The town is called Les Ponts-de-Martel (We do not know how to pronounce it yet!) Les Ponts-de-Martel is located about 1000 meter above and 20 km from Neuchatel. To get here you have to go up a mountain, down a mountain, across a valley and start up a mountain again. The distance is just enough such we have snow when Neuchatel does not and we have more snow when Neuchatel does! The say that more snow is coming!!
The town consists of about 1300 people, 2 bank, 2 butcher shops, a small grocery store where Gruyere Swiss cheese – 19.50 CHF ($21.66 US) a kg and lunch ham is 27.80 CHF ($30.88 US) a kg. There are also 2 bakeries, a pharmacy, 2 restaurants, 2 gas stations (gas is 1.71 CHF a liter –around $6 US a gallon), a train station, and multiple other small businesses. The area is popular for cross-country skiing. We live within 100 meters of the small grocery store, a bank, the post office, and the police station. There is also a church 30 meters from us whose bells goes off every half hour and on the hour! (Lydia keeps thinking it’s her cell phone.) Besides the bells we live in a very quiet and beautiful little town.
It takes us 40 minutes by bus to get to Neuchatel. Every morning, except for Saturday, we are up at 5:45 am and at the bus stop at 7:40. We arrive in Neuchatel at 8:20 am. The language school is a 5-minute walk from the bus station. Language training which started on Jan 14th goes from 9 to 12:15 Monday thru Friday. Daycare is at the church next door to the language school. Saturday is our day off and on Sunday we go to Church in Neuchatel. We have not been able to fully start this schedule yet as Noah has been sick –he got sick starting on the 11th and was sick for 5 days. Now he is doing better (Praise God).
Our apartment is small (4 rooms – 1 bedroom 1, living room, 1 kitchen, and 1 bathroom) but is nice, as it has been newly renovated and has basic furniture (no TV). Fred is having withdrawal from watching “Once upon a time.” Unfortunately we have been unable to obtain Internet access at our apartment. (However the Language school has set us up with limit free access 4 hours a week starting Jan21, 2013. Praise God). Lydia is having withdrawal from talking with her mom.
So outside of the cold weather, 40-minute daily bus-ride, limited internet and 5:45 am mornings, the set up is actual very convenient and simple. We are blessed with beautiful scenery, very good cheese and chocolate, and a group of women who are working very hard to make us feel welcomed. We are missing home but feeling very blessed. Thank you God for keeping us safe thus far!
Please see our updated prayer requests and pictures. (Will be updated in the next couple of days)
Sounds like the perfect adventure for the three of you and always wonderful to read how you are all doing! Hope Noah feels 100% soonest!! =) Lisa (kev Kiya) =)
Only the price of cheese can curb Fred’s addiction!