That's our recent answer to the perennial nondescript question, "So, what did you do on the weekend?"
Go on, say it, we're mad.
But at least the kids were super happy and smiling. What's our secret? Keep reading to find out!
First stop: Geneva, in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. We only had one morning to explore it, and to be honest, that seemed pretty sufficient given we do not have a secret Swiss bank account to check on, and therefore no piles of cash to burn in one of the many discreetly-luxurious watch shops lining every street. We went for a walk around the Old Town, and a cursory stroll in the Jardin d'Anglais where one can view their highly-touted jet d'eau fountain in one corner of the Lave Geneva shown in the photo above (our verdict: no big deal). We stopped for lunch, and window-browsed at the mind-boggling range of knives on sale in every other shop.
For CHF 15, you can have one of these handy little Swiss army knives with 5 or so different functions.
Or, just top up another CHF 975 and you can have this really cool one measuring about 25cm with 50 functions...
YL concluded very early in the trip that the Swiss really excel in making quality goods. Even the pine cones are of good quality, according to him....
Not sure about pine cones, but I can vouch for their bottled water. This brand which is easily found in many restaurants taste especially fresh and clean.
Train #2: An ordinary regional train from Geneva to Zermatt. This one took 3 hours but fortunately Ju fell asleep and Soph could fiddle with the iPad without fighting with Ju, which, in the end, translated to peace for YL & I.
Switzerland is a confederation of 26 cantons, each retaining a high level of autonomy including their own constitution and parliament. As a result, there are 4 official languages in Switzerland - French, German, Italian and Romansh. Add English to that mix, and you find that public signs take up quite some space.
Next stop, Zermatt, in the German speaking part. Zermatt is a popular ski & spa resort boasting a magnificent view of the Matterhorn. It has a cosy village-feel to it, but maybe it's because we were there in low season.
Voila, the Matterhorn, with its typical banner cloud formation. At 4,478m, it is one of the last Alpine peaks to be conquered.
It's everywhere in this town, actually. It is an impressive sight to see it hovering above us with its signature curious little bent tip.
Train #3: The Glacier Express from Zermatt to Chur. The Glacier Express is the original reason that led us to this little expedition. It is a panoramic train that takes its passengers through gorgeous Alps scenery, through 91 tunnels and 291 bridges, in just over 6 hours.
Here's what it looks like inside
Round pristine rivers, deep gorges, imposing peaks and glaciers...
We were served lunch on board the train in efficient Swiss manner. Switzerland is the dream destination for Indians, and we did see many Indian tourists during our short stay. Half of the tourists in our train coach were Indians. We were traversing the Alps with - no kidding - Indian music in the background (one group brought their own portable music player and did not hesitate to use it). So the Glacier Express offers a Swiss menu, and an Indian one featuring curries, rice and the usual Indian desserts.
Chicken nuggets 2,000 metres above sea level surrounded by all shades of green. Yummy!
The tracks were built to exist in perfect harmony with its surroundings. With the large open windows of the trains, in some parts of the journey, we felt we were walking beside the turquoise rivers, running along rich green meadows, or gliding on glaciers. As you can imagine, we have countless photos of every imaginable combination of views, but they started to look the same after a while, and there is just no way to capture those scenery to do them justice. So we just sat back and enjoyed the view.
Which is the whole point of taking a panoramic train in the first place, ain't it?
Next stop is Chur, touted as Switzerland's oldest city. We arrived on a Sunday, so it felt as if we had the whole city to ourselves. We had an excellent meal at a local hotel, where they made a big fuss of the kids and plied them with activity books, colouring pencils, stickers, soft toys, and even Disney's Cars-themed cups. We almost felt guilty for such attention, and left with the largest tip we've doled out in the past 18 months. (It is not an exaggeration, given that we don't tip in France. Not because service is shaky, but because it is not a custom in France)
Nice, quiet, fresh-smelling Alpine town
Train #4 (or maybe it's #5, or #6... it's all one big blur now): One of the several trains we took to get from Chur to Tirano in the Italian border, which took more than 5 hours. We started to hear announcements in Italian somewhere halfway through the route.
In case you have been wondering, here's how we typically travel. One large backpack, one smaller for essentials e.g. snacks, toys, books, emails & tickets, one crossbody sling bag for money and important documents, and voila, here we go. On some trips, we take along a baby carrier but that boy is getting heavy...
Oh, and yes, for those who are wondering about the secret to our happy kids who gladly trudged all the way with us on this trip, here it is: a brand new scooter. Soph had never been such a willing participant in walks. Ju, who recently "discovered" the joy of running, decided that he will simply run to keep up with his sister every time she goes on her scooter. So this trip was a pleasantly easy trip as far as walking was concerned.
All that running comes with its risks, of course, as you can see here. He cried for the first couple of minutes after he fell and bit his lips, but after that he was back to mischief.
The second part of the trip after our stopover in Chur was to take the Bernina Express, which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Albula/Bernina lines of the Rhaetian Railways. This part of the journey crosses 55 tunnels, 196 bridges, up to a high point of 2,253 metres where we were surrounded by remnants of snow along the slopes of the mountains. This railway is more than one century old, built to blend into its surroundings, and is a masterpiece of railway engineering.
One of the signature highlights of the journey was the Landwasser Viaduct, standing at 65 metres high.
As a summary, it was a varied itinerary from the French-speaking part of Switzerland, to the German-speaking one, to the Italian one. I am sure we passed the Romansh-speaking are as well, but we didn't recognise it. We passed green verdant farmland, quaint villages nestled amongst the valleys of the Alps, mighty glaciers, and swaying palm trees. There was the stately European facade of buildings in Geneva, typical Swiss cottages in the mountains, the odd farm outposts in the Alps, and sunny lazy Mediterranean feel of Italian towns. Not bad for a long weekend.
One final observation: at the train station in the border town of Tirano, where the Bernina Express ends/starts, Switzerland's SBB & Italy's Trenitalia run their train services literally side by side. Their tracks are next to each other, but what a difference one flimsy wire fence makes.
Swiss side of the station
The Italian side. Remember, these two train tracks are next to each other.
2 comments:
madness or not but i love this idea! hmmm since i've not been to switzerland myself maybe i should take a leaf off your book and pull a trip like this myself ;)
wow, the panoramic train is very tempting :)
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