[Culturechat] Tenneseans and Noodles in the Alps

[tillhouse]

Thanks, Vance, for great pix and fine prose.  Looking forward to our
Meirengen Idyll and then Alsace on our own next month.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Vance Roy" <gigli.saw@dplanet.ch>
To: "culturechat" <culturechat@untours.com>
Sent: Friday, July 13, 2001 8:10 AM
Subject: [Culturechat] Tenneseans and Noodles in the Alps


> Yesterday was a postcard day in Sachseln. A few weeks ago, an Idyller
> sent me a message about a group of hikers he was bringing to Kandersteg.
> I was later to find out that this man, Bob Miller, is 81 years old, but
> he is some sort of mountain goat. Messages went back and forth, and the
> upshot was that he and his folks were invited to spend a day hiking
> above Sachseln on the Stuecklikreuz mountain. Berit Greutert volunteered
> to fix Alpen Maggaronen for us all at a mid height alpine hut.
>
> The crowd of about 20 arrived in late morning from Kandersteg, in the
> Oberland, and were greeted by the Greuterts, Albert Roher, who is known
> as the Wanderweg Pope, and us. Albert Roher is a nationally known expert
> on the ways and byways of Swiss Wanderwegs. At age 82, he can still out
> hike people half that age. I was amazed to find that all but two of the
> hiking group were from Eastern Tennessee. I spent my life up to age 18
> in Western Tennessee and spent 3 years at Knoxville in Eastern
> Tennessee. After a few football war stories about the Volunteers, we
> drove up above Sachseln to Fluli Ranft. There, Albert Greutert gave them
> all a tour of the patron saint of CH, Niklaus von Flue's birthplace.
> Then we parked the vehicles a bit further up the road and hit the path
> toward Oberschwanden. Berit and a few others went by car ahead to
> Oberschwanden to get the lunch fired up.
>
> Oberschwanden is a mid-level alp above Sachseln where for a few weeks in
> the spring and fall, the cows are kept by the farmer before taking them
> up or down. For the rest of the summer, the Men's Choir in Sachseln gets
> the use of the place in exchange for doing some twice yearly upkeep. It
> is about halfway between Sachseln and the cross at the summit of the
> Stuecklikreuz. It took us about 90 minutes to reach the hut. On the way
> of course, there were stops for gawking. At the hut, we found the cooks
> at work on Alpen Maggaronen. This dish is a typical alp farmer's food,
> and I'm here to say that it will make a bulldog break his chain! It
> consists of macaroni cooked together with cubes of potato, then drained
> and mixed with alp cheese, then served in bowls with caramelized onions
> on top, and applesauce on the side. A man could leave home for this!
> This was all fixed over the open hearth. It has been a mainstay of the
> alps for many years, because the farmer had and could keep for weeks,
> all the ingredients. We had wine, beer, and soft drinks to go with it.
> Then came Orientation Brownies. These are what Berit used to fix for
> folks when orientation was not in a hotel, and a desert was needed.
> Lastly, came the Chelli. Bowls of weak coffee with sugar and schnapps
added.
>
> After this "lunch", we received gifts of Swiss red tee shirts with the
> Old Timers Hiking Club logo on them. Berit and Albert also got a
> beautiful book of Tennessee nature pictures with the whole group's
> signatures and the author's inscription. After more fun and
> conversation, we cleaned up and moved out downward to Sachseln by a more
> direct route. There was time for some sight seeing and a visit to the
> magnificent church in the village center before going to the Bahnhof to
> say goodbye.
>
> These folks were super nice to visit our town, and we hope to see them
> again. I know they were well fed. We all have invitations to see them in
> the Appalachians some time.
>
> For some photos with the new digital camera that I won from Credit
> Suisse's web site, go to:
>
> http://photos.yahoo.com/gigli_saw
>
>
> Vance Roy
> gigli.saw@dplanet.ch.
>
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