May 25 - 26, 2015 SWITZERLAND
Swiss Alps, Lauterbrunnen Valley (Berner Oberland)
(Tour days 16 - 17)
Post 4 of 5
Monday, May 25, 2015
Swiss Alps
(Tour day 16)
Light Walking Day
Woke up to a beautiful sunny day and caught the train back to Levanto where our bus was parked. Then back up the hills in the Cinque Terre area, heading north to Switzerland. Going to be a long day on the bus (approx. 7 hours), so won't be much walking today.
These photos are of the hill area in Cinque Terre as we were leaving. Some of the same photos I took when we arrived here, but it was raining that day.
A picture of the winding hilly road we had to traverse into and out of Cinque Terre
Now we are just motoring along, up the West Coast of Italy. Was able to watch the sea for a long time until about Genova, then we headed north toward Milano
It was along here somewhere that we passed through Genova. That was the first town that I had thought perhaps I may live when I first was making plans to come to Italy. I had a contact in this area and they were keeping their eyes open for apartments for rent. However, by the time I arrived, things worked out differently and now this was actually the first time I have even been near this city.
While we were driving along, I also called Crengutsa, who is in Alexandria now, very near where we are driving. She had been in Bari and we had become good friends, so I rang her up as we drove near here. Was nice to have a long chat and catch up on the latest.
We skirted around Milano to avoid the traffic and I suppose with the Expo here, it may have been even more than the usual.
The beauty in Northern Italy and on into Switzerland is spectacular. Valleys and hills and lakes.
When we stopped for lunch, we knew for sure we had left Italy and arrived in Switzerland !!! There is lots of money in Switzerland and they drive some pretty fancy wheels! This parking lot looked like a high-end car show!
Okay, time to take a moment and discuss why this country is so wealthy. Switzerland has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world with a very low unemployment rate and a balanced budget. American could take some lessons here!! The following is a quote:
"The economy of Switzerland is one of the most stable in the world. Swiss neutrality and national sovereignty, long recognized by foreign nations, has fostered a stable environment in which the banking sector was able to develop and thrive. Switzerland has maintained neutrality through both World Wars, is not a member of the European Union, and was not even a member of the United Nations until 2002. Currently an estimated 28 percent of all funds held outside the country of origin (typically called "offshore" funds) are kept in Switzerland. In 2009 Swiss banks managed 5.4 trillion Swiss Francs."
"About eleven percent of the workforce are in the banking industry. Since Switzerland is a safe haven for investors, and although the economy is somewhat dependent on this, that is not the only reason this country is so wealthy. Because of the country's small size and high labor specialization, industry and trade are the keys to Switzerland's economic livelihood. Swiss watch making companies produce most of the world's high-end watches and Switzerland is one of the leaders in exports of watches as well as clocks."
And now for my two cents... there is the cheese products... who doesn't love Swiss Cheese, and farming. Lots of organic farming here.
And now for my two cents... there is the cheese products... who doesn't love Swiss Cheese, and farming. Lots of organic farming here.
Now we are just motoring along and enjoying the views
Along the way now, we stopped for rest at a stop where anyone who needed to get some Swiss Francs would have access to an ATM. Several already had some, however, I only had Euros, but was an easy process to use my card and get SF.
This was a very nice stop here, and many other buses had also stopped.
This was a very nice stop here, and many other buses had also stopped.
Stopping for coffee breaks
Don't know if you have noticed in the pictures yet, but Switzerland is Very Very clean!!! Fastidiously so! I had previously read the following excerpt and will share it here. It explains it so much better than I can:
Understanding the Swiss:
This is an extract of “Living and Working in Switzerland”, written by David Hamsphire
(2009).
The book is available at the Eawag-Empa library.
The typical Swiss is scrupulously honest, narrow-minded, industrious, pessimistic, boring,
hygienic, taciturn, healthy, insular, tidy, frugal, sober, selfish, spotless, educated, insecure,
introverted, hard working, perfect, religious, rigid, arrogant, affluent, conservative, isolated,
private, strait-laced, neutral, authoritarian, formal, responsible, self-critical, unfriendly, stoical,
materialistic, impatient, ambitious, intolerant, unromantic, reliable, conscientious, obstinate,
efficient, square, enterprising, humourless, unloved (too rich), obedient, liberal,
thrifty, stolid, orderly, staid, placid, insensitive, patriotic, xenophobic, courteous, meticulous,
inventive, prejudiced, conventional, intelligent, virtuous, smug, loyal, punctual, egotistical,
serious, bourgeois, cautious, dependable, polite, reserved or shy, law-abiding and a
good skier.
You may have noticed that the above list contains a ‘few’ contradictions, which is hardly
surprising as there is no such thing as a typical Swiss. Apart from the many differences in
character between the French, German, Italian and Romansch speakers of Switzerland,
the population encompasses a potpourri of foreigners from all corner of the globe. Inevitably
when you are sure you have the Swiss neatly labelled and pigeonholed, along comes
another friendly, humorous and fun-loving Swiss who ruins all your preconceptions.
The Swiss are rather uncommunicative and tend to meet everything foreign with reserve,
the general consequence of which is an innate distrust of foreigners (unless you are a
tourist). It is difficult to become close friends with a Swiss (even for other Swiss) and they
rarely start a conversation with strangers (even other Swiss).
You may be unaware that you have Swiss neighbours – except when they complain. They
won’t welcome you when you move into a new house or apartment and if you can speak
the local language, it is up to you to invite them round for coffee and introduce yourself.
Don’t expect your neighbours to drop round for a cup of sugar; the Swiss are much too reserved
to do such a thing, and in any case, they never run out of anything. Only close
friends or relatives call on each other without making appointments.
There is no truth in the rumour that laughter is forbidden, although you may sometimes
wonder if there is a tax on humour. Of course not all Swiss lack a sense of humour. Life is
taken seriously in Switzerland. Many Swiss believe it is sinful to be lazy, to retire early or to
enjoy yourself.
The Swiss are very law-abiding (except regarding speed limits). Any Swiss loitering in
town at 3am is more likely to be waiting for the green light to cross the road than preparing
to rob a bank. In fact anyone out at 3am is probably a foreigner preparing to rob a bank, as
all Swiss will have been in bed since early evening. The Swiss slavishly follow all rules and
regulations and delight in pointing out your transgressions.
In Switzerland, rules (however trivial) certainly are not made to be broken, and if you use
the ‘in’ door to exit, or park an inch or two outside the parking space, it will be quickly
brought to your attention by an upstanding Swiss citizen.
The Swiss like everything to be spotless and are obsessed with cleanliness. They employ
an army of guest workers to clean up after them and not only vacuum clean their tunnels
and footpaths, but scour the streets between villages. Swiss streets are so clean you could
eat off them and are cleaner than the average kitchen hand in some countries.
The Swiss have enjoyed the good life for so long that they have forgotten what it is like to
live in the real world. However, Switzerland’s seemingly permanent prosperity and stability
is occasionally threatened by worldwide recessions.
Among the country’s biggest concerns are unemployment, drug addiction, asylum seekers
and refugees, the environment, provision for the elderly (pensions), relations with the EU,
inflation, crime, the cost of housing and taxation.
Despite their idiosyncrasies, most foreigners could learn a lot from the Swiss, who excel in
many things. They are excellent skiers, the world’s best hoteliers and have the best public
transport in the world. In business, they are among the world’s best bankers and insurance
salesmen and are renowned for the quality of their products, from precision machinery
and watches, to cheese and chocolate. Switzerland is the most ordered and stable (financially
and politically) country in the world.
****
Early along the way today our beautiful sunshine turned to rain and by the time we arrived here at our destination, the Lauterbrunnen Valley, it was very wet! We have arrived at our Hotel in Stechelberg.
After we all got checked into our rooms, we met back at the main building and restaurant, where we would eat both breakfast and dinner for the next few days. This evening, after having been on the bus all day, was nice to be entertained by the demonstration of making of cheese fondue, after which we all got to eat it!
Credit to Patrick P for these three photos
That was great!!! Now we were served out main dinner, which was 'downhome' Switzerland cooking.
This dessert was deeelisssshhhh!!! Delicious too!
Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Lauterbrunnen Valley
(Tour day 17)
Very Strenuous Walking Day
Well my little cheap umbrella I had purchased in Rome had already packed it in after the first day in Cinque Terre, so now here I am in a very rainy place without an umbrella again. This morning when we arose, it was still raining. We didn't know if it would rain all day or not, however, we only had one day here, so I wasn't going to let a little rain stop me. Dear sweet Tim & Kristi each had a very nice umbrella and raincoat set, and they offered me the use of one of their umbrellas!! How nice was that! Anyway, I did use it during the morning, but shortly before noon, the rain stopped and I did not need it the rest of the day. Thank you Tim & Kristi!!
We all loved this little house just across from the hotel. Also liked watching the horse sticking its head out, but not coming out. He had a dry place and he wasn't leaving it!
Next morning as we all gathered for breakfast, each trying to decide what they would do with their day. There were monitors of the mountain and we were all watching them to see if there was any chance the weather would clear up and we could go to the top. As we all sat around here trying to decide, the decision was made that Martin would lead us on a walking path down the valley into the next village for all who wanted to go. There is also a bus that runs up and down the valley, so if anyone wanted to take the bus, they could. Also, anyone could choose to take the bus / train into Interlaken and shop if they wanted to. It was a free day for everyone to choose where they wanted to do and what they wanted to see.
(Sorry this picture is so blurry... didn't have my coffee yet, so a little shakey this morning ☺ and normally I take at least two, but for some reason, this is the only picture I have... oh well)
But first we had breakfast... this is a cooker to boil eggs. Each person remembers which color is theirs and times their eggs to their own tastes. At least one person didn't realize this and took an egg on their plate, thinking it was hard boiled... oops it wasn't... raw eggs make such a mess ☺
And we're off!! Several of us wanted to do the walk, so thanks to Tim and Kristi, I had an umbrella and I was set to see the sights and take pictures! So here are a few... few dozen that is ☺
There were waterfalls everywhere I looked. That was one beautiful side of having it rain!
What a beautiful hike!
With a height of nearly 300 meters (for you Americans ☺, that is 984 feet), Staubbach Falls is the second highest waterfall in Switzerland and one of the highest in Europe. It is one of the 72 waterfalls of the Lauterbrunnen Valley.
You are going to see lots of cow pictures. I loved the cows. They were so contented. And why not! What a life... beautiful green pasture, beautiful scenery, center of attention as all the tourists walked by ☺. If I believed in reincarnation, I would want to come back as a cow in Switzerland in this valley.
Now all the cows wore bells. Here are several hanging on this house and as you can see they are very large. It is said each bell has a different tone and farmers can tell which cow it is just by listening to the bell. The big ceremonial bells, can cost upwards of $1,000 apiece.. a big investment for a poor farmer.
Ed B, in our group took this video (Thank you Ed!) of the beautiful sound the bells make, however, I wonder if this constant ringing in the cows ears bothers them? Anyway, they seemed peaceful enough.
What a gorgeous hike that was!! Just under 2 miles from where we started at our hotel in Stechelberg to reach Trümmelbach Falls. Here we stopped at the Trümmelbach cafe to wait for a set time for everyone who wanted to go into the waterfalls. If we went in as a group, we got a discount. Eventually, there were 14 of us who went in together. While we waited, we had some awesome dessert and coffee. I had a lemon pie that was the best I think I've ever had. Also wandered around the souvenir shop a little and this is where I purchased my cow bell.
Trümmelbach Falls flows INSIDE of the mountain. It is the world's only glacier waterfalls that are accessible underground by lift, galleries, tunnels, paths, steps (lots of steps) and platforms.
We took the inclined plane elevator up inside of the mountain to near the top, where we then climbed steps and more steps. You could hear loud thundering and roaring in the mountain; gurgling, foaming and churning water. Then we had to actually go into a narrow path and on a rock balcony inside of the mountain to see these falls. The mist hit you full on as soon as you stepped out inside the mountain, and the water was dripping just about everywhere, so it was hard to keep it off the camera lens while taking photos.
Very spectacular, however in addition to the water falling all over us, there was very low light, making it really hard to get good photos, but an absolutely amazing experience, to be that near the water falling inside of this mountain. Here are the best pictures I could get, and though they don't do it justice, you will get the idea.
Beautiful sculpted walls with interesting shapes and patterns.
Lauterbrunnen in the distance
Look at the lush meadows the cows are feasting on, trimmed by a carpet of flowers.
I’m really impressed by how the old-fashioned farm culture survives here in the Berner Oberland. I'm sure cow farmers could make more money and have much easier work in another profession. We were told that in a good year, farmers produce enough cheese to just break even, therefore, they support their families on government subsidies. But these farmers have made a lifestyle choice to keep tradition alive and to live high in the mountains. And around here, rather than lose their children to the cities, Swiss farmers have the opposite problem: Kids argue over who gets to take over the family herd.
I want to live right here, and look out every day and see those cows in the pasture. ☺
Talking to my cow friends. When I was a young girl, my parents had milk cows and that was my job for a few years. I really would love to have a cow in a pasture... just don't want to have to take care of it, so this was nice to get my 'cow fix'. I had so much fun mooing with them... I don't know what everyone else thought about it who heard me, but it was fun for me and sometimes the cows would answer me back ☺but mostly they just stood around chewing their cud with green from the grass on their noses.
What a pretty milk cow. We had mostly Jersey's and Guernsey's, but one or two Brown Swiss over the years. And unlike what we told our city friends, just because the cow was brown it did not give chocolate milk. Didn't matter to them anyway, they only drank milk that 'came from a store' !
Future 'cheese producers'.
Lauterbrunnen
getting smaller and smaller as I get higher and higher
Its green pastures like this high up here in the Alps where the cow farmers bring their cows to graze for about a 100 days each year. This elevation is about 6,000 feet.
Very spectacular, however in addition to the water falling all over us, there was very low light, making it really hard to get good photos, but an absolutely amazing experience, to be that near the water falling inside of this mountain. Here are the best pictures I could get, and though they don't do it justice, you will get the idea.
Inside the mountain, we had continued to climb about 240 more steps after exiting the elevator. Now we had who knows how many hundreds of steps to come down. I counted for a while, but several sections had over 80 steps each, and then I would stop and take more pictures, until I finally lost count. The very distinct advantage though... it was all downhill from there! Gravity was definitely on my side! That created its own challenges however, as they were wet and slippery. On the way down, there were many platforms to view from and take more pictures until finally we exited outside. The outside steps were much easier to traverse.
WOW, WOW, WOW. Some of the the most spectacular scenery I've ever seen. God's creation is absolutely breathtaking. The views from up here on the side of this mountain were so spectacular, I couldn't decide which was they best ones, so I posted them all!
Now all morning, I had been hoping that the clouds would lift and it would stop raining, because I really wanted to go to the top of the mountain. This sign was showing the Schilthorn and the famous Bond movie that had been made there. That isn't exactly why I wanted to go, I just wanted to see everything, and as my usual, the best place to see from is above.
So as we exited the Trümmelbach Falls, the clouds were considerably lifted and it had stopped raining!! Yeah! I decided to take my chance and go to the top. However, to catch the cable car, I could catch the bus or walk a little over 2 miles into Lauterbrunnen. Since the bus had just left, and the next one would be about half an hour, I decided I could walk it in that amount of time and also get some more awesome pictures!
So now I was on a mission. I had my map of the area and I was on my way. When I want to walk fast, I can walk very fast. But that didn't stop me from taking a few hundred more photos on the walk into Lauterbrunnen ☺
So now I was on a mission. I had my map of the area and I was on my way. When I want to walk fast, I can walk very fast. But that didn't stop me from taking a few hundred more photos on the walk into Lauterbrunnen ☺
I’m really impressed by how the old-fashioned farm culture survives here in the Berner Oberland. I'm sure cow farmers could make more money and have much easier work in another profession. We were told that in a good year, farmers produce enough cheese to just break even, therefore, they support their families on government subsidies. But these farmers have made a lifestyle choice to keep tradition alive and to live high in the mountains. And around here, rather than lose their children to the cities, Swiss farmers have the opposite problem: Kids argue over who gets to take over the family herd.
Future 'cheese producers'.
Okay, now I've made it to Lauterbrunnen, but still need to go to the opposite end of the town to catch the cable car, so I am still stepping lively, but as you can see how the sky is getting bluer and bluer.
The local cemetery in Lauterbrunnen
and finally, I've made it to the lift. The train station is located just across the road, you can see it in the bottom of this picture.
The tickets aren't exactly inexpensive, but I was willing to take the chance on it being clear on Schilthorn. Now to get to Schilthorn, I really needed to be at Mürren, as that is where the cable car leaves from. So I took the cable car up from Lauterbrunnen to Grütschalp. A little window glare in these, but still.. what a view and what beauty!
Here is the map I used, and you can follow all the trails I hiked and the cable cars I took.
Now from here (Grütschalp) I could hike to Mürren, about 3 miles, which I would have loved to do, and get more pictures, especially from here on the ridge of all those mountains I had been taking pictures of all day, or I could catch a small train that would take me there with a stop also at Winteregg. Since I knew my window of time was very limited to get to the top of Schilthorn, I decided I better take the train. I still managed to take a few dozen more pictures from the train window.
And look at that blue sky! Lots of clouds, but it is giving me hope
Now I am in Mürren. Looking at the sky, still thinking I might get lucky at the top, I proceeded to do a quick walk around the town, take a few dozen more photos of this really beautiful Alpine village at 5361 feet.
Mürren is a Ski Resort so that long rail looking thing you see in the background on these three pictures is a funicular railway that leads to Allmendhubel.
Now time to get on another cable car and go on up this mountain to Schilthorn and the Piz Gloria rotating restaurant and check it out!
And I'm on my way
Then suddenly we were in the clouds and snow
The operator of the cable car. In this part it was so steep, you can see the mountain right in front of the window, like we were going to run right into it...
And I'm here!
Many scenes were filmed at Piz Gloria for the 1969 James Bond 007 film "On Her Majesty's Secret Service". The Bond production team actually helped finance the completion of the unique revolving restaurant and the helicopter landing platform.
The famous Piz Gloria. The world's first revolving restaurant was opened in 1967. Internationally renowned because of its James Bond connection and for spectacular views of the Bernese Oberland, it has 400 seats that are on a revolving solar-powered platform. They serve the legendary "Martini, shaken not stirred" at the James Bond Bar and also a James Bond Breakfast.
But alas, no stunning panoramic views over Switzerland and it's 200 mountain peaks for me today. Looked like I wasn't going to be as lucky as I had hoped. So I ordered something to drink and just sat down and enjoyed a wonderful complete rotation of the restaurant, then gradually, I started seeing a lifting in the clouds and bits of blue were starting to appear.
Now, it was time for me to head back down the mountain as we were scheduled for a group dinner this evening. I watched the cable car come up the mountain and dock with about 40 or 50 people arriving for dinner at the Piz Gloria.
Now some beautiful photos coming down the mountain
Well, I was not disappointed, and so glad I made the decision to go to the top of Schilthorn. (9748 feet). Turned out that I was able to get some great views and was a wonderful trek for me!
Now back at the cable house in Mürren, and onto another cable car to go down to Stechelberg. When I got on this cable car, there were about 4 or 5 others of our group who had gone up as far as Mürren and were also getting on ready to go down to the hotel now.
and boy what a sensation when you take an immediate swing out and over the edge of the mountain, looking straight down.
And now back on the valley floor, and walking about 20 minutes back to the hotel. In total, I walked about 6 miles this day on fairly level ground, and hundreds of stairs. I should really enjoy dinner tonight.. all this exercise and fresh air.
What a gorgeous place this Lauterbrunnen Valley is. (Berner Oberland)
And I'm not finished taking photo's yet, have to get these few last ones on the walk back to the hotel. As the lighting changes so do the photos, and everything looks just as beautiful.
Public Avalanche Shelters all along the way
Hang glider
Then I turned and looked back down the valley for one more photo, where I started this morning.
And I'm back. Time to get cleaned up for dinner.
Patrick and Cristina were my welcoming party ☺
Turns out I had a bit of a cheering club... I was the only one to go up to Schilthorn today, and everyone was congratulatory.
Duncan
Duncan, Patrick, Cristina, Tim
I wish I had gotten up and gone and taken pictures of the ones at the other dinner table too, but perhaps I was just needing to sit for a while at the end of this day. And what a fabulous day it was. Also, it was a great dinner to top it off!
A recap of today:
WOW, WOW, WOW.
Some of the the most spectacular scenery I've ever seen.
God's creation is absolutely breathtaking.
Another day checked off, another city visited, another pound lost... I think I am losing weight on this tour with all these steps and miles of walking. If not, I should be!
And tomorrow we're off to France! Not letting any grass grow under our feet! We would gather moss like this rooftop, so no stopping for us! Well until France anyway ☺ Can hardly believe, we will soon be at our last stop.
Credit to Patrick P for this photo
Bye, Bye Gorgeous Switzerland
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