"Der So Wunderbar Ist!"

The Alps, seen from Hochblauen

Having spent my first year of life in Switzerland, I love all things Swiss.  Now that we live so close, I look for sunny, clear days to head for Holzen Hill to see if the Alps are visible.  With the rain and gloom we have had this spring, I've seen one peak one time!

Hochblauen from below

Yesterday I walked to the farmer's market in Kandern in the sun.  Beautiful, radiant sun.  The sky was bright blue with only a wisp of cloud.  Back home, I convinced Smitty that we must drive up to Hochblauen to see if the Alps might be visible, and he readily agreed.

For a moment, I wanted to be
this paraglider.

The drive up took about 25 minutes but was more than worth it, because, when we arrived,  the Alps were clearly visible to the south, covered in snow and splendidly lining the horizon.  They seemed surreal,  rising majestically to the sky.  I stood in awe, overwhelmed.

Within moments a paraglider took off from the hill in front of us.  Behind us a man discussed the view both in French and in German.  Several others wandered on the hill, or just sat, as we did, experiencing the wonder of the scene.

Later we climbed the observation tower for the 360° view of the land in which we live.  Bavaria, Switzerland, France, and the Black Forest spread out before us.  Several paragliders soared, a light plane flew by, the birds sang.  Most of all, the sun shone warmly down on us.  The man we had heard earlier climbed the tower with his family.  He stopped to talk with us about the local sites just over the border into France.  He, too, was enjoying a glorious day.

The view from the tower, looking south

On our way down from the tower we met a young man from Vermont who now lives with his German wife just north of us.  He was surprised to find that there is a community of English-speakers in Kandern.

A reminder of God's glory on
Hochblauen

We spent an hour at Hochblauen being renewed and encouraged by the weather, the sights, the people.  Someone had posted this in German: "Come and see what our God has done, what awesome miracles He performs for people."  (Psalms 66:5)  He had certainly performed a miracle for us yesterday!