who's counting? happy new year!

no more counting, and no more expecting myself to blog every day. its just not going to happen.

happy new year, everyone! howie and i celebrated with some of our new IMD friends at Le Bleu Lezard, a "low-key" bar in Lausanne. we had a 6ish course meal- we skipped a couple of courses and went ahead to dessert when we hit midnight and everyone started getting crazy. we just couldn't sit still any longer!

the last few days we have spent exploring Lausanne and Geneva. we have posted many of the photos at our website from our recent explorations. (in case you were worried, howie's macbook has recovered from motherboard transplant surgery and is doing well!)

Lausanne:

one of the great things about this city is the mild weather. although its been very grey and gloomy, it is not nearly as cold as MN and there's rarely snow on the ground. therefore outdoor produce markets continue straight through the winter and there are always people in the streets (walking, not driving.) on our way to the cathedral we found this great market with these mobile bucheries (butcher shops) and many cheese shops as well.

we were a bit chilly so we ducked into a museum nearby- turned out to be about 6 or 7 museums in one big building. so far we haven't had much time to explore our Swiss Scavenger Hunt (courtesy of the Crosswoods) but we think the four legged chick could get us some bonus points, no?

finally we made it to the top of the hill to the 12/13th century Cathedrale de Notre Dame de Lausanne. apparently the best preserved cathedral in Switzerland, it is quite beautiful and also quite large! i was trying to analyze the architecture based on my gothic architecture class from ~2 years ago. lets just say that i need to review a bit, but was able to note the three story elevation, ribbed columns, flying buttresses and ambulatory. and no, i did not just look up "ambulatory"... well...

there is still some paint to remind us of the days when these

great cathedrals were very colorful inside.

the nave- lots of light from the clerestory windows.

here is some evidence of ongoing restoration:

i have a renewed faith in duct tape!

this cathedral originally used a side entrance for the main entry which is unusual. the carvings at that entry are still painted- preserved with a lovely modern steel and glass vestibule.

definitely a beautiful space with some unique features- if you come visit me this will be one of our tour stops. i'd love to attend one of the organ concerts there!