Blogs from Switzerland, Europe - page 10

After our excessive hike the day before, we planned to take it a bit easier and visit some local towns and planned our first stop at Interlaken. Actually, our first stop was the Gondola station, which we used every time we could for its excellent wifi; our cabin's was soooo slooooow.... Interlaken We had no real destination in mind to visit in town, so we pretty much parked at the first place we saw once we got into the area of town that seemed the most happening. Walking along the park, we saw lots of Chinese tourists and paragliders. We visited a couple of souvenir shops and Dana and I were both in awe of the cuckoo clocks. There were so many to choose from, and all were made either in Germany or Switzerland. The LÖtscher ... read more

After leaving Lucerne, we headed towards our cabin for the week. We drove through many more tunnels and made a stop in Interlaken, where we stocked up on supplies (expensive of course). This would be the largest grocery market around, so we figured to get as much as we could here, which included, bread, pasta, meat, fruit, veggies, and drinks. Gimmelwald We then drove through the Lauterbrunnen valley, past the quaint Swiss villages and towering waterfalls, on the way to Stechelberg, where we were to ride the gondola up to Gimmelwald. After finding the parking area (expensive), we found a nice lady at the gondola ticket booth who recommended a pass of 6 rides for each of us for 30 euros. Dana and Lindsey were a little nervous about the gondola, but I was excited! It ... read more

It's really hard to get friends and family to come visit me in Dubai as it is a 13-16 hour flight and Americans typically only get 10, maybe 15, days of vacation each year. So, my sister and I decided to meet halfway in Switzerland. We brought another 'sister' who basically grew up with my younger sisters. So the three of us planned to spend a quiet week enjoying this mountainous country. I arrived in Zurich first, almost two days ahead of time. Of course, I got an upgrade on Emirates..... but honestly, I was a bit disappointed in the service. I won't get into the details that would most likely make me come across as a total snob. I will say the thing that I found the most annoying was hearing two of the attendants ... read more

Some of you have wondered WHY this three month trip....well, in part, it is because Bill and I are not getting any younger!! That’s a fact. In particular, I was/am hoping to recapture some of the excitement and clarity-of-thought that we both remember from our year-long 1994 excursion. Until climbing the mountain, I wasn’t sure if we could accomplish that. However, while walking in weather-turning-to-snow, and being afraid because we might have taken the wrong path, I concentrated on putting one foot in front of another, in front of another, in front of another, and focused on NOT falling down the mountainside. I thought about not panicking, and not getting mad because I didn’t know what was coming up... I won’t kid you. There have been some moments in the last month when I have been ... read more

A firm favourite is the Des Alps celebrations at La Fouly. We have stayed at Glaciers camping ground for 3 years in a row now. The first was by accident and we missed the festivities, last year the girls and I went (Murray was on a work trip), so this year was the first time as a family to see the Des Alps. My parents, who have been helping out with the kids, extended their trip by a few days so they could join us and witness this unique Swiss tradition. Des Alps is the start of winter, when the cows come down from grazing in the mountains over summer time, to shelter in the barns over the harsh winters. The cows get dressed up, wearing flower head dresses and their ceremonial bells. Swiss horns play, ... read more