Our Final Entry on European Soil...

On Monday we used the impressively efficient Swiss transportation system (mainly trains) to get from the little village of Gimmelwald to the bustling city of Zurich, our final destination. We decided to go to Zurich by way of Luzern. When I came to Switzerland with People to People in 2004, we went to Luzern (and Murren, for that matter) and I remembered it being a pleasant stop and thought it might be nice to pass through again.

The trip to Luzern is, of course, picturesque. The train from Interlaken took us through Brienz and up to Meiringen before chugging up a big hill (apparently we had the little engine that could) to Lungern and Giswil before coasting on to Luzern. For me it was an interesting trip because with People to People, we didn't always know what little towns we were passing and where we were exactly, on a map. So, I saw several familiar sites and this time was able to put names to them. The ride to Luzern took two hours and we arrived around 1 pm and stayed until 5:30 pm. In that time we got coffee, saw the Lion Monument, took a little stroll up into a ritzy neighborhood, stopped at my favorite two-story COOP grocery store, and headed back to the train station. Lucky for us, the baggage storage option was easy to use and so we were able to do all of this luggage-free.

The train ride to Zurich was a little under an hour long and when we arrived, we lugged our stuff to one last train platform to ride out to Kloten. Kloten is where our hotel was and it is situated conveniently near the airport.

Today, we layed low and finished up (almost) our journaling. We did go out a few times to walk around Kloten and get some food. Kloten is actually a cute little area that reminds us very much of western Washington. We also had some great coffees mid-afternoon that were served with creamer in a chocolate cup. It was exactly what we needed.

Now, we are about to crash for the evening, bags mostly packed and the last few emails sent off. We'll catch a shuttle in the morning and we'll be off to airport! We'll post one more entry once we're home...just to finish up.

Luzern Train Station

Two-Story COOP :)

Lion Monument

Luzern

Lauryn

This place is amazing...and it's everywhere!

We rolled out of bed around 7am and ate a hearty breakfast of granola, yogurt, and eggs on the deck while the sun crept across the mountains.



We walked up to Murren with Matt, another hosteler, and went to scope out our options for the day. I snapped this picture on the way up... it's all just so pretty.



The road from Gimmelwald to Murren:



Since it was sunny and clear, we looked into taking the gondola to Schilthorn (the very top of this area) for the 360 view but it was too steeply priced. Plan B was a walk along the ridge and we turned up the hill on the Flower Trail. There was some snow still on the trail that kept it interesting, but we pressed on hoping for a good viewpoint. No picture can capture what we found... we came out of the trees to a hilly meadow with little white and purple crocus flowers everywhere and a little bench with our names on it. We camped out there with our packed lunch, took lots of pictures, and took in enough sun to be a little red this evening. From this spot we could see up to Schilthorn which had a single cloud hovering over it and we felt even more satisfied with our location.










We made it back to the hostel a few hours later, worked on homework, had coffee at the restaurant next door, warmed another bench with a view for a good hour, and just finished up another nice dinner at the hostel. I am really enjoying the culture of the hostel here... most of the guests are young couples, groups of a few girls, or young men traveling solo. Single travelers band together for hiking excursions, everyone is swapping travel stories, and people stay in the common areas late into the evening talking about anything and everything. There are some really fun personalities passing through here.

Tomorrow we leave for Zurich, with every intention of returning here someday. We are probably going to stop off in Luzern for a few hours part way. Lauryn was there on her People to People trip and we thought it would be a good chance to stretch our legs and see another Swiss city.

Jenny

P.S. Becky- this one is for you. Proof that our parents did in fact come to Italy!

Pictures from Gimmelwald and Murren

Here are some of the most recent pictures from our stay in Gimmelwald:

Jenny cooking up a lovely feast of veggies and pasta in the hostel kitchen. 

Taking in the view outside our hostel this morning (Saturday). It was sunny and clear on Friday and looks like it might be again this afternoon, but today started off damp and drizzly.

On the walk from Gimmelwald to Murren (where we get groceries) we pass a small pasture of cows. They are friendly and very cute, with their little bell collars.

There are steep, grassy slopes above our hostel that stretch up toward the Schilthorn. Very picturesque.

I'm sure we'll have more pictures to add later. Right now we are having a quiet afternoon at the hostel, working on journal entries and resting up for hiking tomorrow. 

Greetings...

...from a happy little hostel,

on a steep green ledge,

on the side of a really tall cliff,

above a flat, wide valley,

far below snow-capped peaks,

tucked into the Southern end of the Alps.

…and it kind of looks like Leavenworth, but better.

After four trains, one bus, one gondola, and one currency change, Lauryn and I made it to Gimmelwald, Switzerland. We booked this destination as our final resting point to reflect and regroup before we go home… but I’m finding it terribly hard to remember Italy 24 hours ago because this place is stunningly beautiful and so very different from its Southern neighbor. We bought groceries at a COOP in Murren which was a short hike up from Gimmelwald and cooked a very decent meal in the hostel’s well equipped kitchen. We are sharing a kitchen, a bathroom, a pool table, a bar and a dining room with about 6 young traveling couples… ironically Lauryn and I will have the most privacy in the all-female dorm (just the two of us) and all the couples are bunked up in the mixed 12 bed dorm. Most everyone is American and we’ve had fun swapping travel tips and stories. An intense game of Jenga just ended in a magnificent crash one table over.

Tomorrow, we rest and finish up our Italy journal entries which are due this week. Sunday, we hike. Monday, we leave… maybe :)

Jenny