Day 7: Zermatt to Lauterbrunnen
Today we woke up to some clouds. The weather forecast said rain in the morning and clearing in the afternoon. This worked well for us because we were just doing a lot of traveling today. The traveling here, as I have said before, is so fun. The day began with a ride done the hill from the hotel to the train station in a tiny electric bus. The wheels are small on the bus making the ride very bumpy. I kept saying weeeeeeee! As we rode alllllll the way down the narrow, windy roads.
The next travel method was the train that took us back to our car. Alongside our train was the Glacier Express that you can take from Zermatt to St. Moritz. It is a pretty looking train and I bet is fun to ride. I took some pics of it as we rode our little train back down to the car. We drove the car along the freeway for a little while then we came to a place where we had to make a decision. We could use half a tank of gas, drive 250 miles over windy, steep switchback roads and over two alpine passes.....or.....we could drive our car onto a train that would take us through the mountains in only 15 minutes for only 25 Swiss Francs (about $28). We chose the latter. It was super cool to drive onto a train and park the car. Then we just sat there in the car while it rushed for about fifteen minutes through a tunnel. When the train stopped, we just drove off....kind of like cattle. And we were on our way again.
We stopped in a town called Spiez that sits on Lake Thun. We went to the château and for $12 we took a tour. The castle is something like 600 years old. We were able to rom freely amount the different rooms which were sparsely furnished but the walls and ceilings were ornately carved and painted. Outside there was an area that they used to use as a jousting practice. I got to get up on a fake horse and try it out. We also climbed the bazillion stairs that reached the tower lookout. It was gorgeous. Giant open windows faced four directions. You can look out into the harbor, the mountains, the lake and the rolling vineyards. With the light rain everything was bright green and smelled fresh. With the aromatic cool air blowing through the windows I wanted to stay up there all day. But there was more to see.
Before we left we went to the chapel for a visit. It must have been all done up for a wedding because it had flowers everywhere. We strolled the grounds, admiring their beautiful gardens then went to have lunch in the car facing the lake. We had bought fresh meats, cheses, breads and strawberries at the train station in Zermatt before we left.
On we drove to Lauterbrunnen. We checked in to the hotel and found our rooms. We paid a lot to stay with the view of the waterfall but it is SO worth it. Right outside my bedroom is the famous falls and the valley with the steep cliffs rising on either side. I can even see the Jungfrau. We had time to kill so we walked down to the train station and bought tickets to Wengen. The train to Wengen is the same one I took eleven years ago with my exhusband. There is a famous story or our misadventure trying to ride it which I will tell in a moment
This is a partial blog that I never posted due to internet failure in a little mountain town. I am posting now for anyone who might like to read a little bit
The next travel method was the train that took us back to our car. Alongside our train was the Glacier Express that you can take from Zermatt to St. Moritz. It is a pretty looking train and I bet is fun to ride. I took some pics of it as we rode our little train back down to the car. We drove the car along the freeway for a little while then we came to a place where we had to make a decision. We could use half a tank of gas, drive 250 miles over windy, steep switchback roads and over two alpine passes.....or.....we could drive our car onto a train that would take us through the mountains in only 15 minutes for only 25 Swiss Francs (about $28). We chose the latter. It was super cool to drive onto a train and park the car. Then we just sat there in the car while it rushed for about fifteen minutes through a tunnel. When the train stopped, we just drove off....kind of like cattle. And we were on our way again.
We stopped in a town called Spiez that sits on Lake Thun. We went to the château and for $12 we took a tour. The castle is something like 600 years old. We were able to rom freely amount the different rooms which were sparsely furnished but the walls and ceilings were ornately carved and painted. Outside there was an area that they used to use as a jousting practice. I got to get up on a fake horse and try it out. We also climbed the bazillion stairs that reached the tower lookout. It was gorgeous. Giant open windows faced four directions. You can look out into the harbor, the mountains, the lake and the rolling vineyards. With the light rain everything was bright green and smelled fresh. With the aromatic cool air blowing through the windows I wanted to stay up there all day. But there was more to see.
Before we left we went to the chapel for a visit. It must have been all done up for a wedding because it had flowers everywhere. We strolled the grounds, admiring their beautiful gardens then went to have lunch in the car facing the lake. We had bought fresh meats, cheses, breads and strawberries at the train station in Zermatt before we left.
On we drove to Lauterbrunnen. We checked in to the hotel and found our rooms. We paid a lot to stay with the view of the waterfall but it is SO worth it. Right outside my bedroom is the famous falls and the valley with the steep cliffs rising on either side. I can even see the Jungfrau. We had time to kill so we walked down to the train station and bought tickets to Wengen. The train to Wengen is the same one I took eleven years ago with my exhusband. There is a famous story or our misadventure trying to ride it which I will tell in a moment
This is a partial blog that I never posted due to internet failure in a little mountain town. I am posting now for anyone who might like to read a little bit
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