22 June: Day FourHighlights of the Day:
On our way to Lauterbrunnen, we were surprised with an extended lunch stop in Bern. We had plenty of time to have a relaxing lunch, see the bears of Bern from afar, eat ice cream, and do a little bit of window shopping.
However, the highlight of the day was our arrival in Lauterbrunnen. The views in this valley are just amazing, especially when the views are from your hotel room balcony. We totally hit the jackpot on hotel rooms at this stop. Travis had arranged an optional happy hour for our tour group at our hotel before dinner. One of our rest stops had been at a mall with a grocery store, where we all picked out items to contribute to our gathering. I had wondered if our group would bond since we weren't really doing things together. Well, give us some snacks and wine and we had no trouble getting to know one another. It was fun chatting with everyone and hearing what their plans were for each day. We were staying at the Hotel Staubbach and the reception staff was exceptional. They had suggested reservations for the town restaurants and were happy to make them for us. We were lucky to get a dinner reservation on the porch of the Hotel Oberland Restaurant. The views were breathtaking and the traditional Swiss roesti was delicious. We strolled back to our hotel and sat on the balcony gazing at the valley. We were definitely having a "Pinch me! I'm dreaming" kind of day! |
23 June: Day FiveHighlights of the Day:
So many choices for what we could have done today. We decided to see the top of the world!
Our adventure involved a short walk to the first cable car ride, then a train, another walk through the charming alpine village of Murren, another cable car, and finally a transfer to the last cable car to reach the top of the Schilthorn. It took us over an hour, and let's be honest, it isn't cheap. But today the views were worth every Swiss Franc! Some days the mountains can be completely socked in with clouds, but not today! They have some very serious websites with cameras that track the weather conditions and quality of views at the top. The locals ALL know exactly what the weather is at the top of mountains at any given moment. We went fairly early in the morning with the plan to have brunch at the very top. We treated ourselves to the buffet breakfast and lucked out with snagging window seats. The restaurant revolves, so as we munched on waffles and sipped orange juice, the snow-capped peaks slowly passed our eyes. It really was perfect. It felt like the mountains were moving past us, not that we were moving past them! Planning note: I'd recommend making reservations as we almost weren't given seats because there were so many reserved tables. We then put on our jackets, the only time we needed them this trip, enjoyed the alpine air and views outside. We had to reverse the transportation: cable car, cable car, walk, train, cable car, and a walk back to our hotel. Whew! We took advantage of our balcony views all afternoon while reading and possibly a nap too. For dinner we were so excited to have fondue in Switzerland! The restaurant was located at the camp grounds, about a 10 minute stroll outside of town. On the way there we thought it might be a bit much of a walk in the heat. After devouring huge amounts of cheese and bread we welcomed a nice long walk back to the hotel. It had cooled off a bit as we passed by amazing waterfalls, sheep, and views of the valley. The Swiss know how to do things correctly, even an after dinner walk. |