Kilograms.

OKey Dokey.

Well Switzerland was awesome.We were there for three nights at Delphine's house, which was nice. We took a much needed break from being tourists and instead just hung out. We were given reign of the basement, which was actually a furnished apartment with a couch, tv, beds and bathroom. We were able to sleep as long as we wanted in the morning, giving us always a good 8 (or 9 or 10) hours rest. In the mornings we hung out at the house (snacking on delicious breads, cheeses and yogurts) until Delphine would be done with school.

One day we went and walked around the old part of Fribourg, which was great. We had coffee in a cafe overlooking the old city, tasted fresh bread and later some Swiss chocolate at the chocolate factory, and experienced a Nespresso.

Nespresso is a brand of espresso that is very popular and classy here in Europe, so much so that it has its own store, dedicated to the selling of espresso machines and coffees. In your mind, picture a fancy jewelry store with expensive furnishings and salespeople dressed in suits. Now replace the jewelry with coffee cups and packages, and you will found yourself in a Nespresso store. Kind of funny in my opinion, but hey, good espresso is hard to come by.

We went to a hockey game the other night - the Fribourg club team was playing in the semi-finals of Switzerland playoffs. It was really fun and everyone was pumped up - especially after underdog Fribourg (who supposedly is always bad at hockey) won the match 5-3 and advanced to the Finals. I am now a proud Fribourgian hockey supporter...

Anyway, we left Fribourg yesterday to spend a day in Basil, a town claiming to be the culture capital of Switzerland. We spent the day walking around and enjoying some breads and fruits from the bakery. Basil is a very old town and we spent 7 hours in the sunshine sitting, reading and playing chess. At 6 pm we boarded a train that would take us all the way through Germany to Copenhagen the next morning at 10 am - a 16 hour train ride. I slept well enough, but thought it ridiculous our compartment had 6 people in it while the rest of the train sat vacant. I have bought a book, A World Without End, by Ken Follet and have already read close to 300 pages in the past two days while on trains. We had hoped to stop in Germany to see a few sights, but decided we would run out of time on our 21-day train pass, so we opted for Copenhagen instead. Now we are here staying with Tim´s "aunt" where we just enjoyed a marvelous dinner and a day spent at the aquarium and the Little Mermaid statue - which actually is quite little...

And now, I´m sorry to keep on rambling, but writing in this blog has started to grow on me - despite the fact that I have also written close to 100 pages in my much-appreciated travel journal.

My Dad noted that I look as if I lost weight on the trip so far. I can honestly say that I havent weighed in recently, but I think it would be a miracle I am lighter considering the amounts of food I have been eating...

Whenever we stay with a family (which we have every night except for about 9 days), Tim and I are treated like royalty seated at the head of the Banquet table. During "off peak" (non-meal) hours we are left to "feel at home" and help ourselves to the vast array of delicious foreign chocolates, varieties of sweet cheeses, fresh breads and enticing pastries, yogurts, ripe apples, oranges, bananas, pears, prunes, orange juices, apple juices, mixed juices, aged wines, and rich milks. During the peak hours of lunch and supper, our plates reap the bounty of our host´s harvests - and our plates are never filled only once. Every time we clean our plate, more food is insisted on and, in some cases, gently "forced." It has been a feast. Not a one day thing, but a feast lasting for days on end, as in the times of the kings of old. One night we will devour roast duck and pork, fresh rolls, salads and dressings, corn, brown-sugared potatoes, red and white wines; all followed by a desert of Danish pastries and chocolates, gummies and candies, coffee, tea, or (in Tims case...) more wine. On another day, slow-cooked chicken covered in a sweet glaze, sweet peas, potatoes, gravy, breads and wine; followed by desert of Swiss cookies and chocolate candies, finally topped with roasted pears covered in melted fudge. In Italy, mouth watering meals twice a day were common - pastas of every kind, with every sauce and spice imaginable to an American palatte; airy fresh breads, hard cheeses, soft cheeses, chunks of delicious parmesan cheese, cuts of ham, salads and wines, followed by ice cream and, our favorite, torte pie.

I could easily keep ranting and raving about other foods - crepes, fishes, and chocolate, chocolate (so much chocolate) - but I think I made my point. I love foreign food. Both eating it and writing about it, and I hope I made your jealous mouths water. But I fear I may be enjoying our reign as palatte-kings a little too much and my only hope is that, once in Virginia, we don´t die from the sheer disappointment of having to feed ourselves...

So anyway, have I lost weight? No. Rather, I fear I may be becoming a chowhoundy glutton...


STENDER SHOUT-OUT: Friends, I fear I will not see any Celtic warriors. I am saving that trip for another day. But I have seen the Swiss Guard at the Vatican and some Roman soldiers. Or, you could check out Pilskog´s profile picture...although, I don´t think either of us want B to look like Lucky the Leprachaun when he grows up...