It’s like “A Year in Provence” only… not. Well, let me explain. After my FIL (father-in-law) graduated with his PhD in Theology from Yale, he took a position as a theological professor. With only a year under his belt as a prof, he somehow managed to take a sabbatical to study at Chateau de Bossey for a year. We are not sure how a new professor with no seniority would be allowed such a long absence, but it happened. Chateau de Bossey, click here, is an ecumenical institute in Celigny, Switzerland, near Geneva. It was established in1946, which is the same year that my in-laws got married.
The year was 1959. my FIL was accepted for study at the chateau, and soon he and my MIL boarded a transaltantic ship for their first overseas trip. Here is a postcard they kept that pictures their ship, the SS United States.
And lo and behold, I even found their berthing card. Did I mention that woman never threw anything out?
I also found many telegrams wishing the couple “bon voyage” that were sent to them while they were on board. This must have been so exciting for them. Here is a a copy of one of those telegrams.
Now that’s a long message for a telegram. I only found one photo from the ship, and here it is. They do not appear to be in the photo.
I also found a letter sent home from Switzerland to my MIL’s parents letting them know the couple arrived safely.
In case you didn’t read the letter, it talks about how ready my MIL was to get off of the ship, and a little bit about their brief stop in London. Here are a few photos they took while in London, and I was very excited to find one of my MIL in front of Buckingham Palace.
Here’s what it said on the back.
This is the back of this photo. (Miss Poo was her neice.)
Here is the trunk they purchased for the trip.
I am not sure if you would call this a steamer trunk, but this is the one they used. I had seen it for years, but had never looked inside. But now we decided to have a “look see.” When we tried to open it, it was locked. But I knew my MIL, who never threw anything out, she had kept the key. And we found it! Mr. CH turned the key, and my friend Peggy and I looked on. We knew that it probably had not been opened for 50 years. Mr. CH unlocked the lock, then opened the lid.
The smell of mothballs almost knocked us over. I now know why the moths don’t like moth balls; they stink!! Inside, we found this fantastic wool beret, in pristine, albeit stinky condition.
This was clearly purchased on a trip they made to Paris from Switzerland. I love the label on the inside.
And although I can’t be certain, I believe these are gloves she is wearing in a photo taken in London shown above.
We found only a few photos from this trip to Paris.
Did you notice the old cars? It’s looks like they are from the movie, Roman Holiday with Audrey Hepburn! I couldn’t find any photos of the happy couple while in Switzerland, but I did want to show you a picture of both of them. Unlike Mr CH, they loved to have their photos taken. Here is a photo of them that appeared in a church magazine, while my FIL was the pastor of a small church.
I hope you can see in the photos that she was very pretty and he was …, well a “cut-up”. That was still the case when I met them in the 1980’s.
When we traveled to Switzerland several years ago, Mr. CH and I visited the chateau. It was fun to see the place his parents had told us so much about. The photos at the beginning of the post are some I took on that trip. But I digress, back to our story. Soon, it was time for my FIL and MIL to return to the U. S. of A. But they did not return empty handed; they had a special souvenir of their trip. Mr. CH was born just a few months later. But that’s another story.
Congrats to your FIL, he is a great man.
Those photos are amazing.
indonesiatooverseas
How fun is this. I just had to tell you I just sold a very old picture of the Cathedral of Notre Dame, like the one pictured here. It was just fabulous seeing the old pic. Have a good one.
Anita, this is a wonderful discovery. What a fun find.
Thanks for sharing this with us. ~ Sarah
How amazing Anita! Beautiful photos. I love the photo of your MIL she looks so classy and very pretty.
How wonderful that you have all of these things to remind you of them.
BTW I love Roman Holiday!
Love looking at the old photos and hearing about their trip. I could imagine how excited you were about opening the trunk. I would love to find an old treasure like that. Great post!
I was going to say after I saw the first pic of your MIL. What a beauty!
Brenda
What a sweet story! And what a wonderful adventure your in-laws had. I love the fact that she kept everything! What a treasure!
What a great family story. How fortunate you are to have the pictures and memorabilia to document this time in their lives.
It’s wonderful that you have all of these family keepsakes!
What a wonderful post, thank you so much for sharing ti all with us. Hugs P.S> I invite you join me at my first ever Thursday Favorites blog hop. Stop by and link up your lovely blog.
What a wonderful journey you took us on. Such treasures to have and hold. Loved the history. Thanks for stopping by and signing my followers list. I just started this new blog and it’s going slow. Plus, I don’t have anything exciting to blog about. 🙂 Yes, the house at the top of my blog is going to be ours. We stayed there about 10 years ago and now we are buying it.Stop by anytime.
Chris
Hi lovely lady.
I love all your photos of the Past!! You have a beautiful collection thanks so much for sharing with us all.
I hope you have a great week with your family.
XXOO Diane
What a great post! I loved seeing the pictures. It makes me even more excited that I am going to London/Paris next year!
Thanks for sharing.
Goodness. I have been reading your blog for about an hour now. I came over from a guest post you did but can’t remember where it was.
The reason i had to post here was seeing the Lugoff, SC address on your MILs letter. I am just up the road from Lugoff. Small world.
Really enjoyed seeing your ranch. Beautiful.
Just wanted to tell you that it was from Cottage at the Crossroads.
I loved this post, Anita! Your MIL was very beautiful and clearly a funny lady. I was happy to read that London Bridge was crossed and that it was not falling down. haha
I could spend days going thru old letters and photos- these are the times I’m grateful for relatives that kept everything! 🙂
Will you be wearing the beret?
Oh Tina, Tina, Tina. Not planning to wear the beret. It doesn’t look like she ever wore it either.
I just love your vintage photos…and I have enjoyed your pics of France also. I was a student and lived in Aix-en- Provence France for a year. Lovely culture! My hubby and I were the host family for two French college boys last school year who came here to play soccer. I also teach French at the college. Sheila
I enjoyed these photos, and story of your in-laws. I was in Paris a couple yrs. ago, and loved it! I would never let go of those prints!!
Thanks for the coverage of your inlaws’ trip abroad! I really enjoyed it! How exciting to delve into their
historic past and taking the time to share it.
Ann