Barcelona, Part 1

Hello from my new friend "Rocco" - pictured below. His owner is the guy I'm renting a room/apartment from via Craigslist. Right now, Rocco himself is trying again and again to put a bunny slipper in my lap, hoping to start either a game of fetch or tug-of-war, neither of which ever seem to get old. Anyway, as you can see I've quickly made myself "at home" in Barcelona.



The cultural experience started even before I crossed the border, when I realized that the nighttime "hotel train" I was on would run 2-3 hours late. Something had been broken, and we'd stopped somewhere, for some amount of time... at least that was the rumor among the passengers. I don't think an official announcement was ever made.

But my cabin-mates were some friendly ladies, speaking a combination of German, Spanish, French and English. I'm starting to realize that talking about languages is like talking about the weather around here - a handy topic for strangers to pass the time.

After our noontime arrival, I went out for a nice lunch outdoors, with a 10-euro "menu del dia" of avocado salad, fresh fish, and dessert. Later in the afternoon, I visited the cathedral Santa Maria del Mar (of the Sea) and wandered around the Gothic district.








My excuse for being here is a conference co-sponsored by Net Impact at one of the local business schools, and also the opportunity to meet some folks I've been working with to organize a two-day seminar here in May, and to scout out the facilities we'll be using then.

There is so much to do and see here, I wish my trip were longer, or I had less work! But at least in May I'll have another chance.

One Day in St. Gallen

Rachel visited me today, all the way from Geneva in the morning and back again at night (4 hours each way). So I had about 8 hours to show off St. Gallen.

Stop #1: Carnival Parade. It was hilarious - costumes, confetti, music, more confetti... actually it might as well be a celebration devoted to confetti... or maybe it's the brainchild of an ingenious confetti company? In any case, we left the parade covered in multicolored paper. Great photos coming soon from Rachel's camera.

Stop #2: St. Margarethen, Mineralheilbad. This outdoor sauna-park seems like the height of luxury to us Americans, but apparently it's not so unusual in Switzerland. We enjoyed lounging in the bubbles, taking a whirl around the lazy river, and seeing how much heat we could take in the eucalyptus sauna.

Stop #3: The Cathedral. We arrived just as an organ concert was ending, and one could almost imagine the crowd was applauding our entrance... or at least I like to think of it that way! St. Gallen has a cathedral that could be the pride of a much larger European city, with beautiful murals on the ceilings and a truly impressive organ in the choir loft.

Stop #4: Fondu. The restaurant was full, but we promised to eat quickly, and ended up sharing a table with none other than the President of the Carnival Committee - a sweet older woman who seemed like the furthest thing from rowdy carnival antics. The whole restaurant was full of performers in costume (including face paint) and they occasionally broke out into song. The fondue was strong in taste and smell, and we enjoyed it with kirsh for dipping.

Stop #5: Asian-inspired lounge. With a little time to spare, we had a glass of wine in an interesting local bar, and ran into some friends from my doctoral studies - so we ended up being a group of 5, talking about Switzerland, Germany, Sweden and the US.

After that, Rachel made her train, and is on her way back.... hope she visits again soon! Or perhaps I'll show up in Geneva for a day to visit her - if she'll stop traveling long enough to allow that. ;)

Snowboarding in Appenzellerland

Over the weekend, my Dutch colleague Kim and I rented snowboards and explored the region in search of good slopes. We ended up in Appenzell, which is roughly the West Virginia of Switzerland: mountainous, rural, funny accent, and the occasional butt of jokes (though they really don't deserve it). Appenzell finally gave women the vote somewhere around 1989, and they still vote by raising their hands in assemby (perhaps partly because it's now a tourist attraction).

Anyway, it was a great way to practice German! Or at least Swiss-German. Not nearly so many Appenzellers speak English or French, so I was really forced to try the Deutsch, which I enjoyed. And I'm always surprised how much can be communicated when there's really no other way. On my snowboard, it was really hard to take the T-bar up the slopes, so I always ended up paired with a skiier. And that skier was always from Appenzell. Lots of great conversations.

The views were amazing, as you can see from these photos. The trails were mixed-use for skiing, snowboarding, hiking and tobogganing. And there were hangliders too! And in Switzerland, this isn't even considered a destination - just a local spot for locals. In fact the first day, we took our snowboards on the train at lunchtime (ate bread & cheese on our way), hit the slopes for a few hours, and were back in St. Gallen again at 5:30pm! Amazing how close it all is.

On Monday, I'm embarased to say, my muscles were sore... but not my legs. My arms. I believe this is some indication of how much energy went into picking myself up off the ground. My goal for next time is to get my legs sore instead. ;)

Lots of Snow

The past week it has snowed almost every day. At first, the Swiss kept up with it - every sidewalk was meticulously clear, even as it snowed. Every street was perfect. And where were the snow piles? Who knows; I hear they truck them away!

But finally, yesterday, the snow was so much that it actually started to look messy. At last there's a little bit of a brown tinge to some of it, the smallest bit of slush, some persistently icy roads... honestly, it made me feel at home. ;)

Here's a view from my window on one of the many snowy afternoons.

Alpine Skiing, Take 2

My second day of alpine skiing was far more successful than the first!

The skies weren't totally clear, but the visibility was a lot better. Look at how much awesome the views are when you can see:





Even the baths looked more impressive with the Alps in the background:



As did the town:



I hope to come back sometime. Wonder if Steve would let me drag him here? ;)

Alpine Skiing

Today I went alpine skiing for the first time in Leukerbad.

I have new-found wisdom too: when in a foreign country, if native advice seems illogical, I probably missed something. This refers to the other day when my Swiss co-worker said that the weather wasn't going to be good for skiing this weekend.

Me: How could weather not be good for skiing?
Friend: Because it's going to snow.
Me: How is that bad?
Friend: Because you can't see so much.

So I decided my friend must not like getting snow in her eyes, but I have ski goggles and don't mind a few flakes, so I went anyway.

Apparently, the catch is that at alpine altitudes, you're actually *in* the clouds. So here is what alpine skiing looks like in the snow:



That photo, in fact, is during a very good moment - there are nearby skiers and a liftline. Most of the trail looked more like this:



And sometimes I didn't even have the benefit of one of those post-thingies. I ended up following a ski school down the mountain for safety - and I wasn't the only one!

So, I'm being melodramatic. It was still FANTASTIC. And after the usual aches and pains of a day skiing, I went to the fancy baths that are fed by natural hot springs, and let the jacuzzi bubbles wash over me. Wish I had photos of that; maybe I'll take some tomorrow.

Plus, I have a very cozy room at the end of the day! Isn't it cute?



That bed is actually miniature-sized; my feet tend to hang over the bottom! but the price was right, and it's a private room.

Random Things from Switzerland

I went out to lunch with my advisor and colleague the other day, to a "regular lunch place" that cost about $20 on average (that's Swiss food prices for you). In any case, their special of the day was a stuffed apple. "Stuffed with what?" you might wonder. This being the Germanic part of Switzerland, the obvious answer is: a sausage.

Mmmmm......



Another recent afternoon, it sounded like all the ambulances in town were in use, and echoing weirdly off the mountains. I wondered if something was wrong. But when I looked around me, it was as if no one else could even hear them. Later, my American co-worker asked: did you hear the air sirens? Apparently, they test them once a year. Armed neutrality in action.

One last story, I went to the public swimming pool yesterday, and leave it to the Swiss to have some awesome infrastructure for everything. It had a multi-story waterslide! My swim workout was cut short while I got myself dizzy on that, but it was totally worth it.

Next up: adventureds in Leukerbad. I just got here tonight!

Winter Wonderland

I've heard Switzerland stereotyped as a snowy paradise... and I guess it's true!

As soon as I dropped my suitcases in my apartment, I went for a walk up the nearby hillside and accidentally stumbled onto this charming scene: a frozen pond with "kids" of all ages - figure skating, playing hockey, pulling toboggans, and running around. By the side of the pond was a skate-rental table, and a booth that sold roasted chestnuts and hot mulled wine.

Does it get much better?