We where visiting family in the old world. Tanya's brother Tim surprised us in Atlanta. He was one of the pilots on our Zurich flight.

Waiting to board Delta flight 66 to Zurich. 9/13 <hr> Warten bis wir in den Delta Flug 66 nach Zürich einsteigen dürfen.

Meeting the crew. <hr> Begrüssung der Cockpit Manschaft.

The first officer and his brother-in-law. <hr> Der erste Offizier und sein Schwager.

Tanya standing in for the copilot. <hr> Tanya hilft aus als Copilot.

Perfect landing! Well done Tim. 9/14 <hr> Perfekte Landing! Gut gemacht Tim

Gondola up Mt. Santis. <hr> Mit der Seilbahn auf den Säntis.

View from the top. (Mt. Santis 9/15). <hr> Die Aussicht auf dem Säntis.

TV transmitter atop Mt. Santis. <hr> TV Turm.

Lyle at summit of Mt. Santis with weather station in the background. <hr> Lyle auf dem Gipfel mit der Wetterstation im Hintergrund.

Photo op…

…an alphorn trio. Listen to the majestic sound. <hr> Ein Alphorn Trio. Supper Zufall.

Cables used by climbers who hike up the mountain. Treacherous! <hr> Die Stahlseile sind für die Bergsteiger.

A strong southerly wind kept the weather at bay. <hr> Der Föhn hielt das Regenwetter zurück.

Bischofszell - Tanya adding character to the town-center fountain. <hr> Ein Brunnen in der Altstatt von Bischofszell.

das "Rathaus" aka city hall.

Christian posing with a lamp stand. <hr> Posieren mit der Strassenbeleuchtung.

A Roman bridge. As a boy, Christian used the waterway in the background to cruise around town in his inflatable raft. <hr> Die Römer Brücke. Als Teenager sind wir mit dem Floss unten durch geschippert.

Tim enjoying some blue sky in Bishpfszell at the Roman bridge. <hr> Tim geniest die Zeit

it was a warm and muggy day… <hr> Komisch schwül für ein Tag mitte September.

Tiramisu at our favorite neighborhood pizza joint in Weinfelden. <hr> Tiramisu in der Pizzeria in unserer alten Nachbarschaft.

Wrapping up a three course meal with Lyle. <hr> Das war ein dreigängiges Mittagessen mit Lyle.

Tour of Ittingen Monastery (9/16)… Where the monks brew beer. <hr> Rundgang durch die Kartause Ittingen. Mein Lieblings Bier ist das Ittinger

A crowded wedding venue. Lots of Friday festivities and special guests at the monastery conference grounds. <hr> Anscheinend eine beliebter Hochzeitsort.

Tanya at the front gate with Saint Bruno. The rectangular item flanking his statue is called a "roost" (our last name)… aka a special rack used to roast martyrs. <hr> Tanya vor dem schmideisernen Eingangstor.

Christian, a modern art exhibit. <hr> Und natürlich noch etwas moderne "Kunst".

Tanya found a hidden pathway. <hr> Tanya hat ein versteckten Pfad gefunden.

Celebrating Dad's 80th with Marielle, Lyle, Mom and Tanya. <hr> Die Feier des 80ten Geburtstag des Papa. Im Bild sind Marielle, Lyle, Mama und Tanya.

Ready for the birthday guests to arrive. <hr> Papa ist einer der gründe weshalb wir nach Europa reisten.

Coffee hour at church with an Oktoberfest theme…They served beer! At church! <hr> Oktoberfest auch in der FEG mit richtigem Bier!

Beer and pretzel Sunday (9/18). <hr> Ein Bier und Brezel Sonntag.

Christian making the beer look good. <hr> Auch ein Appenzeller Bier schmeckt.

Even the pastor agreed, we can't serve sausage without beer. So there was beer…at the church supper. <hr> Die Pastoren waren der selben Meinung, dass Bier mit Weisswurst sein muss.

Rainy Sunday afternoon at Lower Lake Bodensee with Marielle and Tanya. <hr> Ein Regen Tag am Untersee (Bodensee) Marielle and Tanya.

Out of the rain and in front of the fire. A visit with Bernhard. <hr> Aus dem Regen in die warme Stube. Mein Bruder Bernhard im Bild.

Oktoberfest in Munich…Our first stop, the Hofbrau tent - unbelievably loud, food fights, breaking of beer steins…and it's only 2 in the afternoon!!! Not a good fit for us. <hr> Oktoberfest in München. Unser erster Stop das Hofbrau Zelt. Hat uns nicht gepasst.

The Spatenbrau tent was our lunch stop. Excellent beer and live music. We sat with some fellow Americans a couple from Ohio in Munich on business. <hr> Das Spatenbrau Zelt war besser und war unser Stop fürs etwas spätere Mittagessen.

At the Spatenbrau. Tanya drank ein Mass (a big beer). Lyle had the Schweinshaxe and Christian ate the special, Oxenbraten with potato salad. We got kicked out to make space for guests with reservations. <hr> Im Spatenbrauzelt drank Tanya ein Mass ( grosses Bier) Lyle hatte die Schweinshaxe und Christian den Ofenbraten mit Kartoffelsalat. Nach dem Essen mussten wir allerdings den Platz frei machen für Gäste mit einer Reservation.

Through driving rain we made our way to a smaller quieter venue…They were known for chicken and duck. We drank more beer and before Lyle could order liver soup with dumplings we were asked to move on to make room for people who had reservations. <hr> Nach einer kurzen Zeit im Regen fanden wir eine kleinere Wirtschaft wo wir uns for dem Regen schützen konnten, bis auch da der platz für Gäste mit einer Reservation frei gemacht werden musste.

We got out of the rain at the Augustiner, our fourth tent, a rowdy party as well but the crowd was a little tamer and the live music excellent. Lyle tracked down a fellow Nebraskan from the Seattle area. <hr> Ein weitere Versuch aus dem Regen zu gelangen. Im Augustinerzelt versuchte Lyle ein Typ von Nebraska zu finden.

With no reservations at the Augustiner we were once again asked to move on… Our fifth and final stop was dinner in a small tent sharing a table with a German couple, a dad and his sons from a farm machinery trade show, and three French men. Good food and lots of fun music repeatedly interspersed with Eins, Zwei, Drei, Suffe! (1-2-3…Down your drink!) The French men pulled Tanya up to dance on the table with them. <hr> Nachdem wir wider ohne Reservation weiter mussten, hatten wir in einem kleineren Zelt platz für das Nachtessen.

Our morning in Munich included a stop at the Glockenspiel. <hr> Am nächsten Morgen besuchten wir das Münchner Glockenspiel.

After our Oktoberfest outing we made it back to Mom and Dad's in time for supper. Fondue and Kirsche Wasser. Yum!

Lunch and a view of Lake Bodensee with a zeppelin in the sky overhead.

Award winning pastries at a local coffee shop and bakery. The gift box went to Mom and Dad and Christian and Tanya tried a Berliner.

4.50 Fr. for a puddly spot of excellent coffee…plus a chewy good hazelnut cookie smidgen of a bite. :-)

One cool guy discovered in Mom's freezer. Houseguests gone but not forgotten.

Greetings from the flight deck!

At the Jolly Judge with a schooner of craft beer from Glasgow, St Mongo (their patron saint). Found this pub down a back alleyway, aka a close. Old stone walls and low wood beam ceiling papered in currency from all over. Very cool atmosphere for relaxing with friends.

The Royal Mile in Edinburgh, 9/23. Out front of breakfast spot. A family run cafe and our first traditional Scottish breakfast.

Heading over to cafe Nero to meet our tour guide, Bruce. Friday 9/23 Quest for the Holy Grail tour to Stirling Castle and Rosslyn Chapel.

First stop on our bus tour overlooking bridge over the Firth of Fourth (a firth is like a fjord or waterway).

Robert the Bruce's remains are buried under the pulpit at Dunfermline Abbey. Abbey also houses exquisite leaded glass work and portrays the lives of saints and nobility. Spider symbol appears in glass work as an example of persistence and never giving up no matter how many times things fail. This sort of persistence encouraged Robert the Bruce to keep fighting for Scotland and led to his success in battle.

At Dunfermline Abbey, 9/23.

Beautiful sunny day for a tour! Unusual weather for Scotland. Churchyard and flying buttresses at abbey.

Squinting into the sun at Stirling Castle, strategic battle ground for William Wallace and Robert the Bruce. Childhood home of Mary Queen of Scotts…who was eventually beheaded by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I.

In front of the Great Hall, Stirling Castle.

The kings and queens lived in colors of royalty, gold was for dwellings and clothed in purple.

Life in the kitchen at Stirling Castle. Lots of interesting sights and smells!

Monument commemorating battle of Robert the Bruce at Bannockburn.

Christian at Bannockburn battleground monument.

Stirling castle suit of armor.

Stirling Castle, view to the southeast.

Roslyn Chapel… No photography allowed! This is a photo of a photo.

9/24, Loch Loman/Oban tour. Long day, lots of rain, hunkered down in coffee shops mostly…ate lots of cake…banana walnut cake, fairy cake, Victoria sponge cake……

Lots of rain makes for beautiful waterfalls.

9/24, waterfall on drive through Loch Loman national park. Our guide, Tom (a Church of Scotland elder, retired businessman, and opinionated talker) asked us to not get to close to the water.

Oban whiskey distillery. We stopped in Oban for a leisurely lunch by the fishing docks. Being from Seattle we chose Italian food over fish and chips.

Conan's Kirk. His mother lived a great distance from any churches in the area so he built one for her. It is often used by the locals to this day but it was never consecrated and recognized as an official church.

Conan's Kirk, 9/24.

Interior of Conan's Kirk.

9/25 Viking coast tour with Neill our guide. We ventured into Northern England, first stop, Alnwick Castle, filming location for Harry Potter and Downton Abbey.

9/25 Holy Island, Lindisfarne Castle.

Christian at Alnwick Castle. The Percy family resides there during the winter months. We were able to tour some of the estate in their absence. Expansive collections of art, porcelain, literary masterpieces intermixed with bean bag chairs, flat screen TV's, family photos, fuss ball tables, ping pong… Not just a museum for the public, but also a home!