June 9-15, 2019 The Matterhorn!

We spent most of the week in Switzerland doing apartment inspections and enjoying the beauty of the Alps.  One of the benefits of serving in the Alpine Mission is getting to see some of the most beautiful places in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.  We are not on a vacation - the reward of getting to see The Matterhorn in Zermatt Switzerland was at the end of two very busy and tiring days of inspecting missionary apartments.  We have been planning this project for over a month with questionnaires to find out needs and repairs so that we could go prepared with the right tools, supplies and items they need in their apartments.  We spent several days putting that together and then shopping for all of the needed items.  Summer is upon us and many needed additional fans.  Our car was filled to capacity with fans and vacuums, towels, sheets, pillows, etc.  We were so glad to get across the border with no problems with the car so full of goods from Germany!

We began on Wednesday morning and first stop we sanded and painted the window frame, door frame and door of the bathroom of the first apartment.  Moisture and mold are real problems and we like to stay on top of it.  The paint had peeled down to bare wood and now it looks great.  Next stop we cleaned out a bathroom drain - Sisters with long hair and lots of hair in the drain.  Unfortunately we had to use chemicals to open the drain and it just about killed me.  We  had to go outside and get good air while it did its job.  We cleaned out their balcony drain that a plumber had come a few weeks ago and said there was no drain and they would have to call the owner.  Their balcony was like a swimming pool with no place for the water to drain.  I found the drain and all of the mud and leaves that had collected over the Winter.  We got it all cleaned, used the snake we thought we would use in the bathroom and all was good.  That is about the extent of our handyman abilities - we will leave the big stuff to the professionals.  We did 5 inspections on Wednesday, took the last two Elders to dinner (the other missionaries each got a chocolate candy bar) and we finally arrived in Zollikofen about 8:30 PM.

We met Elder & Sis. Koch at our Senior conference in May and they invited us to stay at their home when we go to Switzerland for apartment inspections.  They are such wonderful people.  The have a beautiful home 1 block from the Bern Temple with a beautiful garden, chickens, a cat and even an elevator in their home.  We enjoyed visiting with them and getting to know them a little better.  He retired 13 years ago as an electrical engineer - he designed the lighting for the tunnels on the highways in the Bern area.  They served a mission to Milan Italy 2 years ago.  They currently take care of all the legal and medical matters for the missionaries in Switzerland.  It is a big responsibility with all of the different laws and rules.

We continued our inspections on Thursday and completed another 5.  Parking for some of the apartments is almost impossible.  At one apartment we circled the streets for 30 minutes trying to find a place to park until I finally stopped on the side of a street and had Russ just go in and do the inspection while I sat in the car.  I cleaned a lot of stove vent hood fans - most of the missionaries did not know they existed and some had not been cleaned in a really long time.  I showed them what to do so maybe down the road they will think about doing it.  The best part was bringing all of the needed items and bearing gifts when we arrived.  It was nice to visit with the missionaries and to help them have good living conditions so that they can concentrate on the work.  We ended our inspections in Interlaken about 5:00 PM

 We went to their city center and found a fun Mexikanische restaurant to eat at.  It was a welcome relief from a long day and no real food since breakfast.  We sat and watched people come and go across the street at the Funky Chocolate Club and decided we needed to end our meal with a Swiss Chocolate.  We each picked one - AMAZING!  there really is a difference in good chocolate.

So, with our work completed, we were off to stay at a hotel and do a little sight seeing.  Let the adventure begin, and an adventure it was.  It was a 2 1/2 hour drive and we wanted to get there before dark as we knew it was about 20 minutes up a large mountain off the main highway.  Russ was not sure he liked how I was driving on the mountain road - there was so much to see and I had to keep my eyes on the narrow  windy road.  The drive was worth the view and wonderful room and hospitality of our AirBnB. 

We passed these funny looking train cars on our way and we wondered what they were for.  We also could not figure out why the GPS said it would take so long to get to where we were going.  We started seeing signs for a train and then a toll booth.  We knew we had to take a train the next day to get to Zermatt as they do not allow cars, but no one told us we also had to take our car on a train to even get to that side of the mountain.  What an adventure.  Those funny looking  rail cars we saw were what we would be riding on.  We drove onto the train, put the car in Park, set the hand brake, rolled up all of the windows and then hoped the car would stay on

the train as we went inside the mountain.  I have to say is was a little scary and way more motion than taking the car on the ferry across the Bodensee. 

Hotel Sonnenberg

Picture from Balcony of Hotel

Beautiful Sunset

 Russ just relaxing on the balcony after a very long day of working and driving.  We were "on top of the world" looking down and across to the little villages on the mountains.  It was so beautiful and peaceful. 

We could have stayed there for a few more days, but we were on the road again in the morning after a wonderful breakfast of yogurt, granola, fresh fruit and toast.  We were headed to
The Matterhorn and hoping for a nice day to be able to see it. 

 Train ride from Tasch to Zermatt.  This is a train that even the locals take to get to the city.  Many park their cars in Tasch at a parking garage and commute to Zermatt where they live.  In the Winter the train is the only way open to get there.  They sky was spectacular.  It  was supposed to be a sunny day and nice, but a storm moved in and it was warm but very windy. 

arrived in Zermatt

 We rode the cable car to Sunnegga - the first look out point.  It was so windy that you could hardly stand at the lookout and take pictures.  I almost lost my phone trying to take a picture in the wind.  So, sadly, we did not see the peak, but still got some nice pictures with the clouds. 

The Matterhorn

This is another angle of the Matterhorn looking from the city.  We kept hoping the clouds would break, but they never did. 
We received a call from Pres. Brown and he invited us to represent the Mission at CHAD - a YSA Conference for all Young Adults in Switzerland, Austria and Germany in July.  It is going to be in Southern Switzerland on the Italian border in a resort called Feisch.  It is 5 days and we will be working helping to keep the event running smoothly.  So, we might go back to the Matterhorn with that group as they have an excursion planned as part of the conference.  Time is going so fast and our schedule is getting very busy.  We enjoyed this experience and met some wonderful people along the way.  It is always fun when someone calls out, "hello Sister".  They recognize the name tag we wear and it starts some nice conversations. 

On the road again - a 5 hour drive home via the train ride and rail with the car.  We went through

 St. Nicklaus Switzerland.  I thought there would be some Christmas shops, but we only saw this welcome to the city as you enter town.

 Vineyards on every hillside.  This is located at the Schloss in Spiez on Interlaken lake.  It is a beautiful setting with the hillsides and lake. 

Church next to the Schloss. It was very plain and quaint.  There had just been a wedding and the reception was on the lawn above.  It was fun to see.

We arrived back in Freiburg about 8:00 on Friday evening.  So glad we have a place to get take out food just down the street.  We ordered food and rented the Disney Movie, Third Man on the Mountain about the first climb to the top or the Matterhorn.  If you haven't watched it - put it on your list for some entertaining history.  It was a great way to end a delightful week and to wind down from the drive.
Saturday was started with the Organ concert at the Munster,  shopping, a visit to inspect the Lahr apartment and cooking for Sunday and Monday.  It is way past my bedtime and I am already planning my Sunday afternoon nap. 
So grateful for the wonder and beauty of the creations of our Father in Heaven.  I continue to Stand All Amazed.  Today was transfer call day for our missionaries.  We will be saying good-bye to another Missionary, Elder Janousek who will be going to Austria.  We will also have two other new missionaries in the District.  Monday will be a lot of good-byes to the 3 who are moving to new assignments.  Our life is currently all about time being measured by transfers. 
Stay tuned for next week - the adventure continues and it is about to go in a whole new direction!

Happy Father's Day to all of the Father's who read this Blog.  We appreciate your contributions to your families and also to those you serve in all walks of life.  You DO Make a Difference.

Viel Liebe,
The Grimmett's