Switzerland

We love the experience of rearing our children in Italy for the short time that we are here. Isaac and Georgie are both doing very well in Italian school. Isaac has recently started Italian soccer (calcio) and Georgie is in Italian swimming (nuoto). Juliet is now in Asilo Nido, the Italian preschool. She has had a bit of a rough transition but things are getting better. I love looking at pictures of our kids in Venice, Rome, Florence, Paris, Vienna, Budapest, Slovenia, Croatia, the French Riviera, etc. etc. What an upbringing and what a family experience together.

That being said, however, Ashley and I have done our fair share of complaining about the rigors of traveling with children and dreaming about what it would be like to travel without the kids once in a while. Thanks to our incredible friends, Greg and Megan Trifilo, we were able to have that experience at the end of August. Gregan (as they are collectively known) even came over and stayed at our house so that the kids could sleep in their own beds and have all of their toys & such. "Keg," as Ju-B calls him, had a rude awakening to the reality of toddler incontinence when Juliet woke up from her nap and said, "Keg, I spilled water in my bed."

While Keg was dealing with soaked sheets, Ashley and I were making our way to paradise on earth: The Jungfrau region of Switzerland.

Here is the Jungfrau (which means "Maiden") in all her glory. We caught the last tram from Lauterbrunnen in the valley up to Grutschalp. The drive took about 8 hours because of traffic at the Gotthard tunnel, a 10 mile shortcut under the alps which connects Italian-speaking Switzerland with German-speaking Switzerland. Still, having this as our twilight vista made it all worth it.

Here I am a little overexposed in the aforementioned tram car. We met a couple from Cadiz, Spain in the car that had brought their two toddlers. I told them how brave I thought they were for bringing their kids here. His comment was, "You mean crazy." Yes, exactly.

From Grutschalp we rode a train into Murren where our hotel was. We ate dinner at Hotel Blumental and had the best meal yet in over a year of living in Europe. I ordered a vegetable strudel that was out of this world. The salads were served with a local cheese and some kind of nectar-of-the-gods dressing. Ashley became furious with me when I attempted to finish her dishes. She didn't want the server to think she was some kind of overeating American pig so she made sure to leave a little bit of food on each plate. To me it was a mortal sin to waste that food. We made up by the time dessert came and we wolfed that thing down.

We stayed in Hotel Alpina, which was on the edge of the cliff facing the valley with its panoramic view of the Swiss Alps. The restaurant where they served breakfast was all glass windows, making it the most epic breakfast in memory.

Our goal was to hike as high and as far as we could. This was our starting point in Murren, and above and behind me you can see our destination in the clouds.

The lighting is bad but Ashley's expression captures our collective mood perfectly. This place was amazing.

Ashley giving the mountain pastures and barns "two thumbs up." Our destination is there again in the background.

And where there are pastures and barns, there are cows wearing authentic Swiss cow bells. Ashley was in heaven. I think she contemplated grand theft cow bell for a moment. In the background you can see the ski run barriers zig-zagging down the mountain.

Last year's snow in late August. I assaulted Ashley with a hail of snowballs to celebrate. This is near the top of our hike. The building to the upper left is the cable car that was our destination. There is a restaurant just behind the hill to my right (you can see the sign on the top of the hill), but we weren't quite hungry yet after our Swiss buffet breakfast.

Here you can see the three famous peaks all together: The Eiger (Ogre) to the far left, the Monk, and the Jungfrau. The Eiger is famous in the climbing world, inspiring the book "Eiger Dreams" by Jon Krakauer and the truly awful Clint Eastwood thriller "The Eiger Sanction." It is also the subject of "Nordwand," a German film about the climbing team sponsored by Hitler that sought to be the first to scale the North Face but perished in the process. It is a true story, although parts of it are overly dramatized for effect. Great film. Behind and to my right are the aforementioned restaurant and a ski lift. Imagine bombing down the face of this mountain with the Eiger, Monk, and Jungfrau in front of you. Hopefully we won't have to imagine it much longer.

Around the other side of the cable car peak there was a mountain pond. Of course there was, why wouldn't there be? And drinking from the pond were Swiss mountain goats with the bells around their necks clanking out the soundtrack to our hike.

Now you can see the cable car building from the opposite direction with another great shot of the three peaks. I love the curves carved in the rock by ancient glaciers. As you can see from Ashley's face, at this point we had progressed from giddy shock and surprise to cool and ultimate satisfaction. Thank you, Greg and Megan.

My foot is resting on the edge of a hundreds-of-feet high cliff overlooking the valley below. And behind me you can see a sharp ridgeline with a hiking path along its entire length. That was our way down.

Ashley temporarily losing her cool again while sitting at the dam that forms the previously seen mountain pond. You can see how the water cuts through the rock as it heads down into the valley below.

Now we are on the ridge line ready to begin traversing it. Happiness once again overtakes us.

 No words.

Halfway down the ridgeline. You can see the trail in the bottom right of the photo. Great shot of the three peaks again. At one point on that trail up ahead Ashley dropped the camera's lens cap. Luckily, it fell only about 20 feet down the steep slope before stopping. I carefully slid down to grab it while another hiker with his dog watched me like I was crazy for risking my life for a piece of plastic.

We hiked down to Gimmelwald where we ate a late lunch. After making our way back up to Murren it started raining. Perfect timing. We put on our swimsuits and relaxed in the town's pool and "warm" tub. It would be a stretch to call it a hot tub, but who is complaining after a day like that? Dinner was great but not as mind-blowing as the first night. We ordered rosti and raclette. Ashley fell in love with the oversized cowbell hanging in the corner of the restaurant.

The next morning we once again gorged on Swiss breakfast before hiking down from Murren to Lauterbrunnen. We set up the camera with a timer to get at least one picture of the two of us together.

It was significantly more cloudy and rainy that last day, and we realized how fortunate we were to have had the warm, sunny morning the day before during our epic hike.

One of the many, many waterfalls adorning this part of the world. We felt like things we had driven past on our way here would be crowded tourist destinations in the US. We didn't really understand the magic of the Jungfrau region until we got here. Do not come to Switzerland without seeing it. Just a short drive or ride south of Interlaken.

In Lauterbrunnen we fought again, this time over buying a cowbell. It is an authentic, antique cowbell that was worn by many Swiss cows before retiring to its current post in our living room. I parted with far too many Swiss francs for my liking, but it was a small price to pay for once in a lifetime trip. We also found a sheepskin at the local butcher shop as a thank you gift for Greg and Megan. We ate at Hotel Oberland and finally ordered fondue and hot chocolate. Both were heavenly.

We will go back to that region at least once, hopefully twice, before we hop back over the pond to the New World. Thanks again to the Trifilos for taking care of our little ones and making this trip of a lifetime a reality.

Italy ♥: September Grape Harvest

Last weekend we experienced one of those Italian things you just have to do at least once in a lifetime. We harvested grapes!  At an Italian vineyard. 

It was more than a little work but well worth the pay off of good Italian family fun!

Isaac was particularly gung-ho!  

And Juliet wielded those sheers a little better than I had expected:

But she spent most of her time plucking the grApes from our busily shearing hands and putting them in the crates beneath us...or...sitting back on her heals underneath the vines, looking out at the vineyard and talking to herself. Even without understanding the cultural romantic significance of grape vineyards (Italian ones at that) the whole field and activity held some sort of magic even for her. 

Georgie also enjoyed the ambiance quite a lot.  She and I spent a lot of time discussing our future "farm"/ orchard;) 

We are convincing the boys as well:

Joey was the last one to drop his sheers;). And Isaac jumped right in to Georgie and my future homesteaders discussion;). He want to be sure we have lots of grapes!

Future farm family right here:

And if our future farm could come along with the chef of our 6 course meal that followed the harvesting I'd be in fat heaven. The goods this vineyard dished up had us rolling ourselves out the door. Prosciutto, pancetta and salame with bread, Crispelle with cream sauce, cheese and pesto, vegetable risotto, roasted potatoes and beef filet, mixed salad, frico (fried cheese...you don't even know)  and lastly panna cotta with fresh berries.  Sweet dreams!  

Xoxo

National Lampoon's Merback European Vacation

Before July 4th of this year, I was the only member of the original Kerry and Rosie Merback family that had ever been to Europe. That travesty has now been remedied. On Jennie's 30th birthday we picked up Kerry, Rosie, Jake, Tanner, Luke, Rob, Sara, Jennie, and Brandon from the Venice Marco Polo airport. That first night we treated them to Italian cheeses, breads, balsamic vinegar glazes, and gelato. The next day we were up and off to Venezia.

Waiting for the train to come. We can drive 10 mintues from our house and ride a train that takes just over an hour to arrive in Venice for about $10 roundtrip. Not bad.

This is the first thing you see when you walk out of the Santa Lucia train station. It takes your breath away the first time and you can't believe that you just walked off a train and into the golden age of one of Europe's most powerful empires.

 Lukey and Ju-B with the Rialto Bridge and Grand Canal in the background. 

 Feeding the pigeons in Piazza San Marco. Georgie had a one perch on her head for a few minutes.

The boy cousins in the Piazza di San Rocco

The kids taking in the parked gondolas on the Lagoon with San Giorgio Maggiore in the background.

Pop pop with Ju-B and Luke on the steps of the San Pantalon church. It has an enormous ceiling fresco and is on the west side of Venice just south of the Frari church, which is also amazing.

Ju-B absolutely exhausted in Mimi's lap on the train ride home. 

We stayed in Venezia until 10:00 pm and were home by 11:30. I never want to leave this place. Isaac was a champ ordering gelato for everyone in italiano. I don't know if the gelato guy was impressed, but I was very proud of my boy.

Next we loaded up and drove to Salzburg. Jake drove the minivan with all the big kids and I drove my BMW with Ju-B in back. I definitely got the better end of the deal. I think Jake was ready to throttle somebody and probably would have if he hadn't been so entertained by Rob reading every road sign in a faux-German accent that he picked up from the Simpsons.

 On the path from St. Peter's to the famous cemetery with the fortress in the background.

 Georgie photobombing a shot of the boys from the fortress with the old city in the backgroud.

The kids playing on one of the fortress cannons.

 Jennie and Ju-B just loving each other.

 The ladies with the Salzach river in the background. They snuck away for a few minutes to shop.

 On the famous Do-Re-Mi steps in the Mirabell gardens with the fortress in the background.

Ju-B and Mimi playing in the park right by the gardens. They have an amazing slide (pictured) and some great net swings that Ashley raves about. Perfectly placed park.

I think that everyone was fairly enchanted by Salzburg, even if we had minimal time there after the late start and longer-than-anticipated drive. We stopped by Mozart's statue and the house he grew up in. We ate food from a street vendor, which fortunately had some great vegetarian fare in addition to the standard wurstel. Mimi was chastised by the woman for ordering bratwurst. "You have bratwurst in your country. Why don't you try something different?"Only in Europe. In Mom's defense, the bratwurst did look amazing.

Trying to find the hotel that night was another matter. I was ready to erupt at one point. I think it was the point when we could see the hotel directly in front of us but there was a padlocked chain link fence blocking the drive. We had to drive almost all the way back to Salzburg, then drive across the border into Germany, get off the autobahn, turn around, and drive back into Austria to access the hotel. Think twice before you book a hotel on the freeway in Europe. They do not believe in connecting one side of the freeway with the other.

The next morning we drove into Munich and found the LDS chapel that is, no joke, within throwing distance of the Oktoberfest platz. The bishop was a young polyglot who did the welcome in German, spoke to the many visiting Americans in English, and then translated the Latin American members' Spanish testimonies. The missionaries told us that he also spoke Italian, French, and Mandarin. Rob and Mimi talked to a Guatemalan woman who had lived in the US in Spanish and English, respectively. Rob had served in her home town on his mission.

We then made the 40 min trek out to Dachau to tour the concentration camp. Dachau was never an extermination camp, but enough people had died there of starvation, disease, and death marches to give the place a cemetery-like aura. Viktor Frankel, the author of "Man's Search for Meaning" was imprisoned there. An altogether appropriate Sunday afternoon tourist activity.

The famous "Work makes [you] free" inscription on the entrance.

 Georgie and Isaac in front of the famous tangled barbed wire and bodies monument.

Replicas of the bunks inside one of the restored bunkhouses. None of the original bunkhouses remain, but the foundations are outlined.

 Isaac explaning to Mimi just how badly his feet hurt after all of the walking we had done in the past 3 days. Even more to come, my son.

The cremation building where the bodies were put into the ovens. They built a gas chamber labeled "Shower" but never used it.

The cremation ovens.

 The kids looking as chipper as you could expect at this point in the day and on our trip.

The ditch around the camp with the guard tower in the background

We went back to Munich to walk through the pedestrian zone from the fountain to the Marienplatz where the Ratthaus and Glockenspiel are. The street performers were great and a sports company had set up tons of play equipment for kids and adults. Brandon wowed everyone with his unicycle skills while Jake walked on stilts and I rekindled my talent for the Chinese yo-yo. I love the woman ogling Brandon in the background.

We ate at the restaurant under the Ratthaus, which initially sounded like a great idea but ended up being the worst dining experience of the trip. Terrible service, bland food, 6 euro per liter of water, and a charge for every pretzel basket that they bring, which they bring without asking. Avoid that place at all costs, although it does make a great story to laugh about now.

"Ausfahrt" means "exit [for vehicles]" in German ("ausgang" is a pedestrian exit). Robbie is still a preteen at heart, because he could not get enough that word.

The next morning we drove on the backroads through some incredible Alpine countryside until we reached our midway rest and relaxation destination: Zell am See.

We are on top of the platform getting ready to plunge into the Tahoe-temperature water, with the local flag flying above our heads, the other-wordly green mountain pastures in front of us, and the jagged peaks of the Alps beyond that. Not much in this world beats Lake Tahoe, but Zell am See does.

The Merback boys taking the aforementioned plunge, complete with an Instagram faux-18th century filter and all. I like this picture because it looks like I am the supreme leader and Jake and Rob are my henchmen, my legal and financial advisers. In reality I just jumped a little late.

A Merback family tradition: chicken fights!

 Georgie conquering the only eyesore to be found in all of Zell am See: a mound of dirt.

Ashley swore we would come back. And we did.

That is genuine happiness on those faces. After 3 long days of driving, walking, and sightseeing, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves in this mountain paradise. We could have gone to the Eagle's Nest, or the salt mines, or stopped in Florence or Bologna on our way to Rome instead. But I think that everyone was glad that we decompressed for the day in Zell on the lake.

Dinner that night at one of our favorite restaurants in Europe, Tafern in Kaprun, Austria, just across the valley from Zell am See.

So much for R&R. Onward in our conquest of Europe. We drove back to our house in Italy where we did laundry, ate pizza, and slept. Continuing the long drive we then headed through Veneto, Emilia-Romagna, and Toscana (Tuscany) before arriving in Umbria at the train station in Orvieto. From there we parked and boarded a train into Lazio and Roma.

Our first stop was the Spanish Steps, that Kim Kardashian-esque, famous-for-being-famous monument. The view from the French church at the top is amazing, rivaled only by the view from the Vatican.

 This is the fountain at the foot of the Spanish Steps in the Piazza di Spagna.

This is the much bigger and even more famous-for-being-famous Fontana di Trevi. The three main aqueducts met here, thus the name Tre Vie (Three Ways). It really was amazing at night, even considering the crush of tourists. Legend is that if you toss in a coin over your shoulder you are certain to come back to Rome at some point. So far it is true for Ashley, we'll see about the rest of us. 

We ate at a fantastic restaurant called "Piccolo Buco" just a few steps east of the fountain. That place was a real find and we were lucky to get all 14 of us in without a reservation. The owner is ethnically Egyptian and Brazilian but raised Roman just across the street from the restaurant. 

The next morning was the beginning of our Ancient Rome day. We started the day at the church of the Holy Steps. Supposedly (and this is a word that prefaces almost all stories told in Rome), they are the steps that Jesus ascended when on trial before Pilate. Constantine's mother, Santa Helena, found them in Jerusalem in the 4th century and had them transported to Rome. You have to ascend them on your knees, no feet allowed. The kids wanted to do it, and Ashley almost let them, but I put the kibosh on that. However, I did sneak a forbidden picture with my iPad.

From there we walked the formidable distance to Palatine Hill, where we hired an American guide for a reasonable fee. It was great because the kids actually listened to him when he was telling them about Agustus and Trajan and Hadrian and Mussolini. Here is Luke under the arch of Titus which is at the beginning of the Via Sacra, just down the hill from the Palatine and which leads into the Forum Romanum. Above Luke you can see a depiction of the sack of Jerusalem in AD 70, with the Roman soldiers carrying off the Ark of the Covenant and a menorah. This arch was built to memorialize the defeat of Jerusalem and honor Titus. Which is extremely ironic given the birth of modern Christianity in Rome and the modeling of almost all other arches of triumph etc. in the Christian world after this one.

Minus Ju-B in the forum. I think she was sleeping in the stroller. Isaac looks happy to be there.

From the forum we walked to il Colosseo, originally known as the Flavian Amphitheater. It was hotter than blazes, the crowds were tremendous, the kids were hungry/thirsty/tired/cranky, and the car traffic was relentless. But still, this place was a dream come true for me.

"Meems" and the grandkids

Georgie and I went up to the second level to see the museum display and get a better view while Ashley, Isaac, and Ju-B relaxed in the shade below.

This piece of marble has an inscription commemorating the dedication ceremony of the Colosseum back in 80 CE. Sort of the cornerstone plaque, if you will. I was in awe.

Mimi, Luke, and Georgie standing in the Colosseum with the Arch of Constantine (see what I mean?) in the background. I think that the grassy area is where the Colossus of Nero, the enormous statue of that persecutor of Christians, once stood and from which the Colosseum derived its modern name.

We had to find food near the Colosseum, which is a big no-no when traveling, but we were desperate. Ashley, the expert food finder, brought us to a lovely little cafe with great food just down the street. The back side of the Colosseum is not as picturesque as the front, but who is complaining. Not Tanner or Isaac.

We then made our way back toward the Forum but on the opposite side of the street. From that side we saw Trajan's Forum, Trajan's Markets (the original shopping mall), Trajan's Column (which now has St. Peter on top), the statues of Julius Caesar, Augustus, and other emperors, and the monument to Vittorio Emmanuele, the first king of the Kingdom of Italy. We stood on the street corner for a while just trying to take in the 360 degrees of Western history. Trajan's Column, which Tanner is standing by, has a bas relief depiction of the Roman's victory over the Dacians spiraling all the way to the top. The monument to Victor Emmanuel is also known as the "wedding cake" and the "typewriter."

We made our way from there to the Pantheon, the best preserved ancient structure in Rome. Vittorio Emmanuele is buried there, as is Rafaello, the master artist, who died well before his time in his 30s. The architecture is astounding, and you realize just how much of our modern design is ripped off from the Romans.

Here are Isaac and Georgie at the Bocca della Verita, or the Mouth of Truth. We were really bummed that we arrived too late to go inside the gate and put our hands in his mouth (we are in Italy after all, things close whenever the heck they feel like it). Legend has it that if you have ever told a lie the stone face will bite your hand off. As patently bogus as that is, wouldn't you still be a little bit nervous? We didn't get the chance to find out.

No, this day is not over yet! We finished up at the Circus Maximus, the largest stadium ever built (capacity 350,000). They had gladiators and other spectacles here, but the real attraction was the chariot racing. The track was enormous and those hair-pin U-turns were certainly the site of many bloody accidents. We commemorated all of those dead and maimed by having our own much shorter chariot race on those same grounds. Jake (carrying Luke) led going into the U-turn, but Ashley (carrying Ju-B) came out the winner. It was all about how much weight you were carrying. Look how intense Jake and I are.

The next day was our Catholic Rome day. Our first stop was the "Church of the Bones," where a Franciscan order had preserved the bones of many, if not all, of the deceased of their order and used the remains to decorate numerous small chapels in their monastery. Although the building itself and the layout of the chapels are not what you expect or hope for, the designs made with the human skulls, jawbones, vertebrae, humeri, radii, ulnae, sacra, femurs, etc. are mind-blowing. No pictures allowed, of course.

Next stop was the Piazza del Popolo, where the kids posed in front of the guys asking us to sign a petition "against the drugs." Jake made good friends with one of the more persistent ones, right Jake?

We then saw five paintings by my favorite artist, the subversive, dark, shockingly realistic Caravaggio. He has a masterpiece in the Louvre of Mary very much dead surrounded by sobbing disciples which was rejected by the people that commissioned it. Contrast that with Tiziano's "Assumption of Mary" that we saw in Venice in the Frari church. In the Santa Maria del Popolo we saw the "Martyrdom of St. Peter" and the "Calling of St. Paul on the Road to Damascus." Jake, Rob, Mom, Dad and I then booked it a few miles south to San Luigi dei Francesi to see the more famous "Calling of Saint Matthew" and "Martyrdom of St. Matthew" pictured above. From there we caught the Metro to St. Peter's and the Vatican.

I have two regrets about Rome. One is not being very nice to Jennie when she was holding up the group to buy sunglasses. Sorry, Jennie! I was stressed out about leading the pack around an unfamiliar city and I snapped at her. The second regret was not having enough time in St. Peter's before it closed. Most amazing church in the world and we wasted our time eating at a tourist trap, buying gelato, and haggling for t-shirts and hats. Big mistake. I guess I'll have to go back. Michelangelo's "Pieta" is astounding. He was in his 20s when he sculpted it.

Inside the Vatican museum with St. Peter's in the background. It was late and everyone was exhausted, but the kids were extremely well-behaved. Again, it helped that we had a tour guide. Highlights from the tour were the statue of Apollo, Nero's bathtub made of porphyry, a red marble that has been mined to extinction, the Stanze di Rafaello with the "School of Athens", and of course the Sistine Chapel.

 The kids and Pop pop paying rapt attention to our tour guide.

Vacations with extended family are best kept to a few days. That way you maximize the honeymoon period of seeing each other again and minimize the regression to acting like teenagers. But that is just not possible when you live on the old continent. I know that Jake almost strangled Jennie on the last night and that I was ready to throw my father out of trains, boats, and automobiles at certain times (the rest of the family can speak to planes). But all things considered, this was one of the best vacations of my life. 

Poor Brandon. Married to Jennie for less than a year and this is the first vacation that he takes with the whole fam-damily, as Mom says. Yikes. Still, like the crappy Ratthaus restaurant in Munich, the stressful times will become jokes as the years wear on and the good times will be etched permanently into our memories. I would love to have anyone and everyone back at some point in the next 21 months (not enough time!), but in smaller groups this time! 

Big thanks to my soul mate for her patience and help in making this trip happen. Thanks to Jake for coming solo and bringing Tanner and Lukey so that the cousins could be together and form epic memories in Europe. I know we all missed Ashlee during the trip but he certainly the most. Big thanks to Mom and Dad for wisely using the financial legacy of Grandpa Bill, Grandma Gloria, and Grandma Mozelle to make the trip possible for everyone at this point in our lives. I hope they would be pleased with how we used their hard-won resources. And finally, thanks to everyone for taking the time and making the sacrifice to come and see us. Love to Dad, Mom, Jake, Tanner, Luke, Rob, Sara, Brandon and Jennie, as well as the Merbacks who weren't able to come due to other commitments/realities: Ashlee, Cooper, Ty, Fiver, Will, and Liz. There will be a next time...