Produce at the grocery store

When you've chosen your veggies, you take them to a scale and select the appropriate number. The scale 

prints out a small sticker with a bar code that gets scanned at the check-out.

Swiss keys

Our home, work and mailbox keys.

Stairwell at Neuchâtel's history museum

The walls of Neuchâtel's history museum are painted a deep crimson. The two-room museum has six dioramas depicting Neuchâtel's growth from a tiny village to the city it is today.

Bern's buildings

In contrast to Neuchatel's overall yellow glow, Bern's older buildings were constructed out of the local grey-green sandstone. This is the police office, formerly the city orphanage.

Sphinxes at the Hôtel DuPeyrou

The entrance to the grounds of the Hôtel DuPeyrou is flanked by two sphinxes. Many of the older buildings
in town were built with yellow limestone, which Alexander Dumas said made Neuchatel appear to have been
carved out of butter.

Hôtel DuPeyrou

The manicured garden of the Hôtel DuPeyrou. Built in the 1760s, the hotel now contains 

a fancy restaurant and meeting rooms.

Swiss army

We frequently see groups of young men in uniform at the train station, on their way 

to complete another period of military service.

Nano mania (part 3)

Six nanos: Vampi, Slurp, Ramboss, Chickie, Klorg, and Bizarro.

Nano mania (part 2)

My nano toy packages.

Manifestation!

Most road signs are easier to decipher than this one.

Nano mania

I've been collecting "nanos" from the Migros grocery store for the last couple weeks. I can't wait to
open the packages to find out what a nano actually is.

Bevaix vendange mural

A mural of the grape harvest in Bevaix, a nearby village that we visited on Sunday.

Blue tits

Probably the most common bird at the bird feeders in our yard are blue tits (Parus caeruleus).

Winter aconite

A patch of early-blooming Winter aconite (Eranthis hyemalis) is blooming in our yard.

Lausanne's train station

The beautiful ceiling and chandelier in the main hall of Lausanne's train station.

Swiss cheese

Saturday is market day for many towns. A cheese vendor at Lausanne's Saturday market.

Lausanne's Hôtel de Ville (City Hall)

A pair of these winged creatures flank Lausanne's Hôtel de Ville.

Théâtre Beaulieu

The lovely mid-century modern chandelier at the Théâtre Beaulieu, where the Prix de Lausanne is held.

Prix de Lausanne

On Saturday, we attended the morning session at the Prix de Lausanne, an annual ballet competition. It seemed like half the competitors in the 15 and 16 year old bracket, and slightly less than half the audience, were from Japan. This is Kaname Uenishi, from Hiroshima, performing her classical variation from La Bayadere.

Thun train station mural

I wish I knew what it says. The combination of old German script and Swiss German dialect renders 

the text essentially indecipherable to me.

Thun skyline

This is a view from one of the south-facing windows of the Schlossmuseum. Lake Thun is barely visible.

William Tell

Figurine of Swiss hero, William Tell, and his son at the Schlossmuseum Thun.

Thun's castle museum

We stopped in Thun (pronounced "tune") on our way to the Alps to meet up with a friend of Katie's 

and to visit the Schlossmuseum Thun. One of five castles built around Lake Thun, it is now 

a museum of local history, with great views of the town, lake and mountains.