Contrast

Why no blog post last night?  Because we were freakin' exhausted!

Yesterday was our hiking day.  We decided to warm up with a quick, easy hike.  It wasn't bad.  We basically followed the river here and there, up and down until we wound up in a picturesque mountain meadow just dripping with wild flowers, waterfalls, streams, trees, craggy rocks, and... cow pies!  Cows are certainly amazing animals around here; they seem to make it everywhere.  A lot of time yesterday was spent watching the paths we were taking in an attempt to avoid the ever-present gigantic cow pies.  Michael was the only unlucky one, in case you were wondering.

 

Following our easy excursion to the Lauterbrunnen River meadow, we decided to try a more difficult hike up into the mountains.  It was certainly difficult.  Marc and I ran out of steam much more quickly than Michael, who seems to be fueled much more effectively by his optimistic attitude than we were by trail mix.  I eventually started to run low on water as well (I only had my half-liter bottle with me) and Marc and I debated the merits of filling up from one of the numerous crystalline mountain streams.  Eventually dissuaded by Michael, we found a trough in the middle of a pasture that was fed by a hose.  We decided to risk it (to no ill effect yet).  We eventually headed up, up, up, eventually arriving at the village (settlement) of Oberberg, where there was a much more friendly looking trough from which we drank, ate some more trail mix, and took a rest while staring down into the valley below.  

 

When we were ready to continue, we decided to take a different route back, that led along the ridge of the mountains.  We managed to lose the trail at one point, and by following footprints, we crossed over a barbed wire fence and found ourselves on an incredibly steep incline with nothing below.  We noticed the path above us, and climbed upwards, dug in hand and foot to the grass and rocks up to it.  Safely on the path again, we continued our journey across the ridge.  The Alps are funny.  There are tons of wildflower-covered meadows along the sides of the mountains that one could totally imagine Julie Andrews whirling around in, if only that whirl didn't send her plunging to her death.  

     

The hike continued down into the valley, winding down the mountain path on narrow switchbacks, and through the woods by a river gorge back to Gimmelwald.

   

Back at the hostel, we sat for a while, basking in our victory, before inhaling our dinner of pasta and meat sauce.  We sat and talked with a couple from Washington State while I drank a delicious hot chocolate (with peppermint schnapps and whipped cream) before being persuaded to play the piano.  I drew a crowd of three or four folks who sat around and talked, applauding politely at the end of each piece.  It was a fun evening.

Today is a lazy day.  We woke up, checked out, and continued to hang around in the hostel because of the rain.  One neat thing about rain here- we're high enough that we literally sit inside a cloud!  

We've mostly sat around doing almost nothing, and Michael and I have been working on controlling the large fly population here.  You'd think that after seeing so many of their fallen comrades on the floor, the damn things would learn.  We depart Gimmelwald at about 6:00 or 7:00 pm to head back to Bern, where we'll take the night train to Barcelona.  We've heard a lot about Gypsy thieves on these trains, so it'll certainly be an interesting experience.

Gimmelwald, and Switzerland in general, has been my favorite place so far.  Bern was a quiet little city, not anything like you'd expect from a capital city.  It was clean, friendly, and quaint- an interesting look at a medieval city that hasn't changed much.  Even the street musicians seemed of a higher caliber here than elsewhere- on a walk to the train station we passed a barbershop quartet, a man playing wine glasses, and a harpist.  Street saxophonists and people trying to drum on five-gallon buckets for tips are probably deported.  Gimmelwald is a great little mountain village.  If Bern was quiet, Gimmelwald is silent.  Shops open and close based on their owners' schedules, and things just happen naturally here.  Everything is home made, from the cheese and sausage to eggs and yogurt.  Both are places I can see myself visiting again in the future, as they both merit a lot more exploration than we had time for.