BASEL, SWITZERLAND (JULY 8-9)

July 8 - Alice woke up and her knees were hurting more than she expected. We decided to work our way to Basel Switzerland along the Rhein. We figured that once we got there we could settle in for a couple of days and Alice could see a Doctor/physio for her knees. The weather was iffy again, but the rain held off.

Unfortunately Alice’s knees continued to hurt all the way. But she toughed it out as we figured that there is lots to do in Basel and we could walk around (which doesn’t cause her any pain).

The terrain was flat and we covered about 33 kms. The view of the Rhein was okay, but we were focused on making the trip as comfortable for Alice as possible. She did great. The entire trip was on bike paths with no cars, so we each put on our iPods and that really helped.

We made one side trip which, we think, will turn out to be one of the highlights of our entire trip. We stopped in Weil Am Rhein and went to the Vitra Design Museum. The museum itself was designed by Frank Gehry and we were very impressed with the building.

The exhibit that was going on was also very impressive. It was of the work of brothers from Sao Paulo, Brazil, named Campana. Their work was mostly furniture designed out of found objects from their home town. Their design sense was fantastic and their use of easily found objects was inspirational. I was most struck with items made from corrugated cardboard and the chair made from bubble wrap. Beautiful, functional and creative! Alice was particularly impressed with the post-humanist chairs and couches that combined wicker and cheap plastic outdoor furniture. The ‘Transplastics series’ which “originated in a vision in which the Companas imagined ‘what if one day the earth was covered in plastic?’ Plants would have to adapt to this plastic soil.” It reminded her of the natural and created environments that she researches. I just thought mine were cool looking (not quite so intellectual).

Mom, I thought of you quite a bit. I am sure you would’ve enjoyed the exhibit as much as we did.

The museum store was just as cool. They featured a corrugated cardboard chair created by Frank Gehry and a series of miniature chairs that were just great!

After that we made our way to Basel and set ourselves up in a hotel and made Alice a Dr.’s appointment for tomorrow. We plan on staying here for a couple of days, and then perhaps taking a train to Bern and then to Lake Geneva, where we hope to start riding again. By that time, we hope that Alice’s knees will be better and the weather, which right now is cool and rainy, will warm up as expected in the weather forecasts.

Daily grading criteria:
- weather (B-)
- landscape (C)
- cycling challenge (easy)
- physical and emotional response (D - due to Alice’s knees)
- our relationship (A – very supportive of each other)
- food (B+ - great antipasto and local beer and cake)
- accommodations (B+)
- other people (n/a)
- entertainment (A+ – Vitra Design Museum and Basel - it is BEAUTIFUL)

Overall grade: C- (we are frustrated with Alice’s knees and the cold and rainy weather. I only have shorts and t-shirts and sandals. Otherwise we would have rated the day much higher, what with the museum and the city)

Lesson learned from the day – Europe hotels seem to have LOUSY pillows (think soft marshmallows), but great showers (big area, good pressure and good showerheads).

Basel is gorgeous and we look forward to exploring it tomorrow. I also plan on buying some long pants and a sweater. Brrr…

Chilling out…
Peter (and Alice)

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July 9 - What a wise decision to take a biking break (already!) in Basel. I have been feeling more and more tired as the adrenaline of end-of-semester and packing-to-go-away has worn off; the bags under my eyes are extraordinary! I took advantage of sleeping in, puttering around on the internet and getting a good start on a novel (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo).

Meanwhile Peter went off and took in some of the Basel urbanscape (as you can see in the photos) and planned the next phase of our journey, which will be to Interlaken (via Bern) and ultimately to Lake Geneva.

The TSN turning point (for our mood and journey planning) was a visit to the Olympic Medical Centre (yes, we are elite athletes ) where I saw a sports physician, Dr. Denzler, for a knee consult. He was a ham, and rather lovely looking, and really went in a different direction with diagnosis than I was able to pull together from Internet research. Basically, I have “runner’s knee” – a minor condition that he nipped in the bud with steroid injections (to get rid of the swelling) and he gave the go ahead to start biking tomorrow. Our theory is a preexisting injury from squats a few weeks back plus super-exertion in terms of weight on the bike and distances travel (remember my biking history is limited!).

Dr. Denzler gave us the suggestion of visiting his hometown of Interlaken so we are taking his advice to heart, taking the train to Bern and cycling for about 30km to the lake region. Peter will be the Bike Sherpa, taking significantly more than half of our packed belongings (thanks peter!) to lighten my load so fingers crossed that all is well body-wise. Emotionally we are feeling relieved that there has been a diagnosis and solution so quickly (we have missed the bikes today!).

Daily grading criteria:
- weather (B-) – still freezing cold (Peter bought a long sleeve shirt today) but it is set to turn warmer on Sunday around the continent)
- landscape B+
- cycling challenge (n/a)
- physical and emotional response (D – in morning; B+ after Dr. Denzler)
- our relationship (A – very supportive of each other)
- food (B+ - cheese, bread, wine, chocolates, as “take out” - yum)
- accommodations (B+)
- other people A – yay Dr. Denzler!
- entertainment A – yay Dr. Denzer!

Overall grade: B+

Alice (and Peter)