Day 10: Flying High on Vacation

Our last hoorah of the trip: paragliding!  We had watched the weather closely for days, wondering if we should book it or not.  In the end, we went for it despite the 50% chance of rain and significant cloud cover.  Kate and Owen were DYING to go, and the truth is that so was I.  After I had booked, I double checked with Zachary and Brady, who both decided to go.  We reserved places for them and then hoped for the best.

Brady had nightmares all night about it.  So did Zachary.  I was so excited, I woke up at 4am and could not go back to sleep.  Owen woke up super early, too.  Zachary bailed in the morning and said he just could not jump off a cliff.  Our adrenaline junky has limits!

Owen was so animated and hopeful all the way to the meeting point.  He wondered about the weather and could not wait.

Stoked!

Kate wanted to go first.  Her biggest fear with her instructor is that he would "go easy" on her.  She wanted a thrill.

Kate and Owen in the air!

I loved the experience so much and was laughing and happy the whole way down.  My guide was apparently charmed by this and gave me the pictures for free because he "didn't want me to ever forget the joy." He asked me to pay the joy forward.  When I got pictures, Kate and Owen had FOMO and promised to pay half for theirs, too.  So Brady is the only one completely unrepresented here!

The whole experience was lovely.  We were all surprised that our tummies didn't flip as we descended to the first cliffs, but as soon as we took control of the parachutes, we were swooping through the air.  The guides all did acrobatics and swirls and flips with us, and that was some g-force and excitement!  The landing was "fit for a princess" as my guide said, and much more gentle than sky diving landings!  

We also gifted Owen's pass to a college student who was up at the cliff supporting her friend.  She was so happy and nervous--she had been telling herself she would do it next time when she had the funds, but was also a little spooked.  We saw her a few times after the glide and she was delighted.

We packed up from our very favorite chalet and headed down Murren one last time.  I was surprised not to feel sad but instead hopeful that I would be there again sometime.  Being there with kids was a gift.  Owen always begs to replicate our family trip to Alaska, and I think this will be the trip I hope to replicate.  (To be fair, I was in dire straights with an infection in Alaska!)

Last meeting up with Clarks: heading to Grindelwald via Pfingstegg lift.  Owen's adrenaline rush wore off and we dealt with a pretty significant set of emotions on the way there.  We initially hoped to do the Alpine Carts, but miscommunicated with Clarks so alpine coaster was our destination instead.  It was so much faster and scenic than Park City and also 8 CHF instead of $30 USD, so felt like a bargain.  We ended up coasting twice.

Adieu, dear friends.  Until next time!

We made the trains to Zurich, enjoyed our first hotel with A/C, watched Argentina get whooped by Spain (I love you, Messi, but your teammates are hotheads), and ate red curry and Pad Thai.  Our flight home was the least eventful experience of all international flights and I love Delta and I love the Delta lounge, where we killed 4 hours and got our 10,000 steps.

 We are flying high from vacation and so tired at 9pm, you'd think it was 3am!  We're experiencing the grateful, loving feels about spending this time all together, and also glad to be home and have fresh laundry!

Day 4: Why Are There No Princesses in Montreux?

 Finally!  Our long awaited lakeside promenade.  Two miles of stunning flowers, storks, fountains, and enchanting city.

Clay courts--fun to see in person while I watch the Rafa Netflix documentary.

Such a trooper after coughing for hours during the night.

I love Weeping Willows so much.

Chateau de Chillon, built in the 11th century and one of the most toured castles in Europe.  It has a natural moat and is built strategically for defense.  It allows access to Germany, France and a quick way to Italy, and literally means "castle built on rock."  It has passed hands between savoys, operated as a prison, and used as a weapon and munition depot.

I wanted Owen to pose with this armor.  This is the closest we got.

"Wait, where did the princes and princesses live?"  Up to this point, castles meant Cinderella to our kids so it was a history lesson for them.

This is the poop hole leading to Lake Geneva.

Loved watching Kate and Owen entranced by the interactive videos and information about the castle.  They were most fascinated by the story of Francois de Bonnivard, a prisoner held there stuck to a pillar with 3 feet of chain for 6 years.  He was later immortalized by Lord Byron in the poem, "The Prisoner of Chillon."  Bonnivard was a reformist monk who angered the Catholic Duke of Savoy to earn this fate.

After exploring the castle for a couple hours, we ate lunch by the castle where Owen's overcooked hamburger easily won for worst meal of the trip.

Another dip in Lake Geneva with all five of us!

It made Kate so nervous that we were swimming out further.  It's so interesting that my daring surfer girl is so nervous deeper in a lake, but new experiences can be intimidating.

Not a bad view for a swim!  Right after, we talked with the sister missionaries who were walking by and Owen was able to get his Swiss cow teddy bear he had been eyeing for an hour.  I do not know how long this teddy phase will last but it is enchanting and he's my last kid.  He slept with it every night the rest of the trip and was too nervous to put it in his checked bag on the way home.  Heart eye emoji.

We took the ferry from Castle Chillon to Vevey, passing right by the Switzerland/France border.

The kids were satisfied and sleepy, so content after their swim.

"Look, Mom, another US flag!"  I'm telling you, we have a long way to go with geography in our home.

Our stop in Vevey was short and sweet: another swim in Lake Geneva and another gelato.  

If I thought the Eiffel Tower was silly...I mean, these guys have a 26 foot tall fork. Vevey is known for the global headquarters of Nestle, culinary culture, and Charlie Chaplin's home.  I also just learned it is the birthplace of milk chocolate and while I wish I had the palate to love dark chocolate more than milk, I love good milk chocolate.

Owen was bent on finding a jumping platform and this was the best we could do.

I love these details:

Old Town vevey boasts this Warrior Fountain from 1576.  It may represent Saint Martin, the patron saint of the city.  We all drank there as we wandered the cobbled streets and admired the building facades.

I started doing this on the trip and the kids hate it.

Kate was our gelato and restaurant researcher and the pistachio gelato here was my favorite of the trip.  Kate: "How does the gelato taste better than the last every time we try it???"

We took the train back to Montreux, leaving the flower-lined lake and festival charm, picked up our luggage and station, and moved to on Interlaken.  

"Mom, would you buy me THIS teddy?"

Kate was absolutely convinced that I would die to ride in one of these carriages.

That night was laundry night!  We washed our clothes, fixed some housing issues for Zachary with BYU-H, and 

We ended the evening with dinner in the city, first choosing a highly rated Indian diner but walking out immediately when it was clear the temperature inside was north of 90 degrees. Instead, we ate Mexican food with the most charming server from Portugal.