Good morning fellows!

Snowing here too. No spring in sight! Bought some blooming spring flowers yesterday ;-)

Ingo

Well, hooray, it is supposed to snow tonight and tomorrow in Vienna, up to 6 inches :-) Not much, but still a lot more than I'd see at home in Brussels and Maidenhead...

Yay, it's snowing already!! :-D

Here in Louisiana where spring has arrived (we ate boiled crawfish Tuesday), the only way I can relate fairly to this tempting exchange is to say that I've just finished watching every possible hour of the Torino olympics that I possibly could! For a flatlander, I have notions of being a downhill skiier in my next life. Spectacular! And the bobsled! Love it! Congratulations to all the participants! Well that's my snow talk, except that I dearly wish I could be with you folks right now. J.

Just wait 2 weeks and we all will be walking around in T-Shirts (for a few days at least) :-)

Hi schuler - are you snowed in yet? It's still snowing in Basel. What a bummer, it doesn't look good for Monday through Wednesday. :-(

Yes, the "Waggis" is a traditional figure at carnivals in Basel, first documented in 1874. Did you carry a washboard & bucket during your parade? Isn't it great fun to participate in all this merriment? In some households it's a family affair. Friends and relatives are kept busy tracking down the various "clique" members during the parades. I got a big kick out of the "Guggemusik" at the final ceremony of the Olympic Games. What a surprise, Fasnacht being elevated to a whole new level (salonfähig - LOL) ;-)

Have a great Sunday with your family in the snow!

Salü Zama!

It's still snowing and it's getting to be a problem because it's snowing down in the low lands too. Nothing Switzerland can't handle, though.

BTilke: What's it like in Vienna now? Traffic chaos?

Ingo: Sounds like your going to have snow for awhile too.

jmw: Crawfish! Never had it. I don't know if you'd want to be here right now but when it stops snowing, it will be beautiful again. Right now, everyone should stay home and enjoy a fondue or raclette. (I made Alpermaggeroni today.)

logos: Where are you at home?

Waggis: Yup, I had a wooden mask and a bucket, but nothing too old fashioned. We're a group of 25 women who do this. My aunt started this 25 years ago. I'm continuing the tradition.

Have fun at the Basler fasnacht! It's a terrific Fasnacht but that the sound of those piccolos stay in your head a long time after.

In Munich. I don't recall that much snow been falling in the city in just 2 days. Just went outside 20 min ago, 5 cm below my knee still snowing. Beautifully clean, "fluffy" snow. :-)

Just found this photo 11.p.m (1 hour ago) today in downtown! Munich.

http://img323.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pic9dj.jpg

That's heavy snow! A few acquaintances have mentioned how cold it is in their parts of Europe. It really does seem to be an exceptionally cold winter this time.

The snow at one of the parked cars cross the street has just reached the side mirror. Havn't seen this in my life in this city. It's quite beautiful though. It's not really cold, it's just wet.

Hi, the picture I saw is exactly how we found our car last night after we had dinner at friends' in Dijon! It was very difficult to go back home (8km back in the country)and even get into our house. The car stayed outside.
It finally stopped snowing after 1am. We've never seen that before (in more than 35years)
This morning the sun is back and my kids are making a huge bonhomme de neige (snow angel?) :-)

Hi Schuler, no, things seem pretty smooth in Vienna. But it's Sunday, when things are quieter anyway. The snow is still falling, fairly heavily, and looking VERY pretty. I'm watching it from my desk (this is the work portion of my trip) but will out and about a little later. I brought my Swiss Kanahar boots with me and they are holding up perfectly--no wet or cold feet for me!

Guten Morgen! My husband is using his snow blower again. Third time in 24 hours. It's finally stopped snowing and it's beautiful! There are still heavy clouds around but I hear the pistes calling my name "come and ski! come and ski!" How can I resist!

Happy Winter! And have fun in Münich, Vienna and Dijon! Today's bound to be a great day for walking in the snow.

I just visited the Rothenthurm webcam, and it does look COLD! What is Alpermaggeroni?

Yesterday I received an e-mail from my friends at the Hotel Panorama in Gerra-Gambarogno. Axel is planning some new menu items with saffron for his spring opening the second half of March. So spring is in the air in Ticino? Happy skiing and cross-country-ing! :) J.

jmw - assuming schuler hasn't come home from her skiing yet, I can tell you the Alpemaggaroni I had were made with elbow maccaroni (pasta), potatoes and cheese. My husband loves this dish. A friend leased an Alp above lake Thun and all the guys in our party were the chefs, taking turn stirring the pot, which was a great big iron kettle on a tripod over an open woodfire. It was a very hot Sunday afternoon about a week before the Swiss National Day (August 1st). We heard the bells of grazing cattle nearby and had this fantastic view of the lake and mountains in total solitude, sang folkloric songs and had a good time in the summer breeze while waiting for our meal. In the darkness of the night, and, with the help of a single flashlight, we hiked up a steep hillside to get to our cars. Our friend who remained at the alpine hut, accompanied us with his kids and dog a ways and when we began the climbing all of a sudden we heard him play a bugle and one of the fellows in our party responded with his accordeon ... Down below, near the hut, the kids were "waving" a lantern. For me, as an ex-pat it was especially magical. I had wanted to spend again one more August 1st. in the mountains with all the bonfires and music. It doesn't get any better: good friends and food and great scenery to boot.

Hi Waggis: What a perfect day! That's Switzerland pure! Thanks for sharing.

Jmw: We're going to Ascona next October. I hope we can visit Hotel Panorama for a nice meal. It sounds so pleasant.

No skiing: the pistes weren't prepared yet so we went sledding instead. 100% winter wonderland!

Guete Daag schuler!
I'm glued to my PC waiting for the "Morgestraich" to begin in about half an hour (4 am local time). It's still snowing, I can't believe it. The inner city is alive with people rushing to their clique's starting points. Is there anything more heavenly than following some piccolo players in the darkness of the night through the narrow old lanes (Gässli)? I think it wonderful that you submerge yourself in our old traditions and truly get in touch with your roots. Was it that your parents told you about life in Switzerland as they were growing up that you wanted to share the experience?

Fasnacht 2006 is underway. If you'd like to check out what schuler and I have been talking about, go to www.fasnacht.ch and click on the English version to get some background information. You'll be able to follow the activities on this website for the next three days and nights when you click on "Fasnacht 2006 live". Cameras at various locations will not only provide pictures but you can also hear the drummers, piccolo players and Guggenmusik.
BTW they frantically cleared the streets and hauled the snow away by trucks. Nevertheless, a couple of steep streets had to be closed off: too slippery due to ice. That's a first!

Guten Morgen Waggis! Back from Fasnacht yet? I checked out your recommended website and it worked like a dream. I heard the piccolos piping but most people had fled into a restaurant or had gone home.

Hope it was a great morning! It's the highlight of the year in Basel! Watch out on the Cafe Zwetschgens! Or are you a gespritze Weisse fan?

It's snowing again where I live too. I heard there's been traffic chaos in the big cities in Switzerland. Up here, where we have lots of snow plows to take care of our roads, we barely had any problems.

En schöne Fasnacht!