunset from my bedroom window.

It's been a whirlwind the past two weeks as we left for Chicago on the 29th to get our visas. All we knew about the process was that it involved loads of paperwork, cash money, some poor quality Walgreen's headshots and could take anywhere from three days to a week. So, we packed our bags, bid our little apartment adieu (French!) and headed back to our former stomping grounds.

It was pretty strange being back in Chicago after a very definitive parting of the ways in December. In the span of six weeks, it seemed like everything had changed and yet our old haunts were comfortably unchanged. As we went to grab a bite to eat at a favorite restaurant it would hit me - I thought we already said goodbye to this place and yet...here we are. Then I came to my senses and decided to stop philosophizing about the delicious pizza that was awaiting my consumption. At times like this, it is helpful to have such an insistent stomach as it helps a girl keep her priorities in order.

It was all in all a busy but emotionally fulfilling ten days. Between work, I got to see these guys and watch a rehearsal for this as well as get a surprise visit from my family. I stored up a lot of good conversations and time well spent with all the people I love that will hopefully last until I see them next.

As our last day in Chicago drew to a close and we still had heard nothing regarding our visas, we began to get anxious about our chances of making our flight back that very night. At the last minute, they came through, we raced to the embassy and jumped on a plane.

Now we're back (and legal). Let the adventures begin!

The best decisions happen on an empty stomach.

Please see above for reasons 1-10 why I should not be allowed to freely wander a grocery store while hungry (or ever).

This, right here, is the holy effing grail of chocolate. 400 grams of bliss. When it is 2 PM and I have not yet had lunch, a normal sized Toblerone will simply not do.

Now if you'll excuse me I have to go exercise.

(hahahahahahahaha)