Interlaken, Switzerland

Towards the end of April we took a 3 day road trip down to Interlaken, Switzerland. Andy and I both visited here YEARS ago (me for a college class and he for vacation after Academy graduation). It was about a 5.5 hour drive. We stopped in Baden, Baden Germany (known for their Roman baths...we went on a bike ride there before driving through the Black Forest. We spent the night just a bridge across from France and after a 2 hour drive in the morning we were in Interlaken! It was beautiful!! I think I am the only blogger who actually writes their captions 'above' the pictures; so I am going to go mainstream and try this 'below' thing...(hint: this caption belongs to the one of Tyler smelling the dandelion :)
Horse drawn carriage in Baden Baden...sorry you can't see the carriage and this happened to be the only pictures we took here...oh well...moving on...

Admiring the Black Forest

Stopping in traffic for nearly a half hour after crossing into Switzerland...the truckers got out and had some coffee :)

Here is where we stayed! Not quite ideal for a family with a toddler and a dog; but we did it cause it was cheap and we both stayed here about 9 years ago. So why the hec not!! Its rated one of Europe's top youth hostels with people from all over the world, many of which are either outdoor extremist (Interlaken is the Base Jumping capital of the world), or college students studying abroad. Andy, Tyler, and Georgia fell asleep around 9:30 so I went down and hung out with a bunch of 20 year olds...I've never heard more stories about "who broke up with who" and "I was dating this guy, but then I went overseas...and...and...like...um...." (you get the picture :)

I took the exact same picture back in the day...(yes I just used the term 'back in the day'...wow!)

We decided to take the train up the Jungfrau Mountain (the tallest in the Swiss Alps). Needless to say; it was insanely GORGEOUS!! Wait and see...

Same picture as last...just liked the sign in the back as "proof" that we were here :)

Such a handsome little man...I just love that smile :)

A glacier in the middle of the mountain if you can see it

Who actually lives up here!?! The only way up/down is via the train...

Georgia hunting for who knows what and loving the snow!

I absolutely love this last picture! Interlaken means a "city between two lakes" There are two main lakes that have a turquoise color just like this on the east and west side of the city. To the north and south are the mountains...it couldn't be more beautiful! Anyway, our last day here it rained so we took an hour and a half detour home to drive through Stuttgart and go to an indoor water park. It was such a fun end to our trip and they had the most incredible slide that just launched you in the air about 10 feet!!! There were markers to see how far you flew when you landed....andy and I were competing of course :) It was awesome...I wish I had pictures to prove it. We took Ty down some of the slides too (apparently Germans arent as crazy about height/age restrictions...maybe for good reason..hmmm), anyway he seemed to neither like it or love it which means he can easily be swayed into being a water park fan like his parents :)

Bike Rides and Eifel Park Zoo

It was one of the first nice days this spring, so we went on a bike ride on one of the trails just a couple miles from our house. It winded along the river and went through some really cute villages...we saw some cool stuff along the way!
Tyler "chill"axing in the Burley with his "Charlie" that I got from a local Hardware store...he gives him about 20 kisses every day :)

This is a trail about a block from our house...don't be deceived it is mainly down hill and there is no outlet...only back up the same way!

A little church we always see on our drive home from base

When was the last time you took a good look at a Dandelion!?! They are prettier than we give them credit for :)

Funny story about these cows...steers...whatever they are! Anything with a ring through its nose is not something I want to cross paths with...but wait I just did the other day! I took Ty & Georgia for a run on that same trail just a few pictures above. I'm running back home and a tractor pulls up to a pasture and the farmer lets out a few of these cows with their calf. I'm waiting patiently right behind him when he reverses and leaves. What do I see in front of me; perfectly situated on my trail? This bad boy!! I move closer to go quietly around him and the other 20 cows in the pen start "mooing" the hec out of their lungs! This guy doesnt move and I'm starting to remember the 'fight or flight' chapter I read about in my high school psychology class....hmmm what to do? I move closer and he takes one step closer to me. the other cows are now mooing a sound that somewhat resembles a tune you would hear in a horror flick. I'm telling them sweetly as I inch forward, "it's okay! I'm nice...I won't hurt your calf...I just want to go home quietly". My guardog, Georgia, is no guard at all, as she has somehow managed to hide under the jogging stroller. My only outlet was to vector right into the field with a fresh coat of cow maneaur...hmmm what to do now? All I can say is in the end, we were all safe, the cows got their voices back, and my shoes became best friends with the washing machine and Febreeze :)

Okay...back to the bike ride :)

Great shot Andy!

Stopping at a playground

Playing with the camera :)

Oh the Germans and their gardens!

All done with the bike ride, but Tyler wants back in...he loves his Burley!

...and his daddy :)

The next day we headed over to the Eifel Park Zoo. It's an awesome place for kids of all ages with some rides, an Alpine slide, playground equipment, food, and animals. Most of the rides were still closed since summer wasnt in full swing yet, and their werent many people there; so we got to play and meet some of the animals without any lines. Best thing is; this park is set right in the valley just 10 minutes from our house. I got a season pass, so Tyler and I will be here quite a bit this summer blowing off some energy :)

He loves the giant "BLOB"!

Burying Daddy :)

Newborns...they could barely stand up!

...Tyler could hardly believe it :)

We got to feed the bears! They had bear food and when they saw us with the box, they would sit up like this and beg :)

Tyler would just drop a pellet and the bear would catch em perfectly in the mouth every time!

I think we fed this one about 2 boxes...towards the end he got a little tired of sitting up and begging, so he just laid down and kept him mouth open ready for the food to fall :)

That's it!! Another post coming soon :)