Sangko’s travel story series about nobles living in the Swiss capital

Switzerland is really a good place to travel.

Mount Pilatus is as far as the eye can see

Everyone knows that there are many thieves in Italy and France.

I used to take a large group to Europe. When we visited Italy and France, the driver did not dare to get out of the car even in the service area of ??the highway. He stared at the rear views on both sides with his eyes. Mirror, for fear that someone would pry into the suitcase and steal something.

Over time, European bus drivers have developed a special function - their two eyes can look in two different directions, just like a chameleon.

This is probably the effect. You can tell he is an experienced driver at this glance

But every time the bus enters Switzerland, the driver immediately becomes much more relaxed.

"Let's go have a coffee. It doesn't matter if the car is unlocked. We are in Switzerland!"

Switzerland has good security, beautiful scenery, friendly people, and a lot of things to do... ...In short, there is nothing wrong with it except that it is expensive.

In July 2013, I took four cars to Switzerland for a self-driving trip, which was a lot of fun.

We rented X1. Europeans are more pragmatic and have more small cars. After all, the parking space is small and gas is too expensive.

There are snow-capped mountains everywhere along the way, the most beautiful of which is the Matterhorn

When I was in Zurich, I also caught up with the annual Zurich Festival

Zurich Festival BBQ stall

I asked this "barbecue guy" what kind of meat was being grilled? The eldest brother said:

"Pork! Just like me! Hehehehehe..."

But when I really wanted to take a picture of him with the camera, he felt a little embarrassed and shy. got up.

There were many unforgettable little things during this trip, but the most memorable thing was the embarrassing incident of accidentally breaking into someone else's manor in Berni, the capital. But under the light of my wisdom, the embarrassing things turned into beautiful things.

Berni, the capital of Switzerland, is certified as a "World Cultural Heritage" city by UNESCO

There are fountains all over the city, most of which were built in the 16th century and are still in good operation today.

The night before arriving in Berni we discovered a village green. Although it was dark, you could see a lush green grassland at the foot of the snow-capped mountains, just like the scene depicted in the movie "The Sound of Music." At this time, the boss who was traveling with me called me:

"Xiao Sang, let's have a picnic here tomorrow!"

"Okay," I said, "buy some tomorrow. We still have food here.”

The next day, we bought some beer, drinks, fruits, ham, bread and other things in the supermarket to prepare for a picnic.

When I arrived at the place yesterday, I was dumbfounded... It was dark yesterday and I didn't notice it at all. This is not grassland. The grass is half as tall as a man and is almost turning into sorghum field...

I found this place through Google Street View. It is indeed grassland at night...

There are four cars in our group, three SUVs and one BMW X1. The further you go, the narrower it becomes, and it may be difficult to turn around.

"I'll drive up to the front and have a look." The boss asked us to wait where we were while they drove their off-road vehicle up the hill to have a look.

While I was waiting, I discovered that there were several houses under the hill. There was a foreigner standing in the yard of the house, looking towards us.

I looked at it and said to the people next to me: You guys wait here for me, don’t go anywhere, I’ll come back as soon as I go. After saying that, I drove towards the house.

As soon as I stopped the car at the door, the door opened, and a tall foreigner (I should say a native, I am a foreigner here) walked out. , must be in his fifties, with gray hair, wearing a white T-shirt and jeans, and glasses that were particularly popular in the 1980s.

"How can I help you?"

Berni is a French-speaking area, and there are many French-speaking people. Fortunately, my French is not completely forgotten.

"Well, we came here from China. We want to find a place to have a picnic. Do you know if there is a picnic park nearby?"

"Picnic Park Ah... Our little place... really doesn't have one."

"It doesn't have to be a park, a river beach or a grassy area is fine. We all have food with us." While talking to him, my mind was spinning rapidly, brewing a "conspiracy".

"Hmm... not really. Well... how many of you are there?"

"12 of us, we are all friends and relatives, and it is our first time in Switzerland."

"Oh..." The foreigner was thinking about something, "Do you have a barbecue or something? Do you use fire?"

"No, no! We all have a cold meal. In fact, Just find a place to chat. "That's it. We have something to do. I added: "A place is enough, nothing else is needed."

"Then... you are here. Let’s eat here, come with me.”

Bingo! The plan succeeded! But it’s still because I met a good person.

Just like that, he took me to a wooden house nearby.

"This is our barn, where we store hay. There are tables and chairs under this shed. If you want to eat under the shed, just eat here. If you want to go to the grass, just move the tables and chairs over there. Before leaving There’s no need to clean it up. I’ll have someone here to clean it later.”

The elder brother, or “Uncle”, smiled at me after saying that:

“Today is the weekend, it doesn’t matter how late it is.” "Son. There's no one else around here, it's all our family, and we're having a dinner together."

The white house behind the tree is the barn, and there is a shed on the right, with a light and a fan under the shed. Behind is a meadow. This grassland is actually used to grow pasture, which is regularly beaten into rolls using machines as feed for livestock. At that time, this piece had just been cut, and it was soft and comfortable to step on.

Looking back now, I feel a little embarrassed, because I just realized that we had invaded private property just now. I quickly apologized to them.

The uncle was very generous: "It's okay. Normally, there should be a sign on the small road to explain it. But in our small place, no outsiders have come in for several years, so it doesn't matter. I'll call you a friend. Come here, feel free, don’t be formal.”

I quickly called the boss: Come back quickly! People invite us to eat in their courtyards!

"Shall I go?! Are you so easy to talk to?" The boss was also a little surprised, "This Swiss is of high quality."

After greeting everyone, we all arrived at the door of his house. The whole family came out, all happy.

Everyone exchanged greetings, and then the uncle told me:

"What do you want to wash? There is a fountain in the middle where you can wash. If you want to use the bathroom, just knock on my door." Come on, just use ours.”

I thanked them again and again, and then we started eating!

This meal was quite simple, but everyone enjoyed it very happily. I met a kind-hearted family and had a picnic at their house.

However, there are more interesting things behind.

"Xiao Sang, do you think it's appropriate for me to go to the toilet?" A friend seemed to have a need.

I was also a little embarrassed: "This...isn't it a bit disturbing to others..."

"That's right. How about we find a toilet nearby?" The eldest brother is also a polite person and doesn't want to disturb others.

"Well, if any of you want to go to the toilet, come with me. I'll drive to the edge of town. When I came here just now, I saw a restaurant. I went to give them a tip and used the restaurant's food. Let's go to the toilet."

"Okay, okay, that's good." After saying that, three or four people got in my car and went to the toilet.

The town is very small, and you can reach the edge of the town just by stepping on the accelerator. I parked the car and walked straight to the "Three Towers Restaurant". When I arrived at the door, I was dumbfounded.

This is it, an unassuming country restaurant

Before knocking on the door, I glanced at the signs on both sides of the door:

"Tripadvisor Annual Recommendation"

"XX Food Magazine Annual Recommendation"

"Swiss Restaurant Association Recommendation"

"Michelin Star Restaurant"

…………………………

This...find a Michelin restaurant and borrow the toilet?

Then another sign relieved me -

This restaurant is a reservation-only restaurant. Please be sure to make a reservation at least three days in advance so that we can open for business!

In other words: we won’t open the door if no one is eating. It's not open today.

This... the Swiss really don’t take making money seriously! !

How to deal with this?

Looking back, eh? There is a small church!

A nun happened to come out and went over to tell her, and she agreed enthusiastically.

"Come on, come on, it's just behind, you can help yourself."

Later I had an experience, if I really can't find a toilet, I look for a church...

----------More fun is coming later----------

After solving the natural call we were born with, we returned to the valley. warehouse, just in time to catch up with the uncle taking his wife out to walk the dog. I quickly went up to them and invited them to sit with us and have a beer to thank them.

People say: No, no, you just have fun.

Everyone gathered around and extended a warm invitation.

Don’t refuse the offer directly, just say:

“Let’s go for a walk together, and I’ll tell you about this small town.”

"Okay! Let us open our eyes too."

The uncle took out a card holder from his pocket and handed me a business card.

"My name is Nicolas, and my wife's name is Nancy. The house behind you is our home gallery, and the gallery is called La Schurra. If your friends come to Switzerland in the future, if you have time, you can come and see the exhibitions here. . This gallery in our home is to give young artists a chance to show off. It’s free of charge and everyone can support it. It’s being renovated now and will be completed next month.”

I looked at it. The business card seems a bit strange.

"Mr. Diesbach, there is de in your name. Is it an aristocratic surname?"

This is a little knowledge: De in French (French President Charles de Gaulle), Von (German Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg) in German means "where it comes from" and is also a unique middle name for noble surnames.

"Hey, this happened a long time ago, and it has nothing to do with it." We chatted while walking.

"In 1535, our family moved here, and this is my family's fiefdom..." (As expected, he is a noble)

This guy's mouth sounds like he was born almost five hundred years ago The fourteenth year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty. After another round, Sun Houer will probably come out.

While walking and chatting, Nicolas told us about the surrounding buildings. For example, the village has experienced several fires over the past hundreds of years, and the two most complete houses with a bit of history are the "dormitories" for temporary workers two hundred years ago and the bread kiln where they baked bread. Up to now, the land around us that we can see is still his family's land, which is used to grow pasture. We raise some cows, all of which eat natural pasture. There is a special company to help them take care of it. The couple usually travels, paints and other things. In addition to taking care of the ranch, the most important job now is to manage the small gallery and hold art exhibitions from time to time.

Nicolas is introducing us to how the kiln for baking bread is used.

After wandering around for a while, they said goodbye to us again, and then told us again: No need to clean up, there will be dedicated people to do the cleaning.

When it was getting dark, we ended this happy dinner. After the tables and chairs were put back in place, the ladies wiped them all with rags. The gay men spontaneously used their mobile phones to shine them, and lay on the ground with their hands to pick up the fallen peels and wrapping paper bits and pieces. Collected them, put them in plastic bags and took them away.

Because we were afraid of disturbing others, we didn’t say goodbye when we left. We wrote a special thank you on a piece of paper and pressed it on the table. Then, everyone "leave the village quietly, no one wants to shoot".

After the journey, I returned to my motherland. On the plane, I talked about this matter with everyone again and made a decision:

After returning home, each family will prepare a small gift: handicrafts, clothing, books and picture albums... Anyway, it has a bit of Chinese characteristics. Just something. In the end, they were all collected and sent to me in a package. Later, we received a reply from them, expressing their deep gratitude to us.

As I said at the beginning, we have encountered several similar things, which always make people feel warm. If your friends want to try a self-driving trip in Europe, I strongly recommend Switzerland as your first stop. You will not be disappointed.

I wish you all a happy journey!