Gimmelwald

One of the most visited places in Switzerland is the Interlaken lake and mountain region in the Bernese Oberland. The three mountains, Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau make an impressive view and there is a train that takes visitors to an elevation of over 11,000ft. We stayed a little bit off the beaten path on the other side of the mountains in the town of Gimmelwald, which is only accessible by a cable car (gondola). The altitude gain from the bottom of the valley to the top of the peaks is more than 3km! From Zürich we took a train to Bern, another to Interlaken Ost. and then a third to Lauterbrunnen. Leif saved us valuable time when he noticed we had gotten off at the Interlaken West station accidentally- lucky for us the train had not left yet so we hopped back on. From Lauterbrunnen we took a bus to Stechelberg, a small village located at the head of the U-shaped glacial valley. Then from Stechelberg we took the cable car up to Gimmelwald, and impressive ride up and over the cliffs. Gimmelwald has only a handful of places to stay, one restaurant, and a Hostel that makes pizza in the evenings. The farmers that live there have cows and small grassy plots where they were harvesting hay for the winter. There is one small 'road' and no cars, just a few work and farm vehicles.

The view from our deck was quite impressive, and we all agreed that the scope and the immensity of the Alps is unlike anything we had ever seen in the United States. There was a small playground located next to the gondola station and from some directions it looked as if the kids could slide right off the cliff (it was safely far enough away from the edge that this was not possible). Most of the other people staying in Gimmelwald were Americans. We met two families from Wisconsin and MN who were traveling all over Europe for 1 month together. We also met a couple from NY and one from Ohio.

In the morning we hiked to Mürren, a town about 1000ft higher on the mountain, and then boarded the gondola to the top of the Schilthorn. Halfway up the gondola stops in Birg and we switched to a different one to the very top. A James Bond movie was filmed at the top and they have constructed a revolving 360 degree restaurant, as well as a viewing platform for tourists. It was a gorgeous, clear, spectacular day to see the mountains in all directions. At the top we decided to hike down to the Birg station on the narrow trail which wound down the talus slope. The kids were great hikers- it was a trail that required concentration to maintain your footing, and even a few spots where they had to hold on to rocks on one side for balance. The height was so great that when I looked out towards the mountains and valley below it made me dizzy. Elisabet did all the hiking herself that day - to and from Mürren and the trail down the Schilthorn. She seemed to sense that it would have been impossible for Travis to carry her on that part.

We returned to our apartment in the afternoon after a reward of ice cream cones and the kids spent much of the evening playing with the American kids on the playground. By the time they climbed into bed (all 3 in the same one) at 9:30, they were too exhausted to protest the sleeping arrangement.

On our way home on Sunday, we stopped at the Trümmelbach falls. These waterfalls are located inside the mountain and are the melting snow and glacier waters of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau. Taking an elevator up a shaft in the mountain you can walk through several tunnels in the rock to view the cascading water, 20,000 liters per second of cold, icy snowmelt.

We made a quick stop in Bern to show Marta the old city, the Aare river, and the Parliamentary building. It was also a good opportunity for the kids to cool off in the water fountains in the main square.

First Day of School

This morning was the first day of school for public schools in Zürich. Leif, Hanna, and Elisabet are all attending different schools, so it took a little coordination to get them to their respective classrooms. Travis and Leif walked together to Hirzenbach schule while Hanna and I walked to Mattenhof schule.
Elisabet and Grandma stayed home until it was time for Elisabet to leave for her first day of Kindergarten. She is going to the Mattenhof Grundstufe and the first day was only from 9-11 am. Her feelings about school have wavered from excitement to "I don't ever want to go to Kindergarten" and "why don't they let the parents stay?" As Travis and I walked her to school she chatted about all the things she might do or see at school. And amazingly, she did let me leave- they sent the parents off with a rose after 45 minutes. In the hour I had to myself I literally ran to the grocery store and back, arriving just in time to see the smile on her face and her new yellow highlighter around her neck as she walked out of school with one of the teachers. We'll see how things go tomorrow when reality sinks in that she has to go EVERY morning.

First day of school 09/10

Swiss National Day

August 1 is the day Switzerland celebrates its anniversary of independence. This year Switzerland was 718 years old. The fireworks started early in the morning- before 8 am- and continued on until well past midnight. As the darkness settled over the city, we went up onto our rooftop terrace to see the fireworks being set off all over Zürich. Some looked as if they were even being lit out of apartment windows!

Wales

The day before we left, we drove to Wales and stopped at a couple beaches. It was a spectacular day but VERY windy and a little chilly, especially by the water.

The pictures pretty much explain our day.....

For an idea of our location, go to google maps and type in Rhossili, Wales.

Dyrham

Sunday afternoon we drove to Dyrham, a small village located in between Bath and Bristol in the southwest of England. Driving on the left side of the road took some adjustment by both of us. The highway was quite comfortable, but once we turned off onto the smaller roads, it was an exciting adventure. Between paying attention to oncoming cars and shifting, it took all our concentration to drive, while the other person navigated. We got lost several times and Leif mentioned that maybe it would have been a good trip to rent a GPS- something we regretted multiple times over the 5 days we were out in the country. The road into Dyrham was just a single lane, hemmed in on both sides by hedgerows and walls and we just hoped no one was coming from the opposite direction. If we did happen to meet another car, both drivers would dive over to the left to make enough passing space. In certain instances someone would have to back up to a wider section in order to have enough room (this is something that happened alot in Norway as well on the fjord roads). The cottage owned by Travis's friend Nic was a perfect example of English country living. It had gorgeous gardens surrounding it and the original part of the house was from the 1700s. The addresses of these country houses do not include numbers or street names, just something like " Baytree Cottage" or "Old Barn Cottage". Must be interesting to be the UPS driver.

London

Our stay in London was short, but we managed to fit in quite a bit of sightseeing. We toured Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London, and also took a bus trip around the city to see the other famous sights. Westminster Abbey was my favorite- it was pretty interesting to see how many people were buried inside- kings, queens, poets, scientists, and soldiers. It was fun to picture the coronation ceremonies of the kings and queens of England. Also to see where the choir sits for the Christmas service we usually listen to on the radio. The Tower of London was also historically interesting. We toured the bedrooms of one of the kings, and then saw a special exhibit on the armor of Henry VIII. I think that was Leif's favorite part. The line was so long for the jewels we didn't even try to see them (I'm not sure it would have been that interesting to the kids anyway). One evening we walked from our hotel to the grounds of Buckingham Palace. According to the flag flying, the queen was not in residence at the time, but Elisabet was quite excited to find they shared the same name. On our bus tour we learned we were staying just a few blocks away (and had walked right by) the residences of Margaret Thatcher and some other famous movie stars. It was also a good way to learn about the major events in the history of London- it's settlement by the Romans, the great fire of 1666, the black death in the same year which killed half the population, the blitz during 1941 in which St Paul's Cathedral stood despite repeated attacks, and so on.

Oslo

Our last stop in Norway was Oslo, the capitol and largest city. We took a short plane flight from Aalesund and then the high speed train (200km/hr) from the airport into downtown Oslo. Trekking to the hotel with our bags and Leif with his lame foot was an exhausting endeavor. If we had known just how far of a "10 min walk" it was, we would have taken the tram or a taxi. We stayed in a hostel type hotel with bunks- Leif on the bottom this time!- and industrial looking rooms and service. It served its purpose though and was not ridiculously expensive like much of the accommodation in Oslo. After a cafeteria style breakfast we walked down to the harbor and took a ferry across the bay to another section of the city where there were several museums. We started with the Folk museum and got to see some traditional Norwegian dancers, a replica village with pharmacy and post office and typical houses. Many of the houses were built with a living roof which had many advantages for energy conservation. We peaked in the old school house and watched some children having their lesson. Then we saw an old wooden cathedral, commonly built in Norway where stone was too expensive or difficult to get. We sampled freshly made lefse (hot and slathered with butter) from a working farmhouse and also the homemade licorice from the pharmacy.

Our next museum was the Viking Ship museum where they have a couple examples that were unearthed from their burial sites. An important woman and a viking cheiftan were buried in the ships, along with all the things they needed in the afterlife: horses, food, shovels, tools, money, chickens, dogs, etc. It was very interesting. Also interesting to learn the things they discovered from the bones like diseases they may have had, what caused the death- the cheiftan was killed in combat by stab wounds, how old, and so on. A short bus ride took us down the road to the Maritime museum. In there we watched a panoramic video of the Norwegian coastline and learned about the seafaring life in Norway. Right across the lawn was the museum Fram that was built around the ship which was used in exploring the Arctic and Antarctica by several Norwegian explorers. You could go inside and onto the decks of the ship, which was pretty exciting for the kids. Norway discovered the south pole just one month before the fatal expedition of Robert Scott. Our last museum was the Kon Tiki museum which had the raft and "boat" used by Thor Heyerdahl in his trips across the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The Kon Tiki was just a raft of balsam wood, lashed together by ropes and a small shelter on top. None of us could imagine "sailing" across the ocean on it with 6 people.

Oslo

Runde, the bird island

One of the best things about our change in plans was that we got to visit Runde, an island of nesting seabirds. It is the farthest south of the seabird nesting colonies in Europe, and one of the only ones to have so many different birds. They each occupied their own spot on the island. The puffins were colorful and beautiful and looked like little squat cigars darting all around. We also saw a couple sea eagles (White tailed). It was really exciting for Travis and me because it was a once in a lifetime bird experience. The island also has a small community on it, the man who took us out in his boat had grown up there. It has only been connected with a bridge since 1981. The waves were quite large so it was necessary to keep a watch on the horizon!

Hurtigruten

The broken foot necessitated a change in our travel plans. We were originally going to travel by train to Finse, located near the Hardangervidda National Park and do some hiking. Instead we took the Norwegian cruise line, the Hurtigruten, up the coast to a Aalesund. The coastal islands were so beautiful as we headed north. It stayed light until past 11:30pm and then the sun was up again very early!

Fishing day

Leif and Travis spent one afternoon fishing out in the rowboat. When they were using a drag line they caught the fish pictured here.
That night Leif was so exhausted from all the casting, he fell out of his bunk and landed on his foot. We visited the ER in Bergen the next day and it turned out he had broken 1-2 of the metatarsals.

Eidfjord

Eidfjord and Voringsfossen Waterfall

One of our day trips took us across the fjord to Eidjord and the Hardangervidda Nature Center. We got to watch a panoramic film of the National park (from the view of a helicopter) and see the plateau, the reindeer, snow, and animals living in the region. There are still 2 small farms that are located on the fjord and are accessible only by hiking up a steep path.

Aga cabin and fjord

These photos give you an idea of the farms and homes and landscape on the fjord. They grew apples, cherries and plums on the steep hillsides. The fjord runs north/south so it gets good sunlight compared to other areas. The row boat provided for lots of entertainment.

Driving to Aaga

On the way to Aaga, Norway on the Hardanger fjord we took a longer route so we could visit Saevareid, Norway. The trip included two ferries across the fjords, a huge waterfall by the road, an 11km tunnel under the mountain and Folgafonna glacier, and lots of winding, narrow roads. To see the area on a map, type in Odda, Norway. This town is located at the end of the fjord and near the glacier. We stayed up the road in a town called Aaga (or Aga) on the western side of the fjord.

Bergen

We arrived in Bergen via Copenhagen in the afternoon of Tues, 14 July. After gathering our bags and loading the rental car we drove into Bergen to stay for the night in an apartment, with a couple rooms rented out by it's owner. The apartment was very close to the harbor and main downtown of Bergen so we could explore the city and see the historic buildings quite easily.

Bergen

Home

We arrived home from our travels late last night. I just downloaded the photos from my camera and there were 555. It's going to take me a little bit to get them organized to post.....