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I’ve noticed a few things in Switzerland this past week that I wasn’t previously aware of.  First is that the Swiss drink inordinate amounts of Red Bull.  I can’t claim to be a world traveler but at least around the states its seems the preferred non-alcoholic beverage is by and large coke or diet coke.  In Switzerland it’s Red Bull.

This is somewhat ironic given the proliferation of public drinking fountains.  Usually in Europe one might think of fountains as purely ornate or perhaps useful on a hot summer day to wash ones face.  In Switzerland not only are fountains ubiquitous, the free flowing water is meant for drinking. Of course you can bath in them too if they’re big enough.

My third (unrelated) observation is that the Swiss are generally very courteous. They stop for pedestrians in cross walks, share the road with bikers and will help with strollers getting on and off public transportation.  Perhaps this is why it sticks out when someone doesn’t make room for a stroller – especially when we’re trying to fit three at the end of a train car and avoid causing traffic jams for the rest of the passengers.  It’s happened three times so far – almost enough for me to learn the Swiss German phrase for “excuse me, you are sitting in the stroller parking area.”

I haven’t blogged in forever - in part because work has been insanely busy and in part because I can tweet or facebook most things that that are interesting on any given day. Now I’m on vacation and find myself with plenty of time to put pen to paper (or in my case stylus to touch screen). For those who pay close attention this qualifies as a real vacation because I have yet to open my work laptop. Of course I’m not computer-less. I’ve been using my new viliv x70 extensively. After all it takes a good few weeks to really break in a new gadget.

We’re visiting friends in Switzerland and despite the two toddlers whose schedules rarely align and an adorable two month old who is either sleeping or eating it’s been a rather relaxing trip. We’ve been to Winterthur, where our friends live, downtown Zurich to eat some ostrich and today to Konstanz just over the German border. Without exception the weather has been phenomenal and the Swiss are just as I remember them (meticulous, courteous, and efficient). The food is better no doubt in part thanks to our culinarily inclined hosts.

We’ve yet to plan the week ahead. On the agenda is likely a return to Winterthur downtown for some window shopping, a visit with family in Zurich and of course a stop at Migros for some bacon flavored puffed crisps.

With my free time this week I hope to get more blogging in. Stay tuned for tails of beautiful countryside and yodeling galore.

I wonder if Dave and Melba are still together.