Honestly? Not that many. There’s a slowly diminishing return on new and different things to bring back from abroad, especially when you’re visiting a country for the second time. The biggest takeaways from Switzerland, for me, were less about Switzerland and more about travel in general. I learned that I’m just fine with premium economy on the return trip, but trying to actually sleep on the eastbound flight is a pain. I learned that SAS is a fine airline to fly with. I learned that the best part of flying is the airport lounge (more on this in a minute). I learned that I really miss not having the Bonvoy lounge in the hotel when it’s not there (more on this in a minute). I learned that you’re better off planning to stack multiple light layers in a pinch than bringing more than one Legitimately Warm Garment (I had three, a huge botch on my part, sadlling me with surplus bulk under tight packing conditions). I learned that if you’re going to carry a day pack, you’d damn well better bring a bigger bottle than 12 ounces, especially if you’re trafficking ice around.
The lounges have been revealed as the apotheoisis of going out, because it feels like you’re at home – comfy chairs or sofa, you’re not paying for the booze in the fridge, and it’s quiet – but you’re not. You’re in a unique liminal space, nowhere exactly, but on the way to somewhere in the case of the airport and definitely away in the case of the hotel. The feeling suggests a private club more than anything, which is sort of a “duh” observation, but it drives home the idea that we don’t really have that club space in the modern world (outside of London, probably). I think membership of the Diogenes Club would suit me down to the ground.
But the other thing is this: I have realized how much of my relaxation comes from not *doing* anything. Just the chance to be sat in a cool place (temps and atmospheres alike), drink to hand (of adequate size for its potency, as it turns out), nowhere to be and no schedule to keep. Like on the patio at Grutschalp, just gazing out at the mountains under the shade of the umbrella with my Coke Zero and the music in my earbuds.
And the kicker: this is easily replicable at home. We have the palm tree in the yard, the string lights in the copper beech above the outdoor sofa, I have the space I carved out of the shed (and can see the palm tree out the open door, and in the morning when the sky is gray and the air is cool, it’s a vacation all of its own. Almost every year brings either a trip to Tahoe or to camp in the woods, either way just lounging in nature quenching my thirst and maybe reading. It’s not unlike what we used to do long ago, hanging out on the patio of the Ritz in Half Moon Bay, and if I could do it on a workday in the nearby downtown, it would be perfect.
Oh yeah, and the “huustee” of the Swiss restaurants, everyone’s own bespoke blend of fruits and herbs to make iced tea. Gimme that.