Our Pondlette

Our Rain Chain Pondlette
Bought a whiskey barrel insert, some gravel, a bag of mortar mix, sand and a rain chain.

1. Dug a hole
2. Surrounded it with rocks
3. Added a Gargoyle
4. Added a small stream to the drain, see Rain Chain Phase I.

Height for rock facing

Plus room for gravel base.

Overflow Stream

Draped the inner tube over the hose pieces and capped it with more rocks mortared in place.

Need to add some sealant to the overlapped inner tube and add gravel for the stream bed.

Landscaping

 Dwarf iris(I believe) in front of the Bayberry(top right in photo), standard Iris between Bayberry and Phlox. Will plant Lilly of the Vally at the front and there is room for some mid-height plants down the middle.

Maintenance Path

Lilly of the Valley planted along the side by the Gargoyle, Variegated Iris behind that and Hostas planted behind the pondlette. More low perennials planned for in front of the stream.

Rainchain
The rain-chain arrived and the gutter has been ordered.

Fathers Day weekend, Garlic and Jags

A Fruitful weekend.
Saturday, pulled up 66 heads of garlic, there are still 1 to 2 dozen that need to grow a bit more. These were harvested from 75 cloves planted on October 6, 2012. We still have garlic from last year's harvest, though they are getting long in the tooth and sprouting.
And we sorted out some stuff in the attic, so there is less crap for the girls to dispose of after we've gone.
And I snuck in a nap.

Sunday went to a Jaguar Car show at the Van Vleck House and Garden in Montclair, NJ and ate lunch Al Fresco and went climbing at the gym, but alas no nap.

OMGIH

The house grounds were very pleasant and are open 365 days a year, dawn to dusk for free. A Tudor style potting shed and some greenhouses very near the Jaguars. How could I not take pictures.

There were at least 50 - 75 cars in attendance, even an X-type on display, but no one was stopping to look at that. There were still more cars arriving as we were leaving.

Jaguar XK 150 engine

 XK in-line 6 cylinder engines in E-Types, later models have ribbed valve covers, de-tuned versions only have 2 carbs. I prefer the look of the smooth valve covers.

An E-type

 A blue one.

Past Trip: Switzerland 2012, plus Chamonix

In June 2012, three of us visited Chamonix, Montreux and Geneva with a few side trips. The eldest could not make it, it was unclear when she would need to send in her passport for a visa. Ends up the visa was finally acquired in April 2013. We stayed for 9 days, purchased lots of chocolate, a couple of watches, a bunch of Swiss Army knives and some local liquors.

Highlights:

• Chocolate 
• Fondue 
• Glaciers
• Views from trains especially Chamonix to Montreux and Montreux to Gruyères
• Restaurants in Chamonix
• Mountain Views in Chamonix

Sights we saw:
Chamonix has lots to do and see. Activities include hikes(all ranges of difficulty), great views, mechanical conveyance to tops of mountains, some small museums, mountain restaurants and very good public transportation throughout the valley. The public transportation is free if you have the Tourist card, which you will receive if you stay at a hotel in the Chamonix Valley area (villages of Chamonix, Les Houches, Servoz and Vallorcine). We saw a lot, but I would go back since there is plenty we did not get to see.

Chamonix Tourism Office plaza

Fabulous views and fake painted scenes on buildings

•  Aiguille du Midi, a 2 cable car trip up to 12,600 feet. Excellent views, a Climbing museum, a cafe and a gift shop.

•  Trip to Montenvers to see La Mer du Glace, there was also a Glacier museum, a crystal exhibit(skip it) and a cave cut into the Glacier itself.

Cog train to Montenvers

Station for La Mer de Glace, a 7 mile long glacier

The Sea of Ice, there are people out on the glacier practicing glacier travel.

• Bellevue, ski area and start of hikes and more views of Mount Blanc

Refuge du Goûter, the last shelter on the way to the Summit of Mont Blanc. Looks like a spaceship.

• Le Brenvent, mountain on the opposite side of the valley from Aiguille de Midi.

End of the line

• Chamonix Saturday Market, would have brought some items if we were closer to the end of the trip.
• Refuge du plan de l'aiguille, lunch with views of Chamonix and the mountains.

Lunch with Chamonix far down below

• Glaciers

Montreux
The lakeside promenade was very nice, lots of plantings and the views were terrific, plus the Castle is in great shape and very large, but I didn't think the selection of restaurants and cost of staying in Montreux itself was worth it. I think a day trip to Montreux would be adequate. You can walk along the promenade to the castle from Montreux, but it is quite a long walk.

• Chateau Chillion

Castle courtyard

• Lakeside Promenade 

Day Trip to Gruyères and Broc(Chocolate Factory)

• Calliers Chocolate Factory
• Gruyères Village, If I visited this area again I would stay in one of the small Hotels just outside the Chateau. Below are photos of the Chateau, the main courtyard and the garden.

One of the Hotels inside the Medieval walls of the village

• La Maison du Gruyère, Cheese Factory, shop and restaurant. They had a robot to turn and wash the aging cheese. Lunch was fondue and Roosti of course.

Cheese making contraption, up to 48 wheels of cheese a day can be produced

Quick Trip to Vevey just down the lake from Montreux

• Alimentarium, Nestles food museum, geared towards children, but still quite interesting.
• Vevey Funicular, some good views, the funicular is actually used by locals as public transport

Geneva
Great place to visit, not too large, lots of museums and easy to get around. I plan on finding my better half a job there.

 

St. Peters from our hotel

• St Peters Cathedral, don't forget to go up into the Tower, great views of the city and of the interior construction details.
• Old Town including Mason Tavel, oldest surviving city residence, now a museum.
• Swatch Exhibit
• Super Fabulous Famous Flower Clock(don't bother looking for it)
• Boat cruse on Lake Geneva
• Shopping (Swiss Army Knives, Swiss watches, Swiss chocolate)

Restaurants:

• Le Atmosphere, Chamonix
• La Caleche, Chamonix
• L'Impossible, Chamonix
• Mai Thai, Montreux lakeside
• La Caravane Passe, Geneva. Near the Hotel, Very good Middle Eastern food.
• Les Armures, Geneva. Located in the Old Town. We ate outside.

Hotels:
Hotel Le Faucigny, Chamonix. Right in the center of town, a short walk from the rail station and across from the tourism office. Very bright and airy and welcoming. Would stay again.

Hotel Bon-Port, Montreux. A bit of a walk from the train station, close to the Promenade, just OK.

Hotel Bristol in Geneva. A 4 star Hotel, we had a very spacious room. The Hotel is half a block from Lake Geneva at the Pont du Mont Blanc an excellent location. Portugal had won a world cup game one of the nights we were there and it was pandemonium outside, but the triple glazing worked well and kept the noise out. Would stay again.

Expenses:
Plane tickets using miles(British Air charges a fuel surcharge even when paying with miles)
Usually our plane fares cost more than lodging, but this trip was an exception. Even compared to other trips the lodging was high.
Swiss Rail Passes were $350, the Lake Geneva Area Passes were 2 for the price of 1, each providing 2 free days of travel and 3 days 50% off travel, so we each had 4 free travel days which worked out perfectly.
Chamonix Multiday Mountain passes were $250, covered mountain conveyances.
Geneva to Chamonix transfer for three was $130.
Trip cost about $2500 per person.

A Grand Day Out

Took a drive last Sunday up to the New Jersey Botanical Garden, they had a plant sale and on the first Sunday of the month the mansion "Skylands Manor" is open for tours. The tour covers the first floor including entrance hall, dining room, drawing room, library, study, a couple of porches and the 2 story great hall. The tour was very informative and worth a visit. The mansion is also run as a catering hall and a you can book a room for the night.

After the house tour we visited the Lilac garden, the original owner of the mansion, C. M. Lewis planted 14 beds in the 1920s of which 12 beds remain. The range of colors was impressive, though the scents did not seem that strong. Our one lilac at home seemed more pungent.

After checking out the Lilac garden we took a nap on the lawn.

Any day that includes a nap is a Grand Day in my book.