Rapperswil

Today we took the boat from Zurich a couple of hours up-lake to the quaint town of Rapperswil.  It was a beautiful sunny day, warm and dry with a cool breeze; perfect for sitting on a passenger ferry and enjoying the scenery roll by.  It’s cool that the ZSG boats are part of the same Zurich transportation system as the trains, so our all-zone passes allowed us to take the boat up the lake and just jump on a train back to Zurich later.

The other people on the boat seemed out for the same purpose – a pleasant Saturday morning on the lake, with tea and croissants in the on-board restaurant.  The boat stopped every 10-20 minutes at one of the small villages along the lake, eventually reaching the old town Rapperswil at the foot of its 13th-century castle.  We and the other tourists spilled off the boat to stroll the cobblestone streets of old-town Rapperswil, passing the many cafes and swanky shops that lure tourists.

Unlike those tourists, though, we picked a quiet Indian restaurant in the modern section of town.  The only customers – the Sri Lankan owner explained to us that most of his customers are locals who come for dinner or on weekdays, not like us odd American tourists with a hankering for Indian food.

A delightful outing.   More photos in the gallery.

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Dolderbahn

This evening at sunset we walked a couple of blocks and hopped on the Dolderbahn, a cute electric cog railcar that takes passengers on a 5-minute ride up to the hilltop on the east side of Zurich.  It lets you off adjacent the Dolder Grand hotel, an immensely posh and beautiful place.  All I could afford was this photo from the driveway.

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Switzerland sabbatical

We’ve arrived in Zürich, where I have the good fortune to spend a year-long sabbatical at the Center for Digital Health Interventions at ETH Zürich.   Andy is attending the Zürich International School and Pam is planning many explorations.

I arrived a few days ago, to splendid late-summer weather.  Although I’ve not yet had time to explore the city, I have thoroughly enjoyed my daily walk to the office from our temporary flat.  It follows quiet streets at the edge of the old center of Zürich, passing schools and childcare centers bubbling with children in the morning, and sidewalk cafes burbling with adults enjoying an evening Bier in the late-afternoon sunlight.  It passes by a home where Johannes Brahms once made music, and the university hospital.  It passes homes dating to the 17th century, far older than Dartmouth or Hanover.   It passes buildings where a student named Einstein once took classes and a chemistry building that wrought seven Nobel Laureates before it was repurposed for the department of Computer Science.  It passes busy students bicycling to class and aromatic bakeries tempting me with their wares.  It passes an overlook where the university cafeteria looks out across the church spires of the city center to the lake and hills beyond.  [Gallery]

I can tell I’m going to really like this place…

End of summer

Summer is winding down here in New Hampshire, with a spell of beautiful weather and fantastic river conditions.  The swimming is better than I can ever remember, and the morning mists make my morning row a luscious and mysterious experience.  I haven’t has as much time for hiking this summer as I’d hoped, because we are moving to Switzerland for the coming year.  Pam and Andy moved there two weeks ago, and I depart tomorrow!   I look forward to blogging about our experiences and travels in that beautiful country.

I’ve posted a small gallery of selected photos from the summer, plus a gallery highlighting the many bald eagles I’ve had the joy to see in the area (one highlight below).  And, a gallery of raptors from a brief visit to the nearby Vermont Institute of Natural Science during their “falconry” demonstration.

Bald eagle on the Connecticut River, NH.

Paris

Less than 24h in Paris – but still a photographic opportunity.

After a few days in Provence, I needed to travel to Paris for my flight home.  The timing did not work to connect from train to plane, so I was forced to overnight in central Paris (darn!).  On Saturday evening I took the opportunity to enjoy a full French meal in a delightful brasserie, then ambled back to the hotel among the throngs of summer tourists and Saturday-night revelers.  I woke at sunrise on Sunday morning to stroll around the city while it was cooler and quieter.  Read on and check out the photo gallery.Early morning light at Le Louvre. Continue reading “Paris”

Provence

A short week in Provence during a record-setting heat wave.

I joined the family for a three-day visit to Provence, outside Avignon.  We rented a villa in a tiny village surrounded by pastoral beauty, giving us a good base for exploring the area and plentiful opportunities for early-morning bike rides through the countryside.  It  quickly became my habit to hop on a bike shortly before sunrise, cruise randomly along narrow lanes through ancient fields of lavender, sunflowers, wheat, apricots, and more.  I concluded each of my outings with a stop at the Boulangerie in the village, arriving home with fresh-baked pastries and bread.  Not a bad way to start the day.  Read on for more – and don’t miss the photo gallery.Church in the center of Maillane, Provence. Continue reading “Provence”

Presidential Sunset

Sunset views of the Presidential Range from Mount Martha, in New Hampshire.

On the night before the spring equinox I hiked with a dear friend to the top of Mount Martha in the northern White Mountains of New Hampshire.  We aimed for sunset, knowing that Martha has a spectacular view of the Presidential Range to the east.

The snow conditions were excellent, after a week of warm weather had consolidated the snow and a day’s cold weather had firmed the packed trail into a solid base that was perfect for micro spikes.  I pushed up the trail hard and fast, carrying a heavy pack with photography equipment, spare clothing, and a warm dinner, with a wary eye to the sun setting behind me as I neared the ridgeline.  I arrived at the summit 15 minutes before sunset and was pleased to see the Presies still fully illuminated, with the nearly-full moon rising above them.  The wind was dead calm, and the temperature a moderate 15 degrees.  As the sun’s orange globe glowed orange through the trees behind me, I quickly set up my tripod and started snapping photos of the Presies.

2019-03-19-65317We reveled in the beauty of the moment, as the sun set in the west while the white-capped Presidential peaks turned pink and the sky above blended into a gradient from purple to blue.  After about forty minutes we reluctantly turned and headed back down the trail, with the rising full moon so brightly illuminating the forest floor that we never needed headlamps.  A magical evening in an amazing place!  I’ve posted my favorite photos in this gallery.

Snowy farm fields

Black & White photographs of a quiet, snowy morning in Lyme.

This morning I was skiing through a quiet morning snowfall across pristine farm fields in Lyme, New Hampshire, and came across this scene of an antique farm instrument under an apple tree.  Although I had only my iPhone, I thought it might look good in black & white.  I haven’t done black & white photography since my earliest camera – which could only take rolls of black & white film!  So I fiddled a little in Adobe Lightroom and think the result is not too shabby.

An old farm instrument on a farm in Lyme, on a snowy day.An old farm instrument on a farm in Lyme, on a snowy day.

Cancun, Mexico

A short visit to a beach resort in Cancun allowed us time to explore the Mayan ruins of Tulum and Chichen Itzá.

Beach resorts are not really my style, so I was surprised to find myself disembarking among the crowds of beach-worshipping American snowbirds in the airport near Cancun, Mexico.  Cancun’s barrier island is a thin strip of land on the eastern shore of the Yucatan Peninsula, with wall-to-wall mega-hotels lining a pretty beach and crystal-blue waters.  Still, the 80-degree weather was a nice respite from the cold and snow of New England, if only for three days.  And a nice opportunity for photography and touring historic sites.Sunrise on the beach in Cancun.

Continue reading “Cancun, Mexico”