Tour-ism

My sister came to visit! My sister came to visit!

We're back in Zürich, one of our favorite cities in one of our favorite countries, and I finally got to share it all with my sister. It was a whirlwind trip that included a lot of swimming in very cold rivers and lakes, hiking in the Alps, beautiful sunny days, hanging with good friends, eating cake, and of course bicycle touring.

With all the fun, we only had time for a four day tour, which we maximized by taking the train out and riding the bikes back. We did a route (in reverse) that Joshua and I did last year. We also gave ourselves plenty of time to explore in non-bike touring ways. Last year we did the same distance plus an additional 15kms in only two days. This year we did it in four, doing about 30kms per day and going downhill rather than up. So. Tour-ism, here we go.

I don't think they mean it.

We rode from Lungern to Sarnen on day 1 after our train ride, which included the first stage of the Brunigpass climb - going down was really spectacular. That evening at the campsite we made the mistake of setting up next to some kids who stayed up late smoking their hookah and giggling. Corina actually asked them to be quiet, and then said she felt really old. Welcome to the club. I was very grateful that they quieted down, and it was funny to watch them wake up the next morning looking grumpy and poorly slept. Corina swam in the afternoon when we arrived and the next morning. I wimped out. So coooold!


We followed route 9 east and north, and made some friends along the way.

they made cute faces, but didn't want to eat the flowers Corina offered to them

swans tip their rear-ends straight into the air and eat off the bottom, apparently

this is an airport runway crossing - the bike path goes across an airport

what it looks like in the middle of an airport runway

On the second day we made it to Horw, just south of Luzern.

along the lake there's the best bike path. okay, they're all the best. this is Switzerland.

And here we decided that it was worth our while to go up to see Pilatus for ourselves. We went for a swim in the afternoon and sat around giggling about our camping neighbors, but decided that if we were up early enough the next morning, we'd go see Pilatus. This is one of the first dramatic mountains you see as you head south, and last year I became kind of obsessed, saying the name over and over again as we rode around and away from it - you can see the peak for a long time when you're touring through the valleys around Pilatus.

We got up relatively early, took our bikes to the Luzern train station, locked them up, put our bags in a locker, and bought ourselves a round-trip ticket - up on the Pilatus Bahn, which is the steepest train in the world at a 48% grade (so they say), and down on the other side by cable car and ski lift. Little did we know what the view would be like from up there.

pretty steep tracks

at the bottom 

uh

getting more dramatic

cows!

oh right, mountains.

and an alpine horn 

you can climb a bit higher and see the full view

of the hotel and restaurant near the top

this guy with his pipe and beer. pretty sure he hiked up.

the flowers were incredible

The pictures do not do the view justice. The mountains were fully visible when we got up there, which isn't always the case. Even before we left, small clouds started to form around Pilatus and on the cable car down we went through clouds. It's just so moist here and with the temperatures in the mid-20s C (high 70s F), all that water just floats up and turns into clouds.

The same day as we did the whole magical Pilatus journey, we rode our bikes almost to Zug. More swimming, thank you very much.

The following morning we spent a bit of time wandering around Zug, which is a lovely little city. We did some tourist shop shopping and one of the shop owners gave us a key to the clock tower, so we could hang out and see the view while she gift-wrapped the things Corina bought. Then we headed back towards Zürich and unfortunately disaster struck.

Corina's iPhone? Gone. She probably had all the good pictures, sadly, and although we did our best, the iPhone is still missing. It's official, I need a new camera - my pictures are not enough. If it was going to be returned anywhere, it'd be in Switzerland, so we're keeping our fingers crossed. 

We rode back into Zürich, unpacked, and then packed back up so we could head into the Alps for some serious hiking with our good friends Thomas and Emily. With the views from Pilatus in mind, we were looking forward to getting a closer look.

Here are our bikes

The bikes! They arrived! And they were professionally packed, which makes a huge difference. The pedals were in bubble wrap in their own small cardboard boxes. Sadly, the front racks and fenders had been removed, which is a whole different kind of fun bike project. Ah, well, not a big deal, considering that nothing was broken. Huge thank you to Sandy on Menorca for getting these packed and shipped for us. Yay!

Yesterday, we went on a family bike trip to the grocery store. A dad, his two year old in a trailer, 5 year old on his own bike, me and Joshua. It was glorious.

Back on Track

Okay, maybe not entirely back on track. Once we have our bikes perhaps we'll be back on track. So where are our bicycles? We don't even know at the moment.

The saga started with leaving them on Menorca, where we expected to return after our trip to the US in Dec/Jan. Then there was the whole cancer thing, which derailed us and sent us to Berlin for 5 months. Thankfully, our hostess on Menorca could ship everything we left to Berlin. But we decided to wait for the bikes because we weren't exactly going to be using them in -6 C weather. When it got a bit warmer, and we made other plans to leave Berlin, our house sitting luck turned us back toward Zurich. So we decided that to bring the bikes to Berlin and then schlep them on the train to Zurich was unnecessary. Just ship them to Zurich, right?

Trying to get quotes was not easy, since we were not there with the bikes. We tried Bike Flights and High Country Shipping, as well as FedEx. FedEx was very expensive, High Country was a bit less expensive, and Bike Flights gave us an initial quote of $150 per bike (very reasonable) but then I never heard back from them to finalize. Meanwhile, on Menorca, there are two shipping companies that were willing to ship the bikes. Our hostess went above and beyond the call of duty to get the bikes packaged at a bike shop and then tried to get quotes from the shipping companies. The first company gave a very high quote, but the second had more reasonable rates. They seemed a bit confused, however, and gave her a rate that is only for within Spain. In her words, "Don't think there's anywhere in Spain that you spell Zurich. oh well, we can't all be brains!"

After a few more exciting hiccups - like the requirement of a scanned version of my passport - they finally shipped the bikes last Monday. So they'll arrive just before we do, most likely. It's really going to be awesome if they arrive in good condition and the Swiss authorities understand that we're just bringing them in temporarily, not importing them. The law is that we don't have to pay taxes, but you just never know. We can't all be brains, even in Switzerland.

In the end, we had to pay roughly €350 for both bikes to be boxed and shipped. Not too bad, but a fortune by our current standards. Still way better than replacing those bikes. Unfortunately that doesn't include much insurance. Please let the shippers be cyclists.

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Besides bicycle drama and medical drama, we've had a bit of lovely travel, too. Recovery took us to SW France to visit our friends, who we spent time with and house sat for a couple of winters ago. There we did a lot of walking, Joshua started running again, and we both appreciated the advantages of a life in the country. City life is not for us. It's good to have good friends in the French countryside.

And now we're having a lovely visit with other friends who we house sat for last summer, out in Saxony. Despite the flooding, we made it out here. Had to take a different train route and as we were waiting for the second leg on the platform, Joshua realized he'd left one bag on the previous train. The bag with our keyboards in it. The bag with his power cable and many other valuable things. The bag with the mint plant gift. The bag with the iPad. He looked at me, handed me the phone and said, "can you help me while I freak out for a minute?'

We called our friends, and they said we'd probably have to wait until it made it to lost and found in Dresden. But while we got on the next train and then took a bus to our final stop, our friends talked to a co-worker whose other friend lives at the last stop of that particular train at the Polish border. That friend called another friend, who got to the station just as the train pulled in, jumped on board, and grabbed the bag for us. I tell you, it's good to have good friends.

We've just got a few days here, then we take the night train to Zurich as long as it doesn't rain again and wash away the rest of Bavaria. Two months in Zurich, split in the middle by a visit with my sister and a trip to the Alps with other very good friends. And hopefully we'll have some bikey things to write about in just a week or two.

Just Another Spring Day in Berlin

Sunday Funday! We decided to finally explore the old Tempelhof airport, which is just south of where we're living. We knew it was a public park, of sorts, but didn't know what to expect. Good things, apparently. It. Is. Huge. The sun is shining but it's about negative nothing out, and windy, as you'll see (actual temp: -5C, -8C with windchill or upper teens in Fahrenheit).

It says 'US Army Aviation' on that building

perfect conditions for a football game, show up on your bike, please

and. the. kite boarders.

glad I wore my snow pants

lucky to have a beard during weather like this

We also saw a lot of great signage on today's walk - Kreuzberg, full of surprises.

don't be a... cosmosucka

nope 

Christ & Co Rentals

On our way home we stopped to get some fresh baked cakes - a Sunday requirement if you want to be a real German. One of the only places that is open on a Sunday is a tiny place just down the street from us. Thank goodness.

käsekuchen, flourless chocolate cake, and mohnkuchen (poppyseed!)

Ready for anything.

Being Tourists in Berlin

Sun! Today is the fourth day in a row that it's been completely sunny. Amazing. This winter has been, so far, the darkest (fewest sunlight hours) since they started keeping record here in Berlin. Oops. Not that it's been bad for me - I don't need reasons to wish I was running around outside. But over the weekend we did something we don't normally do: act like tourists.

We went to the Brandenburger Tor (Brandenburg Gate) and the Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral). We did a bad job of taking photos of ourselves, but you get the idea. All the walking and sunshine was great for both of us. First Brandenburger Tor:

from the front

goobers

sunny side (from the back)

Then we walked all the way to the Berliner Dom and managed to go up all 270 stairs to the walkway on the outside of the dome. Pretty spectacular views.

Berliner Dom, Berlin TV Tower, and Mr. Moody

inside

from the walkway - Berlin TV Tower

Next door at the Altes Museum, we got sidetracked by this lady:

very intense lion attack

Altes Museum

I was absolutely exhausted after that. A couple weeks in bed will do that to me, I suppose. But it made me excited about traipsing about Berlin and walking as a form of exercise. Hopefully we'll do more of this in the coming weeks.

The News

Been a while since there was an update. It's not as easy to share bad news, especially when the information comes in slowly and always feels uncertain. We took our planned month-long trip back to the US, where we had an incredible time visiting family and friends in Florida and California. Mid-December to mid-January. But just before we left Menorca, I (Ramona) went to the doctor for the annual lady visit. And before we came back all plans were changed again.

The doctor knew we were going to be in the US, so he said he would send test results to us by email rather than waiting for us to get back to Menorca - because further testing and treatment would happen elsewhere. And he sent that email between Christmas and New Years, while we were watching the rain on Redwoods, taking long, misty walks among the big trees, listening to crashing Pacific coast waves wearing down the coastline, working our way through jigsaw puzzles, and laughing to tears over family jokes and board games. I can still make myself laugh out loud when I think back on some of those moments. The test came back positive for carcinoma - the scary "C" word became part of life. Just a little bit of cancer.

The doctor said that there was no reason to rush for treatment, so we kept our flight and basked in the joy of reuniting with good friends. Our trip back to Menorca was punctuated by a stopover in London, so we went directly from London to Berlin. With German residence last year came mandated health insurance and challenging monthly premiums, so we started down the path toward a treatment plan in the cheapest city in the country. Berlin rent is 33% cheaper than Frankfurt, 35% cheaper than Hamburg or Munich. We are paying rent for the first time in two and a half years, in a lovely, airy flat that is nearly empty. Everything has worked out as well as it could, considering.

The hope is that this is early, that those devilishly clever, mutated cells are just hanging out in one place. And actually, that place is now a lab, because last week I had surgery to remove the tissue (tumor). My incredible doctor (oncologist) happens to be one of the only people in Berlin who also moves ovaries laparoscopically, upward and out of the way in case radiation becomes part of the treatment plan. The radiation decision was to be based on the lymph nodes that he also removed during surgery. One little bugger tested positive, so we go back on Tuesday to discuss radiation. One out of about 30. Good news and bad news.

view from the hospital bed after a snow

Cancer is no longer the death sentence it used to be, thank goodness, but treatment is no picnic. Recovering from surgery takes patience and tolerance. They kept me well drugged in the hospital, a ten day stay, but now that I'm home I'm taking much less. I trust pain and I want to hear what it has to say. I'm taking things very slowly, but feeling better, stronger every day.

and when the sun was shining

I read The Emperor of All Maladies with a hunger for clear information, and it did not disappoint. Treatments are getting more precise, less invasive, more successful. I have been doing the right things. I don't mind the treatment, as long as I keep living. I think most people diagnosed with cancer feel the same way - do your worst, doc, but keep me alive, okay? There may be some trade-offs, some non-negotiable deals, but the goal is clear.

What a coin toss. Both being diagnosed and undergoing successful treatment feel random, especially with a form of cancer that is unusual and relatively un-studied. Mine is a case of vaginal carcinoma - usually metastasized from cervical carcinoma, but in my case the cervix is clear. Good news, very good news. It's fairly likely that I will recover from treatment and cancer will not have gotten the better of me. There's no guarantee, but it's worthwhile to be hopeful and to make plans. Prepare for the worst, expect the best.

I want to write a longer, more in depth ramble about the experience, but instead of doing it as a post I'll create a side page, kind of like the broken foot page. There has been a lot of uncertainty, an unprecedented amount of humor, and surprises of all kinds. In the meantime, know that there will be more information soon. And don't worry. And don't be shy about being in touch.

Your hopes and thoughts help. At every step, I've had to share this information with more and more people, in an ever widening circle - starting with Joshua with tears, my parents and sister, extended family and friend-family. At first it was just: I have some cancer, sorry that's all I know. We had way more questions than answers. Each step of the way it has felt like I am pushing a burden on the people that I love, and it has been hard. But each piece of the burden that I pass along makes it a little lighter for me to carry, so I hope you don't mind.

Thank you to those of you who have already offered support. We are doing okay.

For future updates, visit the And Cancer page.

Wind Storms and Work Days

Things have quieted down for us. The weather changed to fall-like, at least for Menorca, and we haven't been snorkeling since Oct 23rd. Yeah, I know. This place is great. We've had a couple of really big storms, where it gets crazy windy and we close all the shudders to keep out the sideways rain. The tortoises are all mostly hibernating, although we had a hot sunny day about a week ago and the little guys were all out getting some sun and eating the fresh grass that's grown up quickly. The big tortoises are still wandering around on warm, sunny days.

We're both back in work mode, so not a lot of exploring. We had thought to go kayaking and horseback riding and even sailing, but when the weather got a bit cooler, we stopped trying. Plus, now is the time for saving, not spending. We go for walks with Trixie, the 15 year old Terrier type who lives here and presides over the doorways. She is fantastic, and almost completely deaf. At first we would talk to her and she'd just ignore us. ("Hey Trixie! Hey girl!" and she just walks by - us, feeling ignored.) So we've gotten used to that. Chocolate, the 15 year old cat, started off as suspicious and flighty as a cat can be, but now he comes meowing around, asking to be allowed to sit on my lap while I work at the computer. We make fires in the wood stove. It is quite cozy.

I'm also knitting again, so don't be shy about checking out the shop. It's always nice to make a bit of extra spending money with a hobby. Joshua is jealous. His hobbies tend to cost more than they make, so he can't justify them like I can justify knitting. So thanks for that, team!

Right now the wind is absolutely howling. I'm expecting the power to go out at any moment, which it has done a number of times over the past few weeks. I've got a row of candles nearby, just in case.

Here are more sunset and pool images for you, but remember the pool is freezing now. We went in after a run not too long ago and it was stunningly cold. Stunned, I was. Last time for the season.