Train to Interlaken and Lauterbrunnen

Mountains - Switzerland  2019

View near Interlaken - Switzerland  2019

During our seminal discussion of our Europe trip I mentioned that I'd like to visit "the Alps." Margaret quite reasonably wanted to know, "Swiss Alps," or "Austrian Alps?" Huh. Hadn't thought about it.

After some back and forth we all decided on the Swiss Alps. So it was that we found ourselves travelling first, from Zurich to Interlaken, then from Interlaken to Lauterbrunnen.

Monday Lesser Goldfinch Blogging

Lesser Goldfinch, Fountain (Fairfax) - Marin County  2019

"It may be the smallest true finch in the world." - Wikipedia

After I noticed various smaller birds utilizing our courtyard fountain I sat down on the porch with an Olympus EM1II and a 14-150mm telephoto lens. They could see that I was there but they didn't seem to mind having their pictures taken.

Bird ID by Barbara, as usual.

Picket Fence, Agave (Berkeley)

Picket Fence - Berkeley  2019

Agave in Tub - Berkeley  2019

More Berkeley December photos.

Gingko Leaves (Berkeley)

Gingko Leaves - Berkeley  2019

Gingko Trees - Berkeley  2019

Photos taken with a Canon G5XII.

Ceramic Cat, Bicycles (Berkeley)

Ceramic Cat - Berkeley  2019

Bicycles - Berkeley  2019

Taken during some recent trips to Berkeley in order to access our remote freezer at Margaret's.

Rain

Leaves, Rain, Rock - Marin County  2019

Leaves, Rain - Marin County  2019

After a prolonged dry spell, it finally started to rain. Now the rainfall total is above average!

So, no risk of wildfires, at least for a while.

Xmas Stuff

Gift Bag - Marin County  2019

Gift Mugs - Marin County  2019

Seen at Joanne's Fabric Store.

'Nuff said.

Mt Tamalpais from Red Hill

Mt Tamalpais from Red Hill (San Anselmo) - Marin County  2019

So, I discovered a new trail! It starts near the San Anselmo Safeway in the Red Hill shopping center and zigzags up Red Hill. I went to the top, but unfortunately the view at the top is obscured by a growth of eucalyptus trees. This view is found about two-thirds of the way up.

Monday Swan Blogging

Swan, Lake Zurich (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Swans, Photographers (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

No Canada Geese in Switzerland. Perhaps their ecological niche has been taken by these swans.

Lots of swans.

Boats, Plaza (Zurich)

Boats, Mountains (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Plaza (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

More Zurich sightems. Note mountains in the distance. Both photos taken with a Canon G5XII.

Zurich Signs

Chocolatier (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Zeughauskeller (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

That crossbow thingie looks interesting.

Tram / View Camera

Tram (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

View Camera (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

So, I don't know what was being photographed.

I still have my Toyo-Field 4x5 camera. It's a very capable view camera, but . . . you have to use a tripod (I don't like tripods), the film holders are subject to light leaks on a continuing basis and the whole apparatus is pretty heavy. But more than that, the 16x20 inkjet prints that I can make using my current digital Olympus cameras are completely equal in quality to prints made from 4x5 negatives, if not better.

Oh well. The "trams" (streetcars to me) in Zurich were interesting in that they went up the surrounding hills on curving streets that made me wonder what came first, the paved street or the tracks.

Zurich Restaurant

Chestnut Puree, Figs (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Beer (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

We wandered around looking for a place to have dinner and found this place: Mere Catherine. We were early enough that we could get in without a reservation. The main courses were excellent, but I really enjoyed the dessert and the beer.

Much later I discovered that I had left my waist pack in the restaurant. Luckily I was able to go back the next day and retrieve it. Whew. After that I stuck to using a daypack exclusively.

Schupfheim Sightems

Flowers (Schupfheim) - Switzerland  2019

Shed (Schupfheim) - Switzerland  2019

Hali and I took some time before the main cow event to wander around the town. Looks like it might be a nice relaxing destination during a non-cow time.

Schupfheim Spectators

Spectators (Schupfheim) - Switzerland  2019

Spectators (Schupfheim) - Switzerland  2019

Everyone waiting in anticipation, just like in Fairfax. As I said, the cow bells were quite loud, prompting the little girl below to put on her earphones.

Spectator (Schupfheim) - Switzerland  2019

Monday Cow Blogging

Cow (Schupfheim) - Switzerland  2019

Cows and more cows! At last, the famous Entlebuch Alpine Cattle Descent! Those cow bells were quite noisy!

(You really need exclamation points for this event!)

Schupfheim

Schupfheim Station (Schupfheim) - Switzerland  2019

Crowds (Schupfheim) - Switzerland  2019

Hali had scheduled a Saturday side trip to the small town of Schupfheim, for the annual "Entlebuch alpine cattle descent."  Getting there involved two train trips starting in Zurich.

As we approached our destination it was obvious that a lot of people had also scheduled the same side trip.

Climate Demonstration

Demonstration (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Demonstration (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Very large youth-oriented demonstration. We met Michael, an acquaintance of ours, and walked in it for a few blocks, but it was a little too noisy for us. We wandered around Zurich for an hour or so, then joined him and his wife for dinner at a neighborhood restaurant near their house.

Religious Stuff

Grossmunster Steeples (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Door, Painting (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

"The twin towers of the Grossmünster are regarded as perhaps the most recognized landmark in Zürich. Architecturally, the church is considered Romanesque in style and thus a part of the first pan-European architectural trend since Imperial Roman architecture.

"The two towers were first erected between 1487 and 1492. Originally, they had high wooden steeples, which were destroyed by fire in 1763, following which the present neo-Gothic tops were added (completed 1787). Richard Wagner is known to have mocked the church's appearance as that of two pepper dispensers."

Walking Around Zurich - 2

Man on Phone (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Wedding Party (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Zurich sightems.

Earlier wedding posts: Osaka, Karuizawa and Tokyo.

Walking Around Zurich - 1

Clock Tower (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Storchengasse (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

We had talked about taking a trip to Europe for quite some time. Years, actually. But we were supremely indecisive, unable to formulate any destinations or itineraries.

This year we got help from some friends who have extensive European experiences. They were able to recommend a few places - Slovenia, in particular. And then Hali's sister Margaret - again, a very experienced traveller - came over one night with her laptop and quickly put together a complete vacation plan that covered Switzerland, Slovenia and Austria.

We were travelling from late September to the middle of October. Zurich was our first stop and we put in quite a bit of miles walking around the city.

Zurich Airport / Shuttle

Escalators (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

Woman, Airport Shuttle (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

The shuttle from the Zurich airport to the downtown train station was quite crowded . . . we had a slight issue with trying to squeeze in with our suitcases. But it was a short trip and we made it to our hotel OK.

Monday Elephant Blogging

Elephants (Zurich) - Switzerland  2019

First elephant photo to be posted on the mikereport! Seen at the quite extensive Zurich zoo.

Flight to Zurich / South Dakota

Airplane Map - South Dakota  2019

Taken during our flight to Zurich. I was pleased to see that we were passing through (yes, above) South Dakota.

Below, some more older photos taken in South Dakota, on the ground.

Church Exterior - South Dakota  1958

Municipal Building (Aberdeen) - South Dakota  1987

Aberdeen Sightems - 2

Theatre (Aberdeen) - South Dakota  1987

Go Go (Aberdeen) - South Dakota - 1987

More South Dakota photos. I can't be sure, but I think I was using an Olympus OM-1 SLR. My Nikon F was stolen in the late 70's and was too expensive to replace, so I moved to Olympus.

Aberdeen Sightems - 1

Bill Mundy (Aberdeen) - South Dakota  1987

Creamery Building (Aberdeen) - South Dakota  1987

Results of some recent film scans. These photos were taken on a trip that I took with my parents to South Dakota in 1987.

[Update: that's the Capitol Theater in back of Bill.]