Quirk

 This is the last of the Switzerland pictures I'm going to post.

There were cow bells hanging on the farm building all over, some of them were huge.  We saw (and heard) cows wearing them too.

 You know I love trains and stations so to add the mountains and sunshine made it just perfect for me.

 I think the Swiss must have an odd sense of fun.

 I went into this church alone in Interlaken.  The sun coming through the stained glass made the light dance in colours.  It was beautiful.

 So much wood where we were.  Every thing was wood, and so much piled up ready to be used.

Relaxed and happy.

That is all.

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Rainbow (cakes) and (dead?!) Guides

 COG is making rainbow cakes at school.  The supermarket colourings totally faded with baking, so I bought some 'better' ones and thought I'd give them a go.

 Unfortunately, the colour of the top didn't leave them looking too palatable.

 I cut into them and it was slightly more promising.

I butterfly cut the tops, turned them over and iced them back in.

 In fact they had come out really well.

But still actually looked rather unappetising from the outside, despite being jolly tasty.

Luckily enough the Guides are on camp so I took them out to them.

In true guides on camp style, they cared not about the look and were more than happy to hoover them up based on taste.  Love a camp hungry guide.

Although the twitching boots from this tent, post cake, worried me slightly.

Yes, the guide was still in them, she just couldn't be bothered to take her wellies off!!

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Bern

 Bern was a lovely place.  We spent just a couple of hours there walking around.  I had a marvellous Guider for company.  We were completely on the same wave length about how we wanted to spent the short time there.

 It is the capital city of Switzerland with the 'important' stuff there.

 But there is a look more to see beyond the obvious impressive architecture.

 There is so much detail and it's very clean and well cared for.

 It all looks so new, it's easy to forget how old it actually is!

 The fountain trail around the old town is worth following.

 There are a lot of them and it takes you on a lovely walk.

 It's worth going up the cathedral bell tower too.  Great views of the city and beyond, a close up of the huge bells and the church inside as you come back down.

 There is some quirky modern art.

 right next to the old charm.

 Undercover walk ways must be shelter in winter and cool in the summer and just quaint in the spring.  There were little shops and cafes tucked into each alcove.

A lovely city that I plan to revisit with HWMBO for a weekend.

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Bernese Oberland - Our Chalet

I've been to Switzerland a few times and visited Basel and Lucerne, but to be honest, I didn't really get what all the fuss was about. Basel is ok but there are many much nicer places. Lucerne was nice but it didn't grip me except with its cold.

But this time I was in the Bernese Overland in spring and it truly is schöne.  Now I understand why people rave about Switzerland.

Turn one way there are majestic mountains powering over you.

Turn the other way and walk 200 yards and you are in peaceful woods.















Moving night time scenes as the lights start to twinkle in the valleys and the burning sun dies behind the mountains.














One day I was in thermals walking through snow.














The next I was sat in a meadow full of flowers eating a packed lunch.

I saw waterfalls coming out of the sides of cliffs and went inside a rock face to see the waterfalls running right through, the sheer size and power of them I just couldn't capture in a photo.

















I walked through gorges that were simply part of the walk through the countryside, no special entrance, just a part of the trail.

The view simply from the train travelling between towns was quite amazing.













Stumbling upon a Japanese water garden with a Swiss backdrop, most strange.

Standing on top of one of the highest mountains and seeing absolutely nothing was still quite incredible. Occasionally the clouds blew through and I got a peek at what I might see on a good day, I will go back to try again another time.









But generally just being happy I wasn't blown off it!

And returning to total serenity.

I completely fell in love with it.  Every hill I walked up, every ache of my legs, every moment I just sat looking and looking some more at the hills and breathing in the clean air.

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Herman the Worm

This week's Gallery is 'One Word'.  My word is 'Herman'!

Herman is my new favourite camp song, we sing Cecil a lot at Brownies but after 28 years it's wearing a bit thin and Herman is a new take on it for me.



So WiseOwl, if you are reading, I want to teach our Brownies this one. If you let me I promise to stop shouting 'It's Beaver Time' whenever the station platform or carriage goes quiet!

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Learn to Take Time

I read this in a book at Our Chalet. It was written by the ladies of the Juliette Low session of 1959.

Take time to think - it is the source of power
take time to play - it is the secret of perpetual youth
take time to read - it is the fountain of wisdom
take time to pray - it is the greatest power on earth
take time to love and be loved - it is God given privilege
take time to be friendly - it is the road to happiness
take time to laugh - it is the music of the soul
take time to give - it is too short a day to be selfish
take time to work - it is the price of success



















It struck a chord with me as soon as I read it.  It strikes an even deeper chord with me now.  I came back from a week away, straight into post holiday catchup, post Cog DofE Silver recovery, GCSE in house stress and Guiding stuff I was leaving until after my break away plus going to work (that is always an add on and yet it is the major player!)  I am struggling to take time for anything.

I sincerely wish I was still sat here.  I was alone with a cup of tea just watching the sun go down over the mountains, not thinking too hard, just gently pondering life, the universe and everything.  It all seemed so clear, so reasonable but then I got back on the normal life treadmill. 

I guess it just takes a while to ease back into the pace.

I hope normal service will be resumed shortly, whatever normal is. 

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Our Chalet, World Centre of WAGGGS

 Last week on went on a trip with a group of Guiders from the Midlands region to stay at Our Chalet in Adelboden, Switzerland.

 It became the first (of four) World Centres in 1932 and since then thousands of Guide Girls and Guide Scouts have stayed there.











It is truly international, and everything about it celebrates the fact that Guiding is world wide and encourages Girl Guides and Girl Scouts of all nations to come together.

We met a rather fabulous group of Canadians whilst we were there and played many games together.  I spent sometime talking to a couple of Australians and there were a constant stream of American groups in and out the whole time we were there.  There were also New Zealanders, Swedes, Spanish and Croatians.

 I once saw a picture just like this and from that moment onwards I was determined to eat in this room and take my own picture of it and now I have. There is an amazing sense of oneness, peace, fun, everything in the promise and the laws here.

 It is a working building full of girls and activities and yet is also stuffed full of beautiful history and amazing furniture.

We all placed our packed lunches on this incredibly old blanket box.  It seemed a perfectly normal thing to do, it was only afterwards I considered that maybe it ought to be cared for a little more graciously.  But this centre is not a museum piece, it is a living, breathing, growing, activity centre.

The fireplace in the dining hall looked like a set, until
















inclement weather meant an indoor camp fire and it was lit.















But we also managed to get outside to share cross continent songs and games.

The swaps corner was very interesting.  Bits and pieces of Guiding from all over the world left to swap and share.

 Besides some badges, I also left one of our home made woggles.

Oman Guides had left a considerably more elaborate affair.  But it was there for someone to take home.  I wonder who will?  I wonder if anyone will take my woggle?

 I adored my bedroom, I lay there wondering which guides had also used this room over the 82 years, perhaps someone as important as Agnes Baden-Powell and thousands of other 'worker ants' like myself.  Eight thousand a year visit here.

The weather is unpredictable in the mountains,  my bedroom window view looked like this, cold and rainy.

 Warm but misty.

 Crisp and clear.

I can't believe how lucky I was to wake up to this view.

 Falk knew what she was doing when she decided to build the Chalet here.

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