man touring the US alone for two and a half months, partly on business
for his company, Tipper Tie, manufacturer of sausage making machines
and partly for site seeing. After a few brief meetings near the
campground at Tuolumne Meadows we asked if he wanted to hike in and
climb Half Dome with me, as he had not seen the Yosemite back country,
only the touristy front country. He agreed and we spent two days in
the backcountry, then another couple days in the meadows. Sending
photos back and forth during the winter Gallus became part of our
agenda for this summer's romp through Europe. So today we are headed
for Gossau, Switzerland to spend the weekend with Gallus.
We boarded the train in Fussën about nine, made two train changes and
arrived in Gossau at 2:30. Enroute at our train changes we had a few
minutes so I would seek out an unprotected WiFi spot and email Gallus
of our progress. Consequently, he was waiting for us at the station.
Gallus had to finish up at work for the day so he put us on a train to
the small Swiss village of Alpenzell about 30 minutes away, noted for
it's traditional dress, architecture and farming. Half way there the
train stopped and everyone got off. We had heard an announcement on
the PA, but not knowing German, we had no idea what was going on. A
kind english speaking Swiss woman told us the tracks were under repair
for a short section and they were bussing us around the work zone.
Soon we were back on the train and pulling into Alpenzell. The train
and bus ride were stunningly beautiful. Vibrant green countryside
fields dotted with farms and stands of timber.
Sally and Cindy took to the shops of town, I headed for the outskirts
to see the scenery. About 5:15 as I was walking a car jumped up onto
the sidewalk nearly running me over, and stopped, blocking my path. It
was Gallus, he had arrived 45 minutes early. I jumped in and we went
to the grocery store to load up on food for a Swiss Bar-b-que before
stopping at the train station to grab Sally and Cindy.
Gallus gave us a spirited lesson in sausage as we bar-b-qued two kinds
and ate them with bread, chips and beer as the sun dipped in the west.
The mosquitoes drove us inside where we studied maps for tomorrow's
hiking adventures on the surrounding mountains.
Gallus' rents one end of a large traditional farm house just a mile
outside Gossau. The ceilings are just over 6' tall, so even I must
stoop a little when going through doorways. He has two floors and
quite a bit of living area, with the upstairs boasting four bedroom
sized rooms, one a bathroom. Sally and I slept on the floor in one
room, Cindy in Gallus's son's room and Gallus in his own room.
But, before calling it a day we needed to visit a Swiss pub for a beer
so off we went in Gallus's Subaru to find a party. Our first stop in
St. Galen could be heard two blocks away with the windows up. A lively
street party with a couple hundred young Swiss spilling out of the
plaza into the street.
The drinking age in Switzerland is 16, so there is a large percent of
the population available for partying.
We were by far the oldest in this group, so we decided to move on. On
the road again we passed a Stag Party on the street. The prospective
groom in pink, the friends in uniform green T-shirts, they were well
sauced towing a cart with a cage for the groom. We stopped, asked for
a photo and got out to join in. Sally payed the groom 5 francs for a
tiny liquor bottle and got a lesson in a Swiss drinking ritual
involving wearing the bottle cap on your nose, chanting a phrase and
chugging the bottle.
We left that party and headed for a quieter bar for a beer and pop,
arriving back at Gallus's house about 12:30. We crawled into our
sleeping bags with big smiles. It was a great introduction to Swiss
culture.
Chuck
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