In the search for amazing chocolate in Switzerland, Austria and Germany, there have been some developments.
First the loser: We’ve seen whole shops dedicated to the Mozart Chocolates. So I bought a couple of these:And ewwww, what was that stuff in the center? Rather a grainy texture without much flavor.
Secondly there was my booze chocolate fiasco:
We were nearing the end of our day in Lucerne and Mt. Pilatus and everyone was starting to get a little crabby. So just as we were about to board the cog train down the mountain, I rushed into the gift shop and grabbed this chocolate bar.I love cherries and there are tons of trees all over the place that are ripe right now. So I thought, hey, we’ve had cherry cereal and fresh cherries, this chocolate with the “kirsch liquide” center will be excellent. But apparently the word at the top of the wrapper “alcool” means alcohol. So when these beauties were bit into the liquid center dribbled out and the kids spit the whole kit and kaboodle out.
Third – We have a winner.
Up until now, nothing has compared in any way to the Lindt Lindor chocolates. These little wonders are available everywhere in the US and are great rewards for getting the grocery shopping done, cleaning the bathroom, mopping the floor, and successfully navigating just about anything. The Lindt chocolate factory is in Zurich and I hope to visit there before we come home.
But then yesterday…I discovered this little gem:and the angels sang, and there was an open heaven! This little piece of heaven is a Frey chocolate (same last name as our friend Pastor Desmond – pronounced Fray not Fry). It has a slight chocolate shell and an amazing melty center.
So lessons learned: Mozart should have stuck to music; learn German so as not to make mistakes or intoxicate children; and figure out if Frey chocolates are available at World Market (they have an super selection of European chocolates.)
Well, here I am as everyone back home gets ready for my favorite holiday of the year, and there’s not an Oscar Meyer hot dog anywhere to be found.
The Fourth is my favorite holiday for quite a few reasons. Here are a few:
1) fireworks/explosives/fire
2) a holiday that is not focused on the meal (Thanksgiving – hours to prepare – consumed in 20 minutes – clean up another hour or so)
3) fireworks/explosives/fire
4) no gift pressure (Christmas – did I get them the “right” gift and how far out of my budget did I go?)
5) fireworks/explosives/fire
6) grilling – the very best way to cook and keep the kitchen clean, and most of my favorite foods
7) fireworks/explosives/fire
8 ) relaxing day of family with converation, fun and blowing stuff up, and mostly outdoors so that the house doesn’t have to be as tidy
9) fireworks/explosives/fire
10) childhood memories of fireworks, cookouts, and services at the little country church cemetary to honor vets.
11) fireworks/explosives/fire
12) a holiday that does not require an extra church service (makes sense if you are part of a church staff family)
So as you can see Fourth of July is the best holiday ever!
Here’s a little clip from my favorite comedian, Jim Gaffigan. Remember, he’s rated PG 13. He gets to the Fourth about 2 minutes into the clip.
Last night I finally succeeded in going to the grocery store, buying stuff to make dinner (with no mistakes) and produced an actual “German” meal.
The feeding of this family has been a bit of a challenge since we arrived here. Guess what – the groceries in the store, they are all labeled in German! Who would have thought! And there is a total lack of the familiar products I use without thinking. (Spent about 5 minutes trying to decide which package of bread crumbs to buy – how can bread crumbs be bewildering?)
So, when you buy a cake mix…you have to come home, get out the computer and translate the directions on the back through an on-line translation service. (Be careful not to accidently skip a line, because the cake just doesn’t turn out.) Or you buy a can of corn and this happens: Steve wrote about that night in this post. Or we order Swiss cheese at the meat counter and get enough for a year.
But then I hit on an idea. In the grocery store, I wrote down the name of some products that looked interesting and came home and googled them under authentic German recipes. Then translated the ingredients I needed and went back to the store. And last night – TaDumm!!! – I produced authentic German meatballs with spaetzle.
(I took a picture but someone helpfully deleted it or you would see my tasty accomplishment) Dinner was pronounced good and Steve even said that it was a repeat for dinner at home.
Back to “normal” American hamburgers for the less adventurous tonight and then Swiss rosti (that should have dots over the “o”) tomorrow night.
Last spring Bob Kilpatrick visited CATG for a memorable time with the worship team and in both Sunday morning services. During this time he talked about his new book that will be released in August. The title is The Secret of Silence. Bob talks about how the business of our world, the cares and worries of life precludes our ability to sit in silence before Him. Being silent before the LORD is commanded in scripture multiple times and in the his book, Bob leads us into a deeper understanding of the power of silence in a 21 day journey.
I am hoping to have a Life Group based around this book in the fall, so I figured it would probably be a good thing to practice the spiritual discipline of silence before I tried to communicate it.
Today was day 1, and it is really hard to sit silent and keep your mind from running around like a hyper chihuahua. Before I went into the prayer closet in this lovely home, the words to a hymn called Let All Flesh Keep Silent came to mind. In particular one line in the first verse. “Ponder Nothing Earthly Minded.” I kept on shaking my head like an EtchaSketch to maintain focus. This is going to be an interesting journey.
Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.
King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heavenly food.
Rank on rank the host of heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth
From the realms of endless day,
That the powers of hell may vanish
As the darkness clears away.
At His feet the six wingèd seraph,
Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the presence,
As with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia
Alleluia, Lord Most High!
Tonight we were walking near the front gate of the Dachau concentration camp. One of the signs said that the prisoners inside were subjected to daily torture and terror. The spirit of death reigned over that place.
As we walked along at dusk, we heard an Islamic call to prayer from an apartment just outside the camp walls. Perhaps as a reminder to us that anti-Semitism is alive and well in the world today.
Praying tonight for the calling of all God’s children, lost and found, to find Jesus, the Messiah, and for those who already know his name to cry out day and night for his return.
Just let the pics speak for themselves….
Yep…That’s how the timer works.
Hilarious, Thomas.
The Alps should be faintly visible behind us but the camera thought we were more interesting. Somebody photoshop in some mountains this picture could be anywhere.
UPDATE: Thomas captured the mountains in one of his pictures. Look here.
We have all commented on the silence and quiet in this country. We first noticed it at the airport on Saturday morning. The whole airport was so quiet. There were many people walking around, but there was a profound hush over the whole place. From the customs to the baggage claim, even the overhead announcements were minimal and hushed.
The village of Kandern is quiet too. The grocery store with quiet. Sitting in this beautiful living room looking at the mountain, the “traditional” white homes with the red tile roofs, the only sounds are the birds and the church chimes that announce the time.
Thinking about this yesterday and thinking about my hopes for restoration during this trip, I was drawn back to Isaiah 30:15:
For thus the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said,
“In repentance and rest you will be saved,
In quietness and trust is your strength.”
But you were not willing,
So I am looking forward to resting in the quiet. To find again the strength of the LORD. And to leave behind the last part of that verse and chapter that talks about Israel’s disobedience to this command.
jet lag also jet·lag (jět’lāg’)
n. A temporary disruption of bodily rhythms caused by high-speed travel across several time zones typically in a jet aircraft. The effects of jet lag, which may include fatigue and irritability, generally disappear after a few days as the body’s internal rhythms readjust themselves to the new time frame.
jet’-lagged’ adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Today was day two on our little adventure. So far, we’ve found our temporary home, tried out our “loaner car” on very narrow fast curvy roads (break out the Dramamine), looked like major tourists in the grocery store, gone to church in Zurich, gone to a baptism party and baptisms in Lake Zurich and found our way back home again.
This should get more interesting as I get some sleep. But for now I have to figure out how to sneak past Steve who is bound and determined to only let us go to bed at “normal” times.
Last week, I had several people ask me how I was doing and feeling after the threat to my kids. (See previous post for the exact quote.) And I had to immediately think of one of my favorite historical figures of all time.
Stonewall Jackson was a brilliant tactician during the civil war. His childhood as an orphan and the events of his life lead him to a deep and abiding faith in Jesus Christ.
One of the first battles of the Civil War was the battle of Bull Run. There as the Union began to over run the Confederate line, Jackson was seen at the front of the battle line inspite of the heavy fire all around him. His name “Stonewall” comes from this moment. During this battle, Jackson’s horse was wounded he had several bullet hole through his clothing and a bullet had broken the finger of his hand.
Someone asked him how he could be so vulnerable in the face of such danger. Jackson replied:
Captain, my religious belief teaches me to feel as safe in the field of battle as in bed. He has fixed the hour of my death. I do not concern myself about that but to be always ready no matter when it may overtake me. That is the way all men should live, then all would be equally brave.”
That is the way we should all live. That is the way I am walking this through with my children. Their destinies were not complete on Sunday. Our destinies are not complete today. In this spiritual battle, God has appointed my hour of death. Until that moment comes, I am as safe in my own home as I am anywhere in the world.
We’ve seen whole shops dedicated to the Mozart Chocolates. So I bought a couple of these:
And ewwww, what was that stuff in the center? Rather a grainy texture without much flavor.
I love cherries and there are tons of trees all over the place that are ripe right now. So I thought, hey, we’ve had cherry cereal and fresh cherries, this chocolate with the “kirsch liquide” center will be excellent. But apparently the word at the top of the wrapper “alcool” means alcohol. So when these beauties were bit into the liquid center dribbled out and the kids spit the whole kit and kaboodle out.
These little wonders are available everywhere in the US and are great rewards for getting the grocery shopping done, cleaning the bathroom, mopping the floor, and successfully navigating just about anything. The Lindt chocolate factory is in Zurich and I hope to visit there before we come home.
and the angels sang, and there was an open heaven! This little piece of heaven is a Frey chocolate (same last name as our friend Pastor Desmond – pronounced Fray not Fry). It has a slight chocolate shell and an amazing melty center.
Steve wrote about that night in this 
Stonewall Jackson was a brilliant tactician during the civil war. His childhood as an orphan and the events of his life lead him to a deep and abiding faith in Jesus Christ. 
