I didn’t feel worse than I did yesterday which is good.  If I stay like this and even better, actually recover, then my sore throat/chest lurgey will be manageable.  I packed in the nutrients this morning: Udo’s oil, Kale, 1/2 avocado, 1 banana, 1 cup frozen berries, 1 tbsp chia seeds and Goji berries.

Blitzed it came out like a red berry ice-cream.  Thick and cold which was lovely on my sore throat.

James kindly took us to Heathrow.  For those of you who are wondering, James could have come with us to our little trip to Germany.  He has 3 days holiday left this year but instead chose to take them between Christmas and New Years Eve.  We had a panini, juice and coffee at Cafe Nero.

Boarded our Swiss International flight to Zurich which was very comfortable.

They handed out a brilliant kids activity book which has kept the little fella amused for hours!

I always admire efficiency and good organisation so I loved the flight and being at Zurich airport.  Everything you need to know is there for you and the transfer was effortless.  We only had about 50 minutes at Zurich airport but it was great.

We regretted the mediocre panini at Cafe Nero when we saw this lovely cafeteria called Marche which had several counters full of fresh salads, beautifully prepared fruit and drinks.  We will eat here on the way home.

Moo.

None of us could work out why a very large shoe was advertising Tag Heuer!

No, we are not buying Swiss chocolate, even though we all know how amazing it is.

Zurich airport is rather lovely.  Quite dramatic.

Lara and Harvey could not get over a smoking lounge.  The thought of people smoking inside a public building is such an alien concept to them which is so different to the world I grew up in, when we could smoke everywhere; on tube trains, buses, offices.  Anywhere really.  Thank goodness that is no longer the case.

I had a bit of an emotional moment at Zurich airport.  I spent a month staying with my Step-Aunt Ann and her family at Ober Ruti in Zurich many years ago.  Her husband Herman loved the mountains and he used to take me out with 2 of his daughters who were a similar age to me, Susannah and Barbara.  My main memories of that summer were of being in the Alps with these lovely people, climbing mountains and trying to beat the time that was estimated for each climb (Herman’s objective, never mine), plucking up the courage to dive off the 3m board in the open air swimming pool and hearing that Elvis Presley had died!  They lived near the airport because Herman worked for Swiss Air (as they were called then).  I remember that wonderful summer so fondly.  Sadly Herman died a few years later (killed by a hit and run driver in Los Angeles) and Barbara, who was my age and has a son Harvey’s age, died few years ago from a viral illness in Qatar.   I wished I had made time this trip to go and visit Ann, Susannah and the others.  I will arrange it one day though and hopefully be fit enough to climb the Santis, which was the mountain we climbed most often. I would like to climb it in remembrance of Herman and Barbara.

Our next flight was just as easy as the first and we arrived in Nuremberg, and checked in to our hotel which is in the old part of town.  We dropped off our bags and set off in search of Bratwurst and Gluwhein.  I chose Nuremberg because I have wanted to visit a German Christmas Market for a few years.  I subscribe to a monthly magazine about 2 of my great passions in life, Food and Travel, and the December issue had an article about Nuremberg.  It claimed it has one of the best Christmas Markets, plus a fascinating history so here we are.

So far it’s all so good.

I had read about the “prune people”.  I wasn’t sure whether to laugh at the silliness of them or whether to admire them.  These little people are made from nuts, dried figs and prunes!

I definitely admired this wood carving – I rather liked him.

I can’t wait to see this place in daylight as it looks so charming in the dark.  Even prettier then I had imagined.

The Nuremberg Bratwurst is much smaller then the traditional Bratwurst.  According to one tale I read, they were made small enough to be posted through the locks in the prison so people could feed their friends and family if they were locked up.  Adorned with blobs of ketchup and mustard and eaten sandwiched between some lovely chewy bread, these did not disappoint.

Neither did the Gluwhein 🙂 .  You pay a Euro 2.50 deposit and can either keep the mug or take it back for either a refill or a refund.  It beats the plastic cup we would have been served this in at home and keeps litter downWe also had some warm sugared nuts and shared a large pretzel.  So none of this was health food but it was all authentic and we enjoyed it.

This beautiful Nativity scene is huge.  I will try and get a picture with someone in it for scale.

We are all very pleased with our hotel room.  It is huge and is in the attic so has slopey ceilings and dormer windows i.e. character.  Plus 3 beds; one double and 2 single so plenty of sleeping space.  We are all snuggled up in bed now, watching a German version of ‘You’ve Been Framed’.  Harvey is still going with his activity book 🙂 .  I think this is going to be a fun and interesting 3 days away.