Day 5 - We hit the different rail lines with our Swiss Pass, visiting parts of the Tops of Europe (I had earlier called it Tops of Switzerland, sorry) and wonder if Heidi left the village to work in an American franchise. We also discover we are not the only tourists!
City Hotel Oberland and Chalet Oberland Interlaken.
The breakfast room is
on the first floor.
The previous night whilst I impersonated a corpse, Craig had taken up the
challenge with an after hours search for Heidi and the St Bernard Dogs (they
carry kegs on their collars) through the streets of Interlaken. I had discovered
to my horror a few days earlier, Craig DOES NOT like fondues and this may impede
part of our 10 day Search!
I awoke refreshed and in need of a big breakfast, it was still days off
’til I would run the risk of life jacket wearing.The Chalet Oberland, as I was
to discover, like most of Interlaken was renovating and November is the quiet
time so the best time of year to do it. Craig and I found the breakfast rooms in
the old part of the hotel, overlooking the main road. A charming waiter showed
us to our table, asked us what we would like to drink and pointed us to the
plate and bowl loading area. I returned to the table with a first course and
discovered ‘the souvenir paper place mats’. I made a mental note to knock one of
these off before we left! On his placement, Craig excitedly showed me where we
would be travelling during the day, he is like the Human Railway Garmin.
A Teepee at Kleine Scheidegg. Maybe North Switzerland Indians?
After breakfast, back to the room to prepare. We were travelling to
Jungfraujoch and the railway station is at 3,570 metres. I wore the borrowed
parker, the new gloves and beanie, Would I need the thermals? I had bought them
for the trip but today I chose to travel light. With our day packs packed, we
walked back to Interlaken Ost, I think we walked because we knew when the train
would run but not the timing of complimentary bus. I am sure this had nothing to
do with Craig’s concern of my lack of exercise between meals.
Along the way I caught up on the sights, the bar Craig had been to the
night before, then the Hotel Metropole where I had taken the distant shoot of
the Jungfrau. We then passed Hooters, an American franchise with something to do
with owls, I thought. Odd, but it is American. Across the road were statues of a
naked boy and a naked girl at the entrance to a park. Were these monuments to
Peter and Heidi? No signs, so no idea. As we continued, we passed by an
interesting hotel which is actually two old ones joined together, the Hotel
Carlton Europe. They used to be, the Hotel Carlton and the Hotel Europe.
Is this a Heidi memorial in Interlaken and why is she naked?
We reached the Interlaken Ost station and were well in time for the train,
as were our fellow travellers. There are two ways from Interlaken to
Jungfraujoch. Both involve changing trains but both meet before the final
assault on the Jungfrau. The Human Train Garmin had decided which route we would
take, so we boarded the back carriages of train which advised ‘to
Grindelwald’.
As we climbed, I spotted goats in the paddock next to the railway. I
searched the field for Peter, for I figured, if I find Peter there will be
Heidi. Unfortunately these must have been orphan goats as there was no herder
(Peter). The train stopped at Zweilütschinen where it split! The front half
going to Lauterbrunnen and the back half where we were going to
Grindelwald.
Our stationmaster (I called him Tom Baker) at Kleine Scheidegg
Along the way we discovered the train was propelled up the steep parts of
the rail line by cogwheels and racks between the tracks. The clunking noises
were the clue for us. At Grindelwald we have been befriended by two American
guys on a day trip from the other side of Switzerland. They are lost and we are
their new buddies. We headed for the train to Kleine Scheidegg and pointed them
to the ticket office. At Kleine Scheidegg we again changed trains. This is where
the two rail lines meet. We joined our train and passed on to the Eigerglacier
(2320 metres), here the train entered the 7 km long tunnel to the
Jungfraujoch.
Comments
Post a Comment