GstaadLife

Is it getting harder and harder to convince your teenagers to come up and slow down in Gstaad? Well now they don't have to slow down, with the July 16 opening of the new skatepark in Oeyetli-Saanen (on the other side of the field beside the river opposite the Eggli-Saanen skilift). The skateboard club of Saanenland is also holding training sessions for all-comers every Thursday from 18h00 to 19h30. 

 
Fantastic kids program at earlybeck - last Wednesday April 6 kids were able to decorate an Easter bunny and make their own out of chocolate at the factory between Saanen and Rougemont. They only advertised this great idea with flyers in their shops but we hear there are still a few places left for the same thing in Le Grand Café in Château-d'Oex on Saturday April 16 2011. It is SFr 15 per participant, takes about an hour and a half, and is really a ton of fun. They even learn quite a bit. For reservations call 033 748 70 48. Kids should be 5 years-old but we saw younger ones doing it with the help of an adult. More pics after the jump.

 
For those of you who find yourself moaning about the lack of challenging skiing in Gstaad: or groaning about how our ski areas are not inter-connected. Well, pipe down and get yourself over to Lenk - yes that Lenk, down to Zweisimmen, turn right, all the way along the valley to the town, then left up to Bühlberg at the first intersection. Make sure you leave Gstaad no later than quarter past the hour, as the mountain road to Bühlberg is strictly direction up in a ten-minute window beginning at quarter to the hour (driving up to Bühlberg saves you having to slum it in the big gondola from Lenk). Park the car right next to the ski lift, snap on your skis, and from there you can enjoy endless runs, all day sunshine, some tricky blacks, wide, fast big-carvin' reds, and never the same run twice unless you want to. You can even test your skills on the men's downhill run above Adelboden (watch it because it's still icy from the race in January). Even this year, the on-piste snow quality is inexplicably good, and this despite the fact that the snow-making is limited (ok it's high, ranging from 1'600 to 2'400 meters). For eats, skip the mass market Berghaus scene at Hahnenmoos and Sillerenbühl, and ski down towards Aebi at the back end of the ski area. About a third of the way down, you'll pass by the sun-soaked Alphütte Chüebodmi (+41.79.335 27 48), where the Swiss farmer and his Japanese wife will surprise with delicious noodle dishes, open sushi, a simple green salad with a stunning miso dressing, flavorsome barbecued steaks, an engaging Syrah from Wallis, and other Swiss-Japanese specialities all prepared with a touch of gourmet that goes beyond the same-old-thing from most alpine huts in Saanenland. In a recent survey on 20Minuten.ch, the Swiss voted the Lenk-Adelboden ski area as the 5th best in the land. They're not wrong. Let us know how you get on.

 

The roof is on - and with it the builders have achieved a major milestone in the construction of the Grand Hotel Alpina. This, of course, calls for celebration. So everybody is invited to visit the largest construction site in Gstaad on Saturday November 20 from 11h30 to 16h00. There will be free, yes free, lunch and beer, music and also entertainment for the little ones. Parking is non-existent, so there are shuttle busses from the cinema parking lot. Definitely a unique opportunity to see the bowels of what is already a major new element of Gstaad's skyline. More pictures after the jump.

 
Well, there was something new at this year's Swiss national holiday celebrations in Gstaad - the Swiss PC-7 team flew over the Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad tennis village on August 1 2010 and amazed everybody with its splendid perfomance (see video below). Unfortunately the weather turned in the late afternoon and most of the fireworks were rained off.

Can't be bothered to cook but want something homemade and really delicious? Take a little drive out to the butcher in Rougemont, to André Reichenbach. His wife Birgitta quietly stocks the freezer in the far left corner with the most mouth-watering prepared dishes. One of our favorites is the poulet à l'orange, which, we shamelessly admit, was even used for a dinner party once - transferred from the aluminum container into a beautiful glass dish, prepared in the oven for 90 minutes, and accompanied by a generous helping of compliments (sorry Birgitta). Other fantastic dishes include a delightful salmon-spinach lasagne, a supreme potato gratin, real Swedish-style meatballs that your kids will absolutely love, and an exquisite, delicately-spiced lamb curry that even the most Indian of Indian specialists approved of. So empty your freezer of all those boxes with E-numbers and pass by André's.

 
Interview with Joanna and Peter Burri by Tess Larosse

From GstaadLife print edition July 16 2010

After landing in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s capital, I took a short hop on a little plane over to Arusha where I found myself jumping straight into a totally unplanned safari by gatecrashing a charming chap from Latvia’s Jeep. Luckily he was very pleasant, willing to share, and only slightly bewildered by the intrusion. Nine dusty days later I flew from the mainland and on to the neighbouring island of Zanzibar, where I caught up, quite unexpectedly, with Gstaad boy Peter Burri and his wife Joanna, who now live on the NE coast of the island in Matemwe, a magical place steeped in history and teeming with local culture. You may remember that Gstaad-born-and-bred Peter ran the Rialto restaurant for several years prior to moving to the Seychelles, and then last year relocated to the mysterious, exotic island famed for its white sandy beaches, wonderful spice gardens, pristine waters and its capital, Stonetown’s, notorious involvement in the slave trade. So what on earth are they doing here? 

TL - Peter, what brought you to this part of the world?

Finally the indoor pool at Gstaad has its restaurant again. After the bankruptcy of the last tenant it was closed for quite a while leaving swimmers hungry, minigolfers desperate for a cold drink and kids at the playground longing for an ice-cream. Well, the ice-cream was delivered yesterday (we saw it and tried one immediately) and there is also a new addition to the playground - a shiny, cool digger. For SFr 2 your kid can dig for 5 minutes (so bring lots of SFr 2 coins) but it is after all the dream of every boy... and girl.

Don't miss this weekend's 50-year anniversary celebrations of the Videmanette cable car. On Sunday the cable car will be running from 08h30, with an early-sounding "apéro" courtesy of the commune of Rougemont awaiting you from 10h00 at the Berghaus. The official program kicks off at 11h00. If you're into climbing then this is your chance to try the Via Ferrata with guided tours of paths 1 and 2 every hour through 15h00. There will also be music, barbecue and other mouthwatering specialities of the region. At Les Gouilles (the bowl under the top station) kids can enjoy a special children's program. There's even a season pass for Gstaad Mountain Rides up for grabs. The ride up is only SFr 5 (and SFr 5 to get down again), and as ever children up to nine years-old ride for free! So see you there.

The cows are back! As ever at this time of year, be prepared for (actually rather enjoyable) waits on the main streets and in the Promenade. We highly recommend the Alpabzug event in Etivaz (pictured above). This annual bovine pilgramage down the mountain to the lower pastures will take place on September 26 this year. Don't miss it! Below, a video of a recent Alpabzug through Gstaad.