Gruezi Mitenand from Switzerland!
Switzerland was a destination where we weren't really sure what to expect but just knew that we wanted to see the Swiss Alps. We did a little research and decided on the town of Interlaken as it provided easy access to the Bernese Oberland region. Since we were planning last minute as most everything has been during this portion of the trip, we had trouble finding accommodations within the town. We found a wonderful holiday apartment just up the valley from the small town of Interlaken, above the even smaller town of Wilderswill, in the even smaller village of Gsteigweiler. We think this was truly meant to be. Over the next few days, Switzerland would become one of our favorite stops on our trip and we know that's a strong statement!
Gsteigweiler was exactly what we wanted our Swiss experience to be. We stayed in a furnished studio apartment built within a portion of an 800 year old chalet that has been in the owner's family for over 300 years! (Remodeled a few times we're sure!) We almost didn't believe the owner until she brought out the local history books. The view of the mountains and meadows from our front porch was priceless and we spent many hours sitting and enjoying homemade nutmeg lattes and of course some Swiss chocolate! We got pretty good at using the Keurig Nespresso machine in our kitchen. Who needs Starbucks anyway?
Some of the most memorable stays on our trip have been because of the hosts in the smaller accommodations. It would be a great blog post to describe a few of them and maybe we'll do that in the future. As a representative example of the diverse people we've met, Marilyn, half of the couple that owns the chalet in Gsteigwiler, is native Cuban, lived in Albuquerque NM for a while, and now lives in Switzerland with her Swiss husband who is a somewhat famous piano player and their three adorable kids. She was kind enough to pick us up from the Interlaken train station when we arrived from Paris around midnight, well after trains had stopped running near their village. She continued to provide for everything we needed and also provided for some very interesting conversation with her mixed Spanish-English-Swiss German languages but we would always manage to get each others ideas across! She was truly a special person and we will never forget her.
Switzerland was colder than any other area we have visited so far (ok except for a walk on a glacier in New Zealand!) and we have to admit it was kind of nice to get a bit bundled when we went out. We spent one afternoon wandering around Interlaken, eating Swiss cheese fondue for lunch, and playing a few games of pool in a local bar because it started to rain.
We took a short train ride to the village of Brienz and enjoyed a lovely stroll by the beautiful lake, a visit to an old church at the top of a hill, and sitting on a bench staring off across the lake into the Alps beyond, all while wondering how in the world have been so fortunate. Numerous times on this trip we have asked each other "How is this our life right now?" Sometimes it really is hard to believe and we are so extremely grateful that we worked hard, took a leap of faith, did something a little nuts, and made this dream a reality. As we approach the final weeks of this adventure we are reassured every day that it was the right decision for us and one that we will never regret.
We wanted to get further up into the Alps so we boarded a train bound for Murren with a stop in Lauterbrunnen on the way. To get there we took a train to a cable car to another train. Just traveling in all of Switzerland’s different types of trains, funiculars, cable cars, and busses is an experience in itself. Needless to say after all that travel we reached an area with exactly what we wanted. In Lauterbrunnen we hiked up to the base of a cliff to the underside of a waterfall. We were certainly feeling the altitude while making the climb but it was all worth it once we got there. Wes enjoyed a bratwurst in Lauterbrunnen and let's just say that on the way back to Gsteigweiler we got off the train to get another one, but sadly they were closed for the day.
While in Murren we were planning to board a funicular train to the Schilthorn. Unfortunately the peak was socked in with clouds for the day so the trip to the top would have been worthless. This was a bummer but we made the best of it and found a bench in the perfect spot to enjoy the stunningly beautiful scenery, a couple apples, and of course more Swiss chocolate. We sat there for almost two hours before deciding to walk a trail halfway back down to Lauterbrunnen and then caught the cable car back down. On our walk we stumbled onto a dairy with a small cheese stand and bought some fresh cheese. Talk about buying local...cows in back, creamery in a barn, cheese aging in the basement, attendant selling out of the front of the barn. And of course it was wonderful! This was a day we will NEVER forget.
We don't generate much video content while traveling and usually just rely on still pictures to tell the story. That said, while sitting on that picture perfect bench, this may have happened...
We really hope to return to this area and see even more of Switzerland if we are lucky. While Switzerland was beautiful and we weren't quite ready to leave the beautiful scenery and welcoming people, we couldn't wait to begin our time in Italy!
Switzerland was a destination where we weren't really sure what to expect but just knew that we wanted to see the Swiss Alps. We did a little research and decided on the town of Interlaken as it provided easy access to the Bernese Oberland region. Since we were planning last minute as most everything has been during this portion of the trip, we had trouble finding accommodations within the town. We found a wonderful holiday apartment just up the valley from the small town of Interlaken, above the even smaller town of Wilderswill, in the even smaller village of Gsteigweiler. We think this was truly meant to be. Over the next few days, Switzerland would become one of our favorite stops on our trip and we know that's a strong statement!
Gsteigweiler was exactly what we wanted our Swiss experience to be. We stayed in a furnished studio apartment built within a portion of an 800 year old chalet that has been in the owner's family for over 300 years! (Remodeled a few times we're sure!) We almost didn't believe the owner until she brought out the local history books. The view of the mountains and meadows from our front porch was priceless and we spent many hours sitting and enjoying homemade nutmeg lattes and of course some Swiss chocolate! We got pretty good at using the Keurig Nespresso machine in our kitchen. Who needs Starbucks anyway?
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| Front of the old chalet. |
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| Rear of the chalet where we lived for 5 days. |
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| Our quaint studio apartment with lofted bedroom. |
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| View from our front porch at sunset. |
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| These water fountains provided pure untreated water from the glaciers. |
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| From the train station in Wilderswil below the town below Gsteigwiler. |
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| Posing for the picture! We woke up to these bells clanging EARLY in the morning! |
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| Now that's a pretty pile of firewood. The locals are VERY meticulous with this. |
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| Yes, Christine made this great Nutmeg Latte! |
Some of the most memorable stays on our trip have been because of the hosts in the smaller accommodations. It would be a great blog post to describe a few of them and maybe we'll do that in the future. As a representative example of the diverse people we've met, Marilyn, half of the couple that owns the chalet in Gsteigwiler, is native Cuban, lived in Albuquerque NM for a while, and now lives in Switzerland with her Swiss husband who is a somewhat famous piano player and their three adorable kids. She was kind enough to pick us up from the Interlaken train station when we arrived from Paris around midnight, well after trains had stopped running near their village. She continued to provide for everything we needed and also provided for some very interesting conversation with her mixed Spanish-English-Swiss German languages but we would always manage to get each others ideas across! She was truly a special person and we will never forget her.
Switzerland was colder than any other area we have visited so far (ok except for a walk on a glacier in New Zealand!) and we have to admit it was kind of nice to get a bit bundled when we went out. We spent one afternoon wandering around Interlaken, eating Swiss cheese fondue for lunch, and playing a few games of pool in a local bar because it started to rain.
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| The church and garden in the center of downtown Interlaken |
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| Train passing through Wilderswil from Interlaken towards Lauterbrunnen and the highlands. |
We took a short train ride to the village of Brienz and enjoyed a lovely stroll by the beautiful lake, a visit to an old church at the top of a hill, and sitting on a bench staring off across the lake into the Alps beyond, all while wondering how in the world have been so fortunate. Numerous times on this trip we have asked each other "How is this our life right now?" Sometimes it really is hard to believe and we are so extremely grateful that we worked hard, took a leap of faith, did something a little nuts, and made this dream a reality. As we approach the final weeks of this adventure we are reassured every day that it was the right decision for us and one that we will never regret.
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| Postcard perfection on Lake Brienzersee! |
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| Doesn't get much better than these cool chairs. |
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| Church overlooking Lake Brienz and the village. |
We wanted to get further up into the Alps so we boarded a train bound for Murren with a stop in Lauterbrunnen on the way. To get there we took a train to a cable car to another train. Just traveling in all of Switzerland’s different types of trains, funiculars, cable cars, and busses is an experience in itself. Needless to say after all that travel we reached an area with exactly what we wanted. In Lauterbrunnen we hiked up to the base of a cliff to the underside of a waterfall. We were certainly feeling the altitude while making the climb but it was all worth it once we got there. Wes enjoyed a bratwurst in Lauterbrunnen and let's just say that on the way back to Gsteigweiler we got off the train to get another one, but sadly they were closed for the day.
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| Path leading up to the waterfall. |
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| Lauterbrunnen is known as the valley of 72 waterfalls. |
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| View over Lauterbrunnen from behind the waterfall. |
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| Wes and his bratwurst! Snappy Sausage Satisfaction! |
While in Murren we were planning to board a funicular train to the Schilthorn. Unfortunately the peak was socked in with clouds for the day so the trip to the top would have been worthless. This was a bummer but we made the best of it and found a bench in the perfect spot to enjoy the stunningly beautiful scenery, a couple apples, and of course more Swiss chocolate. We sat there for almost two hours before deciding to walk a trail halfway back down to Lauterbrunnen and then caught the cable car back down. On our walk we stumbled onto a dairy with a small cheese stand and bought some fresh cheese. Talk about buying local...cows in back, creamery in a barn, cheese aging in the basement, attendant selling out of the front of the barn. And of course it was wonderful! This was a day we will NEVER forget.
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| Now that's high and boy was it moving fast. |
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| Sound of Music, anyone?! (yes we know that was Austria) RICOLA maybe?! |
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| There are no words and pictures just can't capture it... |
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| We only had to try for this picture like 10 times! The camera kept falling off the rock. |
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| Cheesy goodness from the local cows. |
We really hope to return to this area and see even more of Switzerland if we are lucky. While Switzerland was beautiful and we weren't quite ready to leave the beautiful scenery and welcoming people, we couldn't wait to begin our time in Italy!
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| The end of the line in Murren. |
Looks amazing! More videos please :) Love you, Laura! (Blake loved the cows, unlike his Aunt Kissy haha)
ReplyDeleteI LOVE that video! All I can think of is our trip to the Grand Canyon and Christine telling me that the elk that was nose to nose with our car could "take us" :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for a fantastic week in Croatia - it was so great to see you!!!!!!!!
Love, A&A