Switzerland

July 13; 5:30 p.m.

it has been quite a day here. got up at almost 8 a.m., packed our day bags, and took off for Lucern at 8:45. one there we got on a ferry boat to take us to Mt. Rigi (or Rigi-Kulm, don't actually know which is right). from the base of that we took a train to take us to the top, but at the next to last stop Susanne decides we'll get off and hike up the rest of the way. it was hard and i wasn't thrilled about it, but it was fun and i managed. after a while up at the top, we hiked down to a particular stop where there was a cable car that took you the rest of the way down.

from the lake we got on a boat and went across the lake to another mountain. this one i can't remember the name of. but from there we took the incline up to the top. we walked around a while and found a nice place to eat our picnic lunch.

after a bunch of pictures and eating and walking, we inclined down, ferried across, trained home, and now i'm writing and susanne is going to the lake. i am too tired and hot and sunburned enough to go.

Lake Lucerne ... wow! i thought Lake Atitlan was the most beautiful lake i'd see, but that's because i hadn't seen Lucern yet! clear, smooth, green mountains all around, and in the distances snow-peaked mountains. truly beautiful. and we have had a really nice day, clear skies, sunshine, and warm. i'd say about 85 or 90 probably.

despite my cramps, sore muscles, and sunburn, it was a very nice day and well worth it. thankfully while we were in the cable car the bag delivery guy called and susanne convinced him to leave my bag on the terrace. so now i have all my stuff and am feeling MUCH better about life here.

mode of transportation is mostly train. there is a good bus system, and lots of cars being driven, but most everyone rides their bike or takes the train (or both). everything is SO green. and lots of flowers in the flower boxes outside people's balconies. cowbells cheered us up the mountain today at Lake Lucerne. and i mean actual bells on the actual cows ... it was very cool and very Swiss. when there is a place to shop, there are tons of places to shop. turns a street into a mall, literally, with food courts (lots of tables outside restaurants) and smoking, and maybe an occassional car or three. the air is dry. it's fairly quiet; plenty of opportunity to hear the birds amongst the children playing, train (no obnoxious horns), and cars. lots of German, and i don't have a clue what they's saying. at least in Guatemala i knew when they were saying "please" and "thank you", but here i'm totally lost. it's all so foreign, so throaty, so many consonants and syllables. *L*

it's very clean here, but there's lots of graffiti. driving is "normal". and it seems the way of living is in apartments. apparently houses are very expensive and the land isn't for sale ... it's for agriculture. so when there is a town, apartment buildings are crammed together everywhere.

Susanne lives in Cham (pronounced Hom, like Hominy, not Home). it's a nice little village place with a lake. it takes about 10 minutes, maybe, to walk from her "flat" to the lake. if you want to go to the grassy part where people lay out or play or swim it would take another 5 minutes or so of walking. it's a very pretty lake. that's where we went yesterday for a stroll and where she is now.

after dinner

dinner was leftovers from last night. it's now 10 p.m. and i'm tired. susanne is on the phone with her boyfriend and i'm in the living room writing in the almost dark. it's nearly dark outside now, but kids are still outside playing. sidenote: vegetable waste goes in a green bucket outside the kitchen on the window ledge. it's a small bucket. when it's full it goes in a special trash can out by where the trash gets picked up.