Switzerland's Finest: The Bernese Oberland

Everyone has asked, "what was your favorite part?" The answer is easy. I tell them, the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland.


This view was typical, no matter where we were in the area. This photo was taken in Wengen.

We stayed in the Lauterbrunnen Valley, which is surrounded by gorgeous mountains. It's nicknamed the valley of the waterfalls, because there are some 72 waterfalls in the area. One of them, Staubbach Falls, rains down in the middle of the valley. We had a gorgeous view of the falls from our hotel room.

View of Staubbach falls from our hotel room.

Lauterbrunnen is one of several towns in the valleys surrounding the three towering peaks in this region: The Junfrau, The Eiger, and Monch. The peaks like to hide in the clouds, but we were fortunate to have great weather during out visit. It got sunnier and warmer every day.

 

The Eiger, Monch, and Junfrau trying to hide in the clouds.

We actually spent three days in Lauterbrunnen, which was enough time to do the touristy stuff, but was not nearly enough time to truly enjoy the beauty of this place.

I have nothing to compare it to. The base of the mountains are so massive when compared to the someplace like the U.S. Rockies, and the valleys themselves are so rich and green, filled with wildflowers and waterfalls. It's the perfect contrast to the huge grey peaks towering above the valleys. The valleys are glacial valleys, rather than river valleys, so they too are huge. The depth of the place is impossible to capture on camera. Every slope and every hill adds another layer.

 

Swiss chalet on a lush green mountainside

One of many waterfalls in the Lauterbrunnen Valley

These purple wildflowers were everywhere

 

The massive base of the Junfrau


In Lauterbrunnen, there is no need for a car. You can get a Swiss train pass (there are several region-specific options) that will get you just about anywhere you need to go. But the train pass covers much more than just trains. Some of the villages are only accessible by cable car, which is also included in some of the passes. The cable cars are hilarious and I can't say that I am a fan. About 100 people are packed tightly into this car, and then it moves slowly up the mountain. It's cramped, it smells like B.O, and it borderline makes me feel motion sick, but it's worth it because all of those little villages are incredibly picturesque and unique. They include places like Murren, Wengen, and Grindelwald.

A packed cable car

 Since we didn't use our car, we mostly took the public transit and used our own feet to get around. The hiking in this area is absolutely beautiful and surprisingly easy, when you consider all of the elevation changes. I want to share a lot more about the trails we did in the area, so I will save that for another post...

Taken at the start of the trail we did on our first day in Lauterbrunnen

Zermatt and the world-famous Matterhorn!

On Saturday evening, we finally arrived in Switzerland. Kevin drove two insane mountain passes (see earlier post) and we stopped to check out some amazing views. Remember how I said earlier that the Alps just sort of rise out of nowhere? Well, it gets even crazier in Switzerland when you suddenly realize that you are driving above the tree-line, are surrounded by small glaciers and the air is so crisp that you need long-sleeves and a jacket. The quick environmental transition surprised me. We suddenly entered a new type of beautiful, an awe-inspiring natural masterpiece.


The road below is the crazy switchback that Kevin posted about

I think one of the things I love about mountains so much is how humble they make me feel. It's so easy for me to get caught up in life, become bossy and demanding, and forget about the reality of how limited our time is in this world. When I'm in the mountains, all of that goes away. I don't know if its the high peaks, the sharp and cold rocks, or just the lack of oxygen in the high-altitude that makes me realize just how big the world is, but I love the way it takes away all of my stress.


Enjoying the view.
 

The famous Matterhorn

We were only in Zermatt, Switzerland for one day and the Matterhorn is infamous for hiding in the clouds, so we were worried that we wouldn't get to see it. Lucky for us, the weather was on our side. Not only did we get to see the famous Matterhorn, but we got to hike for several hours while looking at its glorious peak, more than 14,000 feet high.

View from our hike above Zermatt

The trail we did was called the 5-Seenweg, or 5 Lakes Path. It was supposed to take only 2 hours, but between being inexperienced mountain hikers and constantly stopping to enjoy the views and take photos, it took us several hours to complete. And let me tell you, our poor Florida legs have no idea how to handle mountains.

Hiking the 5-Seenweg

If the Matterhorn looks familiar to you, it's probably because the peak is featured in numerous movies and works of art, which, of course, brings in the crowds.



Kevin's gorgeous photo of the Matterhorn

It's amazing how the clouds quickly come and go

You can only access Zermatt by train or by hiking in. We chose to leave our rental car parked overnight at the train station in the town of Tasch and rode the train up to our hotel in Zermatt.

Zermatt itself is a very tourism driven town. There is a main street packed with restaurants, hotels and shops. It is filled with a mixture of authentic Swiss culture and Americanized consumerism. Basically, it allows one to check everything off of the "Swiss bucket list." You can go skiing (yes, even in August,) you can eat fondue and raclette, listen to traditional alpine music, hike around a famous mountain, buy chocolate and watches, or just about anything else you can think of. You can even eat at McDonalds if that's what makes you happy. Also, only speaking English is not a problem here.

Don't stay in town. Get out and see this gorgeous view!

Today's selfie taken from one of the lakes with a Matterhorn view

 

 

A quick blurb about Austria

We drove through the corner of Austria (as Kevin mentioned in a previous post) and I just want to comment on how beautiful it was. I knew the Alps were in Austria, but I didn't expect the country to be as spectacular as it was. Kevin has already commented on winding roads and motorcycles, but I have a different perspective since I was looking out the passenger's side window the entire time. The sliver of Austria that we drove through reminded me of the Smokey Mountains in North Carolina in many ways. I think it was the thick greenery and shaded forests, the way the haze hung low over the mountains. I would love to go back and spend some time there and explore some of the small mountain towns that we drove through.

Mountain stream in Austria

Gorgeous mountain skyline in Austria

Austria looks like a post card.

 

We also drove through Lichtenstein, which is one of the smallest countries in the world. It's one of those places that's just cool to say, "hey, I've been there!"

Selfie in Lichtenstein

Walt Disney's Muse - The Neuschwanstein Castle

 

For starters, this is not a medieval castle. This was built in the 1860s by a crazy Bavarian king. He was King Ludwig II. He died days after being declared mentally unfit to be king by a doctor who had never even seen him. His body was found in a lake alongside the body of that psychiatrist. The King's family has concluded that Ludwig killed the doctor and then killed himself.

Creepy story aside, Ludwig was inspired by the medieval castles and stories of the region and The Neuschwanstein (which is actually a vacation home) is a perfect example of that.

What a view the King and his guests must have had

The castle is nestled on the side of a mountain in the foothills of the alps in southern Bavaria. It's location is so picturesque that it inspired Walt Disney when he built Disney World & Disney Land. Can you see a resemblance?


Neuschwanstein castle in Bavaria

Cinderella's castle at Disney World

Let me tell you, the foothills of the Alps are no Disney World. The beauty of this place is far too incredible to even be compared to a theme park. However, since I am from Orlando, home to the so-called "happiest place on Earth," I'm going to compare it to Disney world anyway.

This is no Disney World. A picturesque lake in the town of Hohenschwangau

The town of Hohenschwangau, which sits below the magnificent castle, has been turned into a tourist town. People from all over the world flock to the tiny town to see the castle and learn about the mad King Ludwig. There are long lines. There are mediocre food stands claiming to be "authentic." There are a lot of places to buy post cards and souvenirs. There are horse-drawn carriages. And the beer is twice as much as it was in other locations, even other towns that are considered to be "touristy." In this regard, I guess it is very much like Disney World.

The town below the castle

That said, you don't have to travel far to get a true Bavarian experience. We stayed in the town of Fussen, which is only a few kilometers away. There is no "castle-view," but in some ways that made it even better.

I don't want you to think that I didn't enjoy the castle. The Neuschwanstein is amazing. It's unlike anything else in the world. It has romance. It has history. It has a crazy King. Heck, it is the real-life Disney fairytale setting (minus some sort of maiden in distress.) It was worth every penny, and every step up that steep trail that leads to the castle. For me, seeing the Neuschwanstein castle was scratching an item off the bucket list.

Schwan means Swan. The castles both have swan in the name.

Everybody goes to Hohenschwangau for Neuschwanstein, but it is not the only castle in the town. Ludwig's  father lived in Schloss Hohenschwangau which is just a little further down the hill. It is also very impressive and a member of the family actually lived there until 1912. There are several other castles also nearby, some of them also created by King Ludwig II, but we sadly didn't have enough time to check them out.


Hohenschwangau casle

Hohenschwangau castle in the distance. It really is a fairy tale setting.

We did, however, go down a toboggan run which was tons of fun and we rented a rowboat and Kevin rowed us around a beautiful lake that had spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. Both of these items were included with our hotel stay. It seems that most hotels in the region offer a "Konigscard" when a room is booked, which gives free access to dozens of activities in the area.


Hiking down from Neuschwanstein



Kevin rowing the row boat

After the long day of castle-touring, row boating, museum sighting, and hiking, we were beat. Little did we know, the next day would be even tougher on our tired bodies. Switzerland and the majesty of the Alps are just around the corner...


A photo taken from the Marienbrücke bridge. It's an excellent place to get great shots of the castle.

Driving the Alps

Another driving related post from Kevin, big surprise I'm sure.

I've done all the driving so far this trip.  I enjoy it and Amanda seems to appreciate the avoidance of stress she would otherwise experience from driving with signs that are, well, different from home, and rules of the road that sometimes seem more flexible and other times more strict.  Well driving in the Swiss Alps brings things up a notch or ten. On our way from Fussen, Germany to Zermatt, Switzerland we cleared three particularly impressive passes.

Austria

First was in Austria, where we went over the a beautiful pass that I haven't found the name of yet.  The motorcycles on this pass probably outnumbered the cars 2:1 or more.  It was a very nice road to drive.  Enough corners to be fun, but not so many switchbacks that it was a pain and slowed you down too much.

Oberalp Pass, Switzerland

Next we cleared the Oberalp pass in Switzerland, which was far more switchbacks than I could count, very tight and winding, and there was also some kind of bicycle race (cyclists all had numbers pinned to them) which meant a lot of passing of cyclists.  We got some footage of this drive which I did a quick trim of and uploaded so it's available here.

Furka Pass, Switzerland

The final big pass for the day was Furka Pass, which is the 4th highest pass in Switzerland.  The view from the top was more breathtaking but the road was less challenging than Oberalp, probably because there were only a few crazy cyclists and not hundreds.  I would gladly drive Furka pass again, but would probably skip Oberalp, it was just too painful.

Goppenstein Train Ferry, Switzerland

Heading to Lauterbrunnen from Zermatt we decided to try a train ferry instead of driving yet another pass, and it saved us about an hour off the drive and the nail-biting of driving a million switchbacks.  I really enjoyed driving the passes, but in the future I'll do more train ferries or just skip having a car altogether in Switzerland and just take the trains to get around.  The Swiss trains we've been on so far were very timely and comfortable and really do make a great primary mode of transportation here.

The Romantic Road of Germany

We spent two nights in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, which is a medieval city that has much of its wall still intact. We used Rothenburg as a jumping off point for towns along the Romantic Road.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

We toured the Medieval Crime Museum in Rothenburg. It was pretty creepy.

Can you guess what these tools were used for?

Also at the crime museum. These shaming masks were used for citizens who did things like gossiped too much or told dirty jokes.



 The two of us standing on the medieval wall still intact in Rothenburg OBT

The first day we drove north to Wurzburg and checked out Residenz, which is a huge palace dating back to the end of the Baroque era. The inside of this palace was impressive with huge pieces of art everywhere including these massive, gorgeous murals on the ceilings and walls of some of the rooms. Sadly, much of the palace was destroyed in WWII, but thanks to some impressive restoration work it is still amazingly beautiful. And I can now say that I have stepped inside a room that Napoleon has slept in. How cool is that?

Outside of the Residenz in Wurzburg. Sadly, no cameras allowed inside. Trust me when I say it's a must do if you're in the region.

Flowers in the garden of the Residenz

Another selfie. This one in front of Residenz in Wurzburg

Later that evening, after exploring the rest of the northern stretch of the romantic road, we returned to Rothenburg OBT to take the highly reviewed Watchman's Tour. It was excellent! The tour guide really makes the tour. He is hilarious and his tone of voice is great. I loved hearing the history of the walled city from its medieval beginnings to its near end during WWII. Fortunately, the city was spared.

Me with the famous Rothenburg Watchman

Rothenburg all lit up at night

On the second day of our time spent in Bavaria, we drove along the middle and lower part of the Romantic Road, which by the way is not A road, it is a series of roads that connect several historic towns. There was no time to stop and see all of the towns, but we did walk around several of them.

Here are a few pictures of the towns I recommend stopping at.

Rothenburg OBT

Dinkelsbühl - Very picturesque little town.

Nordlingen - Cool for 2 reasons, 1: you can climb to the top of an old church tower and get this view. 2: The town was built on top of an ancient meteor impact site.

The photo doesn't do this church tower justice. It was HIGH.

Selfie on top of the tower in Nordlingen. This was no easy climb! We are basically 20 stories high and we had to take the stairs the whole way!
 

The next day, my 28th birthday, was spent in Fussen, which is at the very bottom of the Romantic Road and at the foothill of the alps. More on that in another post...