Meeting Up with the Girls

Usually when I use the term "the girls", I'm talking about my daughters OR five of my BYU rommates and myself who often refer to ourselves as "the girls".  This time, however, I'm talking about just one of those roommates and her two sisters and one sister-in-law.  On May 20, I found myself on my way to Interlaken to meet Dixie Pilgrim Albright, her sisters, Colleen and Pauline, and her s-i-l, Carol.  When I lived with Dixie for 2 1/2 of my 3 unmarried years at BYU, I had plenty of opportunity to get to know her family.  Besides, in 1983, after her husband finished law school in California, Dix ended up moving to a house just down the street about a block away from us in Bountiful for most of five years until we moved to Illinois in 1988.  Our kids played together, went to school together, and we babysat one another's kids when we each wanted some couple time with our husbands.  I had occasion to meet up with members of her extended family as well.  We go WAAAAAAAAAY back.  Colleen, lives in Germany right now on a military assignment, and the rest of the family was in the middle of a three-week European adventure.

I have to admit I was a bit nervous to take a train all by my little lonesome and go to a place where I had only been once before for an afternoon last summer, but I "bit the bullet" and not only lived to tell about it, but had a delightful day!  I fully expected that we would do some major sightseeing on Lake Thun (I even lugged my travel book along).   We drove along the lake, which was a treat in itself, thinking that we would take a boat ride, but when we found that we had gone completely to the other end and that the boat ride back to the town of Thun would be a 5 1/2 hour round-trip (and fairly expensive), the girls opted to SHOP and have lunch and SHOP.  We drove back to Interlaken and SHOPPED some more with a much-needed and anticipated stop at McD's for their diet Cokes! :)  We spent most of the day shopping (something I haven't been able to do much with DJ, so you didn't hear me complaining).  I found that I hadn't lost my touch!  I found some "Swiss" items for Sarah and Iz's welcome basket, and found Katelyn some darling things as well. 

The really "bad" thing in terms of money was that the girls introduced me to Pandora.  Pandora's a jewelry line, but they particularly introduced me to their silver bracelets with these cute little "screw on" charms and told me how they had been collecting them all through Europe.  Yup, I had to have one.  The bracelet came with one charm, and I bought three more (among them some Bavarian hearts and a Swiss cow)!  I have since purchased one in Lucerne (a little girl to remind me of my time there with Katelyn) and one in Salzburg (Edelweis).  Murano glass charms can be purchased so I'm hoping to get four of those---one each for our time in Italy's Como, Menaggio, Bellagio, and Verenna.  I need to pick up some others for other places we've been; but it's a bit of an expensive habit, so I'll spread it out over the next few months!!  Besides the shopping fun, it was just good to catch up.  I didn't take many pictures while we shopped, and the only ones I got going there and back were of course from the train window, but I thought I'd post a few of them anyway!  It was a beautiful ride down and back.

On the way there (sorry in advance for the glare and reflections from the oppostite windows):

In Interlaken with a carved bear and at the Interlaken West train station at the end of the day (saying good-bye):



If this wasn't the only picture I got on my camera, I wouldn't have posted it---talk about looking like the Pillbury Dough Boy!!!  And....FYI, that's not my purse.  It's "the bag" with all the contents of my purse, a jacket, an umbrella, a water bottle, a travel book, a reading book or two, and all my shopping bags minus the Swiss pinwheel I got for Kate that's in the sack so I wouldn't squash it!



Through the train window (and they're getting wet) - l to r:  Pauline, Carol, Colleen, and Dixie.


On the way home:

I almost didn't go thinking I should stay home and make sure everything was perfect for the Arciniega's arrival the next day and because I was a little worried about traveling in a foreign country by myself, but I'm sure glad I did.  Had a great time!