swiss trip, kartause ittinger

here at last, first of the swiss pictures. i visited the kartause ittingen for the first time over 20 years ago as my friend happens to live in the village of warth. a lot has been done during that time. the place itself dates back to 1084, it used to be a monastery, then a farm for 110 years before a trust was formed in 1977 to restore the buildings.

nowadays there is a hotel, a restaurant, conference facilities, gardens, art museum and a residence for handicapped people, who work on the property.






the restaurant is located up there







can't help but wonder the skills of the builders hundreds of years ago







the resident stork







this little pond is in the middle of the property







the rose garden. i wished it had been june already with all the roses blooming...such a tranquil place.







even a bench to sit and contemplate, or admire the beauty of the gardens.







on that particular morning i wanted to be one of the gardeners...right now i realize that the reality of the job might not be as romantic as i imagined it. although, there must be a reward in the beauty and serenity of the surroundings despite the hard work.







they also have sheep, and other animals on the premises. there is a shop that sells wine, cheese, butter, dried herbs, all grown and produced on the property. there were plenty of products i wanted to buy to take home, but i settled on a bottle of "birne edelbränd" (a grappa style beverage made of pears).







the apple and pear trees were already in bloom everywhere. i'm sure this horse is very happy when the pears start falling from the tree in the autumn...







ps. happy may day! hope you're not too hung over...