Ultimate Blog Challenge - The long and winding Road

Welcome back to Day 9 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge. Today's prompt has several aspects: We're supposed to 

• Share a picture
• Optionally make it a behind the scenes photo
• Unofficially incorporate a Beatles song because Paul, our host, is a fan

I'm too young to have grown up with the Beatles, so I probably only know the twenty or so most popular titles. 

One lesser known title I like is The long and winding Road, and that's what we took on the occasion of yesterday's road trip. Fortunately it wasn't as winding as the last time Colin had a game in the Italian part of Switzerland. 

The match took place in Bellinzona, Ticino's capital. The town is famous for its three castles, Montebello, Sasso Corbaro and Castelgrande (below).

Throughout Switzerland there are over 300 castles, here's the list if you care to count how many exactly. 

Some readers of yesterday's post were amused that I was talking about our local castle. 

In fact in my state there are 49 of them, the closest being less than two miles away. It can be rented for private events, and that's what we did for our wedding.

Back to our Saturday. For a complete behind the scenes report, I would have to take you to Friday night. That's when we packed up all the gear and prepared the snacks.

The kids met at 10am, which was super convenient. They loaded their bags and sticks onto the vans (which are driven by volunteering Hockey Dads) and went on their way.

Hubby and I followed in our private car. Since the players like to be at the away arena at least 75 minutes before puck drop, we had more than enough time to explore the town and have lunch. Unfortunately infection rates are very high in this area, that's why we preferred to err on the cautious side and enjoy our lunch al fresco, never mind temps were barely above freezing point. 

The restaurant was located right at the Piazza Governo. As you may guess from the name, it's where the state's government's buildings can be found. In front of the main entrance the Christmas Tree was still up.

People had attached letters. They contained wishes, either addressed to the government officials and / or Baby Jesus. Most wishes were about the mask mandate for young kids. 

Currently, laboratory capacities for Covid tests are exhausted. As a result, there is no more weekly testing at Swiss schools, and it has been decided that as of tomorrow, when most students go back to school, they have to wear a face mask. This had been the case for kids older than 12 for quite some time, but now children as young as 7 are affected, and some parents do not like it at all. 

I've seen outraged posts in social media Mommy groups. Most of the loud voices are anti-vaxxers and seem to have lost touch with reality. They were 

• Swapping phone numbers of paediatricians who are known to issue certificates excusing kids from wearing a mask due to medical reasons
• Wondering about the ramifications if they just don't send their kids to school on Monday 
• Discussing prerequisites to homeschooling their offspring. 

What I found bizarre was the fact that they seemed more concerned about the mask mandate than the danger of catching Omincrom?!

One gave me a laughing fit. Well, it would have been funny if it weren't so sad. She was talking about poking tiny holes into her son's mask - allowing him to breathe more easily.

Back to my own world, in which fortunately people are being reasonable and grateful about the fact that their kids can actually go to school and play hockey.

It was the first time that the team got to play at this location. Colin's franchise is one of 13 National League teams, and our arena is spacious and modern, so we are spoiled. Most away venues are less fancy (but usually more charming). We were surprised to find out Bellinzona has a fantastic infrastructure! Outdoor rink, indoor rink, outdoor swimming pool, indoor swimming pool, tennis courts, a gym, whatever an athlete's heart desires!

The guys played well, nobody got injured, they had fun - and won. What more do you want?

The drive back was pleasantly uneventful (this stretch of road is usually prone to congestion), and we made it home by 8pm.

Are you a Beatles fan? Do you enjoy road trips? What have you been up to this weekend? Let me know.

PS: I linked up with Ridgehavenhomestead's Sunday Sunshine Blog Hop