Good as new, well almost

Home from the hospital now! And already missing the way the nurses instantaneously responded to my every need. I'm going to have to see if I can install one of those buttons by my chair here at home to buzz Jeff whenever I need anything... (!)

I also kind of miss my hospital roommate, a nice Swiss woman named Esther. She didn't speak any English, and neither did the nurses, so needless to say I got a crash-course of (Swiss) German practice over the weekend! Esther lived nearby with her family and their 22 cows... Whenever her family came in to visit her, there was a definite dairy smell that filled the room -- I'm not kidding! and it would linger for hours. When they were there they would play Swiss music on the radio, which I didn't mind since it went well with the scenery outside the window :)

Last night when Jeff showed up to take me home, I walked out a little with the crutches, and then "miraculously" threw them down and started walking on my own... Ta-da!!

It feels like a miracle - Only 3 days after surgery and I can walk (almost) normal, without any crutches or anything. Yahoooooo!!

One key ingredient is my fancy-dancy Swiss shoes... called Künzli Schuhe. They have orthopedic supports built-in. And see, aren't they sexy...

I had expected to have a big ol' boot or cast, so to have normal-looking shoes, and ones that help me walk, was a very happy surprise.

So now that I can get around, I have no excuse not to get back to my regular "Hausfrau" duties (darn!). I don't have any pain (although maybe that's due to all the pain meds I take 4 times a day...keep 'em comin!). I also have to give myself an injection in the leg, every day for 6 weeks, to prevent thrombosis. Ugh!

The good news is that the doc said I can bike again in two weeks. Yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
Hey, since I can bike but can't ski anymore this season, maybe I can finally try out one of those Swiss SnowBikes...
I'll let you know how that one goes... (good thing I have the insurance now!)

Cheers,
Becky

The ski tour with an unusual ending

Today's ski tour started as most all of them do... Skiing up, up, up toward the big blue sky...

Definitely a nice way to spend a Friday! photo by Howard Brundrett

Such a beautiful place, and no one else around...

Our friend Kate puts new meaning in the term "add-on"... Halfway up our journey to the top of Mont Rosswies, our main destination, she challenged us to a scramble up to the top of another nearby mountain (Margelchopf). And boy what a scramble it was... steep with some loose rocks and ice patches... Hang on!

We made it to the top and were rewarded with a view including parts of Switzerland, Lichtenstein, and Austria...

photo by Howard Brundrett

Then it was time for the downward scramble, which is always more scary to me. Just have to go one foot- or hand-hold at a time... And whatever you do, don't look down!

photo by Howard Brundrett

Whew, we survived that - Now on to the next mountain...

Climb, climb, climb... Ski-touring actually feels a lot like climbing a long pass on a bike - You just find your rhythm and then keep it going... I like to pretend I put myself in my "easiest gear" and then I'm just spinning to the top... Pedal, pedal, pedal... Ski, ski, ski...

And it worked - We made it to the top of the second peak - Yeah!

photo by Howard Brundrett

Incredible views... All was good - And we were further rewarded by some great powder heading down. The powder was actually the best I have ever had the pleasure to ski in! Felt like floating instead of skiing. Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh....

A little further down though, things changed a little - the snow became a little more variable. Actually I think some kind of "snow-monster" must have jumped up and grabbed my ski - I don't know how else to explain it! Something caused me to go down, and right when it did I heard (and felt) a loud POP! Uh oh, that can't be good... I'm thinking as I'm lying face down in the snow with my skis crossed in front of me!

I finally was able to push myself upright, but when I tried to continue skiing down I realized I couldn't put any pressure on my left leg without loads of pain shooting thru it. So, with my friend Howard's help, I proceeded to push myself backwards until I could traverse and ski down on my one good leg to meet up with Kate at the bottom of the gully.

Once I made it to her I knew there was no way I could ski all the way down to the car. There's no ski patrol or other help around since we weren't at any ski resort, but luckily there is a helicopter rescue service called Rega, that is ready for situations just like this. I just never thought I'd actually need to use it - But it looked like this time I would! The really amazing thing is that I had just joined Rega the previous day, which includes insurance to cover the expenses for rescues like this. Is that lucky timing or what!

We didn't have any cell phone coverage in the gully we were in though, so we couldn't call the helicopter from there. Kate decided to ski ahead and down to the village so that she could call from there. Meanwhile I needed to put my skins on and ski to the top of the pass in order to meet the helicopter there. It was a climb that seemed to last a lifetime! Since it was icy in places I needed to use my ski-crampons, which I had never used before. The pain shot thru my left leg so bad, I felt like I was going to pass out at times, but I knew I had to make it to the top to get out of here, so had to keep pushing on....

Needless to say I was very happy to get to the top and sit down!

photo by Howard Brundrett

I had just enough time to put on some warm clothes and take off my skins when the helicopter showed up -- What a wonderful sight to see!
(video)

this is Howard Brundrett, who helped get me to the helicopter!

I was so relieved to not have to ski (or hop) all the way down the mountain --This was a much easier way to travel...

photo by Howard Brundrett

I was at the nearby hospital within minutes, where they quickly determined I had broken my left ankle, and I would need an operation to insert a metal plate. They said it was best to do the procedure right away, but first I proceeded to display my one-legged hopping skills around the hospital halls... must be a symptom of being in ski clothes way too long...

photo by Howard Brundrett

Well the operation went very smoothly - I was awake during the whole thing, just trying not to think about them screwing a plate into my body (ew!). That first night afterward was a long one - lots of "Schmerzen"(pain) and not much "Schlafen"(sleep), but in the morning I was surprised by a really nice Swiss scene outside my window...


The mountain on the left is actually the first one we climbed on Friday!

So now I am just pretending that this is my "spa weekend", full-service with sponge baths and good meals...

I am thankful this "adventure" happened in Switzerland - One of the best places in the world (if not THE best) for backcountry rescue as well as medical services. And as it's been said, "Was mich nicht umbringt, macht mich stärker" (What doesn't kill me makes me stronger)!

For more pictures click here. Special thanks to Howard who took many of the photos I have included, and of course for helping me get up the mountain to be picked up by the helicopter. What an "Abenteuer" (adventure).

Thanks for all your well-wishes!!
Becky

Announcement

Please check out an event announcement on my new special-purpose blog site (http://mds2008jeff.blogspot.com)!

Cheers,
Jeff

Happy New Year!

Here's to the bright New Year,
and a fond farewell to the old;
here's to the things that are yet to come,
and to the memories that we hold."
(author unknown)


We hope your holidays were good
and the new year brings you many new adventures!!!

Cheers,
Becky & Jeff



P.S. Be sure to check out our NEW online photo album,
at: http://picasaweb.google.com/HillSeeker

and a couple new blogs on India (part 1 & part 2)
plus a little snapshot of Christmas here.

Our first Swiss New Years Eve

On New Year's Eve day we went skiing with our favorite "Abenteuer"(adventure)-loving couple...They led us down a bunch of off-piste stuff... living up to their name! I even got to climb down a snow wall at one point...Also we did some practice using our avalanche rescue gear. We ended up being the last people on the mountain, and were pressured by the local ski patrol (or whatever they call it here) to get down before dark... They were eager to get out of there and on to the New Year's Eve parties! So we skied down the whole mountain with them at our heels - Very interesting considering it was only Jeff's fourth time ever on skis!

After all that, when we got home I had to take an hour-long nap just so I could make it to midnite! But I'm soooo glad I did -- The fireworks here in Zurich were incredible. The landscape is perfect for viewing something like this -- Lake Zurich is large and long, and along each side there rises up a hill where all the village homes are situated, so that the maximum number of homes have a view of the lake. It seemed like every single one of those homes was setting off some kind of firework after midnight - Everywhere we looked there were fireworks shooting in the air. And not just a simple bottle rocket - These were the serious kind!

We just stood on the terrace and watched in amazement while fireworks kept going off all down the lake -- From one end to the other, they kept going and going... Everywhere you looked there were fireworks. Then, as if that wasn't enough - The church bells started ringing!! It was a beautiful moment. One that seriously brought tears to our eyes. That all kept up for about half an hour, and then around 12:30am Zurich had their grand finale so there was a big fireworks display down on that end. It was simply amazing. The Swiss seem to do everything to the extreme, and this was no exception!

The video might help share the experience somewhat, but it's one of those times you really "had to be there". We wish you all could have been there with us! Happy new year!!

(sorry for the stumbling beginning of this video - we were frantically running outside to catch the moment!)

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

It was a sunny day here on the ski slopes, and the locals were celebrating the holiday with some local tunes, so we had to "do as the locals do" of course... don't forget the Glühwein :) ...



Happy Holidays to All!

Visit to India - Part 2

I just can’t get over how life here seems to be the TOTAL opposite of things in Switzerland... at least for little things like "rules" (!) It's so weird to go from a country where you HAVE to walk between the lines or else you get fined right away, to one where there seem to be no lines at all. Literally or figuratively!

On Tuesday we did the day trip from Delhi to see the Taj Mahal – a very impressive sight...

It was beautiful. Not as huge as we all expected, but the intricateness of the jewels in the marble was very impressive. And as with Delhi it was just interesting to just drive around and see how people live, and the contrast between rich and poor...

Every minute there was something new and different to see and experience. Just the final trip to get to and from the Taj Mahal was an adventure, riding in a rickshaw...

and then having to push through the local street vendors (who always seem to surround us the moment we’re in sight).

On Wednesday we had to get up very early for our flight to Chennai. The Kingfisher Airlines is one of the best I have ever flown - such wonderful service both at the airport and on the plane, it was incredible. When we arrived in Chennai the Abrahams and Chris and Manisha were all waiting and waving for us at the airport -- Definitely a much nicer reception than when we arrived in Delhi!! It was wonderful seeing them again, and having the family connection in such a faraway place.

Our hotel was very nice and we just hung out there for a while to rest. Eventually our car arrived (late) to take us to the Abrahams' for a late dinner. (Everything runs at least an hour late in India – Yet another sharp contrast to the Swiss and their timeliness!) It took almost an hour to go the short distance, because of the traffic here -- It is the worst traffic I have ever seen. We travelled with their cousins who are also staying in a nearby hotel - one is from Australia and one from Malaysia.

We had drinks and dinner at the family’s apartment... The dinner was supposedly "without any spice" but it still seemed spicy, even to me! It was nice to have the family all together on this adventure...On Thursday the Abrahams took us shopping at a nearby "mall" area... and I bought a local outfit to wear to the wedding reception. I wanted to get a saree, but that takes many days to prepare the correct size, so instead I tried on “salwar kameez”’s, which are like a dress with pants underneath, and very decorative.

Since shopping always makes one hungry, we took a break for lunch (a late one, of course). I wanted to try more local cuisine, so my new sister-in-law ordered for me a sort of sampler plate. Lots and lots of different things – and all for the equivalent of just a couple dollars! I don’t know what all was on it, but I just dug in without asking questions. You scoop up the food with the bread and eat it all with your fingers, including the rice. (Washing hands right before and after is a definite.) Needless to say it’s a messy affair, but delicious!

The next day we just enjoyed the warm weather by hanging out at the pool – Nice to get a chance to work on the tan in December! The big event – the wedding reception – was this evening, so we wanted to be rested up. While I laid soaking in the warm sunshine and enjoying the cool breeze, I felt very appreciative again... as I looked around at how nice our surroundings were at the hotel, you could hear all the horns blowing on the other side of the fence from the horrible traffic and know that people are having a much harder life just living day to day.

The wedding reception was really nice – There were over 500 guests, and we felt like sort of guests of honor being the groom’s family from “so far away”. Here's me and the happy couple...

Everyone was dressed to the hilt in all the different beautiful colors of sarees...

and the food was incredibly delicious. It will make going to an “Indian” restaurant anywhere else in the world pale by comparison!

The next day our new “in-laws” took us to a beach area outside Chennai, as well as to visit a temple and a crocodile farm. I can’t emphasize enough how nice it was to have their support there to show us around and help us with everything. I had to leave to fly back home the following night and was sad to have to go. I was genuinely appreciative to have had the opportunity to experience so much in such a short trip. It is definitely a life-altering event to visit a third world country, so if you ever have the opportunity I would suggest taking it.

ChekolaChekola (that's Cheers, at least according to one of our Indian drivers!),
Becky

Visit to India - Part 1

Hello and Greetings from Delhi!!

All I can say is - Whew. And wow! It is all overwhelming. This experience brings back a LOT of memories from Africa. Plus a bit more, since we don't have a tour company taking care of everything we do here. It's just me and my parents, figuring it out as we go!

My brain feels like total mush after travelling all yesterday and everything we’ve experienced today. The trip started out with my flight from Zurich almost not happening. They announced that it was delayed and may be cancelled, but at the last minute they got whatever problem fixed and we were able to take off. The delay meant I had a very tight connection in Paris, where I was to meet my parents on the plane to fly to India together. If I missed the flight I would have to wait until the next day to get another flight, and my parents wouldn’t know where I was or what to do when they got to Delhi. So, I really needed to catch that flight!

I ran thru the Paris airport and made it on the India-bound plane just in time!... Just in time to sit there for an extra hour before we could finally take off. I could have just taken my time after all! Oh well, the 8-hour flight went smoothly and I had a nice time catching up with my parents with some wine, reading and napping...and before we knew it we were in India! Here we just got off the plane...

When we arrived in Delhi it was almost midnight, and we were welcomed by a mile-long line for passport check. Since we were almost at the end of the line already, we decided to let it shorten a bit while we went to the restroom - only to discover when we returned that two more flights had arrived and made the line even longer - Doh! Ah, the joys and “glamour” of travel. Who would have expected so many people there at 1am?
After surviving the looooong wait and having our passports approved, we went to pick up our baggage - only to find that it still hadn't arrived yet -- and we had disembarked the plane over an hour and a half earlier!! We waited still another half hour watching the baggage belt go verrrrrry sloooooooowly by. There was dust all in the air in the airport, seemingly from some construction they had been doing.

When we finally collected our belongings we looked for our driver who would take us to our hotel. Unfortunately among the throngs and throngs of people welcoming the arriving passengers, no sign had my name on it like it was supposed to. I used a phone to call our hotel and they said that the driver had given up on us since our flight was late and the wait was so long. Well isn't that nice, especially since it was pre-paid!! So we ended up taking a taxi. That experience was a separate adventure in itself - too much to put into words, so just remind me to tell you next time I see you in person. Let's just say we were really glad to finally see the hotel and to arrive with all our bags and all our people together and in one piece!!

The hotel was bare-bones basic, but relatively clean. The windows would not close fully, which was worrisome with mosquitoes and their accompanying malaria risk. There was no tub or shower - just a water faucet on a side of the bathroom.

The noise outside on the streets was never-ending -- horns honking constantly, Indian music playing, bells ringing from rickshaws, people yelling, more horns honking on and on and on... But we were so tired we finally fell asleep and slept thru it all! (of course earplugs are definitely a travelers' best friend).

In the morning we decided that a change of hotels was in order. We got connected with a local tour agency who helped us find a better place and also set up a car and driver for us to get around the next three days. So we moved to the new hotel, which was a very welcome haven after all the hecticness. This one even has a tub AND a shower!

We spent the rest of the day touring Delhi. It is hard to put into words what a moving experience it is to see a place like this in person. There seem to be no rules for driving - the lane lines are ignored, and horns are constantly blared while cars push ahead into spaces you didn't think previously existed, along with rickshaws, bikes, motorbikes, people, ox-carts, camels...

lots of cattle crossings...

everything vies for position to get ahead...

There are people sleeping on the sidewalks and children sitting by fires on the corner of the road...

people selling anything you can think of, and people eating right next to people relieving themselves... I really don't know how to describe it, there was so much to see at once and so many emotions that it created. There are a lot more pics in the picture album here.

For lunch we ate at a wonderful restaurant and it was my parents' very first experience having Indian cuisine. They can't take spicy things, so I knew it might make for quite a challenge here... But they loved it!

And I did too -- so much flavor, what's not to love. Our driver dined with us and helped us pick out things from the menu. He is a great guy and I would recommend him to anyone travelling to the Delhi area.

Well after all this we are exhausted so time to rest before dinner... It was a big day filled with seeing many many different things, and witnessing first-hand how there are lots of people in this world that have hard lives where every day it is a challenge to obtain food and a clean place to rest their head. It especially hits home when I was reading some of my emails just now, and there was one from a company selling things for Christmas which said something about how "the holidays are so exhausting and overwhelming". Of course it is true, in our world it can be a "stressful" time if we let ourselves get bogged down with all the expectations we put on ourselves. But hopefully we can remember just how GOOD we all have it in life - so comfortable, so convenient. We have it downright easy compared to so many other people in this world!!

More later...