from my paper travel journal...
[page 8:]
Rachel slept, head in Matthew's lap, during their short
ride [flight] to Geneva. Matthew didn't feel like eating another airplane
meal. Dan [one of Matthew's co-workers] met them outside the baggage
claim and the three made their way to the rental car Dan had picked up the
day before.
The drive to Neuchâtel was lovely. They
discussed the crops they drove by (mustard, wine grapes, and an
unidentified plant with white flowers). Dan filled Matthew and Rachel in
on his voyage the day before and on what he had explored of the hotel and
city.
All were hungary, so they skipped going to the hotel in
favor of heading straight to centre ville [the center of the city]. Dan
recommended the restaurant where he had eaten lunch.
[page 9:]
Dan pointed out the exits for the hotel and the local
_______ office. He had already been there and seen the classroom set-up.
Rachel asked various questions about his family and his joy about being
able to use his French.
Matthew and Rachel were surprised to learn that this
was Dan's first trip to Europe. They explained the various traffic signs
and shared their driving advice.
[page 10:]
Dinner was absolutely superb. They got a bottle of
local Pino Noir.
Both Rachel and Matthew were crazy about the garlic
cream soup (avec creme et l'ail). Both Rachel and Matthew had pasta, and
Dan had poisson [fish]. After dinner they all had coffee and tea to
settle their stomachs.
* notes: dinner for 3 = 165 CHF; parking = 2 CHF
CHF = Swiss francs; the exchange rate is 1 CHF = 0.6 US dollars
Restaurant de la Maison des Halles
Rue de Trésor 4, 2000 Neuchâtel
Tél. 032 724 31 41 - Fax 032 721 30 84
[page 11:]
After dinner, they headed to the hotel.
The drive was again lovely and peaceful.
Hotel le Chalet is located at 2016 Cortaillod.
After a brief incident in which Dan set off the shrill
door alarm, they found themselves in their respective rooms. The beds
were covered with only a comforter (no sheets) and the shower had a
strange collapsing wall.
Matthew and Rachel did a small bit of unpacking,
admired the enormous balcony, and cuddled up in bed. Matthew watched a
bit of racing in bed while Rachel began this journal. Then Matthew
plunged into sleep while Rachel stayed up reading. She slept until ~6 am
and Matthew till ~7 am.
[page 12:]
The couple joined Dan for the hotel's continental
breakfast. The bienenhonig ["honey" in German] recalled memories of
Rachel's and Matthew's time in Germany. They all left satiated.
The three drove to the office. Dan began preparing for
his class that day. Matthew checked his e-mail and then he and Rachel
returned to the hotel.
Matthew settled in to work, Rachel arranged all of her
journal supplies on the bed, and the two were amazed to find it was only 9
am.
When the housekeeping staff arrived, Matthew and Rachel
went downstairs to the restaurant, where Matthew enjoyed a cup of coffee
in an attempt to stay awake until a reasonable hour. Upon returning to
their room, Matthew took a few photographs and then their both returned to
their respective projects. Then Rachel again curled up with her book.
* notes: coffee = ~3 CHF
[page 13:]
Matthew and Rachel stopped by the ______ campus to make
sure that Dan was accomidated for lunch before heading to centre ville in
search of food. At restaurant St. Honore, Rachel had un salade vert [a
green salad] and Matthew had raviolis gratiné au parmesan. They
were seated at a four person table, and when the restaurant was filled,
the waitress asked if a single diner could join them. After a few minutes
of silence, Rachel explained, "Nous sommes American." ["We are American."]
The man switched to heavily accented English and showered Matthew and
Rachel in stories of his time in Orlando, his rheumatism, and the time his
wife made decaf coffee for the plumbers installing his water heater.
* notes: lunch = 33.30 CHF; parking = 3.00 CHF
[page 14:]
Rachel was brave enough to have mineral water with gas
for lunch with Matthew, and she enjoyed using her French to take care of
him. At dinner, she reverted to plain water to accompany her penne
Napoli.
Matthew and Rachel fetched Dan at the office in the
late afternoon. The day was cool. They parked in a different part of
centre ville and wandered around a bit because Dan wanted to stretch his
legs.
At dinner, Matthew told a story of his amusement of
hearing someone say "Oh la la!" while trying to make change for a bill.
Matthew was in stitches but Dan didn't think it was funny...
* notes: dinner for 3 = 123.30 CHF
au Feu de Gois
restaurant Italien & pizzeria
Rue du Seyon 27
Neuchâtel
Tél. 032 / 724 74 61