Cow Bells

OHHHHH, there is a place where cows really wear cowbells! All over Switzerland the cows wear bell collars so the owners can locate them at the far corners of the pastures (image from The Guardian). It is known as "the sound of the Alps." I took lots of photos of the cows but couldn't catch one up close like this one...
Interestingly, in Austria some neighbors won a recent lawsuit requiring a farmer to remove the bells from his cows. Apparently the clanging all night, especially at the metal watering trough, kept neighbors awake.

Dying Lion of Lucerne, Switzerland

This is the dying lion....a 10 foot long sculpture in the rock face. It was created in 1820. "It commemorates the Swiss Guards who were massacred in 1792 during the French Revolution, when revolutionaries stormed the Tuileries Palace in Paris, France. Mark Twain praised the sculpture of a mortally-wounded lion as "the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world (according to Wikipedia)." It is really moving and a great piece of art in Lucerne, Switzerland. 

The spectacular Alps!

The Swiss Alps are wonderful. This is Grindelwald, a small village at the foot of three spectacular peaks: Eiger (Ogre), Monch (Monk) and Jungfrau (Virgin). Each soars about 2000 meters above the already high elevation town. There are also cool glaciers. It was too cloudy and snowy for a trek up into the mountains on May 26, but I'll go again, for sure! There are cable cars to peaks and the hugely famous Jungfraujoch train that goes to the highest train station in Europe ("the top of Europe"). It is pricey...like nearly $200 US for the couple hour trip each way. But worth it, I hear!
Grindelwald has fun outdoor activities, from hiking to skiing. And there are fabulous waterfalls all over.

rural Switzerland

WOW...rural Switzerland is so beautiful. Every house has wooden shutters and lacy curtains. This is a town nestled into the alps.

And the next is a typical village by a lake. Switzerland...lakes, mountains, rolling green hills. gorgeous.

BearPark houses Bern's Bears!!

There were wild bears in Bern, and some say that is how Bern got its name (Bärenpark is the official park name). The city contained the remaining 6 bears in a pit in the city until 2009, when they built a nice park for the bears/still at city's edge, right next to the river (on the left side in this image, next to the walking path).

Bern....Switzerland!

Bern...a beautiful city surrounded by a river. The old town displays flags on every building. And inside those buildings the vendors sell Swiss watches, pocket knives, and the irresistible... BEST...chocolate! Great to stroll around this lovely capital of Switzerland.

Church of Bones...Incredible

OMG...The Sedlec Ossuary is a basement of a Roman Catholic church in Kutna Hata, Czech Republic (about one hour east of Prague). It contains the bones of at least 40,000 people who died of the plague in mid 14th century. As people were dying, the survivors would place bodies near the door to the church and they were subsequently buried. But they ran out of room. According to Wikipedia, in 1511 the bones were exhumed by a monk and piled in the basement. Then in 1870 a woodcarver organized them into 4 pyramids in the corners of the church basement( skull image with coins below) and then did the unthinkable:  used bones to decorate the basement. 

Many were arranged artistically to form a chandelier and this coat of arms (see the skull to get an idea of the scale of this). Sad, fascinating, interesting and I felt the energy. Brings up all kinds of thoughts about whether this is an ethical use of human remains. My perspective --- YES. I'd rather have my bones displayed in an interesting way that provokes thought and emotion then be stuck in the ground forever. Why not? 
WOW. This place is not to be missed.

John Lennon Graffiti Wall

Here I am at the John Lennon Graffiti Wall. It was a blank wall and then in the 1980s people started drawing and writing graffiti that was inspired by Beatles' tunes. During the communist era, authorities would paint over the wall and make it plain and boring again but then immediately hippies would paint love, poetry and peace signs again. According to Malia, it looks very different from the last time she saw it...a work of art in progress.

I added my 2 cents while there...At age 65 is it soooooo much fun to be in the 60's again!!

Fantastic Castle Door

Here I am at a fantastic door in the Prague Castle. This is an example of the ornate and beautiful Prague architecture. My cousin thinks I look like a Catholic school girl in this image...NOT :=D.

Prague Astronomical Clock

This 24 hour clock, in the Old Town Square, was installed in 1410, and according to some it is the only astronomical clock in the world that is still working. It has dials representing the movement of 1) the sun, 2) the earth, and 3) the moon. Figures on the clock represent each month of the year and also the Christian apostles. You can read more about it on Wikipedia and here is an image that explains the dials: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Schema_Orloj_en.png

Many tourists line up to hear it strike the hour -- charming figures emerge from the upper windows and a skeleton hits a bell, sounding the top of the hour. Very interesting but I can't say I totally get how it works....gotta study astrology a bit more :-).

Prague, Czech Republic!

Praha (the local city name is about the only word I can say in the complex Czech language)! What an amazing and beautiful city - home to over 1 million residents and beginning in about 200BC. The architecture is incredible because it was not destroyed during the second world war and rebuilt with communist-style cement boxes, like many other European cities (Warsaw in particular). There are plentiful museums, art, theater, castles and so much more. I'm here with daughter Malia enjoying the vibes. Below is an image of the old town square, bustling with tourists - who seem to have dressed in colors to match the buildings!

Check out the rooftops of Prague  - this taken from the Prague castle. Charming, indeed. We visited a fascinating inner castle with lots of old artifacts and art. The family occupying the castle lost everything, first in 1941 during the war and then again when the communists took over. They were able to locate the art and furniture in over 100 places in Prague and reconstruct the interior. We also went to a toy museum with a full floor of Barbie history.

This view overlooks the famous Charles Bridge on the Vltava river, running through the center of the city. The bridge was full of artists with very interesting jewelry, paintings and more.

Adios to Panama!

A wonderful country! I visited Panama 20 years ago but never saw it like this. First, it was wonderful to be with my siblings and niece, and second we got to discover many incredible critters.
Here I am giving gifts to the Embera children, in a canoe on the way to see them, watching sister Janet connect with an Embera child, and me, the gringo, enjoying a local Panamanian family fair.

Embera-Wounaan tribe Dances

This wonderful tribe greeted us with music and a dance.

Embera-Wounaan Pets

The Embera found a River otter and made it a pet. While niece Clara was swimming, it brushed against her leg -- scary! The otter doesn't bite, though, and just goes swimming then makes its way back home for loving and food. The other image is another type of pet but I have no clue what it is...any guesses?

Embera-Wounaan Scenes

These are scenes from the Embera and their village/daily lives: Cooking plantains, serving them with fish, and the village itself, including the gift shop with their baskets, carving and jewelry.

Embera-Wounaan of Panama

The Embera-Wounaans are one of 7 indigenous groups living in Panama. This tribe numbers close to 35,000 and mostly live in the Darien region, near Columbia. They live in small villages of several families and continue traditional living habits. They use plants for medicinal purposes, including to keep body hair from growing on male and female children - this is partially so that they can use other plants for temporary tattoos to keep insects away. We visited a village of 113 that is closer to Panama City - a great trip on a canoe up the river. Here the are the beautiful women, one on the river and the other demonstrating basket making. They use plants for dying shredded leaves - gorgeous work.

Panamanian Jungle

Here are some views of this beautiful countryside.

Turkey Vulture Looking for Tasty Bite

This is a Turkey Vulture hunting above the canopy in the Panamanian forrest. So graceful and such a beautiful vista from the top of the Canopy Tower Hotel.

Howler Monkeys in Panama

These are Howler Monkeys. See the baby leaning on the papa? What a cute family, but they make a really amazing sound. At night and in early morning you can hear the howling, sounding like dogs howling at the moon. Very loud. You can hear them howl on Wikipedia - who maintains that their howls can be heard for 20 miles! They hang out and run around the tree tops, using their tails to grab onto branches.

Capuchin Monkeys

These cute little monkeys are Capuchins - name so because they look like cappuchino coffee. We saw them on  a boat trip on Lake Gatun, the man made lake supporting the Panama Canal. We parked our little boat and they became quite curious - eventually finding a peanut on our boat. At one point I reached up to touch one and it slapped my hand hard. We were told NOT to smile because it appears as an agressive teeth baring gesture the monkeys use to fend off each other and predators. Cute AND wild.