Glacier Express

Landwasser Viaduct

Landwasser Viaduct - through the reflecting window

Rhine Gorge

Oberalpass - from the train

       We got back on our motor coach at Andermatt and rode over the zigzag road with hairpin turns (requiring both traffic lanes for our bus to make the turn) and with shear drop offs to cross the Susten Pass on our way to Interlaken.  The Susten Pass, where we made a stop, is at 2200 meters and is at the foot of the Stone Glacier.  The clouds descended on our way up to and over the Pass.  Visibility was limited – perhaps a good thing given the nature of the road. 

Stone Glacier

Waterfall at Susten Pass

       Tonight Insight Travel hosted a cocktail hour before our included dinner at the hotel – no Co-op meal tonight!  We had a nice salad, roast pork with scalloped potatoes, and mixed frozen veggies.  For dessert we had vanilla ice cream on stewed cherries.  It was all good.

Thurs., 6/26/14 – Interlaken
       This morning our bus took us through the Grindelwald Valley to the village of Lauterbrunnen and the “Valley of Waterfalls.”  The retreating glaciers left steep cliffs on both sides of the wide valley and as many as 75 waterfalls fall from the top or have cut through crevices forming corkscrew channels that still flow with glacier melt.  We stopped to photograph the Dust Falls (Staubbach Falls) that fall 1000 feet from the top of the cliff and disperse in a fine drizzle.  The waterfalls from this valley come from 10 glaciers.

Waterfall in the Grindelwald Valley

View from Lauterbrunnen

Staubbach Falls

View from Lauterbrunnen

  We took the optional excursion to the Jungfraujoch – The Top of Europe.  At Lauterbrunnen, we got on a cog railway. We changed trains at Kleine Scheidegg for the final ride up to the Jungfraujoch (11,333 feet).  The first train gave us some views of the Eiger (13,026 feet), Monch (13,475 feet), and Jungfrau (13,642 feet) mountains and tremendous views of glaciers, meadows with flowers and cows, and villages far below us.  At Klein Scheidegg (6,760 feet) we had climbed 4,148 feet in elevation.  A second cog train took us the final nine km up to the top.  Seven of those kms were in a tunnel that curved through the Eiger and then the Monch mountains at a grade of 25 %.  The train stopped for photos through Plexiglas windows (we all got out to look) at Eigerwand (9,400 feet) and again at Eismeer (10,368 feet).  At 9,400 feet we were still in a cloud but by 10,368 feet we were above the cloud and had a view of Monch and a glacier.
       The top, Jungfraujoch, is a tourist destination complete with a snow park (snow board, tubing, and zip line), ice cave with ice sculptures, two cafes, souvenir stands, and two terraces to get views of these spectacular mountains and glaciers up close.  Sara led our group on the tour around the facilities.  We rode the fastest elevator in Europe (6 m. per second) up to the Sphinx, a research and viewing area, and walked out on the terrace for views and pictures (very chilly and windy).
       Back down from the Sphinx, we walked through the tunnel back to the Ice Palace carved out below the surface of a glacier.  The cavern is cooled at -3° C. to counteract the heat of thousands of tourists each day.  Some parts move up to 15 cm per year and it has to constantly be re-cut.  There were sculptures of eagles, penguins, etc.  We looked at the Aletsch Glacier, the longest in Europe.  Two and a half hours at the top was barely enough time to appreciate the views.  We ate our picnic lunch looking out at the Aletsch Glacier.  We were lucky to have almost clear views.

(Link to Jungfraujoch panoramic camera - just be sure it is daylight in Switzerland - 7-10 hrs from US.)

Cog railroad to Kleine Scheidegg

All aboard!

Cog railroad to Kleine Scheidegg

Kleine Scheidegg (Internet photo) on a clearer day than we had

Views on the way up

Views on the way up

Views on the way up

Views on the way up

Views on the way up

It was chilly and windy!

Jungfraujoch building (from the Internet) with the Sphinx at the top left

The Sphinx (from the Internet)

Hikers on the Monchsjoch hut trail

Aletsch Glacier

Jungfrau

Monch is behind us

Gale and yet another friend

Walkway down to the ice sculptures

Ice Sculptures

       On the way down we went from the highest railway station at Jungfraujoch, through the UNESCO Heritage Site tunnel, to Kleine Scheidegg and took a different cog railway down to Grindelwald and Grund.  The views were not as clear as on the way up but it was still a spectacular ride. 

Cog railroad

All kinds of ways to get your pictures

       Marcel, our terrific driver, met us in Grund for our ride back to Interlaken.  We walked the three blocks to the Co-op and bought food for our dinner in our hotel room.

Statue of William Tell in Interlaken

Would you believe?!

Lake Brienz

Sign post with hiking times instead of distances

Brienz

Another friend!

Wood carving of an elk

Not a wood carving

       We left Brienz and crossed the 1007-meter Brunig Pass and traveled on the Zurich.  We had a lunch stop at “My Stop” on the freeway.  It was like a truck stop with a grocery, shops, cafe, bakery, and restaurant.
       We entered Zurich and had two hours to wander.  We wandered off up hill to Lindenhof Park.  The Romans built a castle up on the hill but now it is a park where men were playing a form of Bocce and the park has views of the Limmat River down toward Zurichsee (Lake Zurich).  We walked down to the Bahnhofstrasse to use an ATM machine and then walked some cobble streets to a very nice kitchen store.  They had many interesting but very expensive items.  I will look on line at home for a “spaetzel plate.”  It is something I have never seen before and I would like to be able to make my own spaetzels.
       Next we went into Fraumunster Church (Church of Our Lady) to look at the five large stained glass windows Marc Chagall made in 1970 when he was 82-years old (no photos). On 6/28, we took the train in to central Zurich and wandered about the city. On 6/29, it rained most of the day so we had a much needed day of rest.

Flag of the Canton of Zurich

Site of Churchill's "Let Europe Arise" speech

Fountain atop Lindenhof Hill

A manhole cover

Lindenhof Park from across the river

Model of the Grossmunster

Grossmunster tower

Grossmunster door

Grossmunster unusual window - sliced agates rather than glass

Zurich Opera House

Lindt Chocolates

Another surprising restaurant

Interesting sculpture

Women’s nude bathing club

Mon., 6/30/14 – Zurich
            After yesterday’s rain we wanted to go touring today even though the weather forecast for the day was more rain in the morning.  After a hearty breakfast (and sandwiches made for lunch) we headed back to the airport train station.  The very nice ticket lady told us that for 2 CHF more we could have a combination ticket to take the train, boat, and bus back to the train to see the Rhine (or Rhein) Falls.  The train ticket alone would have cost 44 CHF.
            We took the train to Winterthur, changed trains, and rode to Schloss Laufen.  From that station we headed through the castle and down the steps to the four viewing platforms of the Rhine Falls.  It began to rain again as we viewed the falls, but the mist would have gotten us wet anyway.  We had our rain jackets and an umbrella so we did not mind.
            The Rhine Falls are the largest (amount of water)  in Europe and the amount of water flowing down is impressive.  They are also quite picturesque because of the rock formations the water has cut through.

Train station at the airport - Flughafen

Rein Falls

Rein Falls

Rein Falls

Rein Falls

Rein Falls

Boat across the river

From the boat

On the other side

       After seeing all that was to be seen, we walked into Neuhausen to take the bus to Schaffhausen, which is another medieval town with a fortress, cobblestone streets, fountains, plazas, interesting old buildings, churches, city wall, and gate towers.  We strolled along and found our way to the Munot Fortress.  It was on the top of the town hill with steps and cobblestones up to the entrance.  The moat was dry and full of spotted deer.  We went inside and up four 360° turns that would have allowed knights on horseback to ride to the top.  The top was an open space now set with a stage and tables so they must hold dinner shows and weddings in the open space.  The views of the Rhine and town were great from this vantage point.  It is interesting that the fortress is in great condition, there was no entrance fee, and no one supervising the tourists.

Schaffhausen

City gate in Schaffhausen

Munot Fortress

Deer in the fortress park

View from Munot Fortress

Munot Fortress - performance area at the top

Water fountain in Schaffhausen