Saturday 13 September 2014

Fondue,mountains,chocolate,what more could you want?

Switzerland, the land of the milka cow,everything cheesy and more walking poles than you could poke a stick at.
We had five fun filled days in Switzerland and our accommodation had a view straight out the window of the Eiger. Really could it get any better? All the houses in Switzerland are built the same and usually from wood so it's like a fairy tale village. You sort of look for Julie Andrews to come singing over the hill. ( yes, I know that was Austria).
Here is our house.



Ugly I know!
And the view outside.



That's the famous Eiger and here is it's most famous north face.



There are so many walking trails in Switzerland but really only one I really wanted to do,that's the Eiger trail which winds directly along the base of the mountain. Susie joined me on this walk and loved it.






You can see the trail heading off in the distance. We took the train up to the beginning then walked downhill to
Alpinglen where the restaurant sells lovely food and warm drinks to hikers,very civilised.
Being at the base of the Eiger and looking at the face was a dream come true and we both thoroughly enjoyed it.



Susie scored a hitchhiker who mistook her for a purple mountain daisy.



While we were walking we heard the whoosh of chutes opening and a little yahooing as this group launched over us.



On an earlier day we had taken the cog railway to the top of Europe, Jungfraujoch.
The train actually travels through the Eiger and stops at the old rail access holes so you can see out onto the face. They used to be opening doors( watch 'The Eiger Sanction' great movie,Clint Eastwood) now windows that can be opened in case of emergencies on the face.








Once your at the top it's about 2-3 degrees and the weathers unpredictable. We were very lucky and got a clear view of jungfrau and Monch.






So what do you do when your in the snow? Why tube of course.



Make snow angels



And then,of course you have to dodge the occasional snow ball.



We walked,or slid through the ice palace.



How's the guy behind us? I think he though Susie was weird! The top of Europe was a great day and we got so sunburnt. We even stopped for some Fondue fun.



Do you like my 'where's Wally' shirt?
So how do you top that day? Oh I know, go rafting in the coldest water you can find.
Sorry no photos but believe me we went for a half day rafting trip. The rapids were quite tame but the water was so cold. Our rafting guide suggested to jump in and float down a little way. Me and one other fellow from our raft decided that sounded like fun and went over the side..........biggest ice cream headache ever! Sooooo cold even with all the wetsuit and booties on.
I also booked a paragliding flight for that afternoon. While sitting in the park watching them land, I wondered about my own sanity!
I can now say, having done it, it was one of the most magic things I've ever done and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. So calm, none of this leaping out of planes stuff( I've done that too and paragliding wins hands down).






On our final night in Switzerland Susie and I went for dinner and I enjoyed Raklette,which is basically melted cheese served with boiled potatoes and pickles. Funny really cause you get this little tea light pan thing to melt your cheese,so I paid €27 to cook my own dinner. Susie ordered ice cream with hot chocolate sauce for desert, only to be told they were out of chocolate!!! What tha! It's Switzerland,the home of chocolate! Weird!
Here's just one last photo of the views we had to put up with.









And a bit of Swiss humour on the doggy poop bins.



Now we are in Italy so I hope they don't have a pizza shortage.

Uke complete me.

Location:Strada Ruac,Colfosco,Italy

No comments:

Post a Comment