A close-up and personal look at Switzerland
As of April 15, 2026, after being away from Cowbells and Chocolate since January 2022, I’m back! I hope we have solved all the technical problems and all the posts are just the way they should be. Now, back to… Read moreBack on Track!
Imagine three Swiss folk arts strutting across the alpine catwalk. First, Bauernmaleri (farmer painting) strokes of genius form bold floral paintings shouting from every corner from inside a farmhouse. Next up is the somewhat reserved Kerbschnitt (chip carving). Every object… Read moreSwiss Folk Art Trifecta: A Stroke of Genius and Two Cuts Above the Rest
The place of origin [German: Heimatort] is one of the most uniquely, quintessentially Swiss concepts. Between 1300 and 1500, it evolved slowly as the place where you were legally considered a citizen. If you fell on hard times that place… Read moreQuintessentially Swiss: The Place of Origin and Me
One little two letter word and you get a heck of a all-around particle. Add a little intonation and you amplify the expressiveness. Change the position of the word (start, end, alone), and its meaning shifts dramatically. Repeat the word,… Read moreSo – A Swiss German Word for Every Occasion
I can name direct ancestors of mine back to 1600, a long time ago. But now we’re going to step back a bit farther; 1348 – 1350, Switzerland and the Black Death. That was admittedly a long time ago but… Read moreA Point in Time: 1348-1350, the Black Death
The German saying ‘Gesundheit is nicht alles, aber ohne Gesundheit ist alles nichts.‘ means: ‚Health is not everything, but without health everything is nothing.‘ sums up how important health is. So obviously keeping healthy is the way to go. But… Read moreIs There a Doctor in the House?
If ever a name is intertwined with independence and Switzerland it’s William Tell. The Legend According to the tale, Tell is a peasant and expert crossbowman from Bürglen in the canton of Uri. As a sign of submission to the… Read moreSwiss People: The Legend Wilhelm Tell
It’s everywhere there’s no denying that. English words are in the German language to stay. But there are a lot of similarities in the two languages without having to dig around in the fashionable words of today. And when the… Read moreEnglish in the Swiss German Language
There is at least one restaurant in Switzerland named “End of the world“ [End der Welt]. It’s near Magglingen, north of Biel-Bienne and located on the “End of the World” street [End der Welt-Strasse]. My husband, Ben and I were… Read moreThe Middle of Nowhere
This is a small slice of the story of an American immigrant, Henry. He was born in 1839 near Zurich in Switzerland. I want to tell you a little bit about Henry and his life in the United States around… Read moreA Point in time – 1860s when Genealogy meets the Civil War
As I’m sure that I’ve mentioned before, when my husband and I started on our genealogical journey there was little to nothing available digitally. That meant taking vacation time to go places to find the information we were looking for…. Read moreGenealogy at a Glance – Oh Man!
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