Email Home from St. Moritz: Watch Out for the Cows

Hello!

Am I having too much fun? I'm continuing my survey of vin rosé, but the summer's run out and I suppose I'll have to change with the season. I spent some time writing today, so I can't be having too much fun. 

Actually, we went by mountain train up the slopes of St. Moritz area today to take in the view. When off the train, we were almost run over by flocks of bicyclers, then some cows with bells, and even tourists with cameras while we just stood gazing out upon the irony of shrinking, melting glaciers and the seemingly unnecessary avalanche fences below them. 

A warning to stay away from cows and their calves posted on mountain side

The challenge was to enjoy the peaks, valleys and lake while the touring helicopter buzzed us. I wished that the music served with our hot chocolate had been some good Golden Oldies instead of that Euro-disco trash stuff.

I realized once again that the reason I don't take a lot of pictures is because I can't use the viewfinder with my glasses or without them. I wonder if there's a special prescription I can ask for just to take photos on vacation? 

Well, dinner tonight will be served by Italian-speaking waiters taking orders from Swiss and German customers. Both the waiters and us English speakers hope for descriptions on the menu using shorter than 46 letter words. 

It's amusing to listen to the various dialects of German; the differences are like putting Scottish, American, Welsh and Australians at one table and expecting them to communicate. My less than perfect sense of German makes my five years of studying the language all seem worthwhile.

We've got a lot of fun to pack in before we pack clothes tonight and clamber onto the Glacier Express again tomorrow morning. We leave at 10 AM sharp by Swiss clock time. I'm looking forward to seeing even higher mountain views as we progress to Brig, another famous Swiss village offering much gemütlichkeit.

Lots of love from both of us. We really are having a great time here. See you soon.

Suzan a.k.a. Mom

Buy the Swiss Watch that Fits You Best

I write while enjoying a view of the village and its surrounding mountain tops from our hotel room at the Steffani Hotel, St. Moritz, Switzerland. I’m still not quite past jet-lag but I’m awake enough to write on a caffeine buzz induced by Swiss-chocolate to keep me going.

Phil and I did a little shopping in the chic shops all around us in this very elegant tourist town. The last time I was here, thirty years ago, I bought down-filled leather mittens for skiing. I still have them and they are still the best mittens I've ever had for extreme cold.

My new Mondaine wrist watch posing with its family.

This time I was on a serious prowl for a watch. I will admit that my watches in the past few years have been purchased from Overstock.com. It’s pretty difficult to tell if a watch will fit me from product descriptions as I inherited “sturdy” bones and a lot of ladies’ time pieces are too small and not all that adjustable.

Well, Switzerland is no place to look for a bargain in a watch. People really do buy watches with an amount of money that could buy a car. However, my watch band began to fall to pieces in the past week from me stretching the band out a few too many times, plus it’s never really kept time that well.

There’s a watch for everyone here though. I found a ladies' Mondaine that’s totally adjustable and doesn't have “bells and whistles” that I won’t use. It cost more than I usually spend (which is to say I normally spend very little) but it’s definitely comfortable, adjustable, and easy to read.

Swiss Train Station Clock

I assure you that it’s easy to read! My proof is that virtually every clock in every Swiss train station has the same face, but a thousand times larger! Wherever I travel here I see this wonderful clock face. And whenever I check the time in the future I will be reminded of our exceptional Swiss rail trip.