Boohoo - another day of rain and crappy weather. The pass (summit) was closed, and there was no alternative but to take a combination of trains, gondolas, and buses to get to Grieslap. Today's journey was horseshoe-shaped, requiring numerous modes of transportation. IF we had been able to hike over the pass, we would have walked directly over the mountain and to Griesalp. From what I understand, this is unheard-of weather. Zürich is still closed due to flooding. But I am still having a great time.
We first took a train.
The weather was so bad that sometimes the most interesting part of the journey was the signs in the bathrooms. I have seen this all over Switzerland. It would never occur to me to stand on the toilet?
Then we took a gondola.
then we took three more trains.
This one is my favorite so far. Marshal, Mailynn, and I concluded that it meant that men were supposed to sit to peepee.
The view of the lake at Interlaken.
Such an old and unusual gas pump. All of those numbers on the box at the center hid key holes. We assumed that individuals had their own access to gas, much like a bottle club at a restaurant. None of us had ever seen anything like it. Leave it to the Swiss.
After a series of short train rides, we took a full-size bus, but the road became so narrow that we had to change to a smaller bus. This bus ride is the steepest PostBus stretch in Europe. And I might add that it is so curvy that you meet yourself coming.
Each time we came to a curve, the bus sounded the loudest aaa-ruuu-ga horn of about six notes to warn any car coming down.
It is hard to believe that in the middle of nowhere, we couldn't find our hotel. Marshal was getting hangry, so we stopped at this hotel/restaurant/bar. We each had a glass of wine, and both Marshal and Mailynn got soup.
The water was coming down with incredible force due to the spring thaws.
Finally, our beautiful hotel, the Waldran, was built in 1910 in the style of a Swiss chalet. The chalet's historic atmosphere, surrounded by lush Alpine meadows and rugged peaks, has captivated many visitors. In 1981, the hotel was one of the shooting locations for the film adaptation of Thomas Mann’s “Magic Mountain.” In 2016, it was named the Swiss “Historic Hotel of the Year.” Indeed, all guests embark on a fascinating journey through time.
As soon as I put my backpack in the room, I decided to take a walk. Since there was no luggage delivery, I had to pack for overnight. The pack was pretty heavy, but thank goodness I bought a new, fancy pack a couple of years ago. It distributes the weight in a reasonable manner.
It started to rain again so I had to return to the chalet.
Dinner was really good. We started with a creamy barley soup. For our main course, we had squares of macaroni and parmesan. It was not my favorite entree, but it was certainly edible.
The dessert made up for the mediocre entree. It was a type of pudding flavored with fresh apricots.
My cute little room. There was no heat, so I had a down comforter and a wool blanket. Quite snuggly. The only fly in the ointment was that I had a family with young children in the room above, and until about 11:30, it sounded like elephants holding a square dance. Don't those parents know children should have a bedtime? It was certainly past mine!
So that is all the news that is fit to publish!
Good night and sleep well.
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