Home Again

I took a brief trip "home" last week. No, I didn't go back to the states--I just spent two days in Switzerland! We're on one of our grand mission tours again, and we started things off right with an adventure-packed field trip to the Château de Chillon. End result? The boys had a blast, we all had a change of scenery, and I have now taken the picture at the right in all seasons except fall. (I'm an old veteran to Chillon...it's sort-of my favorite...)

We started the day by taking the train from Lausanne (also one of my favorites!), and the boys were mystified at how smoothly the train moved. If you've never experienced a Swiss train, I highly recommend it--I may be a bit biased, but I still think they're magical! And with scores of terraced vineyards on one side and Lake Geneva on the other, this ride is absolutely incomparable. But--on to the ever-educational visit to one of the loveliest medieval castles! And for this, I leave the narrative to the pictures...

Fun and Games

Being the royal taster made me nervous...

And seeing as how I died, I suppose it was
with good reason!

Um...cool pic--need I say more?

Of course, London goes for the big guns...

And then Kelson expressed brotherly
affection for London by offering him
up on a stove altar.

Down in the Dungeon
The dungeon is possibly the most famous part of this medieval castle, owing to Lord Byron's poem which immortalized one of the dungeon's prisoners: François Bonivard. Bonivard was chained to a pillar for six years, largely owing to his support of the Protestant Reformation. And while the prison has been empty of prisoners for a very long time, a legacy still hangs about the walls...erm...pillars!

Pontificating about Lord Byron...can you
see his name?!

Not so bad...for a prison...

At least there were windows!

The last thing the condemned saw/heard
was the lake splashing against
the castle foundation.

Miscellaneous Loveliness
These other pictures don't fit into a specific narrative, so they will stand alone as individual examples of why I love Chillon! Of course, this time around, part of why I loved it is that the boys were just as thrilled to be there as I was. :)

I want a bedroom that looks like this!

And a kitchen like this...?

And this might be fun in my backyard...

Perfect for a little girl's room!