Beautiful Waterfall
As recently announced, the Swiss government loosened their measures related to COVID-19 as of 8th June. The country has been sequentially lifting measures related to COVID-19 and on 19th June the "extraordinary situation" will be officially lifted and powers handed back to the states (canton). People are now slowly moving back to normal and the business of life is returning to how it was, well maybe not quite. Traffic jams have returned, crowds are increasing everywhere and I personally hope that social distancing can still be maintained and most especially proper hygiene i.e. washing hands and hopefully disinfecting them too.
Today was supposed to be raining the whole day but lo and behold, it was such a beautiful day to drive to this beautiful spot in the canton of Bern. I am not really sure why, but the Swiss are really very bad at predicting the weather. Last year there were weeks when it was going to snow all day but as the day neared it turned to rain and on the day it was just cloud... I digress, so getting to some beautiful spots in Switzerland requires nerve and driving skills! I do not enjoy the hairpins with all the strong bends and curves which are only for experienced drivers with strong stomachs I guess. I did enjoy the scenic lakes along the way and the lovely scenery. When we finally arrived at our destination the final stretch driving up was really very tight and required courage to manoeuvre through the bends and curves especially when there was oncoming traffic, there are points that you need to wait as it is only just wide enough for a car. Luckily we found a nice parking spot and we walked down to the hotel. While walking down you could already hear the bristling sound of the water crashing into the rocks of the waterfalls and you could feel its cool breeze as you walked along. When we arrived at the grand hotel, we explored the place and also took some beautiful pictures. I was in awe of the incredible view and with the blue-green lake of Brienz in the background. I definitely recommend this to everyone who plans to see Switzerland and yes it’s worth a visit. It’s certainly the most beautiful waterfall in the canton of Bern that I have seen. We also saw a funicular which can bring you up and down from the stopover of the ferry boat, in fact, it claimed to be the oldest of its type in the world - the first to use a single track with a loop in the middle allowing the two carriages to pass. We admired the scenery and decided to walk down to the lake where you can really have a first glance at the beautiful view. I just can’t describe the whole beauty of it. It is like a feeling that these are actually postcards but in fact, they are real. We stayed here for some time and enjoyed the view and walked back up again. It was great exercise and meant we had earned a bite to eat and drink at the hotel too! The staff are very friendly, helpful and professional, perhaps grateful to finally be able to welcome customers back again.
We had a wonderful experience here and we savoured the place during the time we spent there before heading home to avoid the storm heading that way.
Have a look in here for some amazing photos from today
Cheers to Bob and Doug
For the first time in 9 years, NASA launched from the American soil 2 astronauts to the ISS.
Bob and Doug begin a test flight of a new commercial spaceship designed, built and owned by SpaceX. And guess what, they have landed safely to the ISS. Congratulations to both of you. It is good to hear that we can now fly to space. I felt like I fulfilled my dream as an astronaut. That was my dream when I was a child and I was very happy to witness this in my lifetime. Cheers to Bob and Doug. Looking forward to the next mission
A day in the Wald
It was one sunny day and we decided to go out for a walk. A very hot day indeed. I was happy to go out and to just simply breathe some fresh air.
On 11th May some of the restrictions were already lifted up and more or less some shops were already opened and life starts to colour at its own pace.
We visited the church while we were in Einsedeln and surprisingly there were many people inside the church but the good thing is there were sanitisers in both entrances. After paying a visit, we went around the village and wander the small place. It was a short hike, we enjoyed the fresh air and the sun. There were some happy feelings inside me of which afterwards I think we deserved a drink and an ice cream.
Restaurants were full. There was sunshine and there are noises around, there are people everywhere. This to me describes that after that 2 months of semi-lockdown, life is blossoming again. I felt happy and could not help myself wishing "hope soon this is over".
And look what I had on that day, some sweets to energised me and adds more sunshine on that beautiful day!
Mother's Day!
This could be one of the special days in our Gregorian calendar to all mothers, especially my mum! In fact, I might not even be a mum, but I’m the best person to remember this very special day - I’d like to give a shout out to all mum’s out there!
Here’s to a more Happy Mother’s Day!
Please click here: Happy Mother's Day Cakes
When anxiety is unbearable
The weekend before the phase 2 of lockdown easing, we decided to shop in one of the biggest supermarkets in Luzern. On normal days, Pilatusmarkt can be very hectic and sometimes quite daunting, especially on a weekend. It is a popular place for people of all nationalities to go shopping. I already braced myself, expecting the worst when we were on our way there. Luckily, it was very quiet perhaps because, as of 1st of May, the opening hours of the shops on a weekend has been extended to 17:00 whereas previously it was only until 16:00. Something is moving forward here at last!
When we arrived at the parking, I thought it is going to be a crazy mess as usual, but it was not the case. The entrance gate did not ask for the parking ticket, instead, we were greeted with a sign saying that parking spaces are free during shop opening hours. I thought that was genuinely nice, it is unusual to get something free in Switzerland.
We took our shopping bags and walked into the complex. While walking in, we saw a long queue although not with many people because they were all queueing and keeping a 2m distance from each other. There was hand sanitiser at all the entrance doors before you enter and there was someone who was taking care of the queue and making sure that everyone was abiding the rules. Though it was quite a long queue, it did not seem to be a long wait. Everyone was quiet. Not one single person complained, and everyone was patiently waiting in the queue until it was their turn.
In cases like these, I am usually the first person to complain, but not this time. Inside I saw most of the shops were closed except for the supermarket, the do-it-yourself and the bakery. Everyone was happy just to be able to get their essential stuff and they were trying to be normal. I couldn’t help but shed a tear. It hit me so hard that I couldn’t believe that one day something like this would happen in my lifetime. All shops have notices at the front door advising how we can protect ourselves. Many had “Sale posters” to attract people to buy. Everyone was trying to act normally, though I could see from their eyes and feel from the tension in the air that there were a lot of uncertainties. There were a lot of questions. Will we be able to get back to how it was before?
I felt incredibly sad because I felt that everyone is trying to live and survive. I felt grounded. For sure this virus crisis has taught me how to be patient and humble, that when anxiety is unbearable, to whisper a prayer that hopefully one day when I wake up, we will get through this all together.
Stay safe everyone!
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