Alper Magrone – pasta and potatoes in a creamy cheese sauce, with caramelised onions? So far, so yellowy goodness. But the ingredient list is not done! Also added – pureed apple, and perhaps a hint of cinnamon. It kind of works, but I can’t help the feeling that someone dropped the dessert in the main and just thought “what the hell, I’m going to go with it”.
From the not-everything-is-dating-advice dept:
“Your wife really should take better care of you”, suggested the airport masseuse, after being amazed by the climbing-induced sorry state of my shoulders.
“Alas, I’m not married”, I offer.
“Well, your girlfriend then.”
“I don’t have one of those, either”
“Oh! Then you should go swimming!”
“Swimming is a good way to meet women in Switzerland?”
“What? No! I meant, swimming would be good for your shoulders.”
As the internet has taught me, “more cowbell” should improve anything. But I’d never actually heard them in their natural habitat – that is, attached to cows. My god, they’re loud. Other than that, hiking along a Swiss hilltop through an autumnal forest, with summery weather, is thoroughly enjoyable. To illustrate, this was my route (to just past the tower marked by the arrow):
It is hard to keep a straight face on the shuttle that links the two parts of Zurich airport. At the outbound platform, a sign declares “30 seconds to Heidi”- refering to a clever series of photos that, when driven past at speed, have a flickbook effect of animating said fair maiden. That’s fine. However, the yodelling, flugelhorns, mooing and, yes, more cowbells, are rather harder to take seriously.
Communal dining seems to be very much a thing. I loved that cafe-culture was in full effect, with almost every eatery spilling out onto the streetspace around it, and hordes of people picnicking, enjoying takeaway, or just relaxing with a magazine alongside the river. On my first day I found one particularly popular bratwurst van, where the clientele spanned the range from immaculately suited financiers, via families with young children, or my tourist self, to a biker gang in leathers! It took me a very long time to find a table, then discovered why – you don’t sit by yourself, and if there’s space at your table complete strangers will join you (as two did). You don’t say much, but it feels a lot less lonely for a solo traveller like me.