Geneva Week 14 (8/9 – 8/15) and Week 15 (8/16 – 8/22) – My Summer Vacation

In order to restore creativity, keep my writing skills fresh and rest my paws, I have decided to take a Summer Break from the blog for Weeks 14 and 15. It is common for Europeans to take a long vacation in August and as they say, ‘When in Rome…’

Since it’s impossible for me to not write something, I can at least quickly recap these couple of weeks. 

Natalie was back in the U.S. visiting her sisters and working on her and Jason’s apartment; Jason worked and went to Germany for a night; I got to spend the night at DDC while Jason was away; and I also had quality time with my Jason exploring various parts of Switzerland and Chamonix.

Since I also can’t avoid posting pictures, here are a few snaps from these two weeks!

(It was curry night at Lindsay and Ken's house (Natalie's sister and brother-in-law.) Here is Lindsay enjoying this very delicious and aromatic curry dish!)

(The next day was curry day for Ken and Lindsay's two sons! Here's Conor with the evidence of his curry consumption in plain view!)

(Tommy got into the curry action as well and here's an action shot of him enjoying this flavorful dish!)

(It was Tommy's birthday and he wanted a football theme for his birthday party. Therefore, Natalie and Lindsay (along with some much needed help from April and Stephanie) made football cupcakes for each of Tommy's friends!)

(To stay true to the football theme for the birthday party and to celebrate one of Tommy's (and Ken's) favorite teams, Natalie and Lindsay made a San Diego Charger's football helmet cake. This particular cake is chocolate with a vanilla icing)

(In order to make sure everyone at the party had enough cake, Natalie and Lindsay also made a Notre Dame football helmet cake (another one of Tommy and Ken's favorite teams.) This is a yellow cake with vanilla icing...and by the way, most of both cakes did get eaten!)

(It's hard to see me, but I am at the end of the dock right by the lake. Jason and I visited Pontresina, which is in the Italian part of Switzerland, while Natalie was in the U.S.  On the train ride home, we made a couple of stops, one of which was to this crystal clear lake.)

(On the train back from Pontresina - I love it when I get my own seat)

(Jason and I hiking near Chamonix and admiring a beautiful view of the snow-capped mountains!)

(My new favorite spot in Chamonix - a little stream that is perfect for tadpole fishing and cooling off after a long hike!)

Starting with Week 16, I’ll be back with fresh paws and ready to write about our ongoing adventures here in Switzerland. Until then, À Bientôt!

Paws,

Sabrina

Geneva Week 13 (8/2 – 8/8) – Fêtes de Genève, the Joy of Breakfast Pastries, and My ‘Gimp’ Tail

Since I’m so behind in creating blog posts, I practically forgot about our Week 13 adventures! After searching my memory and consulting with Natalie and Jason, I did manage to recall the high (and, unfortunately) low points of this week.

Let me start out with the high points – I didn’t have any overnight guests by the name of Baboutcha, I got to go to DDC, Jason was home all week, which meant family dinners every night, and Natalie and Jason took me to Chamonix where I discovered a pleasant little stream perfect for tadpole fishing.

For the most part, I certainly can’t complain about my daily schedule and the weekend adventures I get to take part in. However, it seems like poor health and injuries are sometimes my friend, as was the case with this week.

Early on in the week, Natalie noticed that my tail looked a little (in her words) ‘gimp.’ Natalie was right in that something was definitely not right. My tail wouldn’t follow my emotions or my silent commands and when I tried to wag it, it wouldn’t really move and just shifted to one side.

This little ‘problem’ was quite a burden and painful, so much so that Natalie, Jason, and Otto from DDC (thanks Otto!) all agreed I should visit Dr. Luka, my veterinarian.

I obviously never look forward to a vet visit and this one was no exception. What made it worse was that Dr. Luka was not in and I had to see someone else. The Dr. was nice enough, but I am used to Dr. Luka.

At the vet, my back and tail got x-rayed and Natalie actually helped the vet do the x-rays, since the vet’s assistant was pregnant. I’m not sure how I felt about Natalie holding me down to get those pictures taken of my insides. She’s supposed to be my advocate, not help the vet in putting me through torture!

Well, the x-rays found nothing, so the vet just chalked it up to tendonitis, or something else unknown. Either way, going to the vet is never a fun visit, especially when there isn’t a solution for my problem.

Luckily, the tail slowly improved throughout the week, but I wasn’t allowed to play as hard, or dig. To this day, we don’t know what caused my ‘gimp’ tail. I’m happy the condition has finally gone away and I certainly hope this doesn’t happen again. Not being able to wag my tail is like Natalie and Jason not being able to smile.

My tail issues were the week’s low point for me. For Natalie and Jason, the tougher part of the week came towards the end at a certain festival called ‘Fêtes de Genève.’

Fêtes de Genève is an annual festival held along the water in downtown Geneva. The festival contains rides for all ages, from bumper cars to roller coasters that spin you up, down and sideways, plentiful amounts of fair food, concerts, and of course, many stations for cocktails, mocktails and the like!

Thousands of people visit Geneva each and every year for this festival and, in addition to the many tourists filling the streets and attempting to drive on the somewhat confusing roadways, the City of Geneva also closes down certain roads for the festival. One of those roads happens to be the one that leads to our house.

Now, Natalie and Jason are not necessarily festival people and the blockage of traffic definitely caused them to dislike festivals even more so than before!

Since Fêtes de Genève is such a big event for the city of Geneva, Natalie and Jason did feel obliged to at least walk through the festival during one evening in the middle of the week. They were actually pleasantly surprised! I stayed at home, of course. Festivals, with all the crowds, are really not my thing.

According to Natalie and Jason, the festival was not overly crowded. The food was good (they enjoyed Nutella crepes!) and the environment was lively.  Natalie and Jason were quite mesmerized by this one particular roller coaster that hung people upside down at the very top of the ride, which was at least 100 feet up in the air!

(One of the cocktail and mocktail booths at Fêtes de Genève. The individual drinks were taken (or more like siphoned :-)) from those giant glasses!)

This would not be the end of Fêtes de Genève for Natalie and Jason, but I will get to that later on in this post.

Besides veterinarian visits and an intro to the ‘festival that takes over Geneva,’ the other highlight of this week was, of course, food – specifically, in the breakfast pastry category.

This week, Natalie discovered the perfection of the Pain au Chocolat (French for chocolate croissants) from Manor. Manor, as I’ve mentioned before, is Switzerland’s major gourmet grocery store. For you Bay Areans, it is similar to a Mollie Stones.

One thing Manor has that Mollie Stones doesn’t is an eat-in café that serves European-style sandwiches (think cured ham with butter on a fresh baguette) and breakfast pastries.

Well, on one weekday morning, after Natalie dropped me off at DDC, she decided to stop in at her neighborhood Manor (which is in Vesenaz) and get breakfast.  Natalie had been to the Manor café many times before and had even eaten their delectable regular croissants, but she had never ventured to try the chocolate croissants.

On this particular morning, the chocolate croissants looked extra delicious and Natalie could not stop herself from trying one. Needless to say, she’s glad she succumbed to temptation.

This croissant, by all standards, was large - it was about the size of a 6 x 8 picture. However, Natalie could’ve eaten one the size of an 8.5 x 11 piece of paper, without regretting one calorie.

The croissant was, of course, extra buttery; however, it was not overly buttery. The pastry itself was flaky and light, but not so flaky that remnants from the meal were visible in your teeth for the world to see, or got all over your lap when trying to bite into it. The croissant was also not so light that it felt dry.

The chocolate was soft and if you weren’t careful, the chocolate would dribble on your chin a little bit after biting into the croissant. The chocolate was also a perfect amount to not overwhelm the pastry, and not be overwhelmed by the pastry.

All in all, this chocolate croissant was unparalleled to any Natalie has ever had and it’s safe to say there will be many future trips to Manor just for that croissant!

(The perfect chocolate croissant from Manor's café)

Besides the chocolate croissant discovery, Natalie also made a breakfast pastry at home to continue fulfilling her self-determined requirement of baking a treat-a-week.  For this week, the treat exercise was brioche!

Now, Natalie is a fan of brioche and really, who isn’t? It’s buttery, rich and versatile. It can be used for bread pudding, French toast, or as hamburger buns.

Natalie decided that she did, in fact, want to make brioche hamburger buns to accompany one evening of meals and she also wanted to make brioche muffins.

The difficult part about this week’s task was the yeast. There are varying types of yeast in France and Switzerland and Natalie wasn’t sure she had the right one. The yeast Natalie ended up choosing for her brioche was called Hefe Levure. It had a picture of challah on the front of the package and since Challah is a similar type of dough to that of brioche, she figured that she was on the right track for the type of yeast to use.

Luckily, Natalie incorporated the correct type of yeast and the brioche she created was probably her best ever! She’ll obviously test and taste the recipe again to make sure the first time was not a fluke, but regardless, Natalie and Jason enjoyed delicious gruyere-burgers that evening with brioche buns! There was even plenty of dough leftover to make the brioche muffins and give a few to Christianne.

(Natalie's brioche muffins!)

As the end of the week neared, Natalie and Jason were looking forward to their first and last weekend together until September 4^th. Soon, Natalie would be going to the U.S. to visit family and as soon as Natalie returned to Geneva, Jason would be taking a trip to California!

On Saturday morning Natalie went for a 16 mile run in preparation for her marathon in October, which is going to be in Palma, Mallorca.

We all spent Saturday afternoon taking a leisurely drive around the nearby French towns, which included me going for a short, easy swim in Amphion (my tail was still not totally healed), Jason and Natalie buying bookshelves for the loft in the bedroom, and an espresso break in the charming little town of Samoens.

Unfortunately, Saturday evening was not nearly as enjoyable as the daytime, thanks to Fêtes de Genève.

As mentioned earlier, Jason and Natalie’s leisurely stroll through Fêtes de Genève during the week would not be the last time they’d visit the festivities. 

On Saturday night, Natalie and Jason went to Fêtes de Genève to see the end of festival fireworks everyone said was one of the best fireworks displays ever. Well, Natalie and Jason weren't the only ones with the great idea to see the fireworks. 500,000 people also crammed themselves into the small downtown area by the lake to catch a glimpse of these must-see fireworks. I, luckily, stayed home.

Natalie was not happy. Large, stuffy crowds are definitely not her ‘cup-of-tea’ unless she’s fighting her way to the front seats at a U2 concert. The fact that she was shoved between people at a festival and watching fireworks (which, she’s never really been a huge fan of) was cause for Natalie to be in a not-so-great mood. Poor Jason, who enjoyed the fireworks and the corresponding classical music that kept in time with the firework display, had to endure Natalie and her frustrations.

(The firework display at Fêtes de Genève)

(The firework finale - see the jet d'eau in the middle. It started jetting (on purpose, of course!) as the fireworks were going off all around it)

It was a long night (they didn’t arrive home to see me until 1am!) and we were all happy to climb into bed and sleep off a very interesting evening.

On Sunday, after having rested and recovered from the night before, we all went to Chamonix for a walk and lunch. We also visited the Micro Brasserie de Chamonix, where Jason and Natalie had their usual beers and French onion dip.

(Here I am in Chamonix begging for some poulet roti, which is roasted chicken in French)

On Sunday evening, we all had a lovely barbequed meal in the garden with Christianne, Silvio, their friends, and Christianne’s daughter Laura (who, by the way, has started meeting with Natalie for a French-English language exchange...Natalie needs all the help she can get in this area!) 

The weather was nice and it was a relaxing end to a week of adventures as we continue to navigate our way through this interesting city and amazing country.

Paws,

Sabrina

(Harvest is almost here! The fruit on the vine has grown and has even started changing color from green to the familiar dark blue-purple of the wine grape)

Geneva Week 12 (7/26 – 8/1) – Squirrel Discovery, Zuger Kirschtorte, and Running Adventures in Davos

This week now officially marks the end of our third month living in Geneva, Switzerland.  It’s unbelievable how time flies!

In just three short months I’ve managed to sniff my way through Lucerne and the Jungrau region. I’ve accompanied Natalie and Jason around the lake, on the lake and sometimes, in the lake, to visit towns such as Lausanne, Montreux, Evian, Yvoire, and of course, Etoy and St. Prex.  I’ve also dug endlessly in Gryon with my new friends Vicki and Eliot and let’s not forget the discovery, digging and swimming I’ve been able to do right in my comfortable and familiar home of Geneva.

We’ve even hit up some towns deep in France, including big ones like Paris and smaller ones like Chamonix and Annecy.

Since I enjoy my DDC so much Jason and Natalie have also been able to sneak away to far away places such as Sicily and to not so far away places, like London.

In what is becoming a trend of travel during our time here in Switzerland, Natalie and Jason did not disappoint in this week 12. At the end of this week, we ventured into Davos, Switzerland, which is on the other side of the country.  I will get into the wonderful time we had there in a moment, but I should first quickly recap our week (which, was pleasantly uneventful and thankfully didn’t involve houseguests.)

Since the weather was finally cooling down and Natalie didn’t feel the need for me to go into the lake every single day (I have a different opinion, of course), we made our way back to Twilight Park after a short hiatus.

I enjoy Twilight Park and can generally keep myself entertained, but, on this particular outing, one of the main reasons for my existence was skirting along the treetops in this hauntingly, peaceful park. It was, you guessed it, the squirrel!

I could hardly believe it, but sure enough those furry and fast creatures were taunting me once again.  I did my best to scale the trees in hopes of catching one and even jumped onto a couple of logs, to get myself further up the tree. I didn’t succeed in cornering any of the squirrels; however, I am convinced that if I keep practicing and keep rolling in a lot of stinky stuff (which hides my scent), one day I’ll be able to sneak up on those elusive little creatures and bring home a gift to Jason and Natalie.

(One day I'll get a squirrel - it's all about persistence...and figuring out how to climb trees)

Besides chasing squirrels, I went to DDC, Jason worked and went to London for a night and Natalie ran and baked – the usual activities of Horwath Swiss daily life.

The baked treat Natalie experimented with this week was the Zuger Kirschtorte. The Zuger Kirschtorte is a type of cherry-flavored cake originating in Zug, Switzerland, which is in the German part of the country. 

The Zuger Kirschtorte consists of a base layer of Japonaise (a meringue disk containing powdered almond that has been baked until it is dry and crispy); the second layer is a cherry-flavored buttercream; the cake, which is the next layer, is a Genoise sponge that has been well-soaked in a Kirsch liqueur. The cake is then topped with more cherry buttercream, and finally, another Japonaise disk is placed on top. The cake is then completely frosted with a very thin layer of the cherry buttercream, toasted almonds are pressed to the sides and a healthy dusting of powdered sugar decorates the top.

In concept, it should be a fabulous cake – It is moist, with just enough crispy and crunchy from the Japonaise and the nuts, and it is just sweet enough, thanks to some tempering from the generous layer of delicate Genoise as the largest component.

Natalie decided to try this dessert, as her chef from pastry school had asked her about it. We would also be heading to Davos over the weekend, which is in the German part of Switzerland, and Natalie thought it would be interesting to make a version at home and then try one made at a bakery.

Natalie’s version of the Zuger Kirschtorte did not turn out all that bad for her first attempt; however, it was a little too sweet, since Natalie cooked a bit too much alcohol out of the Kirsch syrup and you, therefore, didn’t get much of the Kirsch ‘bite’ in the cake. Also, her buttercream layers were a bit heavy on the buttercream (if there is such a thing as too much buttercream).  Lastly, Natalie could’ve baked the meringue a bit longer, which would’ve increased the crispy factor.

(Natalie's Zuger Kirschtorte!)

When Natalie and Jason tried this dessert in Davos, it met all the expectations Natalie had and then some. Natalie will try this dessert again soon and her goal next time will be to create that perfectly balanced cake she and Jason devoured in Davos.

(Zuger Kirschtorte from a bakery in Davos)

The end of the week finally rolled around and our weekend adventure to Davos began with a 5 hour train ride on Friday afternoon. Since Davos is all the way on the other side of Switzerland, it is not an insignificant effort to get there from Geneva. Two stops later in Zurich and Landquart, we finally arrived in Davos at around 9pm.

We arrived in the twilight of the day; however, this did not prevent my senses from kicking into action. All around me I could smell fresh alpine air, the forest lurking nearby and somewhere just a bit up the hill from the train station, I could smell sausages.

Sure enough, we all walked up the hill from the train station and entered into a lively village where there was an evening festival well underway.  I weaved my way through all the partygoers and quickly found myself staring up at a sausage and hamburger stand, where the most fragrant sausages I’ve ever smelled were being cooked to juicy perfection. Natalie and Jason both had beef sausages that were reminiscent of Polish Kielbasa and I got all to myself two (yes, two!) hamburger patties. Of course, I also had to try the sausage. Natalie and Jason grudgingly obliged and gave me a couple of bites.

Natalie and Jason washed all this down with a frothy German beer and we then slowly made our way through the crowd towards our hotel.

The only way to reach our hotel, the Hotel Schatzalp, was by a funicular train. This hotel was at the top of a mountain and it was too far to walk, especially late in the evening with luggage and a belly full of food. Also, you can’t really drive up there – and we couldn’t if we could anyway, since we trained in from Geneva!

A funicular train is essentially one that goes straight up the hill and needless to say, when I saw the train and the mountain it was going to scale, I was a bit apprehensive. However, once I boarded the little train and started climbing the mountain, all fear was pushed aside and I was exhilarated as the little train ascended towards the starry sky.

(Checking out this funicular train that would take us to the Hotel Schatzalp)

We reached our hotel, which had a vintage antique feel and checked in. Afterwards, Natalie and Jason had a cold cuts plate prepared by the kitchen and then we all headed to our comfortable room for a cool and peaceful night’s sleep.

(Do you see me? I was hanging out under the table hoping for bits of Natalie and Jason's coldcuts)

The next morning, we were up bright and early and a beautiful day in Davos was awaiting us. The hotel was nice enough to let me eat my bowl of kibble on the ground next to Natalie and Jason while they enjoyed their European continental breakfast of bread, cheese, meat, pastries, fruit and yogurt.

After a hearty breakfast, we walked through the hotel grounds and discovered Jason’s dream garden! All over the peaceful grounds were inviting patches of grass, gravel paths, and herbs and plants in interesting pots, which were showcased on logs, rocks and tree stumps.

One part of the garden had about 15 different varieties of sage resting on wooden pedestals overlooking the beautiful mountains, another section included strawberries planted inside a hollowed out tree stump and in the center of the garden was a beautiful fountain surrounded by greenery and rocks.

(Here is the thyme collection and me sniffing the thyme collection)

(Jason standing in the middle of his dream garden!)

(The view of the mountains from the front of our hotel - in the pots is the sage collection)

We all meandered through the grounds for a while and then found a hiking trail that would take us back down to the town of Davos. I wanted to take the funicular back to town since I had so much fun the night before; however, Natalie and Jason really wanted to get me out for a walk and discover a new trail.

Sure enough, the trail down from the hotel was magical. The rays of morning sunlight streamed through the tall trees onto the gravel trail, which made for a refreshingly cool walk. Little treasures met us along the way, including the random appearance of a gnome statue and the not so random appearance of live squirrels. And the sounds of nature at its best, surrounding us as we descended for a couple of miles into town, made for one of my best mornings yet in our new country.

(Jason and I walking along the beautiful trail down from the hotel)

(Natalie and I posing with the gnome)

Once in town, Natalie and Jason ate Zuger Kirschtorte and I sniffed my new environment. Natalie and Jason also discovered a delightful little coffeehouse where they enjoyed fresh squeezed juice and espresso.

Later that day, we all got back on the train again. I was obviously curious where we were going next and Jason informed me that we were dropping Natalie off in Klosters, which is the neighboring town to Davos. I was really confused why Natalie was going somewhere Jason and I weren’t, but I quickly learned that Natalie was going to Klosters, because this was the starting point for her half-marathon!

(The view of the Davos clock tower which is near the train station!)

(On the train to Klosters with all the runners!)

Natalie loves to run and participate in running races. This half-marathon, called the ‘K21’ (for 21 kilometers), is part of the Swiss Alpine Marathon series. The Swiss Alpine Marathon holds 7 races over the course of this one weekend. There’s a 78 kilometer run (no thank you), two marathons, the half-marathon run, a half-marathon walk, an 11 kilometer run, and a small fun run designed for children.

Jason and I dropped Natalie off and Natalie’s run started promptly at 2:05pm at the Klosters bridge and at approximately 3000 feet above sea level!  During the extremely hilly race, Natalie climbed 1,600 feet in the first 8 miles until she leveled out at around 4,500 feet for the remainder of the run. Natalie ran on trails, through the forest, across bridges, over train tracks, and along a lake until she finally finished 2 hours and 29 minutes later in the lively Davos stadium.

(The start of the race in Klosters)

(The race finish line!)

After the exhilarating run, Natalie, Jason and I headed over to a ‘biergarten’ where Natalie and Jason had two large Hefeweisen-type beers.

We finally made it back to that exciting funicular and since it was still daylight, I got to experience the magnificent view from the train for the first time.

(The view of Davos from the funicular)

(This is a view of the funicular track itself - this picture was taken as we were on the funicular climbing up the hill!)

We reached our vintage hotel, cleaned up, rested a bit and headed back down the hill (this time on the train) to a tasty cheese fondue dinner at a nearby restaurant called Pot au Feu.

(The clock in the hallway of our hotel - if this doesn't scream vintage, then I don't know what does!)

Natalie and Jason’s dinner consisted of the Swiss-German style fondue, which is primarily a mix of Emmentaler and Gruyere. It was, overall, a delicious dinner and after a long day of exploring, running, eating and drinking, we were all ready for another good night of sleep.

(I loved the fluffy down comforters at our hotel and, as usual, I was the last out of bed every morning)

The next day, which actually happened to be Switzerland's Independence Day, we lounged around town, went to that delicious café we found the day prior for a leisurely breakfast and headed out of my new favorite town at around 1pm, along with what seemed like every single other visitor to Davos! The train was packed all the way to Landquart. I was shoved between luggage and Jason and Natalie were sitting on the luggage I was shoved in between!

(Taking a few moments to get some sun while Natalie and Jason were enjoying breakfast)

(The treats Jason picked up for the train ride home - these were vanilla cake with a cream filling and were decorated in honor of Switzerland's Independence Day!)

(Squeezed between luggage on the train - this was not a lot of fun)

In Landquart, we didn’t want to deal with the crowds heading towards Zurich, so, we decided on taking a round-a-bout way home.  Four trains and ten hours later, and with stomaches full of rosti after a stop in Andermatt, we finally got home to Geneva.

(Delicious Rosti, with bubbling cheese on top, and beers in Andermatt!)

I was glad to be on solid ground (i.e., not moving), but at the same time I already missed the surreal town of Davos.

Another adventure down, and many more to go - life as a Swiss dog, I can’t complain.

Paws,

Sabrina

Geneva Week 11 (7/19 – 7/25) – Baboutcha’s Last Day, London, Digging Adventures in Gryon and an Evening Boat Ride on Lac Leman

Monday of Week 11 here in Geneva marked the final day of Baboo’s stay at my house and was no less of an adventure than the previous two days.

We started off our day at the Hermance Cove where I got to go swimming, but only for a short while. Since Natalie didn’t want to let Baboo off the leash and since Baboo was quite mad about this fact, Baboo made sure to bark as loud as she possibly could every time Natalie threw me the Frisbee. Even worse, Natalie got quite a few mean looks from people who lived in the neighborhood, since it was still early.

Therefore, Frisbee time got cut short and we all headed to the little café near the Hermance beach. Natalie had an extremely flaky croissant washed down with a rich espresso and Baboo and I hung out.

(Baboo and I hanging out while Natalie has her breakfast!)

That afternoon, we all got to visit Twilight Park where Baboo was finally let off leash. We both ran around and sniffed and dug and experienced all the exciting things dogs do when presented with a large patch of forest.

(Baboo and I in lock-step on our way to Twilight Park)

We made it back to the house and rested until Baboo’s owner, Karin, called mentioning she was ready for her little dog to come back home.

Natalie left me to rest (and sleep!) back at the house while she dropped off Baboo.

I have to admit that it was somewhat fun to have a houseguest for the weekend. I, of course, wouldn’t ever suggest to Natalie and Jason that they get another dog; however, every once in a while it isn’t the worst thing to have a friend stay over.

That Monday evening, Natalie and I decided to treat ourselves after a long weekend to a nice and relaxing dinner at one of Natalie and Jason’s favorite places, Café des Marronniers. Natalie, of course had her usual Parma pizza (prosciutto pizza) with a mesclun salad.  For dessert, Natalie had a lovely vanilla bean panna cotta with something that resembled very tart lemon preserves at the base of the panna cotta and fresh raspberry coulis to top it all off.

(The light, creamy and tart vanilla-lemon-raspberry panna cotta!)

Jason couldn’t make it to dinner with us, as his chef (‘boss’ in French) was in town and he would be having dinner with his colleagues and his chef, Dennis.

Natalie and I met up with Jason, Dennis and their colleagues at a Belgian Bar in the Old Town late that evening. I was so nervous meeting all the people Jason works with (I really wanted to make a good impression) that my nerves got the better of me and I either shied away when people tried to stay hello, or I just laid low and hung out near Natalie and Jason.

The rest of the week, up through Thursday, was business as usual. Natalie cleaned the house, ran, baked, and did errands. Jason worked and went to London for business and I went to DDC, played, swam, and slept.

(My new favorite sport....fishing for tadpoles!)

Of course, no week in Geneva goes by without something new happening for the Horwath clan and this time, it all started with Thursday morning.

Early in the day on Thursday Natalie dropped me off at DDC for what I thought would be the usual 7:30am – 3pm day.

Well, Natalie never returned at 3pm that day – later, I came to find out that Natalie jetted off to London for a night to meet up with Jason.  It was Jason’s birthday on Thursday and Natalie wanted to make sure they were able to spend it together. 

I obviously would’ve loved to hang out with my Jason on his birthday; however, I can’t go on jets (which is why I got to spend 9 nights and 10 days on the Queen Mary 2 when we first came over here). Instead, I stayed in Switzerland and played with my buddies at Truffes and Co. I would just have to celebrate with Jason that weekend.

According to Natalie’s account of her trip when she got home on Friday, Natalie took a flight out to London at 10:15 am on Thursday and was on English soil before noon.

The first thing Natalie did in London after checking in at the hotel and eating a few Laduree Macarons that Jason’s colleague, Janet, gave him for his birthday, was find a classic British Pub.

The British Pub Natalie decided on trying out was called the Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese. This Pub received a lot of great reviews on Yelp and lucky for Natalie, it was within walking distance from the hotel. The hotel Natalie and Jason stayed at was called the Park Plaza County Hall and was in the Waterloo district.

(Front entrance of the Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese)

At the pub, Natalie had a fantastic beer and fish and chips that were flaky, crunchy and moist all at the same time!

While enjoying good food and drink at the pub, Natalie worked on her French and continued her reading of a very interesting, yet spooky book called The Historian.

Afterwards, Natalie made her way to Starbucks to get her usual double-tall-nonfat-dry cappuccino. Unfortunately, Natalie and Jason are not able to visit Starbucks much in Geneva due to the cost and, also, there is something that does not taste quite right about Natalie’s preferred style of cappuccino in Geneva. Therefore, Natalie made it a point to go to Starbucks a number of times in London and get her favorite drink and for a reasonable price!

During the afternoon and early evening, which was pleasantly cool and breezy, Natalie wandered around London, got lost a few times, took the tube once and finally ended up at a cupcake shop, which was right in the middle of what appeared to be the Theatre district.

The cupcake was ‘okay,’ but it was nice to taste that familiar icing, consisting of powdered sugar, butter, vanilla and milk. This type of icing is quite popular in the U.S. and apparently in Britain, as well.

(Natalie's cupcake with sprinkles and the deliciously sweet vanilla icing!)

After Natalie’s cupcake tasting, there were still a couple of hours before Jason would be off of work.  Natalie had already enjoyed her fill of beer, good food, coffee and dessert and she needed to work off some of this food and drink before dinner. Therefore, Natalie went for a walk along the Jubilee Gardens where she watched street performers play music, juggle, and entertain the crowds of people spending time in the Gardens. Natalie also discovered the ‘London Eye.’

The London Eye is a very large ‘ferris wheel’ and has what look like capsules attached to it instead of the usual ferris wheel carriages. These capsules are constantly moving at a very slow pace and picking up passengers along the way. Even though Natalie didn’t ride the London Eye, she could only imagine the view the passengers experienced when they reached the top of this ‘ferris wheel.’

(View of the 'London Eye' from the ground)

(The London Eye with the passenger 'capsules') 

After gawking at the London Eye for a bit, Natalie made her way across the Westminster Bridge where she got some great views and pictures of Big Ben.

(A view of Big Ben before Natalie crossed the Westminster Bridge)

(Big Ben up close!)

Finally, after enough walking and exploring for one day, Natalie settled herself down at St. James Park, which is just a short walk past the Westminster Bridge, and read The Historian until it was time to walk back to the hotel and meet Jason.

Since it was Jason’s birthday on Thursday and since Jason is a huge fan on Indian food (as am I), Jason and Natalie went to a restaurant called Tamarind for dinner and to celebrate his birthday.

Overall, Natalie and Jason thought that the food was excellent, from the homemade Naan bread (which Natalie and Jason could watch being made from their seat in the restaurant) to the highlight of the evening, the Gosht Dum Biryani. The Gosht Dum Biryani dish consisted of lamb, basmati rice, browned onions, herbs, rose water, ground spices and saffron - all of which was sealed off with a pastry lid.

The service at the restaurant was a little too overwhelming; however, it was a very nice meal and Natalie and Jason would definitely go back.

On Friday, Natalie and Jason’s last day in London, Jason went into work for a bit and Natalie went for a run. In Natalie’s mind, one of the best ways to see a large part of a city in a short period of time is to run through it. London was no exception.

During Natalie’s hour of running, she got to run through all of St. Jame’s Park, run by Buckingham Palace, run up Constitution Hill, which is right next to Green Park, run under the Wellington Arch, and jog for a bit in the peaceful Hyde Park.

To avoid the potential of getting lost in this exciting city, Natalie took the same route back to the hotel and, overall, had a thoroughly enjoyable time seeing these famous sites. Afterwards, as a reward for her running efforts, Natalie treated herself to yet another Starbucks cappuccino and a lemon poppy-seed muffin.

After about an hour or so of airplane delays, Natalie and Jason finally made it home to Geneva and picked me up from DDC that evening! I was quite excited to see them and definitely a bit tired after two solid days of playing.

We arrived home to Chevrens from DDC; however, we were there for just a few minutes to pick up some cookies and a cake Natalie had made. I was confused and wondered why I had to get back in the car again when I just wanted to sleep on the couch; however, confusion (and a little irritation) quickly turned into elation a couple of short hours later when I found myself surrounded by the mountains and smells that indicated there was much digging to be had.

The town we landed in was Gryon, which is located in the Swiss Alps. We were staying at Silvio and Christianne’s place in Gryon and would be spending Friday evening and Saturday with them, plus (to my added surprised and benefit) Vicky and Eliot!

After cake and cookies on Friday evening, we all retired to bed in anticipation of an exciting day on Saturday and sure enough, Saturday did not disappoint.

That morning, Christianne showed Natalie the village and the boulangerie in Gryon and Jason, Silvio, Vicky, Eliot and me all made our way to Silvio and Christianne’s chalet, which is a healthy descent from the home we were all staying in.

While Jason helped Silvio with some maintenance for the chalet, I discovered some of the best digging of my life in the forest nearby.

Between the three of us dogs, we managed to enthusiastically build some crater-like holes in the earth and also sufficiently cover ourselves with the earth. In fact, at one point we were all digging with so much effort that Vicky lost her footing (or would you say ‘paw-ing’) and came rolling over the top of me.  

I didn’t mind – I understand passion when I see it and Vicky has an unparalleled passion for digging. We got up, shook ourselves off and continued our excavation efforts.

(Digging with Vicky and Eliot....I'm there, just well camouflaged!)

(Vicky wearing the results of her digging efforts)

Natalie and Christianne eventually made it down the hill and lunch was served shortly thereafter. For lunch, all the humans got to eat sausages, ribs, salad, chips and dessert. The three of us canines took a break from our activities and joined the humans in hopes for some scraps.

(Lunch break! It was necessary after all that digging!)

After more digging, a little more chalet maintenance and a coffee break, we all headed up the steep hill to the house, cleaned up and rested after a long day outside.

(The three of us taking a break at Silvio and Christianne's place)

That evening, Christianne, Silvio, Eliot and Vicky headed back to Chevrens, because Christianne had to work the next morning.

Jason, Natalie and I stayed at Christianne and Silvio’s very comfortable place and had a restful dinner in the Gryon village.

We slept in on Sunday morning. After slowly packing up and leaving this relaxing, mountain home, we found ourselves enjoying a fabulous brunch and very pleasant weather on the patio of a restaurant called ‘Cookie,’ which is also in Gryon.

Natalie and Jason both started off with freshly made juices. Natalie had ‘straight-up’ apple juice and Jason had apple juice mixed with pineapple and mint. For breakfast, Jason had a sampling of items, which included fruit, muesli and pancakes and Natalie just had the pancakes. Both were delicious!

We all arrived home in Chevrens in the mid-afternoon and had just enough time to take a short nap and refresh ourselves before we’d be heading out for the evening.

In celebration of Jason’s birthday week, Natalie bought tickets for all of us to enjoy an evening Croisières gastronomique on Lake Geneva (aka ‘Lac Leman.’)

The cruise departed from the Jardin Anglais in downtown Geneva at 6:45 pm and would return there at 10:00 pm after slowly sailing its way to Nyon and back.

Once aboard the ‘Savoie’ ship, Natalie and Jason were served a 3-course gourmet meal while sailing around on beautiful Lake Geneva.  I, of course, had to beg for bits and pieces of their meal, which included an aromatic seafood starter that included lobster, lamb chops and a buttery couscous for the main course, and a variety of desserts incorporating in-season apricots as the sweet finale to the meal.

(A view of the ship from inside the restaurant)

After a thoroughly enjoyable dinner, we all sat out on the deck of the ‘Savoie,’ relaxed after a very busy weekend, and watched the sunset.

(A view of the lake and mountains from our ship!)

(Checking out the water wishing I could jump in it!)

It is times like these and adventures like the ones I experienced this week that make me ‘pinch’ myself occasionally (I can’t really pinch myself, but, you know what I mean). 

It still amazes me that I really do live in this beautiful country with the crystal clear lake literally at the tip of my paws, majestic Alps just a short drive away, and the never-ending sights and smells of Geneva and its surrounding countryside just outside my doorstep.

Paws,

Sabrina