Switzerland, Part Four

Today we started our trip on the Glacier Express. A train that makes its way from Zermatt to St. Moritz through the Alps!

We got up early and headed back over to Zermatt, had some breakfast and boarded the train. The carriages were pretty cool, they had great big windows giving you a great view of the landscape. We had also organised to have lunch in the dining car which sounded pretty cool.

The scenery was amazing, Switzerland really is a beautiful country. I imagine the landscape would be completely different in summer as well (which I guess means another trip!). Unfortunately the train coming from St. Moritz was running late which means the dining car would not be connected until Disentis (instead of Andermatt), which means no lunch for us (as we were getting off at Disentis today). But we ordered a sandwich and a bottle of wine and just sat in our seat and enjoyed the ride.

We got off at Disentis not really knowing what to expect, but it turned out to be great! Our hotel room was last decorated in the seventies, so I guess it was cool again (they had this funky lamp that I wanted to bring home)! The town is in the Italian speaking part of Switzerland, so we did have a little difficulty communicating, but it all worked out.

We headed out to a smokey restaurant for dinner before walking back home through the falling snow! It was pretty magical.



On our way to Zermatt



Jules on the train



GE Views



Me on the train



GE Views



GE Views



GE Views



GE Views



GE Views



GE Views



GE Views



GE Views



GE Views



GE Views



Disentis!

Switzerland, Part Three

So we have spent the last couple of days wandering around Saas-Fee and generally taking it easy. The village is really nice. Having no cars seems to make a huge difference! The crepes and the hot chocolate in the village were pretty good as well.

Yesterday we decided to head to Zermatt, which is another ski resort about an hour from Saas-Fee. It is very close to the Matterhorn, so we thought it might be nice to have a look around the resort and then head up the hill to see the Matterhorn!

After a bus and train journey we arrived in Zermatt and it was freezing! We later found out that it was -11°C at the top of the hill. We looked around the village a bit - like Saas-Fee it was car free. Unlike Saas-Fee it seemed to be flush with money. It definitely seemed like a place where wealthy skiers stayed.

We then bought a life pass to head up the mountain which involved a two gondolas and a short walk. From the top you would normally have a great view of the Matterhorn, but unfortunately the clouds had settled, but I guess it was cool that I had never been at a higher altitude (on land of course) before! In fact it was so high they had signs telling people to take it easy, and I definitely felt short of breath and light headed while up there.

There was also an ice cave near by where people had carved out ice sculptures. It was a bit of a disappointment actually, there seemed to be more plastic then ice.

We then headed to a restaurant for a late lunch with a fantastic view before heading back to Saas-Fee.

Today we thought we would try our hand at skiing! We were told that there was not enough snow, but if you are in a ski resort you kind of feel obliged to have a go! So we picked up our skis and headed to the slopes to buy lift passes. Jules put her skis down, lined up and got the tickets. When she got back she noticed that someone had pinched her skis (or taken them by mistake), so we waited around for 20 minutes before Jules told Peter and I to go and have a ski. About an hour later Jules was still waiting, so we came back over to her and I waited while she went to the ski hire place to try and sort something out and Peter went up a Gondola to see if he could see anything at the top. Well it was bloody cold waiting there (later found out it was -25°C, so by the time Jules got back I was ready to head back inside (I could not feel my hands or feet). So Jules and Peter had a quick ski down before meeting me in the locker room.

Not wanting to write-off the day (or waste our lift pass) we decided to head up the hill to a restaurant at the top. The views were pretty spectacular and the restaurant revolved which was pretty cool! It made the day worthwhile!




Our Chalet in Saas-Fee



Saas-Fee Village



More of Saas-Fee



More of Saas-Fee



More of Saas-Fee



The Matterhorn



More of the Matterhorn



Zermatt Village



Skiers at the top!



Proof of the altitude!



It's so cold!



Zermatt Village



Saas-Fee Skiing!



Views from the Restaurant



Views from the Restaurant



Views from the Restaurant


Views from the Restaurant


Me!

Interlude

Okay, I realise this may be a boring post, but if you indulge me I would be most appreciative.

One of the things I miss from back home (but never ate) was Twisties. They are basically corn chips (or crisps for you English) with a chicken (why bother) or cheese (the only flavour in my opinion) flavour. You can buy then in the Australia Shop in London, but they are about 3 quid a packet (yes, that is about 7 baby dollars). Anyway, Mum sent me a couple of packets over earlier in the year which I have been enjoying, and I had even saved a packet to bring to Switzerland.

Anyway, the other day we were walking through the Jelmoli store in Zurich when we spied a packet of Fonzies! Apart from the name the packet looked exactly the same as cheese Twisties. So we grabbed a packet to see what they were like. It turns out they are like Twisties but without the flavour, so quite boring. So unfortunately for me Fonzies are not the new Twisties.

For anyone interested, they are from Italy (of all places) and even though the packet says cheese (Al Formaggio) they are nothing like cheese Twisties!

Oh and while I think of it, Mum, I am out of Twisties!



Side by side comparison


Fonzies!

Switzerland, Part Two

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Pete, Jules and I had decided to spend £30 on each other for christmas. Peter made us make up lists and he provided both Jules and I with a detailed list of what he wanted. Anyway realising that some of the photos from the opening of presents might appear on this blog I made the others have a shower before we were allowed to open the presents (I tried that with Jacob and Zac last year, but they would not have a bar of it!). Anyway, we all had great fun opening the presents (and even Peter was happy with the items both Jules and I bought that were not on his list!).

Jules made us some breakfast and we settled in for a day of eating and drinking and not much else. After some more talk with people back in Oz, we had a roast lunch and Peter and I tried to light the fire (which took a while, but it eventually started).

Unfortunately it was not snowing, but there was still snow on the ground, so I guess that counts as a white christmas!



Me handing presents out!


Jules and her Bop-It Blast


Peter and his Asterix book.


Me and my bright orange jumper.


Jules and her i-dog and bag (quite sad really..)


Peter and his Pens.


Me and my Absynthe!


Jules and a present she bought for herself (and found it very funny!)


Peter trying to light the fire.


End of the day...

Switzerland, Part One

Well it was Christmas time and Jules Peter and I had been discussing for years the prospect of spending Christmas in Switzerland. So with all of us being in the UK this year we thought it would be the best time. So with tickets all booked I headed up from Southampton on the 22nd to meet Peter and Jules. We were staying near London City Airport and flying out to Zurich early in the morning on the 23rd.

The flight was uneventful, but full of posh types heading off to Klosters and Davos (places far out of our price range). After landing in Zurich we dumped our bags at the hotel and headed into the city proper. Zurich is a nice place. It was cold, but bearable. It is full of lovely old buildings and interesting side streets. It is a pity we only had the afternoon to explore the place, but it is somewhere I will have to go back to. One thing I found pretty cool was they turned the overhead lines for the trams into lights (photo below), so they are far less of an eyesore! We went into a few shops, but they just reinforced our idea that Switzerland is an expensive place (even more so then the UK I reckon). We went into Jelmoli (a department store) to grab some food for the upcoming week and then headed out for dinner.

The next day (the 24th) we jumped on the train for our five hour journey to Saas-Fee - it was going to be our home for the next six days. So we headed to Brig, changed to a bus to get there. The scenery along the way was amazing. It is a very beautiful country. I can see why it is so popular with hikers in summer - it is something I have added to my list to do before I move back to Oz.

Anyway, Saas-Fee is a ski resort in the Alps about an hour from Zermatt. It was a pretty little village, busy with people arriving for Christmas. They have banned cars in the village itself (you have to park on the edge) which is a nice touch. We checked into our apartment (which was amazing) and then headed into town to grab some more supplies for the week ahead. After a couple of drinks and some unpacking as well as phoning Oz to wish everyone a Merry Christmas we headed out for dinner. Cheese fondue is a popular Swiss dish, so against my better judgment I decided to try it. for some reason I have an issue with melted cheese. My brain seems to think that it is far worse for me then normal cheese, now I realise that this is total rubbish, but I cant help it. So after a couple of mouthfuls I was over it all. But I guess I had to try it!



Peter and Myself in Zurich


Zurich Scenes


Zurich Scenes


Zurich Scenes


Zurich Scenes


Zurich Scenes


Jules and Myself in Zurich


Zurich Scenes


Zurich Scenes


On the train to Saas-Fee


On the train to Saas-Fee


On the train to Saas-Fee


On the train to Saas-Fee


On the bus to Saas-Fee


On the bus to Saas-Fee


On the bus to Saas-Fee