Switzerland is probably the place where one can keep going year after year, and still fall in love with the country. It is so beautiful and so close to nature that for someone who loves trekking and photography, its a paradise. I had the good fortune to work there for a couple of years, for atraxis (SwissAIRs IT wing) and it was probably the most enjoyable time I had. We used to roam around in the weekends, and travelled the length and breadth of the country. From the French border to the German border to the Italian border to the Austrian border its beautiful all year around. Each region or kanton has its own unique culture as well.
When we got a one week vacation in Dubai, my friend Arun and family, and me and family decided to cover Switzerland and Austria. Working for Emirates’ sister airline flydubai, travel is quite easy. Even otherwise, flights are light to Zurich, Geneva and Vienna. I made sure we booked the A-380 and I happily enjoyed the business class service, with the upper class lounge as well. The rest of the group unfortunately had to travel economy because staff travel privileges for children doesn’t include business class 🙂
We got down at Zurich after a seven hour journey. But I don’t think anyone was tired. We were enthusiastically looking forward to the rest of the trip. The reason being, we had decided to stay up in the mountains enroute Jungfrau. We wanted a change from the normal hustle and bustle of city life, and chose a small village in the laps of the mountain Gods. To reach there, we had to get down at Bern, Luzern, and Interlaken. After a three hour journey, we finally reached our destination. The hotel where we had booked our stay, was called Alpen Rose, and the village was Wengen. They didn’t allow any vehicles including cars or bikes in the village, though the hotel had an electric van to pick up our luggage.
Wengen turned out to be a quaint village, with very few people. The hotel we stayed was a wood affair with no air conditioner. It wasnt required at all. We were at the foothills of some large mountain ranges, though without snow. We visited during spring, hence snow was melting as well, it was more green than white.
We had planned for two days in Switzerland, and then two days in Austria. In Switzerland, we wanted to cover Jungfrau and surrounding places only. In Austria, we planned to visit Salzburg and Vienna. It was late by the time we reached the hotel, and we fell asleep fast.
The next day, we started out to Jungfrau. Since we were already up in the mountains, it was a short trip to lauterbrunnen, and from there to Jungfrau Joch. I had been to this place many times before, but still the site of snow clad mountains and sunlight sparkling off them, and whiteness all around me, is a feast for the eyes. I had my DSLR as well, and clicked away merrily. To keep the group happy, I took some pictures of them as well.
The view while travelling to the mountain top is breath taking, and every second is a new frame for a photographer. I took several snaps, but they all look very similar. So putting only few of them here. There were several people walking up the mountains, and I could only marvel at their stamina as well as their approach towards life. I was sure they weren’t tied down by jobs, and spent equal time in exploring nature as well as working.
We had lunch from there, and there is a Lindt store and factory which we visited. We bought several chocolates. We returned to the hotel and had dinner from there.
The next day morning, we set out to explore the village. We walked uphill and reached the station. I noticed for the first time, the cog wheel which helps the train go up steep gradients. I have read somewhere, that it’s there in India as well.
We found that there is a good place further up in the mountains, which we could reach by cable car. We decided to try it, the cable car also had a viewing platform at the top. We reached Mannlichen, which had a park and vast expanse of grassy meadows.
The kids had a good time wandering and running around in the meadow. It was actually on top of a very steep hill, but covered with flowers and butterflies. The weather was also superb, and it felt so good and healthy to breathe in the pure air. There was some competition going on actually, some kind of Iron Man race. People were running up hill from Wengen to Mannlichen, and I could only wonder at their stamina and the time they would have spent preparing for the race.
The view from the cable car both on the way up as well as return, was spectacular.
It was lovely to see all the houses looking like replicas, get closer as we descended in the cable car.
We purchased some memorablia, and started our trip to Zurich. From there, we planned to catch a high speed train to Salzberg. The village also had some wild life 🙂
The train ride back to Zurich was as lengthy as the one to Wengen and we reached Haupt Bahnhof. We found our train and boarded it. It was a long six hour journey to Austria, and we liberally used the train pantry to keep ourselves refreshed. We reached Salzburg late in the night, and depended on Burger King to keep our hunger away. We also rented a van to roam around the city as well as Vienna, and from there the plan was to return to Dubai.
The next day morning we set out to Halstatt. It was a place the two women in our group wanted to visit. My wife was specially interested because this was one of the screensavers that keeps popping up on our TV at home. Every time she saw it, she used to say she wanted to visit the place. How she found the place name, I still find it a mystery.
Halstatt is a photographers paradise. It however needs good lenses, and I had only my normal zoom lens which was quite shaky at long zoom distances. Then I had a normal panorama lens, which was good but not the best.
We walked around the town square, and it was a nice peaceful place. There was a park, and there were lots of activities to do there. We just walked around the lake for a while and then decided to move back. I saw a house covered with ivy in a unique way and took a snap.
There was also a good opportunity for photography in the park. I am still not sure what it conveys, I leave it to you to use your imagination as well.
I hoped the arrow wouldnt get released while I was taking the photo.
From there, there was a steep railway line going further up a mountain. But we didn’t go there, though I was very interested in how vertical the lines were, and how the trains were running in such an incline.
One innovation I have noticed in some other places in Switzerland as well, is how with one track they keep trains in both directions, running. Of course these trains would meet at some place, right? They actually have a turn table kind of mechanism. One train would reach the interchange place, and once it’s in position, the round platform on which the track was placed, would move. Another set of tracks would now get aligned, and the train in the other direction would use those tracks. Once the train has passed, the turn table would position itself again, and move the resting train to the earlier place. Then it would continue.
From what I know, India and Switzerland are the two places in the world where railway system exists in mountainous regions, at steep inclines. They use a locking mechanism to keep a third wheel along the middle of the rail. This probably gives it more traction and braking power, I think. Anyway, I am no expert in this.
After spending time in the park, we returned back to the hotel. We also walked along the main streets of Salzburg, visited an opera hall etc. The next day morning we visited an old fort. It was also raining heavily, so I didnt have much luck in clicking photos. Towards afternoon, we had to get ready for our return. We had to drive to Vienna, spend the night there, and from there get onto our flight the next day. We had only half a day to roam around Vienna. I was hoping for a relaxing trip back home in Business Class again.
My friend Arun was the driver, and was quite happy driving for long distances. He was residing in Finland before he moved to Dubai, so I guess he was quite at ease among the roads in Europe. While driving I saw one unique sight which I didn’t expect to see in Europe.
We spend the day visiting a museum. Vienna is such an old city that there are so many museums and art sculptures all around the city. For a history buff, its a very interesting place. However, the others in the group weren’t very interested in European History, and gave me a hard time when I suggested to go attend a museum walk.
We also visited Mme.Tussads wax museum. Took lots of photos with various celebrities.
Towards evening we set for the airport, and returned the car. The flight back was comfortable, and I believe all of us slept quite a lot, because of the hectic day. However, it was a great break and did a lot of wonder to my stressed mind as well as plump body :-). I walked a great deal, and it did a lot of good as well.