Transformations Abound
Remember all that snow I showed you in the last two posts? Well, it is all gone. Amazingly, it has evaporated, melted, vanished. As quickly as it arrived, it departed. The landscape is as naked now as it was the moments before the slight drizzle transformed into snowflakes.
In the days immediately after the snowfall, I took a trip outside the Davos valley and venture back to the land I came from. Yes, I had a return trip to the US. What fun I had! In the 10 days I was gone, some changes had occurred in Davos.
Preparing for The Snow!
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| Red Snow Pole |
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| Blue/Yellow Snow Pole |
Snow is a thing big thing here in Davos Platz. People talk about it and anticipate it with great glee. What I didn't realize was the way the town prepared for it. The first thing I noticed when I arrived back in Davos was there were now 'poles' lining all the streets, parking lots and mountain pathways. These poles surround the perimeters of the parks and walkways up to front doors. Some of the poles have blue paint at the top, while some have red. We have not figured out what the different colors represent, but we smiled when we realized the true meaning of the poles. These are the markers for the snow plows to know where the edges of the streets are when the real snow, the permanent white stuff arrives and show us how deep the snow will be. Woah.
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| Red Snow Poles on the Street up to our Apartment Building |
Sleeping Trees
I am familiar with snow. I grew up in New Jersey and lived in Cincinnati where snow happens each year. Sometimes it lingers and most times it melts in a few weeks. In Davos, Switzerland the amount of snow and length of time is stays in more, more and more. Not only are the streets prepared for the amount of snow, the young trees are, too.
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| Evergreen outside our Apartment |
The small, delicate trees of Davos are wrapped and sheltered in preparation of the weight of the anticipated snow. These two evergreen trees are outside our apartment building.
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| Smallest Evergreen outside Apartment Building |
All the young shrubs around the town are bundled in winter cocoons. Like bears going to sleep for a long winters nap, these trees and shrubs will be awakened and unwrapped in the spring when the threat of heavy snow ends.
Where Did All the People Go?
One of the first things I had to do when I returned home, was head to Coop (the grocery store). As I walked along the street, it was eerily quiet. I looked around and suddenly realized that I was the only person walking in the town! Many restaurants and a number of retail stores were closed. What was going on?
I walked up to a restaurant that had been open and bustling with patrons before I left and read a sign (I am learning some German), Closed Until November 22. Apparently from October 31 until November 21-22 is considered 'down time'. Too chilly for the hiking tourist and devoid of snow for the skiers. The town shuts down creating it's own 'resting time' waiting for the whiteness to arrive and with it the throngs of tourists. We are told over and over that from December through the middle of March this small mountain town will be transformed into a traffic jam of cars, pedestrians, hikers, skiers, snowboarders, skaters, sleigh riders (now THAT sounds like fun), tobogganers and Swiss who just want to be in the most amazing mountain town for the holidays and ski season. We'll see. Right now it is quiet. Even quieter than it was when I arrived at the end of July. Remember this is the Swiss Mountains - it is naturally quiet, but right now - well, it is asleep.
Morphing Our Shoes
One more note: This is snow related, but foot focused. We live on the top of a very steep hill; the side of a mountain actually. We have been informed (many times with a smile) that we will need 'spikes' on the bottom of our shoes when the snow and ice arrive in order to walk up the street to get home. (Did I forget to mention that we do not have a car here?) Spikes on our shoes?
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| Spikes on the bottom of sneakers |
Well, today as we were walking through town there was a sporting goods store open. We went inside to check it out and lo and behold they sell spikes that you put on the bottom of your shoes to prevent you from slipping on the snow and ice! Remember the people here LOVE the ice and snow. They hike in it, run in it and play in it. So, they have created a cover for their shoe that help them stay snow bound in all conditions. The 'spikes' are pulled over shoes like a rain boot is pulled over shoes. It was quite a surprise for us to actually see these 'spikes' for sale. Now we know that people weren't joking. We didn't buy any yet. I think we are putting off the inevitable.
Knowing There is Always the Unknown
I never know what unexpected thing I will see or experience here in my new life in Switzerland. From street poles to cocoon trees; a sleeping town to spiky shoes. Whether we realize it or not, our lives offer the answer to questions we have had, maybe for a long time. When I was a child, I always had questions - how does that work? Where does that go? You see, I always wanted to know-not anything in particular, everything in general. My experience here is offering me the answers the the many questions I have had, maybe without even realizing on a conscious level about how other people live. Not only that, but I have created an experience where I actually get to live with another culture. What questions did you have as a child? How has your life offered you the answers?
Utto---I better hurry up and post this. I feel a snow storm brewing.
Genießen Sie das Leben
Enjoy Life!
Marybeth
