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!