The Crane is Back!

The Crane is Back!

And not the flying variety although, the operator may think so at times.

What happens when you live in terrace housing with little but a funicular lift or stairs to access your abode and yet, you need a complete re-haul of your terrasse, roof or windows?

These workers are diligently clearing off all the bricks, bagging all the dirt and plants..... Removing windows and debris.........Where does it all go?

Behold - the Crane! It has taken up residence in the parking lot again.

The bags they use are heavy-duty and used for rocks, dirt and plants. They get the bags loaded on the terrasse, it's transported down to the parking area to a disposal trailer which, when full, gets loaded behind the semi/cab and hauled away -coming back for more.

There are cranes used in construction all over Switzerland. Condensed space, multiple family housing (most buildings are about 4 stories high and primarily made of cement/brick), narrow streets and narrow access make cranes the most efficient for builders.

There go the windows:

Thanks to my neighbor, Herr W., I found out this is a special crane - thus calling it the Crane. It was manufactured in Holland at the cost of approx. 1.5 to 2 million chf. It's reach is 60 metres - just over 200 feet and there are only a couple of them in Switzerland. It's the tallest/biggest mobile crane available in the Country. He tell's me all this and I know that his former home (I call him neighbor but it is his son & family that live in the nearby flat - he now lives in town) is one of those being renovated. He admit's wryly "Yes, my son lives in the home but I am paying for it."

Hmmmm - I'll admit I'm curious to know how much the largest crane in Switzerland costs to rent but I'm not about to ask (3 neighbors are cost-sharing - doing terrasse and windows at the same time). Which is funny because the Swiss are very direct - especially when it comes to financial items - and would probably ask without hesitation. Most of them know exactly how much we pay in rent and yet it's not something we would ever discuss. Culture, culture, culture......

Did you notice the beautiful, blue sky in the photo's above? What a wonderful day it was. And warm - about 65 F. Almost all the snow is gone and we need some sunshine as much of our winter looked like this:

With more snow. It was almost worse to have the snow melt and still have foggy, grey stuff. The snow adds an element of brightness.

Enjoy your day! I plan to enjoy mine.