The Hills Are Alive . . .

Guten Abend , Ich habe dich vermsst.  Just off the plane from Switzerland and I still feel in sensory overload.  Truth be told, I never knew I wanted to go there.  After being gobsmacked with such stunning natural beauty, I can’t imagine that I didn’t always dream of a visit”

Our family loves to travel.  My daughter once told her teacher that traveling was our hobby. 🙂  I think we inherited this wanderlusting from my sister and brother in law who have explored the world at length, lived in London and Europe and now have permanent residency status in Australia.  Once we started exploring at home and abroad, we put money away every month for our travels (while making ourselves comfortable with our old cars and home.)

My husband gets a few weeks off a year.  When his week off came up for September, we decided to do a little hiking in the Alps while my parents generously volunteered to watch our kids.  One of my favorite things about traveling Europe is the amazing rail system.  We took advantage of the Swissrail during our recent trip and toured the country without a car.  Those train trips gave me plenty of time to complete a baby sweater for a friend whose daughter just got out of the NICU.  I was able to use some of my vintage buttons and knit it with Cascade 220 yarn in gray.  The pattern is Little Buds and can be found on Ravelry here: Ravelry: Little Buds in English pattern by Karen Borrel.  It was such a fun knit, I am sure to make it again.

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On our recent trip, we spent time in Zurich, Wengen, Zermatt and Lucerne.  It was a thrill to hike so close to the Eiger and the Matterhorn.  We heard (via the bells around their necks) and saw sheep and cows all over the hills.  We hiked among Chamois and saw Edelweiss up close and personal.  We channeled James Bond and hiked to Schiltorn in the Jungfrau region and we hiked to the Matterhorn base camp to see climbers heading up the mountain and rescue teams plucking folks off the mountainside.  Honestly, it was one of our best trips ever and it has inspired many creative ideas that I am anxious to share soon.

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imageAuf Wiedersehen,

Hillary