5 - 10 November 2012 - The Parentals

Well, gentle reader many of us remember leaving home for the first time and being out in the world on our own.  For some it was pure joy, others terror and for others still a combination of both.  I can't remember mine...the therapy is helping me though and I wake up screaming a lot less now.

But, in the words of Peter Alan, no matter how far you roam, or try to escape them, your parents will generally track you down, even in the mountains and amongst the cows of Switzerland.  Of course my parents also read this blog so I need to be kind! They are very modern and have well and truly progressed from the abacus.  A son could not be prouder.

You may recall from a previous entry that my parents, affectionately known as Ma and Pa, had to jump on a jet to attend a funeral in Holland just after my arrival down under.  As they had missed me so much and were desperate to meet all my new cow friends they (we) agreed that they would come to Einsiedeln after Holland.  Email received from them saying they would be staying a week - gosh, I have not spent this much time with my parents since I left home!

Monday 5 November 2012

As I am a dutiful and loving son I went up to meet them at the Zurich Aerodrome and had also organised for our friendly driver Moustafa to take us back to Einsiedeln in the big Mercedes.  My parents are not ones to travel light and love to fill their bags with large souvenirs and medicines...they are getting on a bit.  Actually they are both reasonably sprightly and young at 64.  Yes, you are all doing the maths now.....

So, happy little car trip was had.  Nothing to see as it was already dark.  We put them up at a local hotel, the same one where Kate stayed when she visited.  We have a super rate now and are looking forward to achieving Platinum Status - I think a room upgrade would involve there being more pine in the room!  We had dinner downstairs and I am a big fan of this restaurant too.  Friendly staff and lovely food.  Of course S also joined us for the festivities. 

Tuesday 6 November 2012

Had agreed to host Ma and Pa for breakfast and their request was for 9:00 am - how will I keep the buffet fresh until then?  After all the preparation including carving vegetables into the shapes of flowers they opted for cereal - geez! 

I forgot to add that to welcome them to town we arranged for it to snow - what more can this son do?  It is like he is angling for a greater inheritance but in reality Ma and Pa are doing a good job of spending it anyway!

So we then headed into town to explore the sights and sounds of Einsiedeln.  The snow meant that there was a complete lack of cows - big wusses I say.  We headed up to the Cloister and after three attempts to get all the way in we enjoyed its magnificence.  In case you were wondering it was not that we were dressed inappropriately but that there was a service underway.  They were suitably impressed with the cathedral.  After this it was a general amble through the cobble stoned streets and then back home for some lunch.

The afternoon was spent lounging about as the weather had turned a bit miserable.  Then it was time for the next meal and we found a place that did fondue in town in many varieties.  We chose four.  The only vegetables present were the grapes in the wine.

After sufficiently hardening our arteries we rolled down the hill to digest and groan!  The fondues were fantastic and a must do when in Switzerland....it is a bit cheesy (boom tish) but delicious.

Wednesday 7 November 2012

It was time to head out of the village and it was off to Lucerne on the choo choo.  Lots of oohs and ahs were had as we chuffed through scenic country side.  We then had a lovely walk through the old town and went and saw the carving of the lion in the rock (see previous post for pics).  It was then time for some lunch and I randomly picked an Italian restaurant along the river.

All was fine until we were nearly done and then an odd thing happened.  We were on a table for four so there was one space free.  The table behind me needed to be reset and the manager took on this task.  At first he placed the menus on the spare space but I got a bit grumpy when it became all the bits of the table including the dirty tablecloth - what sort of a place was this.  The only consolation was the look of horror on our waiter's face who could not have been more apologetic.  I said a couple of harsh words to the manager who frankly could not have cared!

Well we had plans further afield so off we went to catch another train to a nearby town (Stans) where we were to take a double storey cable car to the top of a mountain (Stanserhorn - http://www.stanserhorn.ch/en/travel/cabrio/).  It was way cool and only pictures can do it justice....

It was then back on the train to Einsiedeln.  Mum and Dad decided to explore the restaurant options in town and ended up at a Chinese place which was just fine.  I headed home to a very light supper.

Thursday 8 November 2012

This was a parent free day as they had decided to head off on a tour to Jungfraujoch - another mountain. 

Friday 9 November 2012

It is weird, my parents travel all over the world but when they are nearby you worry more about them and if they are finding their way, getting on the right train, not eating only bad food etc, etc.  I was relieved to see them when they arrived for breakfast on Friday.  When did the child become the parent....I must stop telling them off!

Today was a visit to a local town called Rapperswill (it is where Snoop Dog, Flo Rida and Ice T all hang out).  It was a beautiful sunny day and was a great spot to view the mountains and the lake and take in a spot of lunch.

I know it looks like they are nodding off and I should have made lunch come a bit quicker.  I thought I was more interesting, perhaps not?

Dinner was all set and it was another train ride and a walk to a place called Obst Garten in Freienbach.  allegedly the best schnitzel in Switzerland....the wine was great as was the service and the food.  Looks like some people had a good time and clearly think I am hilarious!.

Saturday 10 November 2012

Well it was time to bid Ma and Pa farewell.  We all went up to Zurich together.  I wanted to make sure that they made it to the hotel safely.  S and I were then heading to the Dolder Grand Hotel for a weekend of relaxation.  Note this had been booked some weeks before we knew of the Ma and Pa invasion so was in no way linked - honest! 

It was a bit odd leaving them at the airport (they were to take a shuttle bus to the hotel) but they promised they would be OK.  Zurich Airport is pretty safe, it is not like downtown LA or anything.  I can report that they made it safely to the hotel and then to their next destination.  Gee, they grow up so fast don't they?

This left S and I to go to the hotel.  It was a wonderful place which had a fantastic restaurant and an amazing gentleman's spa area - sooo relaxing.  The only odd thing that happened was that we had a prayer rug and compass delivered to the room. Curious!

2 - 4 November 2012 - Hot Dog Weekend

I have to begin this little tale with an apology of omission.   I cannot believe I forgot to share this part of my journey home with you.  What is it you are wondering?  Well, as I was boarding the Qantas A380 bound for Singapore what did I see above nose wheel?  It was the registration "QA". 

My heart went a flutter as I realised that this was the first A380 to be delivered to Qantas (the Nancy Bird-Walton) and was also the aircraft which had experienced the uncontrolled engine failure out of Singapore - I think we all remember those images of locals on Batam Island holding up parts of a Qantas engine. 

To add to this was the fact that I had literally just finished the book by the captain of this incident, Captain Richard de Crespigny!  All a bit spooky as Dame Edna would say!

The flight was uneventful and it was sort of cool to be on the first A380 delivered to the big QF.

Well, after that bit of aviation trivia it is back to regular programming....as you know by now I am never one to stay still too long and it was time for another road trip.  This time to Frankfurt to pick up the three boxes which I had sent full of treasured (and hopefully) useful possessions.  The drive to Frankfurt (hence the hot dog reference...I know, I am hysterical) is about five hours but you do get to zoom a bit on the autobahns which is fun.

Journey started with picking up a hire car as S's little SLK was hardly going to cope with all my junk!  We had a lovely bronze-is Audi A6 station wagon which was truly lovely to drive.  Even S, who is a die hard Mercedes Benz driver grew to like the car (hats off to you Audi!). 

I was a little bit excited as we were breaking the journey by stopping at a transport museum near Stuggart called the "Auto und Technik Museum".  I was told there were planes there which you could go inside - touchable plane porn....better wear the loose pants for this excursion.

Well I was not let down.  The highlight was an Air France Concorde and an Aeroflot Tupelov 144 (the Russian supersonic jet - Condordski).  I also was able to buy a model of each and pretended that by going onboard counted as flying on them - a long bow I know.

So I needed to calm down after all that excitement as you could well imagine.  Not sure taking the wheel was the best option but it was my turn to take control of the Starship A6. 

We arrived at Stefan (with an F) at about 6:00 pm to be met by the boxes and a glass of Sauvignon Blanc!  After loading them into the car it was into Frankfurt to the Hotel Jumeirah.  This is a lovely hotel tucked into the heart of Frankfurt.  They have gone with the stock standard interior colours in the room of brown, beige, caramel, ecru etc.  It also had the most complicated lighting control system I had come across - it was like the Starship Enterprise! 

We also got upgraded (in fact a triple upgrade) which I like to think was due to Rodney being a bit grumpy about something but I think it was mostly about a service recovery from S's last visit.  Still, my two favourite words, "Free" and "Upgrade".  We had a view across the city skyline which was beautiful except for the giant flat screen TV which blocked it.  Spinning on its side helped a bit.  Come on people get some homo designers in there to make sure these things don't happen!!

We headed out to dinner that night to a friend of S's....would you believe another Stephan who has a restaurant which is getting some great reviews.  And it did not disappoint.  I struggled to eat everything with a combination of too much food and not feeling 100%.  You can tell when I am unwell when I even refuse wine!  Call triple zero!

Saturday started with a wonderful breakfast in the hotel and then a wander through the city before we headed off to see a friend of S's who is also a concert pianist.  A lovely afternoon tea was had and a tour of her property which included a decent sized concert hall! I think this gal has some money!

Dinner that night was with some of S's friends at a Creole Restaurant.  It was a lot of fun and one of their specialities was a burger made of bison - well could not go past this!

Sunday was merely a travelling day...just a quick 600 kilometres back to Switzerland.  It was great to get the boxes home and see what I had packed...I do question some of my decisions.....

I was not able to even get close to unpacking due to the impending arrival of the parentals....this will be the next chapter.

18 - 29 November 2012 - Oz-battical

Oh gentle reader, have you missed me?  Did you wonder what has become of me?  Did you think there was some terrible on board incident where the champagne was not chilled enough and I could no longer bear to write?  Have I been eaten by a rabid Swiss cow?  Has there been an avalanche with all the snow?  Well, as much as any of these could be possible and stop me from writing it has been a mixture of frantic-ness and bone idleness.

I have been up to so much since I last put fingers to keys.  I guess there is no better place to start (.....than the very beginning, a very good place to start) than where I left off.  When last I scribed I was walking through the hills, taking in the autumn leaves, breathing in the fresh (cow) air and belting out the occasional yodel, Swiss rap style (yo, yo-del...klaus is in de haus....you get the idea).

Well you may have noticed that the title of this entry is "Oz" and this is because I had a little journey down under to see family and friends.  So for anyone reading this who I did not get to see I am very sorry and will rectify this at Christmas time and New Year when S and I venture down under for an Antipodean Xmas.

You know that any journey means a story of flight (an no, not the marvel that it is and a history of the Wright Brothers) but I am feeling kind and so will keep it relatively short but maybe still throw in a few pictures.  S had already left Switzerland to go shopping for clothes in Asia (I am sure that is what his job is....he kept talking about jackets and learning more about them).  I had a few days in the chalet on my own and was very excited by the first snow of the season.

My lovely cows did not seem too phased and I am guessing they are wanting to enjoy as much time outside as they can until they are relegated to the barns (or Bali) for the winter - do cows fly south like birds I wonder????? 

I did meet some lovely baby cows (or veal as I like to call them) who thought I was very curious until a cat distracted them.....don't they know it is all about me!

So the day of the journey came and I had organised for a car to take me to the airport.  Not that I am lazy, well, OK, perhaps, but I was concerned about lugging my luggage through train stations.  I know, thousands of long haired, smelly back packers can do it so why can't I?  You will be pleased (or shocked) to hear that I took the train on the way back.  I am so at one with the people.

My routing would take me from Zurich to London then Singapore and Perth or ZRH-LHR-SIN-PER for those of us with a bit of geek.  The flight to LHR on BA was fine and they served their stock standard "salad" in Club Europe.  It was so average I did not even take a photo!  Arrival meant a change of terminals from 5 to 3 and the safety and security of the BA First Lounge.

As I was travelling in First (love a points upgrade) I was able to use the pre-flight dining option.  It is a nice dining area but it has to be some of the worst duck I have ever had.  Tough as duck's feet and there was sand in my spinach.  Hoorah for champagne!

The crew from LHR to SIN were magnificent.  Very generous with the champagne and drinks and very attentive.  We ended up leaving about one hour late as they had to offload a passenger who was drunk and abusive to the crew.  Apparently he got arrested when he left the aircraft as he threw a punch at one of the ground staff.  Silly man!  I had a tight connection in SIN (50 minutes) as did a number of others so the aircraft was held in SIN and was literally across from our gate so was a quick and easy transfer.  Next flight was ho hum with an ambivalent crew but was comfortable enough on the A330.

Ma and Pa were there to pick me up in the wee small hours and we had a lovely catch up and a couple of wines and headed off to bed about 3:30 am.

Time in Perth was great and although I caught up with a bunch of people I forgot to take any photos.  One of the perils of coming home I guess is that photos do not seem necessary.  I need to correct this on the next visit.  Essentially I rolled from one meal to the next.

Had a great dinner on Saturday night with Brett at the Heritage (a new Perth dining establishment, even if I did have to send my schnitzel back as it was served on a sweet potato puree, peas and anchovies - it looked terrible).  This was followed by drinks at Print Hall.

Breakfast with some of the boys the next day (Michael, Ian, Simon, Robert and Brett) was just grand in Maylands.  So great to be able to get a decent coffee again.  This was followed by a family lunch at Ma and Pa's with three excited kiddies pleased to see their Uncle Rodney, I mean, who wouldn't be?  Lunch could only be followed by dinner with some of the book club girls and family (Mem and Melissa).

Monday for me involved a meeting with the bank (so some of the cost of the flight is tax deductible!) and then dinner with Mark, Simon and Brett at a local Thai Restaurant - Full Moon Thai or Sun Rise Thai, or Meteor Exploding Thai - I just can't remember.  I should add that I also took my parents back to the airport as they had to attend a funeral in Holland.  A sudden decision by them but I would see them in a couple of weeks in Switzerland (brace yourself for the parental blog).

Tuesday I did a spot of shopping at Karrinyup before having lunch with Alanna and getting to meet their new border collie, Speck - which by the way is bacon in German!  I am told that he is called this as when he was a pup he had a particular speck of fur and not the threat of becoming dinner for misbehaviour!  It was then an Indian Curry with Ian and Michael for dinner (the curry and not Ian and Michael of course).

Wednesday was a travelling day for me and the lovely Lisa (sister in law) took me to the airport to catch my Virgin Australia Coast to Coast service to MEL.  Little Ethan was with us which meant looking at planes and fire engines - nothing wrong with that, there could be hot fireman to see!  Grand flight over with DJ and scored a bottle of champers - lovely - which was shared with Kate that evening after she picked me up.

I was terribly lazy on Thursday.  I think the food, booze and jetting around had caught up with me.  I took myself out for some brunch and then spent the afternoon reading Judith Lucy's two books.  I have to say I have never laughed so hard in a book before - I had tears rolling down my cheeks!  I also had a very furry companion.....the lovely Miley....

Very little meowing, lots of purring and sleeping.  Miley did something similar - boom tisch!



Friday was much more active and I headed off to see Pete the Personal Trainer and have a session too.  I was sore for a few days after that but a very happy sore.  It was then a quick journey up to sunny Blackburn to see all of those that were left at Retravision.  They are all gone now.  the building sold and the end of an era.  I also read that the WA office will be closing down too and the brand being sold off to another buying group. 


Dinner that night was with a few of the former work crew (Adam, Kerri and Praveen) and I actually took photos of us in Gingerboy - gotta love their son-in-law eggs!

Saturday started off with breakfast with some of the boys (Stuart and Malcolm)  before having dinner that night with Kate at a modern Asian restaurant called "Davids" - the food was fantastic as of course was the delightful Kate.

The endless food and drink continued on Sunday where I took myself into the city to absorb some Melbourne atmosphere and buy some DVDs!  the afternoon was catching up with Malcolm for a beverage at the Railway Hotel followed by dinner at Mitsy's Diner - no michelin stars here just lots of good old American fried fare.  Was lovely to be able to catch up with Dale, David, Malcolm and Stuart again.

All of a sudden my Outback adventure had come to an end and it was time to saddle up and head back to the mountains.  It was a long flying day as I went from MEL-PER-SIN-LHR-ZRH and the flights were generally pretty good.  The big QF is still an excellent airline with a great bunch of people working for it.

So I am safely back in the Alps and was met by a thick layer of snow across everything and no cows.  I didn't even get to say goodbye.