A first INSPIRE Potentials Winter Outing
NCCR SPIN has expanded the frequency of meetings for INSPIRE Potential awardees: now organizing two outings per year to match the two calls for applications! These excursions offer valuable opportunities for young INSPIRE Potentials scientists to connect with one another and with past grant recipients, facilitating networking and the exchange of experiences. The recent Winter excursion around the Rigi mountain marked the inaugural gathering of INSPIRE Potentials in Winter.
The group of six – Lisa Sommer (IBM Research Zürich), Lara Ostertag (ETHZ), Lea Hass (ETHZ), Veronika Rečková (ETHZ), Jelena Klinovaja (head of Diversity area) and Marie Le Dantec (Outreach officer) – gathered in Luzern at 10am. They hopped on the boat a few minutes after arriving to enjoy a little cruise on the Lake Luzern to Vitznau, located at the foot of the Rigi mountain. Despite the rapid changes in weather over the past week, they got very lucky, and the sun tagged along.
The trip up to the Rigi Kulm (top of the Rigi mountain) took about thirty minutes and allowed the crew to slowly get higher to discover the fantastic landscape that the mountain offers: an impressive view that takes the eyes far beyond lake Luzern. The arrival at the top of the mountain was marked by a drop in temperature compared to where they had started from. The slippery paths sometimes required a work on balance! But it was worth it: the view was superb, with almost no clouds.
It was too cold to eat lunch outside, therefore the group decided to walk down the mountain on the prepared path to the station Rigi Kaltbad. There, benches invited them to picnic in the sun. A discussion over lunch allowed them to decide on their next step: getting back to Luzern to try a hot chocolate at Max chocolatier. They hiked across the Rigi to the next train station leading to Arth-Goldau, and back to Luzern.
The day ended with a delicious warm chocolate and a tour of the city center of Luzern, discovering the Lion Monument, the many painted houses and the charming streets and bridges.
The excursion was very successful, including a lot a fun, lively discussions, and wonderful sceneries! We thank all the INSPIRE Potentials who joined us are looking forward to organizing our next outing in Summer!
The next deadline to apply for our INSPIRE Potentials fellowship is on May 1st, 2024. Apply if you would like to be part of the next adventure!