Switzerland-Where do I begin? The children came into our room excited at four in the morning. As a result, we began our journey in the wee hours of the morning. It is the best time to travel when the children are groggy, calm and compliant.
Our travails took us south in the Rhineland Pflaz region of Germany. Each region of Germany is a Bundesland and Germany is the Bundesland Republic of Deutchland, similar to the title of the United States. Next we drove through France until we reached the border of Switzerland. At this point I saluted my hero Roger Federer, Swiss Native tennis player, and took note of the unique Swiss architecture. When I say unique I do not mean this in a complimentary regard. Perhaps one of the greatest paradoxes of Europe stands the modern/stark/dank/angular/
Our first stop was our Hotel Weisses Kreuz (White Cross) We pulled into Interlaken and Neil described the town as "the Dinge is Binge". Again breath taking backdrops against a grey sky, fog, mist and tacky tourist shopping (Swiss army knives, German cuckoo clocks better bought in Germany, expensive watches and over priced post cards). The town of Interlaken looks as if it peaked in the 1960's and then has not since been revitalized. A few surprise Swiss chalets dotted the hillside. Most of them looking as if their hay day had passed and they were in need of a new coat of stain. My guess is that many of these homes are second homes to skiers and summer residents, taking advantage of the seasonal lure of Switzerland. When we pulled up to our hotel it was inaccessible, jack hammers blazing and dust flying. Evan admired the skid loader and giant metal claw picking up the pieces of debris. With a little ingenuity we made our way to the parking garage and stepped over the construction rubble to take refuge at the White Cross.
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A Lovely Ski Rack for $4.25
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Speaking of ingenuity my husband had fastened our skis to the top of our luggage rack by wrapping the rack with foam and packing tape and securing the skis with zip ties. A ski rack for a total of $4.25. Judging by our future encounters with Swiss economy we could use the added savings. Next we unloaded enough baggage for three large families considering the necessity for cold weather gear. The ski vacation was mostly Neil's idea but who in their right mind takes three small kinder age four and under skiing??? Practicality and plausibility are not my strong suits. I never really thought about the logistics of a ski vacation. Let's just show up and see what happens.
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Neil and Colin 6 months old
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The Weisses Kruez hotel had a white neon cross on the outside that provided a sense of hope to us weary travelers. As we checked into our room I felt as if we had captured and bottled a European hotel room. Tacky short carpet, white linens, under-stuffed pillows, no sheet, and a pile of fluff, I guess you could call a duvet were all present in the room. Don't look under the duvet cover at the feather fluff inside. The fluff is not so clean. For dinner we tried to conserve by eating at the golden arches for a mere $55 or 53 Swiss Franks.
Where do I start with the language in Switzerland? Let's just say be prepared for any language, Swiss speak a pseudo-dialect of German Swisserdeutch, English, French, and Italian are all present. On TV we saw Korean, Russian, Italian, German, and Chinese. Switzerland is indeed multi-national. It is no wonder they are so neutral. How can one classify such a conglomeration? To confuse us all, Sunday's mass was in Latin. We spent the first ten minutes of mass trying to decipher the language. The priest spoke Latin with an African accent.
In the morning our family awoke to a gourmet breakfast compliments of our hotel. Food can redeem all. Fresh bread was at the buffet table as well as unbelievable Swiss butter and yogurt. The cows produce so brilliantly in the fresh mountain air. Eggs, white veal sausage, tea, coffee, hot chocolate, and a smorgasbord of seeds and dried fruits were present. We kept Colin entertained with a Zwieback aka dried German sweet bread.
Then we eagerly drove off to the slopes while packed to the gills with ski equipment, snacks, and warm weather gear. The drive to the resort provided many enviable vistas. The scale of Swiss nature is indeed grand; traversing the side of the road was an expansive boulder filled stream teaming with glacial silt and iridescent blue water. Overhead the crags and rugged-steep-jagged peaks loomed throughout the Jung Frau region.
Our travel agent told us to stay in Interlaken for access to more activities. That is the last time I listen to a travel agent. Grindewald is the Switzerland of my dreams forget "the Binge on Dinge" of Interlaken. Grindewald was beauty to behold with a view of the Eiger, the Monch, the Jung Frau, and the Wetterhorn peaks. All of these were center to the plot of Jon Krakauer's famous "Eiger Dreams". The Eiger's north face is famous for it's perilous climb.
Our perils lay before us. We needed to purchase lift tickets, carry two sets of skis, boots, poles, a bag of warm weather gear, the diaper bag as well as transport the children up to the day care at the top of the mountain. Neil bought us tickets for the cog rail to ascend the mountain to the ski resort. This particular cog rail is famous. The prototypical Swiss cog rail with its tongue and groove tracks and wheels would be our personalized family hauling experience. We loaded into the cattle holding yard pin with all the other Swiss skiers. The whistle blew and it was time to haul/stumble onto the train. Evan could not make it up the giant step into the train. None of the Swiss skiers teaming with equipment were willing to help. Neil and Ansley were busy taking care of the equipment. With the baby in arm, warm weather gear bag, and ski poles, I miraculously hoisted Evan onto the step. I am still not sure how the hauling procedure was possible.
There was no turning back now as we tugged up the mountain to the famous "top of Europe" at Kleine Scheidegg cog rail. The top vista and highest train station in Europe was the set for the 40 year old bond movie "On Her Majesty's Secret Service." With my three Bond babes and husband in tow we retraced the steps of Hunky Bond. The gears clicked and turned as we sat on board. When we arrived at the top we asked where the day care for the children was? The high mountain air must have effected the staff because no one seemed to know where the day care was. Finally someone told us the day care was not at the top of the cog rail but at the Jung Frau resort at the top of the Gondola ride at the Mannlichen resort. Wrong place, wrong time, minor miscalculation. The views made up for the disastrous start to our day. Back on the cog rail and down the mountain we went. We loaded up all the gear and carried it 400 more meters with children in tow. The base of the Mannlicheabahn was in sight. We literally hurled our gear onto the Gondola and dove into the contraption as it circled the loading station.
Finally we arrived at the day care. The view at the top of Mannelichen was center point of a gargantuan bowl. The bowl was bordered by the lineup of Europe's famous Eiger, Monch, Wetterhorn and Jung Frau peaks. Post card perfect in all directions, Neil and I gaped at the spectacular view.
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We made it to the top of Mannelichen.
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Thun, Switzerland
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Our next day after another delectable breakfast, we began the Jones debate to make a plan for the days' events. Outside the weather was dismal. Rain loomed but at higher elevations the ski slopes were under a a blanket of snow. One day of skiing/human hauling was enough for me. Our last day in Switzerland we made a unanimous decision to drive to Thun (Toon), a quaint village on the far end of the two lakes. With mist and rain present our view of the lakes and mountains was mostly obstructed. Thun is a lovely Swiss village that centers on an enchanting river. One of the trade marks of Thun is its bridges. Some of the bridges have intricate patterns of wrought iron rail while others are wooden covered bridges with water wheels underneath that the water cascades through. The water is so translucent that we are able to see a plastic chair that had mistakenly fallen into the river. As a grand finale, we decide to eat at the local art museum cafe. The cafe has what looks to be a cafeteria line up of cakes, coffees, and quiches. I ask our waitress three separate times if we are supposed to go through the cafeteria line or be served at our table. Finally she guides me to the food and tells me to point at what I would like to have. I begin to speak to her in very broken German. The waitress is pleasantly surprised by my pathetic attempts at German.
For entertainment it is fun to stereotype people in the various European countries. All people love good food, smiles, flowers, and to laugh. My stereo type for the Swiss is that they are even more subdued, than their German counter parts. The conversations are whisper quiet in barely audible German. I suspect the Swiss would be the type to keep a secret for a life time. All of this is conjecture of course.
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