Tomorrow we are leaving our host stay’s farm and move on the Illanz, a town south of here for more tours and museums. I highly doubt that anything could top staying with the Zendels!

The first time we meet our host, I was quite nervous and worried that our time together would either be boring or restricted by a language barrier. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Right away Juerg flashed us his big smile and I knew it was going to be a great time. Meeting his parents, Simone and Rouedi, was also a pleasant surprise as both were full of smiles and warm hearts.


When first arriving to the farm, we were introduced to our living quarters. We were floored to see that it was a fully functional apartment like condo right above the milk house. To top it all off, it was decorated with Ikea (stereotypical) and a front porch.

One thing that I love about all Swiss houses, farms, or any type of building is their use for natural light. It is a requirement by the government to have a certain amount of natural light windows per square meters in the building. Because of this, they rarely have attics.

Back to the food, breakfast and dinner are quite simple but high in protein. We will have super rich coffee, warm milk from the bulk tank, three types of fresh mountain cheese, bread, jam, lots of butter, yogurt, and hardboiled eggs. Talk about getting your three servings of dairy products!

Lunch, on the other hand, is a big deal. Today, we had the best meal yet. I know I keep on saying that, but I mean it. Tonight, Simone’s food put me in a coma. I was literally without words at the end. It was first with carrots in butter and onions, a sour cream curry applesauce side dish, and a puff pastry wrapped pork loin. Yes, it tasted as good as it sounds.

Juerg loves crop farming and dreams of running 10,000 or more acres in Minnesota, North Dakota, or Canada someday. He walks all of his 14 fields (100 acres total) nearly everyday. The fields here are not endless like the Midwest. So, this is a new but pretty site to me.

The Zendels farm barely, canola, corn, pasture, rye grass, clover, and wheat. It is a requirement that all farmers have at least 7% of their land be biological land, or organic to us. The Zendels also custom wrap baleage and spray fertilizers and herbicides/pesticides.

Today as an adventure, Juerg took us to a toboggan mountain. The ride up was breathtaking with the ride down being an adrenaline rush. This toboggan trail was 2 miles long with 31 turns. Our individual toboggans could reach up to speeds of 35 mph. Each rider could manually control the brakes by levers.


The first ride down, Juerg went first and thought that he better slow down and take it easy for his American girls. Thanks to my love of rollercoasters rooted from one of my best friends, Amanda Mohr, I went full speed and caught up with him by turn 5. Next round I went first. I went so fast that the sled’s automatic controls kicked in and slowed me down. Boo. At any rate, I had the time of my time!


I am really dreading goodbye. I consiter Juerg a dear friend of mine and know that I will try to visit again. My hope is that my parents can some see the family and the farm when they get here in a week! Hopefully, I can see Juerg again when he moves to the states and fulfill his dream and become a big crop farmer.

Just another day that I am so thankful for (I got a big nap in so I’m happy) and the stuning land here. But, I love the people even more!