Wanderlust Serendipities

The big 5-0 year for all of us except Cindy, who will be forever young—though @baconlandbbq maintains her youthful 21 anytime @_jack_bartlett_ or @gibson_bartlett_ is concerned! A weekend to always cherish. 💖 (at Harvest - Land, Sea, & Vine) https://www.instagram.com/p/CkSB5DAIL6MUVM5IqaD5VyPst9iv9bBS7Qgklk0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

“The moments of happiness we enjoy take us by surprise. It is not that we seize them, but that they seize us.”-Ashley Montagu 🐶❣️ (at Hilton Head Island, South Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/CijEQwULnUDciGU80scIWdJDGpfdvNdUL4SYVY0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

It’s shrimp season y’all and someone was poised to take full advantage of whatever the haul was going to be today. Bebe told the guys they had a cute mate on board with them and they said all we’d see were feathers flyin’ if he grabbed a shrimp. We did not wait around to see the ending. #FineFeatheredFriend (at Broad Creek Marina of Hilton Head) https://www.instagram.com/p/CiYbHwcrGtov1hRECFPE01dHSHX6NzrGfIqeuw0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

🧸 snuggle bunny🧸 (at Hilton Head Island, South Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/CgvL3r_LudqQsAtImM8OA0N0OQGl9FNKRpD-qc0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

“Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky.”-Khalil Gibran #MyTree #BluebirdAngusFarm (at Abingdon, Virginia) https://www.instagram.com/p/CgA5-5YssQ4McxlT5_RvW4mMfL65bmRob7xpwQ0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Y’all she’s the happiest human that you’ll ever get the privilege of meeting and I have gotten to call her my BFF since elementary school. 🦄💖 📸: @gibson_bartlett_ (at Abingdon, Virginia) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cfrru83uKHM0KYijvR6dIco1INQcuWOLXM_mG80/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

PSA: knock down the 🏰 , cover the 🕳 and leave only 👣 #TurtlePower 💚🐢 (at Indian Rocks Beach, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfjEmkAu7QK-l1CmcR34M-FPg9oHsp9_x7INWg0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

We may or may not have said we had an errand to run. #Shhh 🥂 (at On Swann) https://www.instagram.com/p/CffKVydpWNEE0w_yL04USwNnATDk8RxXOlvCA80/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

“If you need me call me on my 🐚.”-unknown (at Indian Rocks Beach, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cfer2Xxp8UHm-9b8H64XvFZXatdRCE9dCzCp8c0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

The ever elusive, mystical and mythical alpine Edelweiss. A plant with a dreamy (lore of romantic notions fulfilled through securing the plant from a dangerous cliff) and dark past (lore of it being a flower beloved by the SS). I’ve looked for this stuff for years and found it today—not on the alpine hills, but rather through a horticulturalist that brings the plant down the mountain here. It’s a fascinating hairy little bloom that has abilities to protect itself from lots of dangers—particularly the alpine snows and the harsh UV from sun that shines up high. It blooms from now till September, but typically only on craggy alpine mountains. I think it’s the plant version of a Swiss gnome and if it could talk it’d have a high-pitched giggly voice that would be full of whispery secrets.🤍 (at Weggis, Switzerland) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfKLXh5Jz-5EJ3bb4smCIjNohYJZMfwALB7W6s0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happiest of Father’s Day, Daddy! Love you so much and cannot wait to see you. 😘 https://www.instagram.com/p/Ce-5cKzut-lO1HdXZj-uUkCKQ_6TUme0vsrEm40/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Visited an organic/biological Swiss farm today. There are different organic levels here. This one is the gold standard. Even the insects and flowers in the fields are monitored by a government body multiple times yearly. Additionally, other government inspectors dictate exact days hay can be put up (4x per year with most recent one coming in June 15). Fed milk cow friends fresh hay(this farm has 40 cows in total and 1 bull) and they make alpine cheese and yogurt. We picked buckets of fresh cherries and peas, played with the horses and visited with the grandfather in his bee house. Swiss farmers are subsidized by government and receive tax funds per head of cattle they have—all make a minimum of $120,000/year, which is a good salary here but many make more. I mean when a tiny head of broccoli goes for $6 right now, you can see their level of living is high and it also helps cut down on people wasting food. Perfect day, replete with seeing honey churning machine and cheese/yogurt preparations…the most fascinating was hay heater/dryer in barn (see video) so they don’t have to depend on dry days to put up hay. Cows only eat hay and nothing else. The farmers are required to have land buffer zones between farms so there’s no cross contamination. Then, today was finished off with a farm to table meal in the fields. 🐮🐝🐴🍒 (at Bäch, Zurich, Switzerland) https://www.instagram.com/p/CewIVHir658PIJjUQPwz5MMoifnKSF2zlUuHvw0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy Happy Birthday, Mom!🥳#WeAllLoveYouSoMuch 💋#SweetAsPie 🎂 #YouAreOneCoolChick 😎 https://www.instagram.com/p/CesufX7Otlsy1aA4V3eEN0apFaTMZbq730Fpzg0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Queen of the Mountain, Rigi. 🏔5897 feet. (at Rigi-Kulm, Luzern, Switzerland) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cerb2xOpeNx7TRnKrequ29KQGZD9USw5tzgdzU0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

🪲 + 🍫 = ❤️ #ScarabShapedChocolates @vollenweiderchocolatier (at Chocolatier Vollenweider) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cel_7RqJDMotHcv6XBvKbgIv0JTm6GiJCvNYUI0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Alpine transhumance—a seasonal droving of grazing cow friends between the valleys (in winter) and the high mountain pastures (in summer)—German Alpwirtschaft, Almwirtschaft from the term for "seasonal mountain pasture", Alp, Alm. Transhumance is a traditional practice that has shaped much of the landscape in the Alps, as without it, most areas below 2,000 m (6,600 ft) would be forests. They move halfway up the alp and then even further next month. Incremental moves assist in the transition to different altitudes and fields. The grasses on each field determine the taste of the final products and how they’re labeled (fields are closely monitored by a farming collective), the final product being cheese. It’s big business. Anyway, Sepp moved my friends yesterday to even higher Alpine fields. 🥹♥️ I was telling my Dad all about it yesterday and he said when my Mom milked the cows when she was growing up that the spring milk was usually yucky due to the spring onions the cows would consume in the pasture field.🧅 (at Weggis, Switzerland) https://www.instagram.com/p/CeYFxh0OMhalqki7SZu49y8f9aiai_8YG2836M0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

The Sandman and Adrienne always take good care of us—from smooth sunset cruising to fire guruing to nightcaps to chefs extraordinaire to music makers. Ever so grateful for this sweet couple. I will miss our regular visits. 💖 (at Cully, Vaud) https://www.instagram.com/p/CeJgP2NrLt7atgaRjdKx16zD8xDPe15sqtOO6w0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=