Today was the day I worked more than 9 hours and still have a truck load of work to go, so my capacity for a long blog is not very great! Apart from work today, I also managed to catch up with the washing and we are feeling back to normal but there have been some photos I meant to post but for some reason didn’t remember to put them up. The first is our arriving home yesterday morning.
Such a wonderful treat to get such a spectacular view on a perfect autumn day in Cape Town.
Last night Mike went to bed at 8pm and me an hour later. I woke to the incessant meowing of a confused Raiku at around 11pm and was up for a short while before going back to bed until after 5am. As a result, we both had more than 8 hours of sleep. My ankle is feeling better. I did take a pain pill today but while it’s still swollen and turning different shades of purple, I can walk with ease. I haven’t ventured out to do any exercise, but that may come in a few days time.
Other photos I meant to post were the last sunset on the ship which was Saturday night…somewhere between Germany and Denmark.
And the last sunrise which was Sunday morning. We were approaching Copenhagen…it was from my cabin balcony.
But nothing beats a fabulous home sunset. This was a few minutes ago.
Home is good!
John 8:12
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
Today was the day we arrived safely home! These things are not guaranteed, so we are grateful. Everything went off as planned, although our flight did get in early. Yesterday I left off when I was sitting in the assistance area at Copenhagen Airport. At that point, I was officially in the ‘needs assistance’ system and there would be a wheelchair waiting for me at each point along the way. When it was time to board for our flight from Copenhagen to Istanbul, a driver on a golf cart arrived. Mike sat at the back, while I sat at the front and we were whisked through passport control and then to the gate. The flight was uneventful.
Istanbul had a very nifty set up. The wheelchair was motorised and the attendant could step up on the back and go whizzing through the airport hooting his horn at will. This left Mike running to keep up! This attendant got us the internet voucher required for Istanbul airport and deposited us at the gate for our flight to Cape Town. I then had another lady attendant arrive and she escorted Mike and I to the front of the boarding gate queue & along the air bridge to the plane. The inconvenience (and pain) of a sprained ankle certainly had the convenience of a personal attendant and priority passes at every stop.
The flight from Istanbul to Cape Town was 10 hours. I slept a bit, but Mike only slept about 15 minutes. Both of us slept this afternoon.
On arrival in Cape Town, we were briskly taken to the start of the passport queue, ahead of 300+ passengers who had arrived on one of a number of international flights arriving close to ours. That done, our luggage was next. It was on the carousel and quickly retrieved. Our efficient attendant took us to the Vida Cafe in arrivals and left us there. David arrived to collect us and by the time I was clambering slowly up our stairs, I had only walked 600 steps today! A far cry from the 20000 I was doing a week ago. While my foot is swollen and bruised, it’s not too sore as I’ve hardly been using it. A legit sprained ankle!
I have a compression bandage & with the myprodol, I’m sure I’ll be back to normal within the next few days.
An early night tonight for us. We’ve made many happy memories and grateful to be safely home to our beautiful view. . For family who are wondering, we both gained 2kg!
Psalm 109:30
With my mouth I will greatly extol the Lord.
I hope you have had a good day today spoiling your wonderful Mom on Mother’s Day! I spent the day firstly leaving the ship this morning and then we went into Copenhagen where we enjoyed sitting around a lovely park enjoying amazing Danish sunshine.
What had happened as we got off the Metro and we were walking towards these gardens, is I twisted my ankle on a low Copenhagen street verge and took a tumble. Even though I went flying, the damage was mainly done to my left ankle which was sprained. I wasn’t hurt, I thought and although my ankle felt tender, it wasn’t difficult to walk…initially. After sitting in the park for a while, I noticed it was more painful when I started trying to walk. After seeing Julian off at the Metro, I returned to Mike and we decided to go to the Canal and have a boat tour of Copenhagen waterways. It was beyond fantastic and sitting in the boat was comfortable, so I gave no though to my foot. Here we are about to set off in full sunshine.
The tour starts at the street with the colourful houses…
We passed the Copenhagen Opera house where our guide told us crazy people sometimes jump off the roof into the water!
Naturally, the Little Mermaid was on the itinerary. So many people visit this underwhelming tourist attraction every day…just look at them all! The tour guide told us the statue has lost her head twice!
We passed the yacht the Danish royal family use when they are visiting surrounding countries.
They board the yacht from this pier..
We also passed Amalienborg, where they live.
And then we went to Christianson Harbour which was a little piece of Danish paradise.
Lots of houseboats and such a vibe.
Here’s a couple of tiny houseboats. So cute.
At the end of it all, I got up to get off the boat, and that was when my left ankle really began to talk. As we had been sitting for an hour, standing on occasions to take photos, left outer ankle had swollen up and was really bruised. I needed to get it up so we hobbled back to the benches and, as there were none available, I sat on the floor and put my foot on my luggage. I took a Myprodol and then we decided to get to the airport as soon as we could.
At Copenhagen airport, it’s 100s of metres to get from the terminal building to the gate, so Mike asked for assistance. Once that happened, I was treated as an invalid and was wheeled by a very nice security man right through the system. Everyone was very kind and helpful & we are now sitting on very comfortable chairs in the assistance centre. We board in under an hour & begin the long trip home. Hopefully, ice packs and Myprodol will help overnight and I’ll be able to get up the stairs tomorrow when we get home!
Such a lovely holiday comes to an end.
John 7:45-46
When the Temple guards returned without having arrested Jesus, the leading priests and Pharisees demanded, “Why didn’t you bring him in?” “We have never heard anyone speak like this!” the guards responded.
It was good to hear from you today! You are gearing up for your 6th birthday and that is going to be so exciting! We are looking forward to being with you at your party.
Today was the day we arrived in Kiel, Germany. I was woken by a noise outside and got up to see. It was about 6.15am. It was the Pilot coming to board the ship to take it in.
The Pilot boat pulled up right beside us. Our ship slowed a little and the Pilot hopped aboard.
There is a long inlet to Kiel harbour which took about an hour to cover. Soon after arrival, a fuel tanker pulled alongside and started refueling the ship.
As the main city was 9km away, we chose to spend the day on board and enjoyed a few fun activities. We went back to the sky trail so Julian could also have a go.
And we did some deck walking.
And we enjoyed sitting around, mainly eating and enjoying the sights. Last night, I took a few photos of one of the central lounges that has a very bling staircase.
Mike on the stairs.
And this is the ever changing ceiling of the mall gallery. This time with a turtle.
Last night we really enjoyed their variety concert.
It’s been a super trip on an amazingly big ship. While at times some parts have been a bit overcrowded, all in all it has been well worth the money and the effort of coming all the way to northern Europe to do it. We’ve made spectacular memories that will stay with us for a lifetime.
It’s crazy that it’s the weekend – we’ve spent it in Germany – tomorrow in Copenhagen, a short layover in Istanbul and home on Monday. It’s been a blast.
John 6:47
Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life.
Today was a good day at sea. I fall into a routine for sea days that is a throwback to our longer cruises when there were many more at-sea days. Grandpa had specifically said he wouldn’t go running round the deck early today, so he slept in and at about 7am, I went to the 15th Deck and sat quietly waiting for the coffee station to open. When it did I ordered a cappuccino and enjoyed that while doing a word game. Then it was time to walk. The deck has a dedicated track for walkers and runners.
The deck walks are sure to be refreshing….
I walked 4km and then ordered more cappuccino for Mike and Julian and took those down to them. We then had an hour or so in the cabin before going to the formal brunch at 9.30am. After that there was an event at 11am in the Mall. The Captain was there for a few announcements. In the photo below, he’s right of the lady in white. She was the compere. The Captain is Paolo Benini and he was with Costa Cruises for 34 years before making the move to MSC in February of this year.
After the Captain spoke, the cast of the entertainment team came out in full costume.
Quite a display! We also learned that the Euribia is their flagship and was only christened on 8th June last year.
We then went to the food floor and had a little lunch before spending the afternoon relaxing, although I did go to the main deck pool for 30 minutes in the water.
They treat that pool with a potent cocktail of chlorine and salt or whatever it is. It literally glued my hair together! It took a few minutes in the pool shower to get it unmatted and then I had a shower back in the cabin to give it a proper wash.
We are cruising south & we will soon round the southern tip of Denmark before continuing our journey north to Kiel, Germany. We are in a busier shipping area and there are frequent cargo & fishing vessels. Above us is a busy flight path and we are seeing lots of contrails zig zagging across the sky.
Our holiday is rapidly coming to an end. Tomorrow is our last full day. Sunday we will have a very slow disembarkation. Our plan is to store our luggage in Copenhagen and do a bit of sightseeing before going to the airport at about 4pm. A good holiday for sure. We have a lot to be grateful for.
John 6:29
Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.”
Today was the day I swam in a Norwegian fjord, we took a walk around Flam and we went on a train into the mountains. It was a good day. We arrived in Flam around 7am. I could see immediately, this was a tiny town. The length of the jetty is only about a quarter or a third of the length of the ship!
We docked, had breakfast and then I got into my swimming costume and marched down to the little beach to try out the water. (Photos by Julian and Mike)
Having a dip!
I wasn’t in for long!
Temperature was 7C
That was one big thing achieved. I really wanted to try out some colder water. Next time, I want to be in for a little longer. So freshing!
From there, I showered and dressed and we went for a walk around Flam. It is a teeny weeny town (population a few hundred).
Today we docked with our cabin portside, so I was able to take a photo of where we are. Ours is the circled cabin. Julian is next door.
This afternoon it was off to the train station for a scenic train ride on the Flam Railway. It was informative and very picturesque, rising 800m.
We passed the old town where the church remains – it was build in the 1660s.
Because Flam is surrounded by snow covered mountains, every spring, the rivers turn into cascades of abundant waterfalls falling down the mountainside and into the fjords. Our train ride took us past some of the most dramatic ones.
The Flam Railway has zooshed up this stop to include a ‘huldra’ – from Norwegian folklore, described as a seductive forest creature. At the stop, there is music playing the the huldra (dressed in red) dances to music. The cascades were amazing.
This is the railway line with the train and holiday or work houses. No one lives permanently in these parts.
A few port staff gathered on the quayside to wave goodbye. A friendly little town.
A really happy day in Flam. I don’t know if we will ever pass this way again, so these far away locations are very special. It’s 14700km from Cape Town to Flam!
Today I read John 6 – why we give thanks for our food and try not to waste any.
John 6:10-13
Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
Today was another exciting day. We went up a very steep mountain in a skylift. The day dawned not long after 4am, when I woke to notice we were in the Norwegian fjords.
I went back to sleep and woke up a little later. By then we had arrived at Nordfjordeid. It’s not deep enough for the ship to dock, so it sits in the inlet anchored to massive buoys. A walk way was erected from the pier to the ship.
A closer look…
View of the town from the ship…
Our excursion was this afternoon, so we spent the morning relaxing. By 12 noon we were all assembled and just after 12.30pm, we sent off on a bus for a 45 minute journey to Mount Hoven. I had spent the morning looking at its webcam and told Mike and Julian to lower their expectation. It was fully under cloud and visibility was next to nothing. I was so disappointed.
As soon as we arrived, we looked up and could see the top of the mountain! I could see the Skylift station and knew that then that, as the clouds had lifted, the view would be incredible. How blessed we were. The Skylift is not unlike the cable car for Table Mountain.
It goes up at quite an angle.
The higher it gets the more majestic the view…
The views from the top were spectacular no matter where you looked.
It was soon time to reboard the bus and head back to the ship. The views on the way were also most rewarding.
The ship was waiting for us…
Within an hour of returning, we were on our way. We are now slowly cruising towards the next stop where we arrive tomorrow morning.
The view from my desk…
We are so grateful we got to see what we did. It could have been completely under cloud with no view at all. It will be remembered for many years to come.
Psalm 106:1
Praise the Lord. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.
Today was the day we docked bright and early in Alesund. A tiny town less than 700km from the Arctic Circle, we soon discovered we are as close to the North Pole we most likely will ever be.
We arrived early in the morning – it was overcast and cold, but the town was postcard perfect.
We had breakfast with these views…
We were entertained by the seagulls.
The main event of the day was to climb the 400+ steps of Mount Aksa. You can see the stairs winding up the mountain in the photo below.
We walked off the ship and Mike led us to the start of the walk…
The stairs soon began…
And eventually we got to the last one…
The views on the way up and from the top were amazing.
The ship looming large on the left…
Once at the top we decided to return by walking down the other side.
We arrived back in town and could see where we had walked…right up to the while building at the top of the mountain and down the forested area to its right
Once we got off the mountain, we walked back to the ship past some very interesting houses…one balancing on stones and one with a grass roof.
Back to the ship for a brunch snack…
In the afternoon, we took a walk around the town centre and found the Norwegian cats to be particularly furry to accommodate the harsh winter conditions…
But spring is coming…
The church…
Typical street…
Interesting houses…a lot of them were 100+ years old.
Back to the ship. I needed a wide angle and some distance to get it into one frame.
We are now back on the ocean and heading towards Nordfordeid. We arrive there tomorrow.
A memorable day in a part of the world I never in my wildest dreams imagined visiting.
John 5:24
“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.
Today was a slate grey day at sea. It was largely overcast, with a thick white canopy of cloud hanging over us as we cruised north. This is looking towards far northern Scotland.
Looking forward…
We are west of Norway on our way to Alesund.
We did quite a lot of exercise today – first 3km in the gym and then 3km on the chilly deck walking track. Outside, it’s cold, but it didn’t rain.
We had a leisurely breakfast, after which I slept. After lunch, Julian went back to his cabin while Mike and I wanted to investigate the water park. We found the Sky Trail was open to all ages, so we had to have a shot.
Walking on the ropes was by far the hardest. Mike only had his left hand to use because he hurt his right shoulder the other day so is using it carefully. It was such a lot of fun. I really want to do it again before we disembark.
Today I had a treat while I was at gym. I listened to the entire book of Ruth. It’s so wholesome. Such a tender story of life – of loss, brokenness, heartache, change, struggle to survive, help, hope, kindness, a romantic lunch, chemistry, appreciation, heroism, deep love and redemption.
Ruth 4:16-17
Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him. The women living there said, “Naomi has a son!” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Today is the day we boarded the biggest ship I’ve ever been on. We started off by having a morning cappuccino, then packing up and going to the Metro to catch a train. To get to the train, we needed to walk for a short distance. Today also happened to be the Copenhagen Marathon and so a lot of roads were closed. As we approached the station, the front runners came through.
A short while later we had recliners and runners pass by…
After watching for a few minutes, we arrived at the underground with 2 minutes to spare.
On the Metro…
The walk from the train station to the harbour took longer than expected, but it was good exercise. The ship is enormous!
We walked right through, completed the process and boarded in a very fast time. There was no waiting! After we got on board, we got registered for the internet & then headed up to our cabins. Our cruise cards were waiting for us. By then, we were in need of coffee, so we found the closest coffee station, 4 levels up. There we discovered lunch was open. Since we hadn’t had breakfast, food was most welcome and the view that went with it was amazzzzing.
As soon as my luggage arrived at our cabin, I unpacked and got into my swimming costume. The swimming pool was calling my name. The water was warm, but it was treated with a hefty concoction of salt and chlorine! I did 22 lengths.
It rained while I was swimming which was great. The air temperature was about 14C.
We took a walk around the ship. With such a huge amount of space, they have ramped the entertainment to a new level. Full bowling alley..
And lots of simulated racing….
One of the malls…
We are due to set sail shortly, so I’m going to get this posted and go enjoy the evening!
John 4:25-26
The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”
Today was the day we went to Copenhagen. We woke up very early and caught a 7am flight. When we got to Copenhagen, we had to wait for Julian to arrive. The airport was busy and crawling with people. I had a chat with you and your Mom but the connection was pretty bad, so I sent you a whole lot of photos of the busy terminal building, including this one.
Once Julian arrived, we caught the Metro into the city and checked into our hotel. Then it was out and about to see some of the biggest attractions. This is one of the most photographed streets in the city…
From here, we wanted to go and see the Amalienborg Palace. On the way, we encountered the soldiers marching from their barracks to the Palace for the changing of the guard.
Amalienborg is made up of 4 identical buildings. One is used as a guest residence, one is the home of the King and Queen of Denmark and their family, one is the home of the King’s Mom, Queen Margrethe II and the 4th is used as a guest palace for the King’s brother, Prince Joachim, where there is also a museum. But otherwise, it’s hard to know which is which.
We enjoyed a few moments of peace inside the cathedral.
Then we took a longish walk to see one of Copenhagen’s most famous statues. The Little Mermaid
My favourite photo of the day was taken on our way home. We passed a lake that was home to this majestic swan.
We arrived back at the hotel & I immediately lay down on the bed and went to sleep! The early morning had caught up with me. It’s very gloomy and overcast but not too cold.
Soon, we will go find some dinner but first, I’m going to shower. Tomorrow, we hope to get on a ship for a week going up the fjords.
Psalm 105:4
Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.
Today was the day we spent the afternoon in Milan. We started off by catching a bus from Arona to Malpensa Airport, Milan.
We arrived at the airport and checked into the Moxy which is a 3 minute walk from where we have to check in at sparrows tomorrow.
Moxy allowed us an early check in which was great. We then walked across to departures and found where we had to be. Then we found a station that would take us into the centre of Milan.
This particular train happened to end at a station very close to a massive park (Sempione Park) in the centre of the historic area of Milan. It’s 38 hectares in size.
I had seen somewhere online there was a very high tower in the park, so when we were there, we looked out for it and it didn’t take long for us to spot it.
We discovered it only opened at 3pm, so we wandered around the park and found some other amazing sites. This place is known as Arco della Pace. While it was completed in 1838, inscribed at the top is 1859 which was when a victorious Napoleon rode through the arch.
As we turned away, we spotted something on the opposite side of the park, so off we went to investigate. It’s the Sforzesco Castle built in the 15th Century.
We had to get a closer look. We discovered it’s free to wander about. There is a fee for the museums.
We went over the bridge and inside the walls.
If walls could talk, these would have some things to say.
By then, it was getting closer to 3pm, so we walked back to the Branca Tower and found it was already open. We paid our 6 Euros and took a seat to wait for the lift to come down. This tower is 100+ metres high and was commissioned in 1933 at the request of Mussolini.
The lift takes a minute to get to the top, where the views are spectacular. The arch from the top…
Milan skyline…
The castle in the foreground with the amazing Duomo behind.
While we were up there we saw a stadium with some historic features.
And so when we came down, we went to look at it.
We went inside to have a look. The chandeliers were destroyed during WW2 so this is a replica…
The balcony where Napoleon stood and celebrated with his people is off this amazing room.
Once we had seen this amphitheatre, we set off back to the train station. I had to stop and take this photo….
When we started out, we felt we were scampering around Milan like teenagers. By the time we got back on the train, we felt like old crocks! 18148 steps! We have sucked the marrow out of this day. Tonight Julian is on a plane and tomorrow, all going well, we will meet him in Copenhagen.
We’ll be in bed early tonight.
Psalm 104:33
I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
It’s crazy that 1 week ago today we left Cape Town for Italy. We expected our trip to have many days of wet weather. It has rained, but nothing like the rain we have had today. It’s been the rainiest of days. It was just the perfect day for us to rest and start sorting out some things before we leave for Milan tomorrow. We needed cable ties, so we set off in raincoats and with umbrellas in hand, went to the Carrefour furthest away. It’s a pretty walk.
One of the things you quickly learn when you are in a foreign country is how much we take English for granted. Shopping is tricky.
I still don’t know what this is…I know it’s apricot, pear and orange. I figured they are small boxes of juice.
We were looking for hot chocolate sachets. The 89c ones on the bottom shelf were the closest. Nesquik below them was expensive.
We came home via a cafe near the lake where we had a cappuccino for 1.50 Euro, so not quite R30. A good price for sure.
We bought a lot of little extras with us from South Africa, knowing the prices here will be high. We bought a proverbial medicine department including seasickness pills and antiobiotics. Mike has me taking vitamins every day. We also bought a strip of Myprodol but didn’t anticipate Mike hurting his arm while putting a backpack in the overhead compartment when he got on the plane. He jarred his right shoulder (hope it’s not a rotator cuff tear because otherwise he’s in for 9 months of recovery). Anyway, now there are only 3 pills left so we asked Julian to bring some when he comes. If all goes according to plan we meet up with him in Copenhagen on Saturday.
Tomorrow, our bus to Milan is at 9.50am.
We have certainly upped our walking. My app tells me interesting information. This was from yesterday.
In April I crossed a million steps for the year so far. I’m hoping to do 3 million steps by the end of the year.
Keep walking and climbing! 18% are climbing to get to our front door!
Today I watched an inspirational video on Ida Keeling. She started running after losing both her sons within 2 years of each other. They were in their 40s and she (naturally) sank into a deep depression. She was 67 when her daughter (a track athlete trainer) bought her a pair of running shoes and started training her to run. She ran for as long as she could, breaking records for her age group. She died at 106.
Keep moving!
A more relaxing day today. The rain is forecast to have passed by tomorrow, so we will be moving a lot more.
Psalm 103:1-5
Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy name.
2 Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all His benefits—
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Today was the day we visited a 750 year old castle. When we arrived in Arona, one of the buildings that dominated the view was the Castle at the neighbouring town of Angera. Yesterday, when we arrived back from our long day in Switzerland (7 hours on the train), we both were commenting we didn’t need to see Angera after all. We were so tired, but this morning when we woke up and the rain was only forecast for this afternoon, we changed our minds and hopped on a ferry for the town. It’s not an island. It’s attached to the mainland but it’s quickest to take a ferry. Leaving Arona behind…
A few minutes later, we arrived in Angera with the object of our curiosity at the top of the hill.
We had received varying reports about walking up to the castle. One person said 8km – another said it was gruelling. We set off through very quiet streets…
The walk was very short – about 1.5km with some uphill and a very picturesque short-cut through a copse, so neither gruelling nor 8km!
Pretty Angera houses…
We debated about paying the 15 Euro entry fee. We hadn’t gone into the castle at Isola Bella, and there were very few people at this one, so we decided to pay the entrance fee and in we went. We are so glad we did. It was worth every cent.
The history of it is so long. I looked it up online afterwards to see if it really was almost 750 years old. It seems so. Some of the art work dates back to 1277. This information came from https://www.illagomaggiore.com/en_US/26190,Poi.html. I hope it’s big enough to read.
So that’s what we were to experience. We just didn’t know it yet because we began in the gardens which were absolutely amazing. I didn’t take enough photos of them.
Massive stone walls dating back hundreds of years and still standing.
We then went to the toy museum which was really where we should have ended. It was mind-boggling. All the time we were looking at the rooms filled with dolls that were 100 years or more old, we were looking for teddy bears. There was display after display of intricately painted porcelain dolls. It was just incredible.
Cars and train sets…
There were about 7 rooms dedicated to the toy museum. And finally, teddies!
We thought that was it, but then we discovered the real history. We passed through this interesting hall. I thought the artwork looked really strange until I read the write-up.
These are parts of ancient art works that were in a museum in Milan when it was bombed during WW2. These remains were reframed and relocated here.
This is one of the oldest parts of the castle. I think this is known as the Ala Visontea
The stair way leads up to a number of levels which eventually come out at the top tower.
From where the views are absolutely breathtaking.
That’s Arona across the lake.
We were amazed that it is so well preserved.
And here’s the video from the very top…
What a morning! By the time we left, it was beginning to drizzle. We walked back down to the ferry station and caught the ferry back to Arona. By then it was umbrella and raincoat time…it wasn’t that cold. About 18C
While writing this, I was looking for a photo I thought I had taken the other day and typed Maggiore as that’s this lake. To my amazement a photo I had forgotten about came up. It’s Mike’s Dad (Great Granpa) rowing on Lake Maggiore. This must have been just after the war ended.
Colmegna is a town far north – if I had found this earlier, it would have been possible for us to visit. Great Granpa was in Italy during WW2. He probably came down to the south of the lake & maybe even visited the castle we visited today.
He loved Italy and always wanted to bring Granny Eve here. We are so blessed to be able to visit.
Psalm 102:18
Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord..
It is the strangest thing that we arrived in Italy on Friday and today is only Tuesday. It feels we have been here for much longer than the 4 nights we have slept under Italian sky. We have sucked the marrow out of each day. Today we woke early and after final preparations, we headed to Arona station to begin our long trip to Zermatt, Switzerland. I accidentally booked the ‘slow’ train from Arona to Domodossola, but convinced Mike we were getting more for our money! We changed at Domodossola to get on the next train to Brig. After arriving in Brig, we changed to a different platform and got on the train to Zermatt. Brig is in Switzerland so this is a Swiss train and I have full internet access thanks to Free Matterhorn Railway! In fact I’m starting this entry on the way to Zermatt so you are getting the blow by blow account of our journey. This is leaving Brig.
The Swiss train is clean & I just love that you can’t miss where you are going, when you will arrive and after which station your destination will be. There is no ambiguity here…
Definitely on the right train. Now, I’m going to pack my laptop away, sit back and enjoy the ride.
No internet on the train home, so here’s a summary of what happened next.
Today’s excursion into Switzerland was all for Mike. In late 2022, we had booked for all three of us (Julian, Mike and I) to go to St Moritz on the famous Bernina Express. Our time in Italy was dominated by Mike’s encounter with Covid. Because he had tested positive, he didn’t join us as he felt there was a good chance he could pass it on. Julian and I went alone. That was 11th November 2022 and I wrote about it here.…
Today, was all for Mike. I was just too happy to join him. It was certainly a day to remember.
We arrived in Zermatt and the first thing we did was get tickets for the Cogwheel Train to take us up to Gornergrat…. this is what the train looks like.
This is why it’s called a Cogwheel train. It rides on this rail…
On the train this was our first glimpse of the Matterhorn..
The cloud drifted over the top of the mountain, but at times we could see its peak.
There were plenty of photo opportunities. There literally was 360 degree views of the Swiss Alps
Little video I took…
Certainly it’s one of the highlights of my life. We got back down to Zermatt and decided to walk up the Main rd. No visitor cars are allowed. There are delivery and hotel vehicles which are all electric.
By 3.15pm, we were on the train for our return trip. This was when things went a little wonky! The trip involved 3 parts to get home – we were returning the way we came- Zermatt to Brig, Brig to Domodossola and Domodossola to Arona. We only had 7 minutes to get off the train at Brig, cross to the main line platform and get on the train to Domodossola. Swiss efficiency was guaranteed. We would easily make it. Only on this occasion the Swiss train from Zermatt to Brig ran 5 minutes late! We only had 2 minutes. The train conductor led us to the very front of the train and told us our platform was number 7. As soon as the train stopped, we leapt off it and galloped down the platform, across the concourse, into the main station, down the corridor and up the steps to platform 7. We were on the train with 1 minute to spare. I was shattered! Just look at the circuitous route we had to travel. 3.5 hours each way.
But we did it. We arrived back in Arona almost 12 hours after leaving this morning. We will sleep well tonight. We are so grateful for the opportunity and a safe return.
Today I started my favourite book of the Bible. The Gospel of John. Verses that meant so much to me when I became a Christian…an understanding dawned with these…
John 1:11-13
11 He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
