16 October 2012 - The hills are alive.....

Or in the veritable words of the Mama's & Papa's...."All the leaves are brown [leaves are brown], and the sky is grey......".  Yes the seasons are changing here dear reader and it is now truly autumnal.

As I look out the window I see the smoke from the copper chimneys set against the pines in hues of burnt orange offset by the stark white of first snow.  The air has that wintry bite to it which you feel most on the tip of your nose and the tops of your ears.  It will soon be time for the cows to head into their barns to escape the winter chill.  All of the dark winter clothes are coming out but a flash of colour is shown from a jaunty hat or scarf.

The weather can only get colder and there will be more snow.  I am sure it will seem like a winter wonderland to me full of magic and promise until I slip over on some ice and curse the snow!  The days will get shorter and the ability to do things outdoors will become more challenging.  Skiing is of course an option.  It will be me and the kiddies on the learner slopes I think.

So, I am trying to make the most of the beautiful clear days which we are still getting and heading out into the wilds of Einsiedeln.  I have had a strong urge to climb a hill (which I like to pretend is a mountain) since I have been here.  My fear has always been wandering on to someone's property (and then being yelled at in Swiss Deutsch) or being chased by a bull across a field!  In my wandering around town I have come across a couple of walking trails so it was time to explore.  I am hoping these will remain marked in winter as well and I can still get out and about.  Not that I think I will be snowed in or anything, well, hang on, now I think of it best make sure the food supplies are well stocked!

I was pleased to find this hill trail which also has the Stations of the Cross on it, although I could only find four or five, clearly I am on the wrong path.......

The hillside is beautiful and with the changing leaves it makes it pretty special.  It is not too hard a climb although my calf muscles certainly noticed the next day.  It is a lovely loop across the hill with some great views across Einsiedeln.

No walk is complete (or one of my blogs for that matter) without a cow reference.  I could here the gentle bells as I was walking through the hills (there was no skipping and I did not think of myself as Heidi, not once, promise).  I went over to the fence to observe and chat to them.  After a few minutes of so one curious cow came over to say hello (Moo!).  This was then followed up by another two cows and then the whole herd!  They were very friendly and liked a nice scratch on their head and enjoyed licking my hands.  They were very cool.....

We chatted and laughed for ages.  Talked about barn prices and the decreasing hay quality.  We got close to religion and politics but it seemed to be a moo-t point with them!




Yesterday was a big day for me as it was the first snow of the season.  I am sure, as I said before, there will be days when I will not think it so pretty but I am allowing myself to relish it for now.  Most of it has melted away now you can still see it on the distant mountains.

5 - 7 October 2012 - Atlanta Antics

Oh patient reader, I realise there has been a gap between drinks and I have no real excuse.  My busy alpine life has not really been that busy.  I have discovered some great walking tracks up hills but otherwise it has been low key.

A month or so a go a friend of mine alerted me to the fact that there was an airline memorabilia fair being held in Atlanta, Georgia.  This peaked my curiosity not only for all the geeky things I could buy but also the chance to go to a new city and to fly on some wide body jets again.  So, off to the interweb I went to see if I could find a reasonable fare for this aviation adventure.  I came up with a very good option with KLM and Delta - two new airlines and one new plane - which of course means new models too!

I did try to convince S to come with me and he was on the verge of agreeing and then sense and reason took over!

Friday 5 October 2012

 

So 5 October came and off I set to the Zurich Aerodrome on the famed Swiss railways.  It was very odd heading off on my own without S.  Checked in at KLM for my flight to Atlanta via Amsterdam's Schipol Airport.  Headed up to the very uninspiring Air France Lounge (liberally called a Salon).  I whiled away the time and then it was time to take a bus to my little blue Boeing 737.  I was in Euro Business Class which as I have said before is essentially economy with a spare seat in the middle.

 

Once we were all settled the captain announced that we were going to be delayed for about one hour as there were thunderstorms in Amsterdam.  The gentlemen who was next to me was not happy as it meant missing his connection.  He did not believe the captain!  Anyway after about five minutes we got the all clear and off we went and Mr Grumpy got told he would make his connection.

 

The flight passed uneventfully and a light lunch was served which consisted of a choice of three rolls.  The closest they got to champagne was Cava, a Spanish sparkling - meh!  Please note the "teaspoon" next to the cup which is more like a swizzle stick!!

 

 



So we arrived into Schipol and then I went to find the Crown Lounge which was some distance, up some stairs, through middle earth and required an adjustment to the space time continuum to find.  Enjoyed a light beverage and watched some TV on the iPhone - marvel this technology - what next?

 

Then it was off to my new jet - well it is actually quite an old jet but I had never flown on one before.  It is a McDonnell Douglas MD-11 and has three engines and is very old school!  Brace yourselves for some exterior and interior shots!

 

There was no doubting that you were on KLM with all the (Delft) blue surrounding you.  Seats were fine and comfortable but looked weird with the "ears".  I did have loads of legroom though. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Being the geek I am I made the cabin crew aware that this was my first time on the MD-11.  They all said how much they enjoyed flying the plane and were sad to see it being retired in a few years.  There was some real champagne before take off (Billecart Salmon) and some small Dutch delicacies - not pickled herring.  Main course orders were then taken by the girls in blue.  At this point I should add that I got chatting to the fellow next to me who is a private pilot flying Gulfstreams.  He was an amicable sort of a bloke but had this very odd habit of spitting out a brown fluid into a water bottle every few minutes - it was quite gross.  Thankfully he went to sleep so I did not have nine hours of this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then it was meal time.  Now KLM was proud to be having "Dutch Month" celebrating all foods from Holland.  Now, if you did not know, I am half Dutch and although the food is fine, Holland is not necessarily a country known for its cuisine.  So I braced myself and the results are below.  I did love the salt & pepper clogs which were a permitted souvenir.....and the cutlery...which was not...but...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I liked the orange on the tray but main course was, well, I think a picture speaks a thousand words, since when is brown, brown, and brown a good idea?

 

 

Watched a few movies to pass the time all washed down with a French red.  Have to say the flight attendants, although friendly, had mastered the art of ignoring the call bells.  Maybe they do not work in jets this old.

 

Arrival was pretty seamless and the car was there to take me to the Mandarin Oriental.  Warm welcome and a lovely hotel in the Buckhead area of Atlanta.

 

Saturday 6 October 2012

 

Saturday arrived and it was time to head out to the airport to the Delta Flight Museum where the memorabilia show was being held.  Best way to get there was by train which was pretty straight forward - yes I am on more suburban trains.  It was a pretty warm day in Atlanta (about 30 degrees) and the hanger where the fair was being held was roasting. 

 

It was a fascinating study of the human (geek) condition to see all these die hards trawling through models, cutlery, badges, safety cards etc, etc, etc.  I was very restrained and only bought a couple of things but had a nice wander about and considered my own human condition.  Here are a few shots:

 

 Geeks on parade...

What every home needs, its own aircraft galley unit, ooh, my catering trolley would fit in there.

Perfect for the home theatre or mock-up cabin in the cellar.

Rows and rows of these

 

 

I thought the landing gear could be lovely fitted with a table and an umbrella, a real talking point for those summer soirees.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was then back to the hotel with my few purchases and had a bit of downtime before heading to dinner in the hotel's restaurant.  Was a lovely spot to eat other than the proximity of the bar which included a television broadcasting the local football came.  The staff and patrons were really getting into it....I had wine to try and drown them out.  Food was pretty average.

 

Sunday 7 October 2012

 

I had most to of the day on Sunday before jetting back home and tossed up a few tourist options.  Did you know Atlanta is the home of Coca-Cola?  I didn't and they have Coca Cola World here!  It is also the HQ for CNN!

 

I elected to go to the Georgia Aquarium instead which is like a giant version of Underwater World.  Have to say it was pretty neat but the dolphin show was a bit lame.  No reflection on the dolphins of course - they were cool.

 

Lovely dolphins

Very cool seahorses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Glow in the dark jelly fish, the new night light but it may scare the kiddies.

 

And just for good measure, the bloke who invented Coca-Cola.  Looks like they modelled him in Coca-Cola brown!

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was then time to head back to the airport to head home.  I tossed up on the best mode of transport, limo, taxi, horse drawn carriage but decided on the train again.  Not the most glam but certainly economical.

 

Checked in and then off to the Delta Sky Club for a pre-take off beverage.  Very bright and clean lounge with great views across the apron of all the Delta jets.

 

 

So, Delta is another new airline for me and I had pretty low expectations having flown on American Airlines a number of times.  If you think there has been cost cutting in the Australian airline industry you should fly in America.  So I braced myself knowing that I had an older style Boeing 767 to take me back to Zurich on this overnight flight.

As expected the cabin looked a bit tired but this was made up for by the friendliness and enthusiasm of the crew.  They may have been on the mature side but they seemed to genuinely enjoy their job and very proud of Delta (and they thought I was a delight!).  Of course now it is time for some random cabin shots.....

It was then meal time which was served with some urgency and they forgot to warm my nuts!

The food was a lot better than I expected and I quite liked the "kind to trees" tray.  Yummy duck and a pumpkin soup to start followed by a stuffed chicken and then ice cream sundae.

Well, that was it folks!  I know this one was very airline heavy so if you made it to the end I applaud you for your dedication, perseverance and loyalty - perhaps I need to start a Frequent Reader Program - you get points for each page you read....now for a name....



1 October 2012 - More Antipodeans

Well I had a lovely little surprise and treat recently dear readers.  Thanks to the wonder of social media I discovered two dear friends were about to hop on a jet to Europe.  Then it transpired that they were to arrive into Zurich after leaving Brisvegas before heading on to London town.  Yes, the lovely Warren Baker and Paul Cross were on their way.

After their arduous journey in something called "Economy Class" we met at about lunchtime at the very glamorous Zurich Hauptbahnhof (aka - the train station) where we then proceeded down to Sprungli for a welcome glass of champagne and a spot of lunch (see left). 

After this it was time to explore the cobbles streets of Zurich and catch up on the general goings on in each others lives, so after about 10 minutes it was just staring into space and wondering what to do next.  Of course this was not the case....we boys can chat and gossip for hours!

After all of that walking and talking we had a cleansing beverage at a bar we stumbled across call Haus Hiltl.  It seemed to be a groovy enough sort of a place and had a restaurant upstairs. 

S was heading into town after his busy working day peddling his wares and so it was left to me to find a restaurant.  As my gastronomic knowledge of Zurich is, well, nil, I took a punt and booked a table here. I then looked around at all the fairly thin people and thought I had best see what this place was about.  A quick look at their website revealed their cuisine to be VEGETARIAN! This is not what I would usually book but it did get some good reviews so I threw caution to the wind and took a chance.  Just look at the surprise on the boys' faces.....

Well, we were not disappointed!  It was actually pretty good.  I do wonder if part of this was due to some of the food being deep fried and heavily spiced.  I would have thought some of the food should look more like vegetables but it was all eaten.  So here is a sample of what we had:



Off to the left is the vegetable tartare (should vegetarian food look like meat????) and jalapenos stuffed with cheese.

Off to the right is some crispy tofu.

Main course (of which I forgot to take photos) was a selection of Indian delights and a Cordon Bleu made of tofu.

I would definitely go back and try a few more things on the menu.  The place was full and also offers a vegetarian buffet which you pay for by weight (the food of course and not your weight!).

3 October 2012 - Dunlop Triangles (no Michelin Stars here!)

Gentle listener, it has been a quiet-ish week with no travel for me.  What on earth does that leave me to write about I hear you cry?  Never think that I cannot spew words forth on to a page even when little has happened, you know me, I always have a lot (or too much) to say.

The main focus of this entry is about food.  No surprise there I hear you cry.  When am I not sharing photos and descriptions of meals at 30,000 feet or at gourmet dining establishments (commonly known as restaurants, but then McDonald's calls itself a restaurant).  Well this time it is the food I have been cooking. 

Most of you probably did not know I had the skill or inclination to cook but prefer to be served my meals.  As much as we all liked to be served, there are times that no matter how long you sit at the table no food arrives and there is an expectation to make something yourself.   What a crazy notion.  So, as I have a little more time on my hands I thought I would revisit the art of cooking.  Of course one needs to take these things slowly and one step at a time.  I will not be appearing on MasterChef anytime soon or co-hosting with Jamie Oliver (fresh 'erbs!!).

So I had set myself the challenge to cook more and try new things.  Overall it has gone well and S has enjoyed the meals (and the service) and has even complained that I am feeding him too well.  There are some challenges....shopping at a Swiss supermarket is one.  Although they have lots of choice and options some things are just not available or I just don't know the German word (more likely I guess).  Also, Asian food is not a popular here and as such the items available in the supermarket is much less than home.  One of my missions is to find a decent Asian Grocer.  I have seen one near Zurich and will be exploring soon.  Poor S's pantry has never had so many ingredients.  One of the local supermarkets (Co-op) is opening a new large store in November and I hope to be invited to the opening, maybe even cut the ribbon!

I have not focused on any particular cuisine and will have to expand to some local delicacies.  It is approaching winter so I imagine lots of potato and meat - yum - with some cheese thrown in for good measure.  Have to support the local economy after all.

So what have been doing?  Well, as you have occasionally seen I take a photo of my accomplishments but thought that a post dedicated to it was appropriate.  Now S has also been cooking and I will showcase his dishes too.  You will also notice the crockery which is the Petit Fleur collection from Villeroy & Boch.  I prefer a white plate and have never made any comment about the crockery....even the time I closed the dishwasher and the bottom rack was out could have been disaster - the twenty set piece almost became two hundred.  But no, the Petit Fleur survived.

Time to "Brace! Brace! Brace!" for a pictorial culinary tale...........

My first effort was Pasta Puttanesca - the prostitute's sauce with anchovies and capers....not sure why it got this name, I am sure it has nothing to do with the fishy smell!

Definately will do this one again.

A little light chicken with salad.  I think S was away so I was trying a no wine time - not recommended.

 Another chicken salad and the wine is back....phew!

Easiest dessert in the world, mascerated strawberries (balsamic vinegar and caster sugar) - so good and served with a gentle dollop of Movenpick vanilla ice cream.

 Stefan was visiting and we had bought a lot of food.  To start a simple pasta with olive oil and parmesan cheese....

To follow, pan fried veal with a porcini mushroom sauce, ratattouile and smashed pototes.  I have no idea how I did it but I cooked the veal to perfection if I say so myself!

 Picnic time and here is our beverage - champagne!

And something to absorb the alcohol - we had ridden on our bikes to this field after all.  In the white bowl is S's mother's potato salad.

My first attempt at schnitzel.  I had to make my own bread crumbs as I could not locate them in the supermarket.  Have to say they are better than the bought ones.  It was delicious and leftover crumb means more schnitzel to come!

Fresh mozarella and tomato salad followed by a mushroom risotto.  The stock was made from the porcinis we had with the veal and can I just say, there is a lot of stirring involved!! Will do again but will need some time to wipe the memory of the endless rotating spoon.....like child birth, you need time to forget.

One of the things I made had quite a lot of rice left over so it became rice budding with fresh rasberries.

S is a big fan of salmon and so to rest my weary kitchen feet he prepared some pan fried salmon, vegetables and dill.

Was time to have a person in the photos.  Here is dear Kate about to have a lovely continental breakfast - yes, carbs and cheese.

Time to go sub-continental and have some curry.  I have to admit this was from a jar but was still delicious.

 A delicious pasta with tomato sauce a la Stephan....

More asian, this time a thai green curry with a splash of rose champagne.

More schitzel (veal this time) with potato dumplings.  I was responsible for the meat and S the potatoes.  Please not the distinct lack of vegetables...we were appalled and then inhaled the food.

A light dinner of cold cuts, cheeses and salad - not really that light.

Someone looking very excited with this meal or just hungry and eager to start - I let you decide.  It is satay chicken (sauce made from scratch and it was soooo good) and fried rice.  Need to work on my fried rice.  I thought it was a bit gluggy.

Doesn't look great in the photo but it was fresh pasta (four varieties) with a burnt butter sauce.  It all went together beautifully and the only disappointment was the lack of sage.

My first attempt at lasagna with bachemel sauce.  It tasted great but geez it was a lot of work.  Imagine if I had also made the pasta sheets from scratch!!

 It looks a lot better in the baking dish!

How to ruin a perfectly decent piece of steak by Rodney.  Not one of my finest efforts but willing to share it nonetheless.

Claypot chicken from scratch - not too bad but the sauce went a bit thick.

S's triumph...trout cooked two ways (steamed with pepper and roasted with a herb crust) served with pasta and burnt butter sauce.  Let's pretend the green in the crust are vegetables.

 

And last but not least (for now) is a potato and leek fritatta.