Our walk in the Swiss Alps started uphill on a sunny summer day. More of a hike, really, it included brown cows and views that take your breath away.
ICON_PLACEHOLDEREstimated reading time: 2 minutes
By David Stone
The invitation came as our friends prepared to leave Roosevelt Island in New York City, resettling in Paris. Both were biologists working in research at Rockefeller University, and with contracts running out, moving was unavoidable.
New jobs awaited in Paris, but first, they’d spend a summer in a chalet in the Swiss Alps. And they invited us to join them on our vacation. Photos they brought with them at dinner in our apartment made the decision easy.
We were going on a trip that would include a walk in the Swiss Alps, some brown cows and a chat about running into Woody Allen.
Friends arrive…
The day after we made our way from Zurich, by train and postal bus, a second couple joined us in the now crowded chalet.
There’s nothing quite like an evening with friends, new and old, in the quiet high up in the mountains, with no televisions and only each other for company.
After the food and wine disappeared and conversation replaced it, I got to tell my story about encountering Woody Allen and his wife, Soon-Yi, on an Upper East Side sidewalk.
A walk in the Swiss Alps…
When they talked about a walk, being New Yorkers, we thought they meant “a walk,” but no, they had something more vigorous in mind.
What they called “a walk” is what the rest of the universe calls “a hike,” and it went up and down hills.
Fortunately, we were in good shape and, until my knee reminded me otherwise, ready for it.
As the video rolls along, you’ll notice my video falling farther behind, but that improved the view.
We cross paths with brown cows who weren’t too happy about it. And our biologist friends bring their kids along, soaking up some spectacular nature.
Why don’t you join us on our walk in the Swiss Alps?
By the time we made our way back down the hill, it felt more like digging in than escaping. But can’t we all appreciate a bit of the latter, right now?
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You Can’t Be All Three
April 9, 2026, during the full board meeting of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation, Fay Christian said something that should have landed harder than it did. She wished RIOC were not responsible for the tram. Then she asked what it would look like if it were given to the MTA. That was not a passing comment.
