88/356: The Beer tasting Continues: Zipfer

I went to visit a friend in Zurich. We then went to a park and had a beer. I had a Zipfer. It was alright. That is all.


Well we actually also went to a nice Thai restaurant that I have never been but I didn't bother to take pictures so I decided to go with the common theme of beer tasting. Tomorrow, if all goes according to plan, it is back to hiking. Just a small 6h tour... I can already feel my feet hurt.

Thanks for stopping by.

87/356: Gyoza

I am taking a break from all the hiking so I decided to cook something new last night.

I went for Gyoza. They are Japanese ravioli that are either filled with minced beef or minced pork. I really love them, but it always seemed like it is very time consuming to make them so I didn't bother. Yesterday I did make them and I was right, I did need a lot of time to make them. I guess that if you make them on regular basis it doesn't take that much time.

Luckily I had to make only one compromise with the ingredients. I didn't find any Gyoza wrappers (dough) so instead I had to go for Won Ton wrappers. These are probably just as good but they are square as where Gyoza wrappers are round. This did present a little challenge. In the end it worked out fine but they looked a little misshapen.

They were very tasty and I guess that is all that matters! Don't you love it when you cook something for the first time and it tastes even better than expected? I sure do!

I added a few pictures of when I made them, just to prove that I actually did make them myself ;)

 Let's get this started..

 Add up all the ingredients..

 Mash em all together and cut the wrapper into something that resembles a circle...

 Lay them all out so you can admire them.. then fry..

Last but not least, dig in... YUMM!

86/356: Trans Swiss Trail Stage 14: Eggiwil - Schangnau

There is one thing about hiking that keeps fascinating me; no matter how high you get, whenever you think you are about to reach the final ridge, you turn a corner and there is more to climb. 

The ascend on my most recent hike was even tougher than the day before. I did 800m in one go and it was REALLY steep. I will refrain from complaining though because the view was so worth it and I am pretty sure there are more ascends to come before I am done with the trail. Judge for yourself if the view was worth it:

I am finally starting to feel like I am getting closer to the alps. I am really looking forward to get there. Trouble is, the next stage will take me a long some pre-alps mountains and then turns east and away from the alps for a few stages. So far every stage has been great so I am not too worried. I am will get to the alps eventually. 

I am planning with another three stages next week. I want to stay in the villages next week and not return home after each hike. This will depend on the vacancy of the hotels because I will not make any reservations. I would like to get a third of the whole trail done before autumn sets in. I am close, oh so close! Praying for good weather. 

hike on. 

85/356: Trans Swiss Trail Stage 13: Langnau - Eggiwil

I continued my little trek across Switzerland today. The start was, where I left off the last time and the today's goal was Eggiwil. A little village you will probably never hear about again.

It was a really nice walk and I would have loved to go on because it was rather short. Without the break just about three hours. This stage gave me my first taste of what will follow once I enter the alps. I had my firs real altitude change since starting in Bern a few weeks ago. The beginning of the trail was steep and all in all I did about 600m (upwards that is).

I was thinking about doing two stages today but the next stage is over four hours long and I think that would have been a little too much. I guess that first has to wait a little longer. If all goes well I will tackle the next stage tomorrow. Can't wait!

 Tried to show the steepness with this pic. Not sure if I succeded.. let me know!

 Typical landscape from this part of Switzerland.

 A house?!

 Some more landscape.. too bad it was a bit hazy so I couldn't see the mountains.

 This is supposed to be one of the oldest tunnels in Switzerland. It was built around 1839....

 ..but don't take it from me.. read it here.

Just another lovely view I was able to enjoy today.

By the way... I always feel like this when I go hiking:

Keep walking.

84/356: Facial Hair Do Over

I shaved, down to a moustache... let that sink in.

Not only did I have a proper shave for the first time in 3 years, I also went for an epic moustache. I have to be honest with you, this took more guts than I thought it would. First time I saw myself in the mirror, I couldn't stop laughing. But then going outside my apartment and after that facing my co workers, well that was just plain terrifying. Just leaving it for a little or not even going out to face anybody would have been cheating though.

I really stepped out of my comfort zone with this one and that's a good thing. Challenging myself is one of the objectives of my little project. Now without further delay, I present to you, my 'stache.

hope you enjoyed and saved that picture.. it will never happen again.

83/356: Wankdorf Center

It's "en vogue" to build a shopping mall while you're building a stadium. So it should come as no surprise that the "Stade de Suisse", that I visited a few weeks back, also has one. So far I never had a reason to go there. That changed today.

I went to the Wankdorf Center to meet a good friend for lunch. I have never been to the restaurant we went but who wants to read about another restaurant I visited? I sure don't! The Center is rather small and didn't really have any shops that would make me come back. I enjoyed the big "Coop" supermarket but since there is a big one on my commute, I don't think I will ever have the need for this one.

On to a few pictures for you to "enjoy".

Prepare yourself, tomorrow will be a scary one..

Be afraid, be very afraid!

82/356: Dry Cleaning

Funny story, it took me 30 years to go to a dry cleaner. True story. Until today I have never been to one. There is not much to tell but hey, it is a first.