It’s been a while since I’ve posted. Tyler and I have been sadly distracted since our return from Rome with a very sick kitty. Our sweet Willie decided to stop eating a few weeks ago and lost a massive amount of weight in a very short period of time. All his body fat (and if you’ve met him, you know that’s a lot) was directed to his liver causing it to shut down. He was diagnosed with hepatic lipidosis and has advanced stage liver disease. He spent a week in the vet hospital getting fluids and food and we are happy to report that he’s back home with us and starting to improve. It will be a long road to recovery but we’re hopeful and pleased with his progress so far. He’s starting eating a bit on his own but still requires hand/force feeding three times a day. He’s a tough cookie and hope he’s got a few more lives left; he’s only used up about 3 (that we KNOW of) so far!
In more exciting news, the season changed seemingly overnight! Last Friday it looked like this out.
This morning we woke up to this!
Zurich loves Christmas. Since there is no Thanksgiving, the holiday season has reigned unchecked for the the entire month of November. The department stores are fully stocked and decorated. There are two Christmas markets, one open air at the opera plaza and a covered one at the main train station. At the Christmas markets you’ll find food stalls of all kinds (from your typical bratwursts to American style BBQ and Himalayan food). There are also crafts and gifts stalls, a skating rink and at the train station, a giant Christmas tree decorated with Swarovski crystals. And all around the city you can find mulled wine kiosks on many street corners. I will visit the markets at night to get some pictures but here is the main shopping street, the Bahnhofstrasse the other night all lit up.
And here are some Santas outside of a sporting goods store giving out cured meats and cheese.
With the change in weather, Tyler and I are exploring some indoor activities. Last weekend we went to the wonderful Kunsthaus Museum. We went to check out a special exhibit of Spanish Surrealist painter Joan Miro. We decided while we were there to check out their permanent collection and were floored by the quality and breadth. There we saw masterworks by Picasso, Degas, Chagall, Monet, van Gogh, Pissaro, Rousseau, Munch, Mondrian, the Dutch masters and many more. Even better was the fact that there were no lines or crowds. It was mostly just us and a few starry eyed art students. At one point we found ourselves in a room with three wall sized waterlillies paintings by Monet and not another sole besides us and one girl quietly sketching in the corner. It was amazing, especially having just come from Rome where we viewed the Sistine Chapel with hundreds of other visitors being shushed and reprimanded for taking photos by armed guards. The Kunsthaus Museum is now high on our list of places to take visiting guests! We were there for several hours and still didn’t see everything and they have special shows and collections regularly throughout the year.
Our holiday travel plans are somewhat up in the air at this time as we’re waiting to see how Willie recovers. In the meantime we’re enjoying the hush of the snow and the the beauty of the Swiss holiday season. We’re looking forward to breaking in our snowboots and taking some more hikes and exploring other trappings of the season. On Thanksgiving we have reservations for a Raclette restaurant (raclette, not fondue, being the actual Swiss national dish) and on Saturday we will entertain our first ever guests as my friend Ellie and her husband Brian are coming over for dinner. I wish everybody a wonderful Thanksgiving. It’s so hard to be away from my family on this holiday in particular and I’m missing them very much but am feeling so very thankful to be have this opportunity to experience and explore this part of the world with the love of my life.