Whitney and I enjoyed the afternoon in Lucerne, Switzerland with Jennifer Schlucter (née Laughlin), a friend from my youthful days back in Oregon City, and her darling little kids. It was really fun to catch up with a childhood friend in a totally different part of the world, and especially fun to see the city from the perspective of a local.
Our first stop was Gletschergarten (or glacier garden), a 150-year old park that features rock formations created under glaciers. The water flow created pits and cavities and in the rock, and carved out boulders that would roll around the pit.
Here's the description if you want more info.
We hiked up to the top of the hill in the park to enjoy a view of the city. Unfortunately we didn't coordinate our schedule with the clouds, but we think that they're just holding back so that we'll appreciate an unobstructed view tomorrow.
The park also had a mirror maze and some mirrors outside for playing around, so Whitney and Liam entertained each other.
Lucerne sits on the edge of a lake, which is fantastic for photos nowadays, but opened the city to attack via the lake. As part of fortification, the town built a wooden footbridge and a tower (that has been used as a prison, torture chamber, and municipal archive). Most of it burned down in 1993, but they've rebuilt it, much to the delight of tourists and fulfilling of the Swiss psyche. It reminded me of Harry Potter, so that made me happy.
Jennifer knows of our love for chocolate croissants, and also has a favorite bakery around the corner from her house. She thoughtfully grabbed a few for our drive tomorrow, and it tested our will to save them for then.... well at least we only ate one.
We drove from Lucerne to Sattel (where Jennifer's fam lives) and saw a Swiss cat along the way. FYI, Swiss cats say "miiiiiiau!" (The even more you know)
When we arrived at Jennifer's chalet, she was putting the finishing touches on dinner. She'd prepared Älplermagronen, a traditional Swiss dish that is a cross between mac&cheese, apple pie, and absolute awesomeness.
After dinner, Jennifer's daughter (7 years old) had some homework to do, so we got to have a peek inside German schoolwork. In addition to practicing reading, she also did extra credit by translating into English.
Bonus: she read about cats.
The kidlets were super cute and playful. We played a game where they climbed up doorways and jump to my arms, and then I'd throw them into the air. It was a good workout for me, and it's always fun to rile up others' kids before their bedtime. :)
While Jennifer put them to bed, Whitney and I walked up to the town church and enjoyed the twilight view.
While we stood there, taking in the cool air and absorbing the atmosphere, we heard distant clanging from the other side of the valley. It took a bit to locate them (I was never great at Where's Waldo?), but we sure did.
Can you see them? They're just outside the barn. Jennifer says that they get to go inside when it rains. Pretty pampered, if you ask me!
The world is a big place, but despite its size I've somehow run into friends in new places that I knew from old. An Oregon City friend in Switzerland, Atlanta friend in Amsterdam, a Corvallis friend in Beijing, and Atlanta friend in Beijing, and nearly a Beijing friend in Paris. These encounters remind me that although we think that one thread of a story in our lives ends, we never know when it will be knit into future stories. It also reminds me of the special role that friends play: they shape who we have become today and can steer our courses tomorrow.
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