European Vacation 2015: First Stop is Switzerland

Clark Griswold had nothing on our adventures as we prepared for our European vacation. It's hard to do justice to two and a half weeks spent in the company of both Schweet Girls, followed by another week and a half with Jenn. It was an amazing trip and I hope the following words and pictures capture just how truly amazing it actually was!! I'll begin with Switzerland.

Let the shenanigans begin! Allison, Jennifer.........oh Kathy. 

        The trip for me began March 31st, but in reality it only really started when we picked up our third partner in fun and adventure, April 1st at the Southampton Airport. I journeyed in from Ethiopia, Jenn flew from Maynooth, Ireland and we congregated at Al's apartment at Archers Rd, Southampton. I had previously visited Al at her first apartment at Wyndham Court. This one, nestled in a lovely, green and treed residential area, was a welcomed improvement. Don't get me wrong, Wyndham Court was great and served its purpose, but Archers is a nice quaint duplex, far from from the hustle, bustle and noise. Al has two great new roommates, Igga and Katy. She has survived quite nicely from the impact of losing her bestie roommate Kat, who returned to Ottawa to marry (sigh!) her true love, Matthew. I had 'just' seen Al in February, but I had not seen Jenn since August 2014. Let's just say there were a few tears, but it felt so good to be reunited with both Schweet Girls.

      Jenn's Easter break began April 1st, but Al still had another day of teaching. Jenn and I had no problems keeping ourselves amused until Al came home.  Surprisingly, on Good Friday, though a teaching holiday, all the stores were open. The Girls and I did what we love to do: shop! West Quay is an impressive mall located between Above Bar and Bar Gate. There was something for all of us and when our feet got tired we headed home to pick up Katy. We then went to Mango's and indulged in delicious Thai cuisine, There was no point calling it an early evening as we had a 1:50 am bus to catch that would take us to Gatwick Airport. Katy is an amazing roommate as she stayed up and drove us to the bus depot.

     Fatigue is only a state of mind, expecially when it's fuelled by excitment. We were headed to Switzerland! We arrived at Basel Airport and we were met by Alex. No need to say how excited Al was given that it had been 5 weeks since she had last seen him.

.........and the roadtrip and shenanigans begin!

       While in Switzerland we stayed with Alex and his parents, Chris and Helen in Lyss. I can not say enough about the hospitality and the warmth of the welcome we received. Allison has told us so much about Alex's parents, family and Switzerland, but now Jennifer and I had the opportunity for a first hand experience! Switzerland is all that Allison claimed and more, Between the absolutely delicious meals prepared by Helen, Easter brunch with Alex's extended family, guided tours by Chris and Helen of Berne, Lake Biel, Neuchâtel and more and of course excursions lead by Alex of Lyss (how high is this tower?), Lucerne and Zermatt (Matterhorn), we could not have asked for more, Switzerland is absolutely stunning. Everywhere you turn you are faced with another panoramic view that is only rivaled by your next photo op.
      Chris and Helen were the consumate hosts during our 5 day visit.  We arrived the day before Easter Sunday so we were invited to a traditional family brunch next day at the home of Chris's brother Willi. It was so heart warming to witness how well  Allison has been accepted into Alex's family. Aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents were there and Jennifer and I were also made to feel at home. An interesting tradition is performed with the beautifully decorated Easter eggs. You choose a partner and you knock your egg against their's. If your egg cracks, you lose and get to eat the egg. The winner goes on to challenge someone else. To me it was a win-win: be a winner and move on or 'win' the right to eat your delicious egg!
     Allison had told us about what a great cook Helen is and we were not disappointed. The first night we were treated to raclette. If you've never had it, it's like fondu in that you individually prepare the fixings that goes on your raclette cheese (veggies, sausage, potato, etc), but rather than dipping into a fondue broth or cheese, you slide your individual raclette pan under a broiler. It's ready when the cheese melts and you slide it onto your plate, toppings and all. In a word: delicious! And that sums up all the meals we enjoyed during our stay. Did I also mention that Lyss is home to Alex's family's two adorable cats? Hello Marly and Charlie. They felt the room Jenn and I shared was their's as well, so they spent much of the time reclining on our beds! Seriously, how do you say no to those faces?

Chaaarrrrlie

Marley

   
      Chris and Helen took Jennifer and me for a drive to Lake Biel and it's surrounding areas. Like everything else in Switzerland it was beautiful. Together with Lake Morat and Lake Neuchâtel, it is one of the three large lakes in the Jura region of Switzerland. We drove to the top of the mountain which gave us a spectacular view of the outlying areas of Neuchâtel, Berne, Lyss, and the lakes. Later we stopped at a restaurant on the water, with a view of St Peter's Island and enjoyed ice cream and the view. St Peter's Island is a long peninsula and is famous for many things. It's a real nature treat and is popular for hiking and cycling. It's also famous because Jean Jacques Rousseau lived there for a period of time before being deported and where he wrote "Reveries of the Solitary Walker". Allison too can relate to its beauty as this was one of the first places Alex introduced her to. Unfortunately Alex's definition of a short walk seems to have been lost in translation and was not exactly in keeping with Allison's expectations. 'Short walk' ultimately translated to 12 kms. I can say that looking at the Island while eating an ice cream was infinitely more enjoyable.

Lake Biel

Let's not forget the Alps in the background

Front row seats!

Best Tour Guide ever!

Jenn, Chris and Helen: overlooking Lake Biel

Chris gave us a personal tour of Bern. He is also Head of Communications for the local government so due to his priviledge of rank we were able to tour the legistlative building where he works.

Forget it, no one is listening; well maybe Alex.

Where decisions are made....

Time's up!

Girls here's the door, what's your hurry?

Churchill spoke from this very balcony.

The tour continued through the historic Old Town at the centre of Bern. Medieval structures make old town very picturesque. The medieval covered shopping promenade adds charm to the shopping experience. We toured the promenade on Sunday so fortunately we weren't tempted (not!) by the likes of Rolex as stores were closed. Holy Ghost Church which has undergone big changes since 1228, was, not surprising, under going some refurbishing the day we visited. The church was completely rebuilt in 1726 and it's an incredible structure both inside and out.

Chris, Jennifer, Alex and Allison

Medieval City Centre recognized by UNESCO

 Zytglogge Clock Tower

River Aare flows though and around Bern

 Bärengraben: Home to the Bern Bears

Einstein lived here 1903-05: a 'relatively' short time

Outside of the Legislative Building

A view you never tire of: Swiss Alps and Lucerne, d'oh!

       Switzerland is very much a train society. Just about everywhere is accessible by train. Convenient for sure, but rather expensive if you don't have a pass or aren't able to take advantage of specials. On the day we visited Lucerne we traveled by car and train. The drive didn't seem so long because of the wonderful scenery along the way. Switzerland in April is an oasis of rolling green fields and let's not forget the Alps in the background. Jenn and I were madly taking pictures as we drove. No matter how many times you see them, views of the Alps never get old. We parked outside of Lucerne and then took the 10 minute train ride to the centre. Lucerne is an idyllic town located on the shore of Lake Lucerne. It straddles the Reuss River so there are a number of bridges. We walked the 669 feet that makes up one such bridge: Chapel Bridge. We learned that it is the oldest covered bridge in Europe and dates back to 1333. Now that's old and its amazingly well preserved!

Jenn waiting to walk the covered bridge.

Chapel Bridge

The picture below shows the result of our long climb to the top of Lucerne, where we sat on a bench and ate bread, cheese and cold cuts. Have I mentioned how great the bread, cheese and chocolate are in Switzerland?  Just more reasons why you might want to visit!

Long walk up, but the view of Lucerne was worth it!

       Just off Löwenplatz we visited a Park that contains a Lion's Monument. The carving was made to commemorate the hundreds of Swiss Guards who were massacred in 1792 during the French 

Revolution. They were defending the Palais des Tuileries.

Bertel Thorvaldsen''s famous carving.

Löwendenkmal or Lion's Monument

The Park wasn't all seriousness. We spent a fun time in the House of Mirrors! 

One is never enough!

Seeing is not believing.

Too much bread, cheese and Swiss chocolate.

The day we travelled to Zermatt Matterhorn was a long one, but wow what a day! We caught the first of 4 trains at 7:30 am. Total travel time was around 3.5 hours from Lyss to Berne to Zermatt! In Zermatt we caught our last train which would take us to the peak of Gornergrat. Allison was not joking when she said that trains go everywhere in Switzerland! The Gornergrat (3,089 m) is one of those must-see places that if you have the opportunity to go, take it!  The mountain panorama and the glorious view of the Matterhorn are unforgettable. Also don't forget to apply sunscreen. Even though we did, we still came back with sunburns! You feel like you're at the top of the world and nature's wild beauty will blow you away.

Next stop: Matterhorn

                                        Going up, up, up, nowhere but up from here!

And when we got to the top, what did our eyes see:

Zermatt Matterhorn, nice place to chill.

Taking it all in.

This is my life, these are my choices.

Spectacular!

Too close to the edge Jenn!

Jumping for joy.

Smile and say: 'simply amazing'!

Ice cold beer!

Time to come down. Hang on Jenn!

A picture is worth a thousand words!!

   
        So that marked the end of our Swiss adventure. It was wonderful from beginning to end! How do you top 5 days in Switzerland?  Well you don't, but that didn't stop us from trying. Stay tuned as we continue our adventure to Prague, Warsaw, Brussels and Ireland.