Grindelwald…Where Do We Begin?

At the “Grindelwald First” of course, (pronounced “feerst”).

Still experiencing jet-lag, we didn’t get started until 11 am-ish. We had planned beforehand that this would be our starting point, so off we went. This whole region of the alps is known as “The Jungfrau” region. We had purchased tickets to the Jungfrau region online, before leaving. These allowed us unlimited travel on any and all modes of travel….trains, buses, gondolas etc etc. for the three full days we’d be here. Are we ever happy we did-they have made things so much easier. All we have to do is show the QR code on our phone and the gates open. No waiting in lines to purchase tickets.

Once we reached the top, there were many different options available: a Cliff Walk along cliffs with a metal, see through grate for the floor (kind of scary but we would have done it except for the many people on it); special viewing platforms; a multitude of hikes (including the option of walking part or all the way back down from the gondola); para-sailing and more. We chose to hike to the Bachalpsee, a 6km return trip. It was a beautiful sunny day, lots of people of all nationalities walking,(so many Asians-one even wearing diamond encrusted flip flops-and people from Muslim countries-the women traditionally dressed-and a very steep climb a lot of the way. So steep, in fact, that we were huffing and puffing, sweating profusely and asking ourselves, “OMG! What were we thinking?” We had to take lots of rest stops. Later, about halfway there, we started to feel better and more energetic, realizing it was a combination of jet-lag and dehydration that had us so pooped.

From that point, the day just got better and better with magnificent views.

The best was yet to come. As we drew closer, we could hear the sound of a horn….it was an Alpenhorn….so beautiful!

We sat on the grass, in the sun, listening for quite a while before wandering over to thank him. He explained all about the horn, how it took a lot of strength from his diaphragm to produce sound, how putting it on the water helps to cool it but that it’s mostly for show, that the horn is very very light and made of carbon fibre and many more interesting facts. I told him we had heard him when we first started the hike and he told us he’d climbed part way up one of the mountains and ‘blew his horn’ from there, saying it bounces off the mountains and carries great distances. It was one of the highlights of this wonderful day.

Returning to where we started at the gondola station, we stopped to have a drink on the terrace of the restaurant. It was packed but so much fun. We sat and sipped, watching the para sailers fly overhead and watching the antics of the “selfie-takers.”

After a leisurely walk back down to the gondola, we decided to take it back down rather than walk.

Ended the day with a cheese fondue under the watchful gaze of the Eiger.

It was the best day ever especially since our remaining days were rain filled.

The mountains were in the clouds but we explored anyways….Wengen, Murren, Lauterbrunnen….the cable cars were astounding in their steep ascents & descents and in the first two towns there were no cars!

Now, today, we have arrived in Martigny, Switzerland where we’ll stay for the night before heading up to the Great St. Bernard Pass on the Swiss/Italian border, where our trek begins.