A room with a view: Grindelwald, Switzerland

This post was mostly written over the weekend, all it needed were a few final proof reads and some extra pictures (because you can never post too many pictures of this beauty of a place) before hitting the publish button and sending it into the world wide interwebs. Then, instead of being productive and getting straight to it, I plonked my butt down and started catching up on my bloglovin feed and came across Kaelene's post on her "Room with a view" which was linking up with Emma's September link up. Seeing as I have literally just returned from a long weekend which happened to have a room with the best view ever, I decided to bite the bullet and join in on my first ever link up.  Below are a few little bits and pieces we did during our short stay in Grindelwald, our room certainly had a view (hello Eiger?!) and the views from the car, train and every other aspect of our holiday were just about as spectacular.  So without further ado, a brief, by the numbers, recap on our time in  a mountain paradise.

1 Beautiful Chalet overlooking the Eiger and the Lower Grindelwald Glacier.

4 Breakfasts eaten on our little deck overlooking the most tranquil setting (we certainly won on the accommodation front). Below is what I woke up to for four days straight.... I know! 

4 Cable car rides on death-defying cable cars that are too steep and too high…hello sweaty palms.

1 Flying Fox ride down a steep stretch of a mountain at speeds of up to 84km per hour. I may have shed a tear of nerves as I was being harnessed in, Hamish may have laughed at this.

3 Avalanches seen firsthand – two in the Upper Grindelwald glacier and one on the train down from Jungfraujoch - these beasts grumble and roar like its nobodies business!

2 Trains taken to get to the top of Europe, aka Jungfraujoch.

1 Walk along the Jungfraujoch col at approx. 3400m resulting in a minor case of altitude sickness.

2 circuits walked around the Ice palace at Jungfraujoch (yes we liked this attraction, especially the slippery, slidey, smooth floor).

1 Cheese Fondue devoured in approx. 90 seconds. (You would of thought I would have learnt my lesson after the last time in Geneva!) 

4 Breakfasts eaten on our little deck overlooking the most tranquil setting (we certainly won on the accommodation front).

1 Game of chess played with Lake Brienz in the background.

3 Hikes up to stunning waterfalls, one of these walks also was not up an actual path but rather the steep (read sheer) debris of a rock fall. We discovered this at the top, but it’s okay, we lived.

1 Ride down the mountain on a Trottibike. No pedals are needed (hence the bike has no such thing). I think my hand was on the break 99.9% of the time and I was still going faster than I would have liked but I suppose that’s what happens when you scooter down a mountain.

1 Lunch eaten at a picturesque skiing town (Kleine Scheidigg) with the North Face of the Eiger as it’s backdrop.

1 Bazillion bells heard, just gently ringing from the necks of all the cows and goats, as they do in the Alps.

2 Times down the super slide with flashing lights at the Grindelwald leisure centre – this thing was like being in a euro-trash disco for 20 seconds a pop. (There are no pics of this, so you will have to use your imagination...)

1 Swim in the near empty indoor pool – with the glass windows and the view of the mountains behind us.

1 too many slices of Swiss cheese consumed (my name rhymes with the darn thing, I have no hope).

Cheese does this to me.

1 Unforgettable holiday to be repeated every single year. 

I heart Buenos Aires

In 2012, I fell in love with Buenos Aires. It wasn't a planned love, in fact it was the opposite. After the beauty and breathtaking scenery of Rio, when we  arrived in Argentina, (exhausted from partying it up at the Carnival) the grey city landscape of Buenos Aires did nothing to inspire me.  I felt that strange pang of "homesickness" I sometimes feel when moving on to the next stage of a holiday,  for the part of a holiday that had ended, and I really wanted to go back to Rio.

Boy, was I wrong in my quick judgement of this city. I honestly have no idea when the transition happened. It must have been a gradual happening, because I don't remember suddenly thinking "wow, this place is amazing". But when we left, after just three days there, I felt heartbroken.

Something about Buenos Aires is unobtrusively magical. It isn't the architecture, which, while nice, doesn't hold a flame to some of the buildings in Europe. It isn't the city layout, which felt more practical than beautiful. It isn't the parks or beaches - bar one or two parks we didn't see too many and we didn't even make it down to the beaches. It is everything you can't explain. It is the culture, the friendly people, the atmosphere, the shabby-chicness, the vibe, the unassuming beauty that you have to look for to see.  Unfortunately, I only had my point and shoot at this stage of my travels, but hopefully some of the below pictures will help to portray more of my love for this city. Words seem inadequate and if I am honest, I don't remember the names of the neighbourhoods we visited, or the restaurants we ate at, I don't remember the advice I was given and the advice I swore to remember to give to others, it has all just merged into this beautiful, rose-tinted memory of a brief, but perfect romance.

After eating Argentinian steak, I can now say for certain, South African steak wins. Taste-wise they are just as good, but value for money and side dishes goes to South Africa....(wahey South Africa!!)

These guys agreed with me about the Steak...

Sunday Stories - 3 weeks in 1 (!!)

We-eell, hello there strangers! Life has gotten the best of me lately (not complaining) and I have not had a single second to sit down and blog. That may not be entirely true, I had seconds, I just chose to use them on sleeping. So in lieu of missing two Sunday Stories (and countless other travel posts I had planned) I am going to squish the past three weeks into one Sunday Stories post.   Without further ado:


Doing:  The past three weeks have been non stop crazy, but I can honestly say I have loved every second! We spent some time in Les Sables d'Olonne on the West coast of France and it was magnificent. We squeezed in beach days, bike rides, scenic road trips and just enjoyed the mini break and time spent with Hamish's parents.  Since returning from France it has been pretty jam packed - something on just about every night, I am in need of another break! The highlights include a girls night at Bubbledog, watching the most amazing circus(ey) show, Limbo, at the London Wonderground, catching up with a special family friend who actually suggested Limbo (hi Rhys), the Big Bus London blogger event where I got to meet some of my favourite bloggers in real life and was also introduced to some new awesome ones. And of course, the weather of late been pretty enjoyable too which has led to an impromptu  BBQ/chicken-dance night with some friends, a much needed breakfast date in central London with the beautiful Margs and Gaelin, a lovely picnic in Canary Wharf after work with good wine and good company and a great night out for the most scrumptious dinner at Sam and Elly's followed by some putt putt (mini-golf) in the dark (it got messy).  Needless to say, I am exhausted.

Exercising: The week we were in France, this was non-existent, but since then I have been pretty committed to burning off all the cheese, bread and wine I consumed across the channel. I have managed to fit in a few spinning classes, swims, weights circuits, 6km runs and of course, my beloved Body Pump classes. How I wish I had a healthy shoulder and could fully get into some of these exercises, kicking 40 lengths in the pool is nowhere near as fun as real swimming, not to mention skipping all the Body Pump and circuit weights aimed at shoulders and STILL being in pain. Sigh :( 

Eating: I Finally managed to visit Bubbledogs and try one of their famous hot dogs, it did not disappoint! I have found my new favourite snack EVER...Greek Yoghurt with honey, but it has to be the brand in the picture at the end of the post. France was pretty harsh on the waistline, we lived on fresh bread, all the cheese's (personal favourite is Comte...mmm), creme brulee and of course French wine (hence the need to throw myself into the gym as soon as we returned!). The picnic in the park consisting of the same diet I lived on in France, the delicious taco(s) eaten at Sam and Elly's and the two impromptu Bbq/Braai's, were a slight deviation from the healthy-gym-going lifestyle I was hoping to follow post France.  BUT....no regrets from this girl!

Reading: Finished the Goldfinch - I was slightly disappointed with the ending, but still really enjoyed the book as a whole. I also read the first two books of the Divergent Trilogy, (I loved the movie and the book was just as good), I have now started the the third one, Allegiance. I also managed to fit in a bit of mindless chick lit, Here's Looking at You, which I shamelessly loved.

Wanting: Sleep and to have summer working hours  and/or some extra days of leave magically sent my way. With Hong Kong, the Philippines and Switzerland booked in for the coming months, I am running rather low on leave for the year :(

Capturing: Bits and pieces of all the above: