Switzerland - part 2

We’re now into our last few days before heading back to Italy and, while we look forward to that, Switzerland has been very good to us too. Since the last post we have finished our time in Belp with our host there, Astrid. As we managed to complete a few good jobs for her – laying big paving stones, cleaning a garage roof, clearing vacant land next door, and felling a tree – we had more time with her. She had been due to fly out to Hong Kong for a few days (free, courtesy of her daughter the flight attendant) but the flight was over-booked and she couldn’t go so she spent her days off taking us around the western part of Switzerland. This area is very distinctive as they speak French, the signs are only in French, and the towns are not quite as neat. We actually enjoyed the more rustic edge to the towns.

Fribourg and Neuchatel and the villages around them were particularly attractive. Like so much here it is very hard to get a feeling of the age of the places as they often still build in the same styles and look after the old places so well, so a house could be 50 years or 400 years old.

We finally managed a “swim” in the local Aare river – more of a jump-in-and-get-swept-downstream experience. People of all ages were doing it so it must be safe! Just had to avoid the numerous inflatable boats heading downstream at the same time, and the bridge supports.  It was quite a thrill - and less stressful the second time, once we knew it really was possible (if not easy) to get back out!

All change since then – we have spent the last week at Vicki’s friends Walter and Helen’s place in the little village of Krattigen, overlooking one of the lakes adjoining Interlaken. This is much more alpine and the Switzerland of the calendars. Walter and Helen are both great climbers, walkers and skiers so they both knew the names of all the peaks in the region and have trekked over many.

Their daughter has a flat in Grindenwald, at the base of the Eiger. We had a picnic there (every day so far up here has been perfect – hot and sunny) and it was amazing looking up at the north face of the Eiger and then across to the Monch and Jungfrau. Not only are you nestled in under famous mountains the height of Mt Cook, you can look up at alpine huts and villages further up. Everywhere you look in the alps there seem to be the chalet-style houses dotted incredibly high up the slopes, and huts and even restaurants perched over sheer cliffs, often with a cable car, gondola or mountain railway for access. For some villages that is their only form of access. No roads. Walter said that often you can spend hours and hours climbing a peak, only to find a restaurant and car park there!

We noticed numerous Muslim tourists in the well-known spots, the women often dressed in the full burka. Typically near expensive hotels and watch shops, of which there are many in Interlaken.

A couple of the valleys we went to only have one-way roads into them, so you can only enter and exit at set times, e.g. every hour for 15 minutes you can head up the road, every half-hour for 15 minutes you can head down. Many of the alpine villages are constantly under threat from wash-outs and avalanches.

Oh, we can now add Marmots to our list of creatures seen in the wild (well I can, Vicki missed out).

Our most recent trip has taken us to Emmental, the cheese region. Once again it is quite different: rolling hills, much more gentle. And the biggest houses I have seen. Huge farmhouses that incorporate hay lofts and a barn.