"There are not a lot of notes for a wonderful week of vacation. Six lines of notes, several hundred digital photos, and extraordinary memories. And I guess it all starts with http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04631.JPG, which shows Andrea and Rachel, still wet from the New York rainstorm (0623.html), waiting in line to get on the Continental flight to Zurich. Then there is a photo of Rachel asleep, followed by a couple of photos of Rachel and Andrea in the train station at the Zurich Airport, and another photo of Rachel asleep, and Andrea and I as ghosts in the window. The Swiss country side quickly becomes the large lake at Interlaken, Switzerland. So we arrived at the train station at about 10:00 on Saturday morning, 03 June 2006, after leaving the house early on Friday morning. And when we got to the train station, we took our bags off, and looked, and looked, and the ladies started to look at me like, 'What have you got us into?'
Well, it wasn't long before this big Swiss guy was hugging me, and we were making introductions. We walked from the train station to Bruno's house, where we met his daughter, Annette, son-in-law, Marcel, and grandson Fabien ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04641.JPG), followed by a photo with Bruno, and then one with Annelese. After lunch, Bruno took us to see a wonderful waterfall, gorgeous mountains, beautiful wildflowers, and the only underground waterfall in Europe. I took a several photos and movies of this interesting waterfall. Then we met the family at a resort where Annette used to work. We drank out mountain water from a public pipe, and took a group photo with one of the famous mountains behind us ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04719.JPG). When we walked up one trail, we even saw an avalanche on one of the mountains. We visited a famous church next to a famous old bridge across one of the rivers we saw. Then we came back to Bruno and Annelese' house for a cheese fondue dinner. Andrea brought pecans from Texas and raincoats as gifts. Their backyard and house are beautiful. We walked downtown and crossed the river to watch the sunset and the big mountain turn pink. We were tired and it was a wonderful day.
Sunday, 04 June 2006, started with church ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04749.JPG). There is a famous Youth Hostel in Interlaken, which is on the street Bruno's house is on, and about half way to the church. Bruno is in the Branch Presidency, and is the Gospel Doctrine Teacher. He was like a one-man show. We did not understand the German, and it still felt good to be at church. In the afternoon we went to a walk to another waterfall. Where we parked the car, they had the most wonderful swing. I could see building one of these for the Nelson Cabin (0628.html) on Cedar Mountain ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04758.JPG). On our walk we counted the rings on big tree that had been harvested, Andrea petted a cow, and we saw the neatest waterfall ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04766-4768.jpg). I should point out this photo was made by merging several photos together using some public domain software Marcel gave me. I have used this continually since we got then to put together panorama photos. On the way back to the house we stopped and took photos of mountains and scenery. Another wonderful dinner, and it was time to go to bed and get over the jet lag.
Monday, 05 June 2006, Bruno and Annelese drove us to Bern. The first thing we saw afte we arrived at the parking lot was "Alpines Museum" ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04800.JPG). Andrea got the biggest kick out of this, and the reason is her father's full name is Alpine Morris Shirts. We saw churches, flowers, water fountains like by the new Concert Hall in Cedar City, Burger King (Rachel worked at Burger King all through college), and the famous very old clock tower ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04838-04840.jpg). We went to shops, and saw a famous church that played a role in the life of our ancestor Charlemagne. We climbed a tower and took panorama photos of the city, captured a photos of lovers in the park, fed pigeons and bears, and provided the Steinle's lunch. We visited the Temple grounds in Zollekoffen ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04892.JPG).
Then Bruno drove the three of us back to Interlaken via some of the towns in my genealogy on the Hafen side. We went to Bowil, where if you zoom on the photo I took it says Stucki – Beck, which means Stucki's bakery ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04893.JPG http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060602-05_NewYork-Switzerland/DSC04896.JPG), which was in old movies, and which was there when the Stuki's left this area to immigrate to Santa Clara. There were a lot of Stuki tombstones in the cemetery. The old house next to the church is still used as a farm house. We also visited Rothenbach, another town on family genealogy sheets. The bottom line is Andrea and I will need to spend a summer in Interlaken doing genealogy and family research. After all, as the digital photos so nicely show, this is one of the prettiest places on the face of planet Earth.
It was sad to leave our new found home away from home and our rediscovered friends on Tuesday morning, 06 June 2006. Anyway, we got up and walked to the train station with our roller bags, and started our trip from Interlaken to Piza. We actually stopped in Florence, where we took a cab for one-half of a block to the Hotel Boccaccio. It was one of the nicest hotels we stayed in. We had a nice balcony window looking at the plaza in front of the train station. After dropping off our bags, we took the train to Piza, where we went to museums, and climbed to the top of the leaning Tower of Piza. T took several panorama photos, and got a nice photo of Rachel holding up the leaning tower ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060606-07_Switzerland-Florence/DSC05013.JPG). We had a very nice dinner with the Leaning Tower of Piza in the background. It was late when we got back to Florence and to our hotel.
I enjoyed our time in Florence on Wednesday, 07 June 2006. There were some ghosts in my memory at places we visited. The most significant was Basilica Santuario della SS. Annunziata ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060606-07_Switzerland-Florence/DSC05044.JPG), which was the same door Marti and I walked through on our way to a special program put on by the EAGE on my previous visit to Florence with the EAGE in 1992 (http://www.walden3d.com/thoughtlets/2006/images/nelson_ME_HR.gif), which trip was close to a bribe as an attempt to get her to quit talking about divorce. There was a museum dedicated to Leonardo di Vinci, which was new to me. It was especially fun, because there were mock-ups of many of the inventions. Some we take for granted today. Some of these inventions still looked out of this world to me. Of course we spent time to see Michelangeo's statute of David, and all of the beautiful art work in the museum where this statue is. It is hard to believe the big cathedral has been there as long as it has. The marble it was built out of looks like a modern building built in Beijing in the last few years. The Uffizi is phenomenal. Some of the rooms seem like they are 18th Century pornography, but tasteful pornography. There are art pieces almost reaching the caliber of Ken Turner. Although I am assured, I'm one of very few art lovers in the world who would make that comparison in 2006. In 2100, maybe. I love the Byzantine paintings of Christ, the ones with the halo around his head, like http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060606-07_Switzerland-Florence/DSC05112.JPG, and I recently decided they are equivalent to photos we take of stars with our biggest telescopes today, like images/061130_Pelican_Nebula_halos.jpg. We saw beautiful artwork in chalk on the street. We watched street mimes with ties and wigs that make them look like they are running. We went to a famous bridge and ate really good ice cream. My camera fell apart, and I walked all the way back up by the cathedral to an eyeglass store, and they had screws that fit and they fixed it for free. While I did this Andrea looked at some famous gardens, and Rachel hung out on the bridge. Then we went for a shortcut walk to see the copper statute of David ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060606-07_Switzerland-Florence/DSC05131.JPG), and to watch the sunset over the city ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060606-07_Switzerland-Florence/DSC05132-05134.jpg). It was not a shortcut, and we were all tired by the time we got to the top of the second hill. It was also too late to walk back to the Hotel Boccaccio to pick up our bags and get to the Florence train station in time for our train to Rome. So we took a cab. I was pleased, because I'm not used to all of this walking and I was really tired. In fact I had blisters on my feet the next day, we walked so much. Oh well!
Thursday, 08 June 2006, was our first day in Rome. Rachel liked to look out the window of our hotel room in Rome and do her makeup ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060608-09_Rome/DSC05137.JPG). There were a lot of photos taken in Rome, and there were a lot of things we visited, so this section will be less comprehensive than the above sections. We started out first thing in the morning in front of the Basilica ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060608-09_Rome/DSC05139-05143_cropped.JPG), where we met an aggressive young American who became our tour guide. There was a fairly long line. Once we got into the first courtyard, there was a neat moving statute of a world within a world, which I really like ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060608-09_Rome/DSC05155.JPG). There were statutes and painted ceilings, and painted hallways, and maps, and paintings galore. The Sistine Chapel is absolutely amazing. Michelangelo's message seems to have multiple holograpic levels of meaning. The guards did not want us to take photos in there, and so I didn't. The highlight of the trip for Rachel was seeing Michelango's statute the Pieta ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060608-09_Rome/DSC05220.JPG). Rachel had explained to me earlier how a photo of this statute had affected her like the painting of Christ I first saw in Istanbul, and which hangs in our front hallway, affected me. As I watched her look at and ponder the significance of the message of this statute ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060608-09_Rome/DSC05221.JPG) there was a comforting feeling come over me that despite all of the trials that come into each of our lives, Rachel will find and know our Lord and Savior. There were tears as this feeling swept over me, and there are tears as I write these words. It is impossible for me to put into words the love a father has for his children. I just hope these Thoughtlets let each of the ten of you realize my love for each of you at some time in your lives. The Basilica is absolutely amazing in size, scale, proportions, statues, paintings, and ambiance. Note I did not say spirit, because compared to feelings on Temple Square or at Nauvoo, there is a significant difference. It is impressive, and it is no wonder in my mind why it helps so many to lead better lives than they would without this anchor. I mailed postcards to my Primary Class from the Vatican City Post Office. Unlike the Post Cards I mailed to each of you from Vienna (0625.html), they all arrived. We walked down the street and ate pizza on a side street. Rachel was wiped out after the visit to Vatican City, and took a cab back to the hotel. Andrea and I went to see the Pantheon, 'Fontana di Trevi' where 'Three Coins in a Fountain" was shot, and we climbed a hill where government offices were and watched a beautiful sunset. We were also wiped out by the time we got back to the hotel.
Friday, 09 June 2006, was another very busy day. We walked to a famous statue of Moses, and we went to the Colleseum, where I took a lot of photos ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060608-09_Rome/DSC05310-05312.jpg). The ruins by the Colleseum were really neat, and we spent a lot of time exploring them. We could have spent several days learning history and studying these ruins. Absolutely fascinating. We found Circo Massimo, where the chariot races depicted in Ben Hur were run. It was just fascinating, and very tiring. Friday evening we caught a train to Venice. While we were on the train Sara Ellyn, telling us she got the job with Dell. I was very pleased, and probably because when she decided to not be a cook, I suggested she talk to Tyler Burgerner at Dell about a marketing job. Of course, she got the job on her own, and my connection was of no value. Oh well! We got to the town our hotel was at late. Andrea said it was a short walk to the hotel, and so we dragged our bags and walked and walked and walked and walked. We finally arrived at the hotel, only to find they had our cancellation of the double booking, and did not have a reservations for us. The proprietor had a fake eye, and it was creepy. This was probably our worst hotel of the trip. Oh well!
Saturday, 10 June 2006, we took a bus across the causeway and spent the day in Venice. I think we all agreed we were least impressed with Venice of any of the places we visited. And yet, as I look back over the photos, there were many things about Venice that stand out. We did not go on one of the famous boats, because they cost too much. Rachel was not interested in the glass factory, and so we stayed on the main island. Rachel loved feeding the pigeons ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/06060610_Venice/DSC05414.JPG). The church was fascinating, with lots of Byzantine mosaics and paintings of Christ and saints. The museum was very interesting, and the palace was phenomenal. In the palace there is one large banquet hall with one of the largest paintings in the world on one wall. I got there before Andrea and after Rachel, and as I set in this room for a long time, letting my mind go where it wanted and pondering the moment. My mind wondered to Red Cove (http://www.walden3d.com/Red_Cove), and I could imagine a very large meeting room/dance hall like this, with a giant Ken Turner painting all around and above the meeting room/dance floor. I could see it as an extension of the seminar Todd Staheli talked about having for my friends who like to think. The idea was this would become an annual meeting in Cedar City (2003/0324.html). Maybe it actually will happen some day. I've continued to think about this, particularly in light of my work with An Open Mind. Time will tell. After time on the square, and in the church, museums, and palace, we found a nice restaurant and had an excellent lunch. Joe Roberts called while we were at the Stalastaste Restaurant about the tomatoes on his land in Hockley, wondering if members of the church would be interested in having some. We talked a while about it, and I told him I'd get word to the Relief Society to see if they were interested. Mandy Jones and her husband Arnold were staying at our house to watch it. So when I talked to her, I asked her to call Sister McPherson and Sister Minor. And there were a bunch of folks who got the tomatoes. After our lunch, we went back out to the square and went to the top of the tower. While we were on top of the tower, Aunt Luana called about the Nelson Reunion. I confirmed our intention to attend, and then I handed the phone to Andrea. Andrea talked to her for a while, as we were enjoying the view ( http://www.walden3d.com/photos/Trips/Europe_2006/060610_Venice/DSC05458-05469.jpg). I think we told her where we were before we hung up the phone. It is kind of surreal to be in a place like this and to be talking to folks in Texas and Utah as if they were next door. Both of these calls originated early on the Saturday morning. We walked down the streets, crossed the bridges, found a famous bridge, ate ice cream, found a Burger King, took a ride on a tour boat, and generally had a good time. Even though we were not very impressed with Venice during our visit, many months later, when we saw the new James Bond movie (0648.html), we were blown away with having been at all of the sites where some of the action scenes occurred. Again we were tired when we got back to the hotel.
Sunday morning, 11 June 2006, we got up early and this time we took a very expensive taxi to the train station. As I recall we spent a lot of the time on the train sleeping. I think I finished the book I was reading about Joseph Smith. There was a soccer coach and his wife from the midwest on the train. They were going to see the World Cup. We talked about Ben and his continued interest in soccer. And there were plugs on the train, so I built a lot of the panorama photos now at the web site. However, I think I mostly slept. When we got to Vienna, and to our bed and breakfast we were very pleased. It was an old house, which has been owned by the same family for many generations. They have opened it up as a hotel, and they have a phenomenal breakfast downstairs each morning. There is a kitchen, and a fridge, and the house is full of really neat antiques and paintings. It was a fun place to settle into for our last week in Europe. Andrea and I went out and found a neighborhood store just down the street, where we bout ham, cheese, water, fruit, granola, milk and other essentials. There was a nice young couple in the store. He was the son of the owner, and was visiting to help. She was his girlfriend and is hoping he will marry her. He has a Masters Degree from UT Austin, and she is taking a year off of work to write a novel. We had a wonderful discussion with her about the church, and with him about automated code generation. He is doing some neat work, and the reference I wrote down was http://www.flybywire.com (it doesn't seem to work), and his name is Clemens. We brought a Book of Mormon back to them and continued our discussion. It was fun. That evening I phoned Riley Skeen's daughter, Sister Cassie Skeen, who is serving her mission in Italy. It was fun to talk to her, and it felt so good to know the positive influence I have had through encouraging Riley to serve a mission back when we were in college. Life is good. There are a lot of good memories. Isn't it amazing how six lines of notes can be turned into such a cornucopia of memories, given some digital photos of our vacation in Switzerland and Italy."
