Getting to Promontogno was an ordeal in itself. Aside from the usual traffic exiting Munich, we came to a standstill on the Autobahn toward Switzerland (see photo of two possible future leaders of their country hanging out of the windows of their car), because of terribly inconvenient construction work. As we continued south into the Alps, the heavens opened up and it poured (except when we were driving in the countless tunnels the Swiss have blasted through the mountains). Despite the many tunnels, we still needed to drive the windy roads over several passes. Henry maneuvered the rental car (a relatively large Mercedes A180 hatchback, with automatic transmission), even though it was not the small, manual transmission car we had reserved. Perhaps the Hertz agent considered us to be her stereotypical American tourists, all of whom like to drive big cars and cannot handle manual transmissions. When the shoulderless roads are as narrow as these were, with a high cement wall on one side and a barrier on the other, the last car we wanted was one that was wider than the single lane available!
Promontogno is peaceful oasis between the classy (assuming that is defined by the number of 4 and 5-star hotels and local branches of Hermes, Channel, Gucci, and similar shops) and touristy St. Mortiz, and the lively Italian city of Chiavenna. 
It makes no attempt to attract tourists through kitsch and gimmicky attractions. 
The village offers only its natural beauty (see photos--the view with the bridges is from our private patio outside our hotel room; also, notice the widespread use of slate as roofing material; the photo of the two of us shows more natural beauty (of course), and that the two of us actually do spend time together in the same place at the same time!). And, even better for me, it was quiet enough for Henry to permit me to keep our room window open all night!
While we enjoyed the serenity of Promontogno, we also succumbed to the lures of St. Moritz and Chiavenna for lunches (see photos). Both places were fine for a meal, but I'm glad we had our room in Promontogno.
The best part of going to St. Moritz was our stop at Lake Silvaplana, a haven for windsurfers and kitesurfers. 
I have never seen so many of them vying for a piece of the perfect wind. I was mesmerized as the kitesurfers let the wind fill their "sail" and efffectively lift them onto their small surfing boards. The especially talented kitesurfers could hang on with one hand and could pick up enough speed to lift themselves out of the water, do an aerial twist, and land seemingly effortlessly back on the water. Unfortunately, my Canon G7 digital camera isn't quite advanced enough to capture the full scene. What I could get, however, was a sense of how intense these surfers are. They come in their RV's and camp out on the lakeshore so they can be ready for just the right wind (see photos)! The best of Chiavenna was the ice cream from Gelateria Oasi. 
The better than best were the innumerable waterfalls dropping down the mountainsides between Chiavenna and St. Moritz, as well as along the mountain pass roads. One double falls we were able to walk to was the impressive Acquafraggia, just south of the border, near Piuro, Italy (see photo). The pool at the bottom of the falls and the continuing runoff are popular spots for cooling off on a warm summer day.Oops, there was another Chiavenna highlight--the supermarket the students drove to for stocking up on food and liquid refreshments (i.e., wine and grappa). Food and drink are significantly less expensive in Italy than Switzerland. It's no wonder that Chiavenna can support several supermarkets! However, the Swiss border guards strictly enforce the country's limits on how much food and alcohol individuals can bring back into the country, e.g., 500 grams of meat, 2 liters of alcohol per person. The students' solution--5 of them pile into one car for the food and drink run. On their first return, the guards pulled them aside and spent 10 minutes unsuccessfully searching for any overage. Henry and I did our part, bringing back four bottles of wine and a selection of cheeses.
Our best meals were the two dinners prepared by the students and one dinner with the group at the Crotto Quartino in a chestnut grove in Santa Croce di Piuro. The menu is printed on the napkins and placemats and is limited to a list of about 7 items--you can choose any number of them or all of them. The gnocchi and grilled ribs were especially outstanding.
The evenings with the group were not complete until we performed karaoke (see photo). The students, who hail from an assortment of countries in addition to Switzerland (Germany, Poland, Russia, United States, Taiwan, and Turkey), were far better than we were at singing the mostly English language songs. The last evening, we were also treated to a video of the group's past two retreats. We laughed hysterically as two of the Swiss students "helped" the Taiwanese student try to master the mysteries of skiing. One held the video camera as the other skied behind their "student" while holding onto a rope around their student's waist. It was all in good fun, with everyone, including the Taiwanese student, being a great sport.Henry and I took an extra day to drive back to Munich, stopping for the night near the Bodensee (Lake Constance), a large lake between northern Switzerland and southern Bavaria.
On my suggestion, we took a detour to Arosa (another Swiss alpine ski town (see photos)), thinking it would be a short side trip for lunch. Having temporarily misplaced our detailed Swiss Michelin map, we didn't realize that the 31 kilometers to Arosa was on a tiny, windy byway. On the small Swiss map we did have, Arosa looked so close to Chur (our detour point from the main road)! Alas, a sign posted by the road as we exited Arosa announced only 355 curves ahead! Well over an hour into our "short" detour, we arrived at Arosa, hungry but very satisfied that we had encountered some fantastic scenery along the way. Our lunch at Kachelofa-Stubli, once again a Michelin red guide pick, was outstanding. I do not recall why I did not choose Arosa as a skiing destination while we were living in Zurich, but I noticed that the tram up one of the mountains was literally across the street from the train station. I am sure the train would have been a much less stressful mode of transportation to this destination resort! We had no choice but to return to the main highway the way we came, but as we "re-wound" (or should that be "unwound"?) our way back, we made several stops to take in the views at a more leisurely pace. 
Later, enjoying our view of the Bodensee from our pension in Kressbronn am Bodensee (see photo) and having dinner at Lamm im Kau in Tettnang-Kau (one more red Michelin pick), were two more treats with which to finish off our Swiss retreat.
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