Number 5: Cheese.

These last two weeks we ate a lot of cheese. Before dinner. After dinner. For lunch. In a restaurant. On the go. Hot. Cold. White. Yellow. Good. Bad. On a Boat. In a Car. In the Woods. Ok. I'll stop now before I completely turn into Dr. Seuss. But not only did we eat a lot of cheese, but in some way I just felt closer to cheese because of how organic everything in Germany and Switzerland generally are. Something I've been looking forward to since my mom mentioned it while looking through tour books in the last couple of months was visiting the Ementaler Cheese Factory (think Tillamook). In my opinion, if there is ever an opportunity to visit a factory on vacation, take it because factory=free stuff. I knew that I would not be leaving Ementaler without about 37 toothpick samples of cheese in my stomach and a smile of satisfaction on my face. So, I got to witness the whole cheese making process from this little guy right here donating his love juice...

to then here where they do all the science-y stuff......

(they gave us a tour to explain it all but I didn't hear a word of it because I was too excited for the samples)
then down to this cheese cellar where it ages.....

(ages is just a fancy word for "waits for my belly")
to here. Sample time! ....

(I pretty much cleaned them out)
And then ultimately, here where the family Patton enjoys slices of cheese with bread, apples and meats....
Like I think I mentioned in my food post, we also got to try local specialties like raclette (basically a skillet full of melted cheese and spices that you eat with potatoes, onions, and pickles...very good) and fondue (which, I love at home but was even more delicious in Switzerland). Thank, Cheese for showing me a good time and filling my tummy with yummy!