WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: JULY 14, 2024

OK. very little numismatics this week, but a number of you have asked about my trip to Switzerland, so here's a quick update with a smattering of coin stuff. Overall, it was a wonderful trip. Switzerland is a very pretty country. We walked all over Geneva the first day, and for our wedding anniversary on the 7th we all went over to Annecy, France, which was lovely - a beautiful town near a beautiful lake. There were nine people from two families in our group. We stayed three days in a house in Grindelwald and visited Interlochen, too. We saw Lusanne on the way to Zurich.

Seven of us went to the Taylor Swift concert. The girls and their Moms got in line around 8:30am and ended up just a couple standing spots away from the central stage. The menfolk had VIP tickets near the far end of the stage. We didn't have to arrive so early, but we went anyway as a support crew for the women. We brought them food and souvenirs while they held their spots in line. The crowds were insane, but well-behaved. Despite the long day, the girls loved the concert - "Best night ever".

Here are some trip photos. I've got hundreds more - we walked and walked for miles, up and down hills and mountains, riding gondolas, mountain carts, climbing up to waterfalls, boating around lakes, ducking onto shops, cathedrals, museums, restaurants and supermarkets. I tell everyone that the best part of the trip is that "after this, every other trip we take will seem dirt cheap in comparison." Switzerland is one of the most expensive places in the world to visit, but we had a grand and memorable time.

 
Annecy, France

 

Coin shop window, with some numismatic literature on display.

 

Another coin shop, and the pocket change I flew home with.

 

This sign greeted us upon arrival at our Zurich hotel.

 

Words cannot describe the waiting line. Here's a small section - by the time they opened the gates it stretched for what seemed to be a couple of miles.

 

The three menfolk in our party had tickets to the VIP floor section, but that doesn't mean we were dancing with Selena Gomez and Blake Lively. It just meant we could pick up a swag bag and not have to wait in line so long. Don't ask me what was in the swag bag - my wife and daughter confiscated it after the show and I haven't seen it since.

 

Me waiting for the warmup act to start, with my concert shirt, the bracelet my daughter made me, and 50,000 of my new BFFs.

 

Here's my view of the stage. If you squint you can see Taylor Swift. But here are the money shots, taken by the womenfolk who were very close to the main section of the stage - performer eye contact territory.

 

 

 

 

Back to sort-of-numismatics - chocolate coins in the Zurich airport gift shop.

 

The trip and concert were great. Despite catching a cold the second day I still managed to more-or-less follow along with people 20, 30, and 40 or more years younger than me. Just slower. A lot slower. Standing for hours at the concert was brutal and I walked out before Taylor was halfway through. But we got our daughter to the show she dearly wanted to see, and I celebrated with a Carlsberg beer at the concession stand. Success!

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM JULY 7, 2024 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n27a01.html)

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