Sunday, July 19, 2009

Au Revoir La France - Willkommen, Bienvenue, Welcome to Switzerland

Switzerland for the win! While having spent onlz four days in Switzerland, compared to 13 in France, they were exciting and thoroughly enjoyable. Switzerland is the funny little country surrounded by France, Italy, Germany, and Austria, but not a member of the EU. It has its own currency, but seems to share everything else with its neighbors!

On July 13th we made our way from Lyon to Geneve to stay with a friend from Stanford. We were able to meet and hang out with his flatmates, which increased our sociability barometer considerably. July 14th - Bastille Day had we still been in France - found Joy and me touring the city on bikes that can be borrowed for the day for FREE (1 CHF per hour after the first four)! We saw the UN, gardens, and our first Protestant Basilica. Lovely city...complete with pastry shops and French speakers.

The next morning we skipped out of town early to get to Montreux to see Chateau Chillon. By far the most accessible of the Chateaux so far, this 12th centurz fortress hosted the ruling class of the Savoyards and Bernese while they toured their lands. Sitting on Lake Geneva, with picturesque mountains in the background, this castle is Rachel-approved. We strolled back to Montreux proper to pick up some bread, veggies, and good Suisse chocolate for lunch and dinner.

Then our 3-hour voyage to Gimmelwald began - on the shwankiest of trains we´ve traveled on yet. My jaw was floored and head out the window the entire time we loped along through the mountains and countryside. Language shifted as German speakers boarded the train and I could no longer read the signs we passed. Around 8pm, we took the five minute cable car up into the fog-shrouded village of Gimmelwald.

And so began another crazy cool birthday adventure! No, I didn`t get sick in a rainforest or bum around a city alone, but I did traipse over Alpine hillsides, listen to symphonies of cowbells, and stand at waterfalls of snowmelt... all the while awed by the massive, majestic peaks in the background. Then, in true Rachel style, I came back to the hostel and made moelleux au chocolat from my French chocolate cookbook, with fresh Gimmelwald butter and eggs (did I mention my vacation from veganism?) and dark Swiss chocolate. I was actually more content to finish the unmarred bar from the Montreux chocolatier.

July 17th weather contrasted greatly with the warmth and sunshine of my birthday. Still, we set off for a morning jaunt, heading up into the mist. By the time we reached the target waterfall, it had started a steady drizzle...then hail...then downpour with flashes of lightning and claps of thunder. At the point when our clothes were soaked through and there were puddles in our shows, we decided to return rather than brave the peak that was our original destination. An hour and a half later we stumbled onto the hostel doorstep - chilled to the bone and soaked through. The glasses of hot water and fresh bread with avocado healed the body a bit, but my shoes have taken days to dry thoroughy.

Somehwat refreshed, we said goodbye to our mountain paradise and started along the route to Zurich. Our slightly longer than 12 hour stay and couch surfing experience was very pleasant. Just chatting with our hosts, cooking dinner, and watching the Daily Show was all we could have wished for at that point.

Now we are on a train to Kassel, Germany, where Joy`s relatives will pick us up to go to Fritzlar. It is rainy and cold, but I am really going to miss this country of French, German, and English melange and impressive landscapes!

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