Novotel Bern Expo

... spent in Gimmelwald would likely seem like an eternity. Unless those Gimmelwaldians are loose with the alcohol and their money in a card game.<br><br>We passed a barn and my friend ducked her head in to get a whiff and notified me that she loved the smell of barns. Now there's a little fact I wished I'd known in advance. The reason? Well, it just so happens that in many of the small Alpian villages you can actually pay to sleep in the ...

... it is much harder to be living the life of a person who is supposed to be developing his own country and livelihood. Also, I like that Switzerland avoids armed conflict, so they are unlikely to participate in humanitarian intervention. Our second lecture was on Switzerland's foreign policy on migration. Before coming to Switzerland, I had never even heard of climate refugees, despite the many classes and lectures I have heard on climate change. But, if the ...

... some snacks and fruit. I found some shampoo on the 1st Fl and took it with me to the ground floor so I could buy it with my food in one purchase. Apparently this isn't allowed. Because the shampoo came from the 1st Fl, it has to be bought up there. I said fine and carried it up there to buy it. On the way I saw some delicious looking Swiss chocolate that I wanted to buy along with my shampoo. Again, since the chocolate came from a ...

... nice view of the Altstadt (Old Town) and the river wrapping around the town. Everything in Bern is covered in snow which is a change from Basel where I haven't seen any white stuff yet. I quickly looked through the guidebook and decided on a sightseeing route back towards the train station. I walked across a bridge back into Altstadt and checked out the Untertorbrücke, which is Bern's oldest bridge and was first ...

... sausage ever, and comes with a huge dollop of mustard and a bread roll, but it was very very tasty! At half time we decided to move as there was pleanty of empty seats, so we sat pretty much at the same height but to the right side of the goals. The game was pretty good, I really enjoy watching soccer now, although im starting to think i am bad luck as the team that i go for always seem to loose! or at least this game Bern drew with Brugge 2:2. But close enough. Nothing ...

... of town, with its huge spire towering over the city. We drove through the main part of the town, then out to a huge bridge with a great view over the city, which proved as a very nice photo stop. After Fribourg we headed back to Bern and had a very Swiss dinner of Raclette, which i loved even more than fondue. Each person is given a small tray which you place in a huge big slab of cheese, followed by anything else you might like... onion, mushrooms, garlic, bacon etc. You ...

... of course - went for a nice Malasian meal though & a few beers in a portguese bar. But the next day we went to Ballenberg an open air museum, that displays traditional buildings and architecture from all over the country & has over 100 original buildings that have been transported from their original sites from I don't know but about 100 years ago. Its a 164 acrs site so we walked every bit of it and I ...

... it was free because of our eurailpass), had some fondue, and then went to Bern! We thought the capital might be very "big city" chaotic, and were a little freaked out when we had to find our hostel at 10:30 at night with NO ONE around anywhere. It turned out, though, that it was also a very clean and safe city. We got to see Albert Einstein's house, where he developed the theory of general relativity, and also went to a special, temporary exhibit on Einstein at the Museum of ...

... at the highest point that seems to be remote controlled. The other story is that there is a lift in the mountain for the soldiers to come up and down. Interesting... The ride up here was incredible. It was a long trip up in the cable cars and a scary one too. A very long drop if it failed. Nothing like the gondolas in NZ. Off into town the next day. Checked out the lion carved into the rock, which was surrounded by a pig carved into the rock. It was created in honor ...

... used to the new life situation. Hala's parents are in town from Egypt, and the extended family is all keeping quite busy "vacationing" with Nader. Hany, Mona and kids left for vacation this past Saturday morning. Early in the month, they told me they'd go anywhere except the south of Spain because that's where they've been every year. It is a complicated story about cars that don't run well and banks that are slow to finish paperwork for giving loans for new cars, but ...