When she was the US ambassador to Switzerland,

Susie Levine noticed some things about how Swiss society operates

that we Americans might want to emulate.

They invest very long term in infrastructure

and we could learn a lot about how they don't just fix but they maintain.

To explore the surprises of the universe like red dwarfs, gas clouds and black holes, start by looking through a telescope at the night's

guy. For Philip Plate, seeing Saturn for the first time is all it took.

And a lot of astronomers, myself included, say that it was seeing Saturn as a kid that made

them want to be an astronomer. To get to love winter like they do in Alaska, notice

the sunlight as it glitters on the frost that greets here in the morning.

It's like the world around you has grown these delicate white feathers or sometimes it

built up in these little sort of sparkling very delicate spikes.

Come along for the hour ahead, it's travel with Rick Steeves.

One of the best souvenirs of traveling is the perspective it can give you on the place you call home.

Coming up, we'll hear why you don't have to dread winter, as our listeners in Anchorage can verify,

just start to enjoy it like they do in Alaska.

And an astronomer from Virginia helps us imagine the other-worldly views you'd find on other planets in our solar system.

Let's start the hour seeing what we can learn from the top nation once again in U.S.

News and World Report's annual ranking of best countries in the world, Switzerland.

I believe we can learn more about our own homes, our own nation, and our

own lives when we travel and look back at our world from a distance.

Susie Levine served as the United States Ambassador to Switzerland and Lictenstein,

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