Dresden Day 1: Neustadt and Semperoper

Exams and Christmas are over, and I'm back! For now, here's another tale from Tristan's and my time in Europe in the summer of 2015.

When we decided to go to Dresden, I was adamant about one thing: I really, really, wanted to stay in the Neustadt (New Town). As it turned out, all the hostels in Dresden are located in the Neustadt…and as it further turned out, all were already booked. Oops (we’ll learn one day, I promise!).

Back in Winnipeg: Photos of Oak Hammock Marsh

I must once again apologize for belated and lacking posts. There have been some things in my personal life that have prevented me from writing. With that not necessarily being resolved and exams coming up, I can't promise that next week's post will be on time either, so please bear with me.

A few weeks ago, several of us headed out to Oak Hammock Marsh for the day, to do some hiking and get out of the city for a bit. Oak Hammock is a nature centre and bird sanctuary, not far north of the city. It's isolated enough that you really feel that you're in nature, but close enough that a day trip is perfectly viable.

A Quiet Day on the Walensee

A glimpse of the Walensee (Lake Walen) out of a train window, brilliant turquoise water against a backdrop of sheer mountains seemingly plunging straight into the lake, was what started the weekend plan. I had first seen the lake, one of Switzerland’s deepest and largest, while on the way to Chur; when Michael and I decided to plan a hiking weekend together, it was one of the destinations I suggested and the one that we quickly agreed on.

5-Seen-Wanderung, Switzerland's Most Popular Hike

It started when I sent my my friend Michael (yes, the same one who was my host and guide in Baden) pictures of the hike I did at the Sardona Tectonic Area. In response, he expressed his envy and admiration, saying “how do you guys find all these amazing places to hike in?!”

Visiting Bern, Lucerne, and Mount Titlis with ThinkSwiss

The group photo. Thanks to Tania Humair, Ursula Wyss, and Presence Switzerland.

One aspect of the ThinkSwiss program – the program that brought me to Switzerland – is what the coordinators call the “networking event”. Fairly typical, I think, of exchange programs, the event is a two-day organized excursion with the goal of having participants meet their fellow ThinkSwiss scholars (as we are called), learn some more about the destination country, and get a glimpse of some of Switzerland’s biggest tourist sights.

The Best Way to Visit Jungfraujoch

I find myself continually apologizing for delayed blog posts, and this one is no exception. I'm still trying to get back to a regular posting schedule since getting home, but school and work keep getting in the way. I'll do my best to post regularly again, however!

I also wrote a blog post for the ThinkSwiss blog on my research in Switzerland in between this and my last post on here.

Alright, alright, I’ll give away the answer to my clickbait headline right at the start. The best way to visit Jungfraujoch, one of Switzerland’s most popular tourist spots, is…*drumroll please*…as a scientist.

Zürich in Two Visits

First Visit

Despite Zürich being the next closest city to where I’m living in Switzerland, I have to admit that I’ve passed through and changed trains there far more often than I’ve actually been there…#badtourist #immoreinterestedinhiking #sorrynotsorry

I’ve only been to Zürich twice, both times only for fairly short visits.

A Day Trip to Rhine Falls

In my first post about Switzerland, I mentioned that a group of my housemates (the guesthouse people) took a half-day trip to the Rhine Falls. The falls themselves are said to be Europe's biggest waterfalls, and a popular tourist attraction. We were there in late June , and on a day when the weather was very changeable - alternating showers and hot sun - but it was still crowded. On a hot day in the height of the tourist season, I suspect the falls would be completely packed.

It was still one of the nicer days I'd experienced in Switzerland up until that point. My first two weeks in Switzerland consisted of near-constant rain and cloudiness, so alternating showers and sun were a definite improvement!

The constant rain did have another advantage: the Rhine was carrying unusually high levels of water, to the point where we heard high-water warnings on the radio while driving to the falls (this may have amused the German-speakers). We had the hope that high water levels would make for particularly beautiful falls; this turned out to be the case.