Breathtaking. Absolutely breathtaking! As I took in the view, I remembered back to when I was a small child growing up in Lakewood, California, eighteen miles from Disneyland. Back then, Disneyland issued ticket books, and the rides were categorized by ticket letters. An “A” ticket ride was a yawner, but an “E” ticket was the most coveted— your ticket to the best rides (with the longest lines). My brother and I always made a beeline for the “Matterhorn,” a roller coaster ride that took you by bobsled in and around the mountain. At the time, I didn’t know there was a real Matterhorn in Switzerland; I just thought it was a thrilling Disneyland ride!
Here we were seeing the real thing, as close as we could get without getting in the snow and hiking to it. What a sight to behold! The highest point is at an elevation of 14,691 feet and we were viewing it from Trockener Steg at 9,642 ft. And, we had the entire viewing deck to ourselves for a while. Where was everybody?
Our tour leader, Susy, sharing information about the Matterhorn to our group of nine travelers.
Not your typical souvenir! The Matterhorn was inside this bar glass.
Taking in the views from the gondola on our way back down.
On the way back down, we all got off at the Furi gondola station. The group decided to stop at the restaurant for a snack before deciding whether to ride the gondola back down to Zermatt or hike the remainder of the way. As we settled in, I gazed out the window and saw nothing but clouds. The beautiful blue sky was shrouded by those clouds I had seen roll in earlier that morning, which meant the Matterhorn was now white on white—that is, if you could see it at all. We celebrated our good fortune of having seen it during the morning before the clouds rolled in!
To save his aching knee (most likely, another meniscus tear acquired during our Patagonia trip), Bruce opted to ride the gondola back to town. I hiked the three miles back—or at least I had hoped to “hike,” but I ended up on a paved road the entire way. Still, it was a beautiful walk, and I was able to find some interesting subjects to photograph:
Susy said to follow the Zermatt signs back down to town, but there were three different paths. Which one would lead to where I would be meeting Bruce? It was an adventure, but I managed to get there!
Scenes along the 3-mile hike back down to Zermatt:
Those clouds I mentioned earlier? There they are! This is that white-on-white I was talking about; snow against a mucky sky. Zermatt is in the valley off in the distance, and where I was headed during my solo hike.
After meeting back up in town, Bruce and I visited the small historic quarter on Hinterdorfstasse. The 17th century wooden homes, barns and sheds were so interesting. Some had been renovated, others left as is.
It had been such a magical day! We were so grateful to have experienced such a wonderful week in Switzerland, especially this day.
Next up: SWITZERLAND & NORTHERN ITALY #8: ONWARD HO TO ITALY WE GO!
When we went to bed the previous night, we had hoped to wake up to a sunny day and blue sky. Snow-capped mountains look so flat against a mucky background, and we were hoping to see and photograph the Matterhorn at its best. Bruce and I were not disappointed. Just look at the view out our window!
(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)
I could hear cowbells off to the right. I was quite surprised to find this kilt-clad shepperd checking out his cell phone.
Before heading to the Matterhorn, however, Susy led us on a walking tour of the town. As more clouds gathered in the distance, all we could think of (and mutter to each other) was, “Let’s get on with this tour and get up to the Matterhorn before we lose our awesome weather and views!” Zermatt could wait until after the Matterhorn! No disrespect to the town, though.
Zermatt, in one word, is AWESOME! Sure, it’s a tourist town, but for good reason. In the winter, it’s a premier ski and winter sport resort, and the rest of the year, Zermatt is great for hiking and so much more, including skiing! The area is Europe’s largest and highest lying summer skiing region, and the training site for numerous national ski teams.
Full of Swiss charm, Zermatt is very photogenic. I can remember admiring Zermatt and the Matterhorn in picture calendars my dad used to bring home from his medical office. Pharmaceutical reps gave them out at the end of the year, so they could remind doctors of their drugs they “should” prescribe to their patients throughout the following year. But how many calendars does one medical office need? Lucky for me, Dad kept the notepads and pens at the office and brought home the calendars for us kids to enjoy. I blame those calendars, in part, for inspiring my insatiable desire to travel. I blame my dad’s slide show screenings following his international adventures with my mom, too. And, I “blame” with total gratitude…
An interesting feature of Zermatt is that gas and diesel vehicles are prohibited, which is great for the environment. The only vehicles allowed in Zermatt are electric— music to my ears! (We realized just how much we had appreciated the quiet once we arrived in Italy and were surrounded by loud motorcycles!)
During our walking tour, we saw a few locals walking their dogs, and we also saw a guy walking his bull. BULL??? After doing a double-take and catching this shot after he passed, I had to wonder what would have happened if his bull got angry. I didn’t want to stick around to find out.
As the path through town gradually ascended, our anticipation of seeing more of the Matterhorn grew. This was our first unobstructed view:
Our walking tour ended where the magic was about to begin—at the station where we would board a gondola to the Matterhorn viewing platform. Surprisingly, we had beaten the crowds and had no problem getting on the next gondola. When we arrived at the top, there were times we had the entire viewing area of the upper deck all to ourselves!
Free Kleenex was offered before boarding the gondola. That’s a first!
We were headed up the line on the left with the first stop at Sunnegga, followed by another ride up to Blauherd.
Coming up next: SWITZERLAND & ITALY #7: ZERMATT & THE MAGINFICENT MATTERHORN (Part 2)
Although our end destination for the day was Zermatt via the Glacier Express train, our travels along the way were spectacular. The day was beautiful—perfect timing as this was one of the highlight days of the trip.
Our first stop was the charming and picturesque alpine village of Brienz where we strolled along the lakefront. The village is known for its talented wood carvers, and everywhere we looked, there were charming carvings that we enjoyed along the way. We also visited a shop to see wood carvers working on their creations.
(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)
This village felt like being in a post card or photo calendar that had come to life—a feeling I had felt repeatedly throughout Switzerland. My photos don’t do Brienz justice, but these are the scenes I shot during a short visit to this tiny village:
I never thought I would see palm trees in an alpine village, especially after I turned my back to the mountain view below.
Behind this sign was a set of lounge chairs. There was another set further down the lakeside path. Nice!
Circling Lake Brienz on our way to our next destination.
What our group of nine was about to experience next was something none of us could say we had done before: Ride on a car train IN our minibus! This was required to get through the nine-mile tunnel that would lead us to the train station to board the Glacier Express. While waiting our turn, there was enough time to run off to capture a few shots of the beautiful snow-capped mountains surrounding us.
A popular spot for paragliding, I was also able to capture this paraglider getting a birds-eye view on a spectacular day.
After being ushered onto the train, there were a few minutes to hop out and catch a shot before we left for our dark journey.
A view from the bus windshield.
Headlights spared us from nine miles of darkness.
Our lunch stop in Brig before boarding the train was fabulous! Dining al fresco on a delicious meal of local cuisine.
All aboard the Glacier Express! Known as the world’s slowest express train, the shiny and spotless red locomotive took us through tunnels and across bridges, from one gorgeous panorama view to another.
I bolted from my seat as soon as I realized viewing the scenery and shooting photos through the windows just wasn’t going to cut it. After a few attempts shooting through small open windows at the end of the car, I made my way back to the bar where I joined a German tourist who had the same idea. We had the entire area to ourselves, the windows were huge, and they opened from the top down—perfect for photography. As the two of us chatted, we wandered back and forth from the left side to the right, shooting whatever caught our interest on each side. We had a blast! Photographers take note: If you ever ride the Glacier Express, abandon your seat and make your way to the bar car!
Our arrival to Zermatt brought smiles and feelings of excitement as we were about to see the highlight of Swiss beauty: the Matterhorn and the charming village that serves as its gateway. The mountain would have to wait until the following day, but checking into Hotel Alex, just a short walk away from the train station, was an amazing sight itself. None of us expected what we were about to see and experience.
Tap the cowbell under your seat when you are ready for your next drink!
The restaurant’s wine cellar
The late afternoon view from our room. The Matterhorn, not visible from our room, was off to the right.
Founded in 1961 by Alex Perren Sr., the former ski instructor and mountain guide, along with Gisela Becwar who he married in 1964, put their love and full dedication (and a lot of money) into their resort. The next generation currently runs what is one of the most memorable places we have ever stayed.
These are three of the large stained glass panels that were mounted on the walls of the restaurant where we had dinner our first night. They depict Alex and Gisela enjoying their outdoor adventure passions.
Next up: SWITZERLAND & ITALY #6: ZERMATT & THE MAGNIFICANT MATTERHORN
Exploring Bern, the capital of Switzerland, is like stepping back in time—way back. The well -preserved twelfth-century medieval city has a completely different feel than Lucerne with it’s covered arcades and colorful flags. As a result, the old quarter is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lucerne and Bern are two gorgeous cities, but in completely different ways. We thoroughly enjoyed them both.
(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)
The symbol of Bern has been the bear since the founding duke of the city decided to name it after the first animal he killed in a hunt—at least that’s what legend says. There are other theories as well. Regardless of how the city really got its name, live bears have been held on display in various pits around the old town since 1549. Poor bears; they couldn’t have been very happy. Finally, enough outcry from the citizens resulted in the closing of the old bear pit and a new park was built along the Aare River. Bear Park is free for all to enjoy, and the bears seem quite happy there. We witnessed one of the three bears hunting around for food, finally sniffing out some meat that had been buried deep in the ground by the staff. He dug and dug until he landed the prize—a huge piece of raw beef he happily woofed down.
Meanwhile, besides those live bears, the bear symbol appears on flags, coat of arms, fountains, trash cans, and even the manhole covers. Those bears are everywhere, especially on souvenirs.
The bear even appears on cakes and chocolates.
Following our walking tour of the old town and Bear Park visit, we hiked up the steep hill to the Rosengarten, a beautiful park with fountains and gardens. The biggest draw? A spectacular view of the city below.
Exploring the old town during our tour and on our own was so enjoyable. We finally had some sun after the rainy days in Lucerne, and there was so much to see. The following are scenes from our full day in Bern as well as the prior afternoon and evening when we arrived.
Words can’t possibly describe what I thought of this fountain! What the ???
Located southwest of Lucerne, Bern would be about a 70-minute drive if you didn’t stop. But, what’s the fun in that? There is so much to see in Switzerland, and Overseas Adventure Travel plans tours to include visiting small towns as well as cities. I love the character and charm of small towns, so I looked forward to the day.
We had just eaten breakfast, but the first stop was at the Hug Familie Bakery where we were able to sample all the baked cookies and crackers they sell and purchase them at outlet prices. I knew I was in trouble when I sampled the first chocolate-covered biscuits I saw when we walked in. I should have skipped breakfast. Those first biscuits were so good that we didn’t hesitate to buy one of these packages. And, then I kept sampling. The empty insulated chocolate bag I brought with me from home was filling up fast…
(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)
The town of Willisau was our next stop for a walking tour of the main street and cemetery. This town oozed with charm, especially all of the colorful flags! It’s no wonder the entire town is part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites.
It was raining, but it was worth getting my lens wet for this!
If you are wondering why on earth our walking tour would include a cemetery, just look at these gorgeous plots! Nowhere have I seen such beauty and pride in modern cemetery plots, but our tour leader, Susy, told us they are like this throughout Switzerland. I came across an interesting blog post about Swiss cemetaries here.
Next, we visited the tiny town of Luthern with it’s even tinier chapel. The walk along the river to our destination was lovely, even though it was raining. Surprisingly, the chapel was quite modern with beautiful stained glass windows and lit fused glass panels.
For lunch, the nine of us on the Switzerland pre-extension and Susy ate a cozy, traditional Swiss neighborhood restaurant full of old-world charm.
Imagine my surprise when I went to the WC (a.k.a. restroom) and saw these photos vertically strung on a metal cord and attached by magnets in each stall:
When word got back to the table, there was a mass exodus to go see what all the laughter was about. The men’s room had them as well.
Following lunch, we visited a cheesemaker; however, they weren’t making cheese that day. We did enjoy watching the lady make cheese “roses” with her nifty tool, though. I also took the opportunity to check out a few interesting buildings nearby. But then I discovered the baby goats and spread the word. It was hard for Susy to pull us away; they were adorable!
A massive cheese wheel
In all, the places we visited before check-in time at our Bern hotel were quite enjoyable. We got a good look (and taste!) of typical Swiss small-town life!
Coming up next: SWITZERLAND & NORTHERN ITALY #4: BEAUTIFUL BERN
Language in Switzerland is interesting. As I mentioned in my previous post, there are four official languages which include German; however, the German spoken in Lucerne is “Swiss German,” which is an Alemannic dialect. It is only spoken, not written, and it is not a formal language. So, the TV news, for example, is spoken in conventional German.
In school, the Swiss also learn French and English, so they are potentially trilingual—quite impressive! It comes in handy with France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria to the east. Italy is south of Switzerland, and Italian is one of Switzerland’s four official languages; however, Italian isn’t taught in the schools. I guess they figure three languages is enough!
Industry in Switzerland focuses on exporting chemical products, health and pharmaceutical goods, engine parts, and wood, in addition to those weapons and tanks I mentioned in my first post. They also export dairy products, including some of the best cheese and chocolate in the world.
Do you know why Swiss chocolate is so good? It’s because their cows are free range, grass-fed cows, and their grass grows very well, resulting in the best-quality milk. That’s why all those cows you see roaming around in Switzerland are raised for dairy, not meat. As a result, meat in Switzerland is very expensive, because it is imported.
As for that excellent chocolate, I sampled quite a bit while I was in Switzerland, and I brought back a lot of it.
Back to Lucerne, it is a beautiful city of 82,000 people situated on Lake Lucerne and the river Reuss. Many buildings are painted with gorgeous frescos, so if you don’t look up during your exploration, you will miss a lot!
(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)
It had to happen at some point; our weather luck would eventually come to an end. We had been so fortunate, beginning with the amazing weather we experienced in the Canadian Rockies in 2022, and at the end of our Argentina and Chile tour this past March, our tour leader said we had the best weather of all the tours that season. It was truly phenomenal luck!
Now we were in Lucerne Switzerland to begin our tour with Overseas Adventure Travel, and the region hadn’t seen the sun in two months. It had been an extremely long rainy period for Europe, and Germany was having horrible floods. At least it wasn’t flooding in Lucerne, but the water level in the river was the highest our tour leader had ever seen.
First on the agenda: Head to the ATM for some Swiss Francs. As with so many other countries, unlike the U.S., Switzerland’s currency is interesting and practical. Not only is it colorful with each denomination a different color, but the sizes are different as well—extremely helpful to sight-impaired and blind people. My legally blind friend in San Diego would have appreciated this, because he used to need help separating and folding his bills in his wallet, so he could differentiate them.
(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)
One of the things we like best about Overseas Adventure Travel is their emphasis on being travelers rather than tourists. One way they accomplish this is by educating us on the culture of each place we visit, including introducing a “controversial topic” and bringing in an expert to speak with the group. In this case, the positives and negatives of Switzerland’s neutrality and government was discussed with the nine of us on the pre-extension, and our speaker was outstanding.
Switzerland’s government was modeled after ours here in the United States, even though it is a very small country—about the size of Delaware. There are 26 Cantons (similar to states), and the city of Bern is their Washington D.C. Swiss parliament is similar to U.S. Congress; however this is where the similarities end. Due to Switzerland having four official languages and cultures, including German, French (mostly spoken in the west), Italian (mostly in the south and far east), and Romansh (an ancient language spoken by a small percentage of Swiss); they have 7 presidents that make up a federal council. These presidents are parliament members elected by their peers. This system has worked well, because the council has been good at compromising and working together for their people (unlike our current U.S. Congress!). And, although Swiss citizens do not elect this council, they do vote four times a year on issues in the form of initiatives and referendums.
Switzerland has been neutral since 1815, and their banking system grew out of this neutrality. Being politically neutral is safe—a draw for wealthy people looking for a safe place for their money. As a result, what used to be the poorest country in Europe is now the richest. Don’t get the bright idea of stashing your money anonymously in a Swiss bank, though. Banking laws changed twenty years ago, and you can no longer deposit your money in Switzerland without paying taxes.
Due to Switzerland’s neutrality, they are not a part of NATO. They do, however, support the sanctions that Europe and the U.S. has put on Russia due to their invasion of Ukraine. As a result, Putin declared Switzerland to not be neutral. *&^@ Putin.
One drawback of Switzerland’s neutrality was that the weapons and tanks they had produced were sold to Germany. Germany then gave them to Ukraine, but Ukraine needs more ammunition to fire from these weapons and tanks. Switzerland won’t sell this ammunition to Ukraine, because they are “neutral.” This presents a big problem for Ukraine. On the other hand, tiny Switzerland, a country with a population of over 8.8 million people, has accepted 100,000 refugees from Ukraine. How nice.
BUT, these immigrants, as well as the 100,000 other immigrants they have accepted each year has caused a steep rise in housing prices, causing the cost of living to double over the last couple of years. (In Lucerne, the average 1 bedroom apartment costs 2,600 CHF— more than $2,900!) On top of that, salaries decreased for the Swiss due to immigrants accepting less pay. Ouch!
More about Swiss culture in my next post, but for now, I will leave you with some scenes around lovely Lucerne, the most visited city by tourists (and travelers!) in Switzerland:
Kapellbruke (Chapel Bridge) was originally built in 1360; however, much of it was destroyed in a 1993 fire. It was rebuilt the following year.
In the evening, the bridge is lit up.
The bridge features 30 triangle-framed paintings by Hans Heinrich Wagmann that date back to the 17th century. These paintings depict events from Lucerne’s history and were restored after the fire.
The nearby Chaff Bridge was built in the 13th century and features Dance of Death paintings that date back to the 1600’s.
Coming up next: SWITZERLAND & NORTHERN ITALY #2: MORE LOVELY LUCERNE
To see the slide show (full screen) of my Argentina and Chile photos from our Overseas Adventures small group tour, click on the arrow below, and then click on the square symbol in the lower right corner of the YouTube image to expand YouTube to full screen.
If small group travel is of interest to you, I highly recommend Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT). Although Bruce and I travel together, they do not charge a single supplement for those who travel on their own. Singles also get their own room at hotels. If you book, you can get $100 off your trip by providing my name and customer number (Elaine Krugman, #3018126) as the person who referred you. I will also get $100 off future travel– a win-win! Please note: Single supplements are not available on all dates.
It was our last full day in Argentina, and we were going to do it up right. Back to the falls we go! This time, we saw Iguazu Falls from the Argentinian side—above AND below. More on the “below” views later…
Unfortunately, the skies were a mucky white and gray, but we were (again!) fortunate to not have rain. It just made for lousy photography—white waterfalls against a white sky. The views (in person) were spectacular, though, and we enjoyed walking around the edges of the falls, out onto platforms, and over bridges looking down on the powerful rush of water:
(For all photos, especially panoramas, click on the image for a full screen view.)
Along the trail, we could see three toucans way off (and I mean waaaay off!) in the distance, so I did my best to zoom in through the mist of the falls to get this shot, (which has been cropped to a vertical). It’s bad, I know, but…
On our way back through the jungle after seeing the falls, we saw some monkeys up in the trees. There was no time to adjust my camera settings, so here’s another bad shot that I don’t want to leave out, because this little guy is so cute!
Now comes the fun part! In the afternoon, some of us took a boat ride to see the falls from below. They warned us we would get wet, so dry bags were provided. I wore my swimsuit, because it was a hot day, and I was looking forward to a refreshing shower from the fall’s spray. What a blast, in more ways than one!
This is a nine-second video from the boat before turning to head into the falls. Make sure to have your speakers on to hear the water:
This is another nine-second video (shot with my waterproof camera) as the captain steered our boat INTO the falls. Notice how much louder the sound is on this one? The falls were roaring!
And this is what we all looked like afterward!
Ahhh, so refreshing!
After returning from our boat ride and walking across the dock, we were greeted by this handsome fellow:
On our way back to the hotel, I shot these murals through the bus window:
Our Farewell Dinner was wonderful, and we enjoyed one last view from the rooftop.
The following morning, we flew back to Buenos Aires and had a few hours to hop on over to the bakery for empanadas and to Rapanui for one last delicious gelato. After saying our goodbyes, we headed home.
Eva (“Evita”) Perrone graces the side of this building on the bus ride back to the airport.
We arrived home on March 7, and more than one month later, we are still in touch with each other on our “Buena Onda” WhatsApp group that Andrea set up for us. It was such a fabulous tour with an amazing group of people, and an experience Bruce and I will never forget. Gracias TOTALES, Andrea and our buena onda OTT group!
Andrea and Julio enjoying breakfast at home following our tour. Ciao, amigos!
Coming up next: ARGENTINA & CHILE #21: A SLIDE SHOW
Welcome to the jungle! I was excited to have the opportunity to visit the indigenous Guarani community of 1,500 residents in the jungle of Puerto Iguazu. The Guarani people have always been nomads, so that “1,500” is really +/- depending on the day. As a native nation, they can move freely between Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay without having to go through border check. There are five Guarani communities in the region, and they walk between them, rather than use horses or other modes of transportation. They will only use a bus to travel to communities outside of the region.
(For all photos, especially panoramas, click on the image for a full screen view.)
We first boarded an open-air covered truck to drive to the community, and then walked the rich clay-soil path through the jungle to meet with Delphin, the village spiritual leader. He taught us their version of greeting one another: “Ou-ja-ve-tay,” said face-to-face with your hands up, palms facing the other person, and looking them directly in the eye. It is the way to say hello, show respect for the other person, and respect for the earth.
Although the Guarani people can afford shoes, they choose to be barefoot, so they can always be in touch with the earth. They also choose to live modestly with only the necessities.
Since Spanish is the national language of Argentina, they are given a Spanish “official” name at birth. But in their community, the spiritual leader will give a native name that has a special meaning.
Delphin demonstrated how they used to catch their food with a small model of a handmade wood trap. The rope of the trap was made from the bark of philodendron plants. They are no longer permitted to hunt, so they must purchase their meat at a store.
To earn money, the villagers make and sell their handicrafts, including beautiful baskets and wood carvings of native animals. They grow their own food, so this money is used for clothes and other necessities.
Notice the necklaces Delphin is wearing? These are handmade and worn as identification, blessed by the spiritual leader. Each person wears them differently and the quantity they wear differs. Before he died two years ago, Delphin’s grandfather was the previous spiritual leader of his community and had blessed the necklaces Delphin was wearing in his memory.
Delphin’s mother prepared some snacks for us, including Mbeju, a starch cake served with honey. We were also treated to a performance by some children of the village.
Learning about the culture of the Guarani community was fascinating and memorable—a highlight of our time in Argentina. To remember the day, I bought a small basket and a few of the small carved animals.
Guarani School
Following our visit, we had lunch at a beautiful restaurant and gardens just outside of the Guarani community. We first toured the gardens, which included yerba mate trees, source of the traditional Argentinian drink, mate, which I wrote about previously. I smiled when I saw the trees, because our local guide, Manu, ALWAYS had his mate in arm and mate vessel in hand!
The orchid and butterfly house was beautiful:
For lunch, we enjoyed a sampling of traditional regional food, which was delicious:
The side of the restaurant’s front desk.
The remainder of the afternoon was free, so we enjoyed spending it in Puerto Iguazu and enjoying the views from our hotel:
Next up: ARGENTINA & CHILE #20: ABOVE AND BELOW(!) THE ARGENTINIAN SIDE OF IGUAZU FALLS
Elaine-iaK's Travels: A Traveler's Tales of People, Places, Photos, Pools... and CHOCOLATE! 