Zipping!

Back in September, Ben and I celebrated our three-year anniversary (insert crazy big smiles). And while we, like most couples, enjoyed a romantic dinner, we also decided to celebrate in a more unique, more adventurous, more-“us” sort of way.

In other words, we went ziplining.

In case you’re not familiar with tree-top activities: In ziplining, you’re attached to a pulley suspended on an inclined cable. You can then glide along the cable, dangling nearly a hundred feet of the air, for several hundred feet.

It’s crazy-fun, and actually not scary at all (although I tend to be very trusting of harnesses). We went with ZipQuest, a ziplining company a little under an hour from Durham, and loved it. Our course had 9 cables, each several hundred feet long, through the forest treetops. One cable even passed over a waterfall! It was a wonderful rush of adrenaline, a new vantage point, and a ridiculously fun afternoon.

putting on our gear.

coming in for a landing!

awesome swinging bridge. 

ben anxious face #1. 

ben anxious face # 2 (sorry, couldn't resist...)

waterfall! this waterfall is actually on private land, so the only way to
see it is is via zipline. 

best. date. ever. 

Weekending

I love weekends. Love, love, love.

Lately, however, I feel like I haven't had a true weekend-- either I'm travelling for interviews (fun, but exhausting), or catching up on the work I missed/will miss because of interviews (not so exhausting, but considerably less fun.)

At any rate, this past weekend was true, beautiful weekend, and I loved it.

Like all good weekends, it started on Thursday night-- a trip Sugarland with Maddie and Lauren. We ended up skipping the famous frozen martinis (of Food Network fame!) and instead settled for coffee, gelato, and hours of good conversation. Amazing.

Saturday, I tackled my longest run since 2008-- 16 ginormous miles. I'll be honest-- it was hard. Really, really, surprisingly hard. For whatever reason, my running brain simply wasn't "on." Just six miles in, I started to get hot, antsy, and simply tired of running. I still got the miles in, but certainly never had the amazing, I-love-running! sort of feeling. It was a little disconcerting, seeing as I have a half next weekend, but I'm just pegging it as a bad-run fluke.

At any rate, Saturday's horrible run was completely redeemed on Sunday.

Why? Because I spent the majority of yesterday hiking through this:

And meandering by this:

And soaking in views like this:

All the while enjoying fantastic conversation with my lovely friend Hannah.

It had been a year and a half since Hannah and I had seen each other, and despite post cards and Skype Dates, it was absolutely amazing to catch up in person. Hanging Rock State Park is one of my favorite little nooks in North Carolina, and the fall foliage and crisp air were simply perfect.

While 16 mile run on Saturday + 6 mile hike on Sunday = sad, sad knees, it was totally, without question, worth it. 

(Almost) Scaling Schilthorn

My last month in Switzerland-- June-- was pretty hectic. Ben and I were both zipping around finishing up projects, spending time with friends, and trying squeeze as much out of our Swiss adventure as possible. 

This included, among other things, one last trip to Lauterbrunnen Valley. 

I know.  It's ridiculous. Throughout the past year, Ben and I made six trips to the Interlaken/Lauterbrunnen area (see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here). While it's certainly beautiful, and easily one of my all-time favorite places, it was definitely a place we had seen and explored, and there were many areas in Switzerland which we had not. 

So why did we go back? 

Schilthorn.

Schilthorn, the Piz Gloria, a 2,970 meter mountain in the Alps, with breath-taking views reaching from the Black Forest of Germany in the north to France's Mount Blanc in the south. 

Naturally, we had to climb it. 

We started off already well-above the valley, and spent the night in the beautifully rustic Mountain Hostel.

the mountain hostel! 

unfortunately, the lovely hostel was plagued with some local wildlife:
there were SO many flies! 

The next morning, we were off!

normal people take the gondola to the top. we hike 2000 vertical meters.
totally the better choice. 

despite being mid-june, it was definitely pretty chilly.

more local wildlife :)

looking down on the outskirts of murren below. 

...and even more local wildlife!

The first six hours or so were absolutely gorgeous. Green hills, icy streams, and snow-capped mountains, all blanketed in a cool, almost other-worldly mist. We even saw a group of ibex! The trail was steep, but the scenery was spectacular. 

hi, ben!
this certainly gives you a sense of the scale of our landscape!

mountains, mist, me. 

ibex on the horizon!

river snaking through the hills

more ibex! my camera is on super-super-super zoom, hence the blurriness. 

And then, we saw snow. 

At first, it was almost amusing-- hey look! It's mid-June and there's still a bit of snow! We're really in the mountains! But then there was more snow. And more snow. And even more snow. The beautiful mist turned into an icy rain, and I soon found myself hiking in knee-deep snow drifts, absolutely freezing. By the time we decided to finally call it quits, we were a mere 200 meters from the peak-- but, given the snow, had absolutely no idea where the trail to the top actually was. While it was certainly a bit disheartening-- we were so close!--it was still a wonderful, albeit cold, hike. 

first sign of snow! please note the hat (protection from icy rain, not sunshine),
and the knee-length legging (not exactly weather appropriate). yikes. 

our trail. 

snowbanks taller than ben + no snow gear = time
to stop hiking :(

coming back down the mountain: less snow, more green, warmer, happier
vanessa. 

cow + calf. 

back to the valley base! woohoo!

finished for the day! tired, sore, and (just a little)
disappointed, but happy for one last wonderful
adventure in lauterbrunnen valley!

An Interlaken Adventure

I love Interlaken. Love, love, love. Although I unfortunately couldn't accompany Kathleen and Zack for all of their visit to Switzerland, I made sure to go with them on an amazing weekend trip to Interlaken.

Although I've been to Interlaken several times now (this was actually my sixth visit!), it never, ever gets old. While it's gorgeous in all seasons (and especially fun in ski season!), I think late spring/early summer might just be the most majestic of all. The valleys are green, the mountains are snow-capped, the flowers are in bloom, and the water is a breathtaking shade of blue. 

What can I say? I'm convinced it's one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

boat ride on the thunersee. lovely :)

me + kathleen. ready to go!

kathleen + zack. super cute!

model shot!

small river leading out to lake thun- I love the color of the water!

I love this place. 

thun castle!

fun in thun castle: I wonder if kathleen will find narnia?

zack stirring the cauldron...double, double, toil and trouble...

from the top of the thun castle :)

oberhofen castle! unfortunately, it was still closed for the season, so we
couldn't go in....bummer!

la suisse!

b + me, exploring the city of interlaken. definitely one
of my new favorite ben/vanessa photos!

sheep! or maybe future sweaters?

refreshing. 

lauterbrunnen valley. me + kathleen. such a wonderful trip!

Supersonic

I'm baaaaack! 

I know, I know-- this little blog has been on a bit of a hiatus the past month, and that's no good. I'm going to be better, however. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I like blogging-- a lot, actually. I enjoy writing every day, I enjoy sharing my life and adventures with folks back home, and I enjoy the way my life starts to become a little more intentional when I know that at the end of the day, I'm going to write it all down.  

To be honest, however, lately life has been moving pretty darn fast. One minute, I'm studying for the MCAT, learning new techniques in lab, and planning out Swiss and European adventures for the upcoming months. A blink later, and I'm finishing off my primary application, putting together my report, and pondering how on earth I'm going to fit ten months worth of stuff into my small brown suitcase. Life's been moving at the speed of sound, and while I've been loving every minute of it, it doesn't exactly make for good blogging habits. 

So what have I been up to?

an amazing eight day visit from kathleen and zack.

one morning spent jumping off waterfalls.

one new job for next year.

two paddle boat excursions. 

thirteen point one miles of pushing myself at the geneva half marathon.

one afternoon bicycling through the french countryside.

500+ images taken and analyzed in lab.
eleven perfect days visiting with my parents.
four days of hiking, eating, and kayaking along the northern coast of italy.

two fantastic new books read.

one beautiful, wonderful, and absolutely perfect new baby niece.

See? Crazy. Busy. Supersonic. 

Or, if you're like me and a visual thinker, here's the photographic evidence:

on lac leman. left to right: zack, me, kathleen, ben. perfect afternoon. 

rappelling down a cliff near interlaken. it probably would have been scary
if I weren't so cold!

duke university hospital = next year's employer. super, super excited!

the best part of paddle boating? when you stop paddling, kick back your feet,
and enjoy the view! left to right: my feet, mommy's feet. 

a perfect 20 mile bike ride (even with the downpour.) l to r: daddy, me. 

about fifty meters from the finish line and about to break my half marathon
record (!) (thanks to mom for the awesome photo!)

me, mom, vineyards, italy. amazing. 

kayaking on the mediterranean = beautiful, sunny memory. 

the newest apple of my eye? my perfect baby niece, isabel. 

More on these adventures later-- I promise, I'll be more communicative in the weeks to come :)