The city of bears and some old world charm

Today we went back down the mountain for the day to visit a few touristy spots nearby.

We started by heading about an hour west to Bern which is the capital of Switzerland and another beautiful city. This one was for Lauren though as one of the big things to see here is a pair of brown bears that live at the older end of the city.

Bern also has one of the biggest train stations in Switzerland and was once the home of Einstein. In fact, Einstein's years here were among his most productive. Sadly the small museum was closed as most things are on Monday around here.

Although the forecast called for rain all day we got lucky and it was bright and sunny when we left as well as when we got to Bern. Pulling out of Bern heading back to the Alps the rain started but as the sun came out again we decided to hop off the train in a town called Thun. Thun is an older town, more medieval than the others we've visited so far. We took a little stroll up the hill to the castle overlooking the city and the lakeside; a very beautiful place.

But also a bit quirky:

Luckily for us (seems we've had a lot of that today) the rain began again while we were waiting for our train to continue back to Interlaken at the base of the mountain but cleared again as we reached our destination. We stopped at the west station of Interlaken for a beer and the last grocery store before heading up two trains, a cable car and 5,000+ feet again. Back in Murren for one more night, very tired and glad to have just made the last cable car of the day.

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The top of Europe...

We have spent the past two days in/around Murren.  This town is 5,360 feet up, which I am very much feeling!  I had to rest all last night in the room & watch the BBC's Eastenders.  (Marty--who killed Heather!?)  But this morning we conquered the top of Europe.  We cheated a bit & went to the Schilthorn which looks over the top of Europe (Jungfraujoch), Eiger & Monch.  The story of these three mountains is that the Eiger is a man who wants to woo the beautiful Jungfraujoch maiden, but the Monch (monk) protects her.  The Schilthorn had amazing views & we had the perfect weather!!  Look at these views...

Also, we ate the special 007 breakfast.  This location was where the James Bond's movie Her Majesty's Secret Service was filmed before the restaurant opened to the public.

After that we visited Gimmelwald.  We made the 40 minute hike down the mountain to this quaint town.  The reason we had to visit this town is my favorite travel writer, and the books I carry with me on the trips, states his is favorite place on Earth. And Rick Steves has been to a lot of places!  You could easily see why-the small town had a serene quietness about it.  And like everywhere around here, the views are postcard perfect!

Then we made the mistake of walking back up the mountain.  The walk was 1000 feet straight uphill.  I thought I might not make it up the hill.  Clearly we should have trained for that kind of exercise (probably should have taken the cablecar)!

One of the things I've noticed about Switzerland is the views.  I had prepared myself that the views could not  live up to the postcards & internet pictures, but instead it has been even more breathtaking.  Everywhere you look is amazing.  It truly is the prettiest country I have ever been to!  I'm so glad we came here, even if the heights are a bit much at times...

Swiss day 2; Luzern and Interlaken

We woke up bright and early to head back down the mountain from St. Moritz on the way to Luzern. St. Moritz turned out to be, very likely, the classiest/most expensive place we'll ever visit. While exploring the town we saw not one but two Ferrari Enzos, and they weren't just decoration, they were driving to dinner. We also found a house the was underground (mostly) and extremely private; the entrance was an elevator on the side of the road...

Interesting town. Switzerland lives up to the hype about being postcard perfect!

After routing through Zurich again we headed for Luzern. This was actually an off the cuff detour since we found ourselves with a few extra hours and not a lot to do at our final destination for the day (up the mountain from Interlaken). Luzern is one of the prettier Swiss cities with a lot of medieval charm and a view of the alps.

After strolling along the medieval bridges and the Muhlenplatz (old buildings) we took a -long- hike to see the Lowedenkmal. This is a giant lion carved into a rock face; a tribute to the Swiss mercenaries who died on the losing side of the French revolution. We barely made it to the train station; just in time.

Another long and very scenic train ride later we arrived in Interlaken which is the touristy base camp for those brave (or possibly stupid in our case) enough to ascend the Eiger, Munch, or other massive mountains here. We are currently writing from a town called Murren which clocks in at 5,361 feet and requires a cog-train, a cable car, and another train to reach from the base if the mountain.

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Zurich Arrival

Last night was one of the longest flights on one of the oldest planes I've ever been on, but I got to see The Rock as 'The Toothfairy' for a third time on the in flight movie. Bright and early this morning at about 8 am local time we landed in Zurich, one of the nicer airport/train station/tram station/shopping mall there is.

We found a few lockers and stored our packs so we could hop a tram into the city and see the (very impressive) sights before heading to our actual first stop on this trip: St. Moritz.



Currently we're on the train(s) to St. Moritz passing through some amazing scenery.

After sleeping about as much as you can expect to on an overnight flight and hitting one city (however briefly) already today, I'm really looking forward to that hotel!

*Thanks to spotty Internet I'm posting this morning instead of yesterday, oh well...

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