Festi'Neuch - Party of 1

We snuck out for date night before my dad and Cindy left to a music festival called Festi'Neuch. It is a four-day festival with artists ranging from Marilyn Manson to Puppetmastez, most of which we had never heard of. We were however pleasantly surprised to see one of our all-time favorite bands, Morcheeba from the UK. We listened to them quite a lot in our Pre-K (or pre-kids) days and had already seen them once in San Francisco. The best part was the Festival was on the lake within walking distance from our house and my dad and Cindy were here to babysit! Everything fell into place perfectly.

We had an awesome time and thoroughly enjoyed the two sets that we watched, aforementioned Morcheeba and Swiss-born Sophie Hunger. All in all it was a fantastic night however the main reason for this blog is to highlight two interesting Euro idiosyncrasies that we happened upon.

1. Euro Urinal

In bright daylight, upon leaving the tent after Sophie Hunger had played, we stumbled upon a few European gentleman who couldn't seem wait to go to the bathroom and, apparently, here they don't have to.

Ingenious? Lazy? Unsanitary? You decide. But definitely unique.

2. Silent Party

A custom that we were incredibly dubious about was called the Silent Party.

Upon walking into a very large tent, each person is handed earphones. Glancing around the room you see people milling around, drinking, and many dancing. Seemingly only to the music playing in their heads. We then realized that that the Silent Party is essentially just that. Each person grooves to their own beat, perhaps even dancing in a circle and singing to their friends or loved ones but all the while wearing their headphones. To one side of the room there was a DJ area set-up and about 5 women, I believe they were called Girls on Deck DJ'd for the evening. When we finally were ready to partake and we hesitantly put our headphones on, I realized how amazing the music was. Wham! Salt n' Pepa! Lots of old 80's faves! And we stayed and became believers of the Silent Party. Hoping to bring this trend back to the US upon our return.

Watch this video of Hardy. Notice the lack of music.

Even the Prepsters get into it!

Hardy getting his groove on.

Believers!

XOXO,
Lilli & Hardy

Grandpa & Grandma Visit

We had a fantastic time with my dad and Cindy who were able to visit for almost a month. We celebrated Mother's Day by flying Sam's new kite in a large field near our house. Had a great time only slightly marred by the cold weather and bug infestation which we keep struggling with due to our proximity to the lake. Overall a great Mother's day! Except we missed Hardy who celebrated in China.

Sam has discovered a new passion as an expert tree climber. Pondering his next move...

While they were here Hardy got a lot of his traveling out of the way so the 5 of us fell into a bit of a routine. This included:

Daily walks for my dad and Dean to the local recycling station (weather permitting) - recycling debacle painful here but required by law (seriously, will get it's own post one day) but these two turned the process into an adventure.

Grandma and Sam time at the play park in our complex.

And, on the few days the sun came out, it was pretty much guaranteed you could find this guy on our back porch. Pretty safe bet he was the only person in the country laying out this day (weather: high of 60, Feels Like 50).

Other highlights of their trip included Dean's new tooth:

And Sam's new haircut. Warning, if you have your hair cut by someone who doesn't speak the same language as you do, you just get what you get. Looks pretty cute here, but anyone who knows Sam, knows he isn't really a "spiky hair" kind of guy.

We also stumbled across this fancy looking machine near the "city center" or downtown area. For a mere 7 Francs (about $7.30) you can walk away with your very own pizza. Yep. There's a place to choose your toppings and a fancy machine that kneads the dough while you watch. We didn't try it but I won't leave before I do.

Before they left we all took a boat ride on Lake Neuchatel. It was a beautiful and fairly clear day, we still couldn't quite see the Alps but the views were amazing.

Sam was inside the boat for part of the ride eating a croissant and I spontaneously asked him if he was "happy." His response? "A little bit." I guess it's my own fault for asking! Here's his "little bit happy" smile.

Baby Dean on the other hand is almost always happy. Enjoying his early birthday present with grandpa.

Thanks for visiting Grandma & Grandpa! xoxo, Lilli & 3 Boys

Bern Baby Bern

We decided to take a day trip to Bern, partially because of its proximity by train (34 minutes) and also because it is the capital. We were more than pleasantly surprised! Bern was chosen as the capital because in a neutral country such as Switzerland, it was seen as a neutral choice due to its "linguistic plurality," (thank you Lonely Planet!), meaning that both French and German are fluently spoken there. Not only is it "diverse" it also is truly charming. Surrounded by the Aare River on 3 sides, it is one of the most inviting cities I've ever visited. Although it had a provincial feel, it was also incredibly modern - streets lined with outdoor cafes, underground bars, art galleries and rows and rows of amazing shopping (or at least it looked like amazing shopping, it was Sunday so everything was closed!). The city is filled with museums and randomly there is a bear pit in the center of town housing a family of bears. Of course this was a huge hit with Sam and a big draw with crowds.

View from walking bridge to bears.

Daddy, Cindy and Dean on walking bridge (Pretty In Pink Lady, not with us).

Pedro the Bear.

View from the other side of the city, walking bridge to museums.

For a city with so much charm, the historical portion was just as interesting. Bern is a UNESCO World Heritage Site filled with cobblestone streets and the beautifully ornate Zytglogge clock tower where Albert Einstein supposedly honed his theory of relativity!

Daddy & Cindy getting smarter with each tick.

Blue Men Group or Hardy and Sam taking in the view.

Baby Dean's first train ride.

Bern truly felt like a small city within a big city, something to offer for every type of visitor. I guarantee we'll be back!