Bio-Bay Tour and the Old Forts in Puerto Rico!!!

For this post, we'd like to talk about Puerto Rico, where I joined my good friends, Adam and Courtney, for their beautiful destination wedding!  While there, we visited the Bioluminescent Bay in Fajardo and the Forts of Old San Juan.

There they are, the happy couple!

Bioluminescent Bay:

We left from Marina Puerto Del Rey aboard a catamaran to the island of Vieques   The ride was so bumpy that even sitting still was extremely difficult.

The Catamaran safely docked in V

After the harrowing boat ride, we boarded vans en route to a local restaurant for dinner.  On the menu: mofongo!

Drenched from the boat, but hungry for dinner.

A delicious plate of Mofongo, mashed fried-plantains mixed with vegetables and meat.

We were then whisked away via school bus to Mosquito Bay, where we transferred to silent electric motor pontoon boat.  Our tour guide gave a short introduction about the micro-organisms and other wildlife found in the bioluminescent bay.  Water was brought on board in buckets so we could run our hands through the water and watch the microorganisms light up!

The unique glow is caused by a physio-chemical reaction from the single-celled dinoflagellate organism.  These creatures glow a bright blue-green as a defense mechanism when they are disturbed or scared, and appear like fireflies in the water.  The unique climate and conditions of Mosquito Bay allow them to thrive.

The night sky was incredibly clear allowing us to see the cloud of the Milky Way and many smaller stars that are typically not visible in the presence of the light pollution.  With the bio bay glowing under the boat and the night sky glittered with stars, we just soaked it all in.  The flash of a camera is blinding in the darkness, so there are no pictures to share.  


Forts at Old San Juan:

We had some time to explore Old San Juan before the wedding.  We began our day at Café Cuatro Sombras, for breakfast.

The Cuatro Sombras Sandwich - black forrest ham, lettuce, tomato, mayo and a garlic and cheese spread.

Tostadas - Guava butter on "Pan de Agua" (Special Puerto Rican Water Bread)

Afterwards, we strolled to the Forts of Old San Juan, appreciating the unique architecture of the town.

The Swiss Ms. had previously stayed here and highly recommends it.

Blue streets of San Juan.

El Tótem Telúrico in Old San Juan, a controversial monument built in 1992 commemorating the 500th anniversary of Columbus' discovery of the New World.

Colorful buildings like these (and El Convento) line the streets of Old San Juan.

We walked to El Morro, a 16th century fortress strategically placed to defend the port of San Juan and control entry into the harbor.  During Spanish rule of the island between 1539 to 1898, El Morro survived multiple attacks from foreign powers. 

El Morro!  

 

The formidable entrance to El Morro.

The San Juan Cemetery resides along the outskirts of El Morro Fort.  The colorful dome is named for Saint Mary Magdalene of Pazzis, and is surrounded by ornate headstones, statues, and monuments.

On the lookout for invaders in one of the many sentry towers.

From left to right, the (1) Cross of Burgundy Flag, known as las Aspas de Borgoña widely used by Spanish armies around the world between 1506 to 1785.  (2)  Puerto Rican Flag.  (3)  USA.

El Morro is divided into six levels.  This is a view of the fort from one of the lower levels.

This is the view of the harbor.  Puerto Rico has no shortage of breathtaking views. 

From here, we were recommended by a one of the Park rangers to go to El Jibarito for lunch.  

We were very impressed, to say the least!

Fricase de cabrito - goat stew.  (Ms: Looks yuck, tastes yum.)

Bacalao a la vizcaina - Cod Fish Stew with fried plantains.

And finally, some pictures from the wedding! 

Keeping up with childhood friends.

Excited to be here!

Making new friends!

Working the dance floor.

Congratulations Adam and Courtney!

-Herr Cervelat

How to Play the Credit Card Rewards Game

In the past year, I have began dabbling with credit card reward points and sign-up bonuses to make travelling more affordable.  To this end, I've poured over websites, pestered my poor brother-in-law for advice (thank you!) and researched cards that would give me the greatest return.  I wanted to share my experience with our readers who may be interested in maximizing the returns on the money they're already spending.  (And encourage you to use your copious airline miles to visit us!)  

In less than a year of use, I have earned SIX FREE one-way flights between the US (East Coast) and Switzerland.  These flights have been on quality airlines including Swiss Airlines and Lufthansa.  Interested?  Read on:

Our first flight to Switzerland on Swiss Air was completely booked on points.  Dattebayo.

WARNING - This is my own personal experience using credit card programs to earn rewards for travel and does not constitute financial advice.  Make choices that make the most sense for you and your financial situation.  Signing up for credit cards is not actually a game and managing your finances takes commitment and careful management.  Nothing is gained by earning points by spending beyond your means.  If you cannot pay off your balances, forget about points.  You'll do more harm than good.  Pay, then play....then visit us!  

These are the three cards I have:

1)  Chase Sapphire Preferred

2)  Chase Freedom

3)  United MileagePlus Explorer Card (also Chase)


The Chase Sapphire Preferred is the most versatile.  

If you like eating out and travelling, this is the perfect card for you!  Double Reward points for restaurants and travel!

The Pros:
-Great sign up bonus 40,000 Reward Points
-Consistent point accrual
-Free points transfer to many airlines and hotels 1:1

The Cons:
-The spending requirement may be too high for some people.
-$95 yearly fee, waived first year

The Points:
You earn 1 Reward Point per dollar spent, 2 Reward Points per dollar spent on travel and restaurants and 3 Reward Points per dollar spent if you book a flight/hotel online through the Chase Sapphire website. 

Yes, Double points even with McDonalds...although Ashley doesn't seem to think it's worth it.

The Bonus:
If you spend $3000 on the card and pay it off within three months, you get 40,000 Reward Points sign-up bonus.

The Notes:
 I use this card all the time in Switzerland because it has no foreign transaction fees. 


The Chase Freedom offers extra bonus categories. 

The Pros:

-No yearly fee.  It's free!
-Up to 5x points on rotating categories.
-Low spending requirement for earning sign up bonus of up to 30,000 Reward Points.

The Cons:
-Quarterly categories may not match your spending habits.
-Reward Points can only be redeemed as cash.  No conversion.

The Points:
Unlike the Sapphire where Reward Points accrual categories are fixed, with Freedom you earn x5 points on certain categories that change every quarter.  For example, this quarter you earn 5 Reward Points for every dollar spent on gas stations, theme parks and Kohl's Department stores.  Next quarter has x5 points for purchases made on Amazon.com and department stores (JCPenny's, Sears and Macy's).  Spending in all other categories gives you 1 Reward Point per dollar spent.  Reward Points can only be redeemed for cash directly (1,000 points = $10).  SEE NOTE.

When we were moving out of our Philadelphia apartment, we rented a car and paid for gas with our Freedom.  At the time, using the Freedom at gas stations netted us 5 Reward Points on every dollar spent.

The Bonus:
There is currently a 10,000 sign-up bonus (this amount fluctuates depending on current promotions) for spending only $500 on the card and paying it off in three months.  However, I was able to negotiate it up to 30,000 (more on this below).

The Notes:
So if these Reward Points can only be redeemed as cash, how does that help me visit you in Switzerland?  Well, Freedom points can be transferred to points programs on other Chase cards that allow you to redeem points on things like airlines and hotels (like the Chase Sapphire Preferred).  Direct purchases using points tend to be "worth" more than the actual monetary value of the points themselves.  For these reasons, this card is most valuable when you can transfer the points to another card with better rewards.  


My ideal airline for travel to and from Switzerland is United and their partners (Swiss Air and Lufthansa), so I have the United MileagePlus Explorer Card.

I was able to book a free flight with Lufthansa to reach the States for the Fourth of July holidays.

The Pros:
-One of the best sign-up bonuses offered.  Up to 55,000 United Miles!!!
-Free first checked bag on United Flights
-No foreign transaction fee

The Cons:
-$95 yearly fee, waived first year


The Miles:
I do not earn Chase Reward Points with this card.  This card is directly linked to my United Frequent Flier account, and each dollar spent on the card gives one United mile.  Double United Miles are earned when United flights are booked with the card.  Only 30,000 United Miles are needed for a flight to Europe from the US.

The Bonus:
Chase is offering 30,000 bonus miles if $1000 is spent in the first three month.  However, when I signed up earlier this year in January, I had to spend $3000 in the first three months it was open to get a 50,000 mile bonus.  I also added the Swiss Ms. as an additional authorized user, which earned us another 5,000 miles.

The Notes:
Other great benefits include no foreign transaction fees and first bag checked free on United Flights booked with this card.  The accrued United miles can be used to book flights on United and other partner airlines, such as Swiss Air, Lufthansa and Air Canada.

Lufthansa: One of the nicer airlines I've traveled on.  

General Remarks and Tips:

How to increase your points without increasing your overall spending:
While the spending requirements can seem daunting, with the proper timing and management , you can usually achieve the minimums if you plan your spending.  

1)  Many bills (such as cell phone, electricity, water, TV and internet) can be paid with credit cards.  
2)  Use the credit card for everyday expenditures, such as groceries, eating out and gas.
3)  If you know you will be making a big purchase in the future (such as a new laptop, plane ticket or wedding), time the new credit card so you can use big ticket purchases to achieve bonuses.  
4)  Most importantly, take a look at your expenditures before getting any credit card!  Make sure you can meet the minimum amount without having to break your budget or increase your normal spending.  The reward cards are supposed to help you save money with points, not spend more money for points!

We planned in advance and had the Sapphire Preferred while we were in India!  (SwissMs: This is not me.)

Maximize your Sign-up Bonus:
When I signed up for the Chase Freedom, I only received 10,000 points.  Later, I learned that the Freedom used to offer larger sign-up offers up to 30,000 points.  After reading various articles online, I contacted Chase to request an increase in my sign-up bonus to match their earlier offer.  Within three business days, an extra 20,000 Reward Points got deposited into my account!

This strategy does not always work.  When attempting the same request with the Sapphire card, I was told that requests for matching offers would only be considered within the first three months of opening the card.  So when you sign up for a credit card, do some research to receive the maximum bonus possible.  Follow up within three months to check for better offers.

For airline mileage cards, like the United Explorer Card, additional bonus miles are offered  when you can show increased activity on a connected frequent flyer account.  If you've ever opened a free frequent flyer account with an airline, you know the airline's credit card offer is not far behind.  When I first signed up for the United Explorer card, I already had a frequent flyer account, but had not booked a flight on United in years.  My frequent flyer mile balance was stagnant so my sign-up bonus offer was low.   In order to show recent activity, I read that I could convert points from my Chase Sapphire card to United Frequent Flyer Miles and add them to my account.  This makes it appear that I recently earned frequent flyer miles without actually needing to book a flight.  I followed this advice and received a much higher sign-up bonus offer.  Again, it is definitely worthwhile to research the maximum sign-up bonus available.

Maximize your Points:
If you've already met the spending requirements for your bonus, be aware of which categories offer higher rewards and at what times.

For example, while I would typically use the Sapphire Preferred for dining out (x2 points), the Freedom offered x5 points on restaurant purchases during the second quarter.  Using the right card at the right time gives you higher returns.

Find your perfect airline:
For us, Swiss Air is frequently the most convenient carrier when traveling to and from Zurich.  Swiss Air is part of the "Star Alliance" Partnership of airlines which included United Airlines, Lufthansa, Air Canada and many others.  Points earned on any partner airlines can be redeemed on any partner airline.  This means that points earned on my United credit card can be redeemed with any "Star Alliance" airline which allows you many flights to choose from and great date availability.  Of course, the most convenient airline for you will highly depend on where you live and where you want to go.  Choose cards that can earn rewards on airlines that fly where you know you want to travel.  (*Cough**Cough*Switzerland.*Cough**Cough*)

Cancelling your Card:
One thing to be mindful of is that some of these cards have yearly fees, but fees are typically waived for the first year of use.  If you don't feel like paying the fee after the first year, simply cancel the card.  From my readings and research, signing up for and cancelling cards can only hinder your ability to get obtain cards in the future if you do it right after you earn the sign-up bonus.  As such, keep the card around until the year is almost over, and if you feel it's not worth the yearly fee, call Chase to cancel it.  

While it should be fairly straight-forward cancelling the card, you may have trouble cutting the Sapphire Preferred.  It's made out of metal.  I'm not kidding.

The Significance of Others:
I should also add that I have been the primary card holder on all these accounts.  The Swiss Ms. could technically repeat what I have done, and we could have a total of TWELVE FREE one way trips from Switzerland to the US.  Keep in mind that would double the spending requirements and potential yearly fees.  Managing your cards also becomes far more complicated the more you have.  I am still very much a beginner at this, and haven't dabbled in the other types of reward points programs offered through other credit card companies.

Don't let that smile fool you.  Taking care of multiple cards makes her quite nervous, and I have only one chance at the credit card rewards "game."  As such, I have been hesitant to get a second person involved.

Hopefully, this will encourage you to make the most of your money by playing the credit card companies at their own game.  Spend smart, travel free, and have fun!

-Herr Cervelat & The Merry Swiss Ms

PS.  For those of you who want to go down the rabbit hole, I found this website to be very helpful when I started.  Happy reading!  

PPS  Part 2 on the Math Behind the Credit Card Points!

Revisiting Mt. Üetliberg when the weather is nice

A couple of months ago, when we first arrived in Switzerland, our first trip blogged adventure was to Mt. Üetliberg.  It was mid-March, and the weather was very cold and foggy, so we didn't have the best views of the Alps.  We vowed to return when the weather was better.  Well, summer is now in full swing and the weather has cleared up beautifully, making it a great time to retrace our steps.

Hiking is a good Sunday activity.  As we've said in our previous posts, most shops are closed on Sundays and holidays.  However, the mountains are open 24/7 and are the perfect place to spend time on a nice day.

The Üetliberg bahn is located in a special section of the Zurich train station, tucked away on Gleis 2, far from the more commonly used S-Bahns and Inter-Regio trains .

Last time, we took the Üetliberg Bahn to the top of the mountain, then worked our way across the mountain range to Felsenegg, where we took a cable car down to Adliswil to end our journey.  This time, we decided to hike from the base of the mountain to the top.

Instead of going to the final stop on the Bahn, we got off early at Triemli.

We decided to do the route called Gratwegli/Hohensteinweg.  The description says the trek is sehr steil, einige Treppen (steep, some stairs).

On the way up, we were treated to stunning views of Zurich.

About half-way up the trail, we can begin to see above the treetops.

Admiring the view!

Along the way, we saw many great places to barbecue.

These grills were FILLED with meat and sausages.  Smokey goodness.

A park right near the BBQ pits for kids to play!

Public water fountains everywhere to hydrate tired hikers.

When we reached the top, we treated ourselves to a light lunch at Hotel Restaurant UTO KULM at the top of Üetliberg mountain.

You can sit outside and enjoy the view from the top of Üetliberg. 

If you don't have time to stop, a nearby stand offers quick bites to go.

Of course, we decided to relax at the restaurant!  Treating herself to a milchkaffee (a coffee with a high proportion of milk).

Same here!

Swiss Ms. ordered an air-dried beef sandwich (from the canton of Grison) last time.  This time, she got Rohschinken (raw ham) sandwich.  I forgot to mention last time that all sandwiches come buttered.   

I ordered the Zunftbratwurst last time, and decided to try the Paniertes Schweinsshitzel (vom Hals), which translates to a breaded pork cutlet (from the neck) with Zuri Frites (Zurich french fries).

While the views on the way up were nice, once at the peak, we could climb up the look-out tower to get even more breathtaking views.

Not just views of Zurich, but the entire Lake and the surrounding towns!

Lush, rolling green hills.  Clear blue sky.

You can see the Swiss Alps in the distance!

Another Toni Jogurt Update!

A new seasonal flavor was released for summer!

Apple Toni!  I thought it was quite good.

I don't know if you remember our Toni rankings, but for me, I would put it after Strawberry (#2).  Swiss Ms. would put it after Rasberry (#5 for her).  Again, I disagree with her.

Today is Swiss National Day, and since 1891, August first has been celebrated as the foundation of the Swiss Confederacy in 1291...like July 4th in the States.

Happy Swiss National Day!

-Herr Cervelat

Switz Bitz 3

Switzerland is an amazing country, but it still doesn't quite feel like home.  A recent trip back to the States reminded me what I missed most about being in America.

1) Family and Friends.

Working from home certainly has its advantages (case in point: traveling to the States without taking time off), but it also means it's hard to get out and meet people.  Meeting people here takes effort.  From what I've heard, (and according to my book on culture in Switzerland) the Swiss are slow to warm up and make friends, especially with foreigners.  They are reserved and don't go out of their way to introduce themselves when they meet someone new.  It takes them a long time to build meaningful relationships.  In fact, they tend to keep to themselves so much that it's said that "Even the Swiss don't like being friends with the Swiss"!  During my visits, I had the opportunity to see friends from all over.

Friends from near and far...sometimes very far!

Three beautiful weddings this summer!  So glad I could be there!

LOVE!

2) Incidental Conversations  (Not sure what to call this...)

Those pleasantries with the grocery clerk, comments about the weather with the bank teller, the simple "How are you today?" from the security guard...those don't happen in Switzerland.  Prior to moving to here, it never would have occurred to me that I would miss those things.  The Swiss are friendly, but not in the warm, open way that Americans are.  Swiss tend to err on the side of business-like efficiency.  In America, it was my habit to greet most people, from the coffee shop barrista, to the front desk attendant at the gym, with a "Hi. How are you?"  When I tried the same line for the first time at the train station ticket office, I could tell that my greeting took the clerk by surprise and answering made her uncomfortable.  I quickly learned to remove such greetings from my social script.  These seconds-long side conversations were always part of my life in the States, albeit a part that I never paid much attention to.  As soon as they were absent, I realized how, in a small way, they brightened my day.   

Good ol' visitor's center of Dixon, IL.  I cleaned up on brochures and soaked up small town America.

3) Sweet Potatoes, Peanut Butter, Greens and Sweet Corn

Despite spending a year in North Carolina, I'm far from a Southern girl, but this list sure makes it look like it.  These very American foods are not popular in Switzerland.  Sweet potatoes are the only food in the produce section of our Migros sourced from the US and it shows in the price: over 6 CHF per kg.  Compare this with any variety of white potato for around 3 CHF or less. 

Imposter!

Ah, peanut butter how you have sustained me through the years as my lunchtime companion.  Alas, no more.  The peanut butter here is sadly lacking in flavor and concocted with tropical oils and sugar.  In short, it is not the peanut butter I know and love in the States.  48oz of Trader Joe's PB made the transatlantic flight back to Switzerland with me a few weeks ago.  It will be carefully rationed over the coming months.  

Salads: yes.  Sweet corn: no.  (Reminds me of a Nasco food model!)

While salad greens are very popular in Switzerland, cooking greens such as collards, kale and (ironically) swiss chard are not.  I have yet to see cooking greens sold in our grocery store or farmers' markets.  Unlike cooking greens, sweet corn is available, just ridiculously expensive.  The price at Migros this afternoon: 5.35 CHF for 4 ears.  In short, don't take your CSA box's overabundance of mustard greens and wormy organic corn for granted!  Enjoy, friends!

-Swiss Ms

The Farmer's Market in Oerlikon

Before I begin this post, I want to congratulate Crunluath, for successfully identifying the piece the accordion player was performing in our previous post [It was Vivaldi's Four Seasons (Winter)].  As a reward, Crunluath received a delicious bag of Basler Läckerli.  En guete!  (Enjoy!)

I would also like to apologize for the infrequency of our posts.  It has been over a month since I last posted.  The Swiss Ms. and I have been extremely busy, travelling all over the States (for work and for fun) and we have a huge backlog of posts to upload.  So, stay tuned, loyal readers.  Much to come!

One of things we are very grateful for is that almost everyone here speaks at least some English.  A simple "Sprechen Sie Englisch?" and we typically receive the shy response, "A little bit."  The conversation that follows is nearly flawless English.  I'd be pretty happy if I also spoke a "little bit" of German.  

Incidentally, we have also found that people are a little bit friendlier to us if we begin with "Grüezi" (a common Swiss-German formal greeting, which is short form of "Gott grüsse Euch", which is "God greets you").  We've found that attempting a little Deutsch (as bad as it is) goes a long way.  We are in Switzerland, after all, and we should respect that English is not one of the four officially recognized languages (the four are German, French, Italian and Rumantsch).

Despite the prevalence of English, we still get slightly anxious about approaching people here and it has taken us some time to build enough courage to interact with the Swiss.  We decided to face our fears on a trip to Oerlikon, a district in the northern part of Zurich, and home to one of the city's biggest farmers markets.  

Oerlikon is a very large station, with several major trains, buses and tram lines stopping there. 

Oerlikon Farmers' Market: The thing to do on a Saturday morning.

Who wouldn't want to be here?  Look at that delectable spread! 

Our apartment-mate had requested we buy him some apple cider at the farmers' market.  Therefore, we first set out to accomplish the task at hand.

The sign translated to, "Wehntaler's Sweet Cider, freshly pressed."  If you bring your own 1.5L bottle, it's 2 francs, and if you need to buy a bottle, it's only 2.50 francs.  What a deal!

Since we got one for Kevin and one for ourselves, we both got a chance to dispense our own fresh cider!

Emboldened by our apple cider purchase and the beautiful sunny weather, we decided to buy food for an impromptu picnic in the city. 

The Swiss Ms. bravely buying some fresh bread and knuss gipfel (a Swiss hazelnut croissant)

Adding some apples and getrocknete tomaten (dried tomatoes).  Didn't know these would be salted and dried.

What meal would be complete without cheese?  We bought the Splüga (a cheese from the Splüga region, which is in Southeast of Switzerland) and Formaggio Valle Verzasca (a cheese from Valle Verzasca, a valley in the Canton of Ticino, Switzerland).  The Splüga was a soft, mild cheese, while the Valle Verzasca was a hard, more pungent cheese.

With our bounty in hand, we took the tram easily down to Bellevue Platz, a large central square in the heart of Zurich.  We headed over by Lake Zurich to chow down on our spoils.

Look at that feast!

To top it off, we visited Café Bar Odeon for some coffee and drinks.

Nothing like a cup of milchkafee (milk coffee) after a picnic!

I decided to go for a mint julep!

The warm, sunny weather beckoned us to explore, so we strolled around the city, going up and down Niederdorf (known as Zurich Lower Village), Bahnhofstrasse (Zurich's main downtown street), and Lindendorf.

A stunning view of the city from Lindenhof, a park in the old town of Zurich on Lindendorf hill, overlooking the Limmat River.  The hill gets its name from the tilias (lime tree or Linden tree).

One of the many drinking fountains placed all over Zurich.

A view of the Grossmünster (a Romanesque-style Protestant church).  You can climb up the tower and get really great pictures (in a future post!).  Note the Swiss Alps in the background.

Thanks for reading!

-Herr Cervelat