This morning we were all up bright and early. The flippin’ floppin’ sandwich factory (as we have named Sandra & Tavis’ sandwich making production) was in full swing and we were all out the door by 7:00. Today was a travelling day as we enjoyed the sights of Switzerland by various trains.
- 7:06 – 7:18 bus from Krattigen to Spiez
- 7:33 – 7:57 train from Spiez to Interlaken Ost (East)
- 8:04 – 9:55 panorama train from Interlaken Ost to Luzern
- 10:12 – 11:09 boat from Luzern to Vitznau
- 11:15 – 11:45 train from Vitznau to Rigi Kulm
The commute to Interlaken was the same as we have done before, but once we reached Interlaken we had nearly a two hour train ride on a panorama train which had huge windows on the sides and along the top. It was an incredible view as we travelled along the lakes and through the mountain passes. The train was a bit busy so we were spread out a little bit. Ari got a little bored at watching the scenery so he started building card houses. There was a family that was quite impressed with his building skills and began taking photos of him. Ari now thinks he is an international card house legend.
When we arrived in Luzern we decided to take the early boat across the lake to Vitznau as we knew we would be back later to explore the large town. The boat was incredibly crowded. On all the boats, first class passengers go upstairs and second class folk (like us) stay down. Most of the people were down with us so it was very difficult to find a seat. However, we kept walking around the boat until we found room along the side. We were next to a hound dog with big floppy ears and before long Ari befriended the pup. The boat ride was quite relaxing despite the huge crowd and it really wasn’t that bad. We were pleasantly surprised when the person checking tickets told us that all Swiss Travel Pass holders got a free gift… a luggage tag 🙂 That was a nice surprise but one of the most memorable things on this boat was the soap dispensers… they were like cheese graters. You turn the handle and the hard soap is shaved off into your hands… Ingenious!!
After arriving to Vitznau we followed the crowd to the cogwheel train that took us straight up the mountain… and I do mean straight up! It was difficult to find a seat but we did manage to find room for 5 of us to sit at the back of the first train. We were pleasantly surprised when the conductor came over and asked if the kids wanted to join him in the control area with him. YES!!!! Ari and Ayva went up front and we didn’t see them again until we reached the top. It was the highlight of their trip I think. My favourite part was the train ride itself. This is the oldest cogwheel mountain train in Europe, dating back to 1871. The steepest gradient was up to 250%! We tried to capture this with video and photos but you just can’t imagine what it was like to be on a train with that steep of a slope! I am still in awe! For more information on the technical specs of the train click here.
Rigi
When we arrived at Rigi it was another spectacular view. We walked up past a restaurant to a tower. We had views in all directions. We saw 4 or 5 lakes surrounding the mountains, and all of the towns in the valleys. There was an electric fence we had to slip under which we didn’t think was on but when we got up the hill we realized why it was there… There was a heard of cattle grazing at the top. The cows were huge and they sounded like wind chimes. We tried to get close to one but the farmer was rounding up the heard with his dog and he was moving the heard to another field. That in itself was amazing to watch as the dog was so well trained. He stood by the farmer and when given a signal would get the heard moving. We also saw some people parasailing. They were taking off from the top of the hill. This was the perfect setting for us to enjoy our lunch so we found a place to set up and enjoyed our sandwiches. When we finished eating we decided to go back to the train. That is when Ari discovered that YES, the electric fence was indeed on and working well. He was still feeling the electric shock when we reached the train. However, it was soon forgotten after he walked straight up to the conductor and asked if he could ride up front with him. It was a different conductor but he welcomed Ari up there. Ari became the door man for the entire trip down the mountain. He introduced himself to all the workers and everyone that talked to him was laughing when they left. We found out after that he didn’t get any phone numbers but found out where each of the girls lived. It didn’t surprise us in the least!
Luzern
After reaching the bottom of the track in Goldau (we decided to go a different route than what we took up), we had a few minutes before catching our next train. We went to a local convenience store and bought ice cream snacks to give us some energy in the heat. Then we hopped on a train that took us back to Luzern. This train wasn’t as crowded as on the way up this morning so we all sat together. It took about 40 minutes. When we arrived in Luzern, Sandra was too tired to walk around the city so she went to find a Migro and do some grocery shopping for dinner. The rest of us went and walked the streets. We walked along the Chapel bridge which has an interesting history. You can read about it here. We then walked the narrow streets in town. The roads are extremely narrow and really only have enough room for a single car. The roads are shared by pedestrians and cars so it is quite interesting to stand and watch the flow of traffic! After about 30 minutes of wandering the streets and people watching, we walked back along the bridge and met Sandra on the train.
Again, we all sat together as the train wasn’t too busy. We were all quite tired so we all napped at some point on this 40 minute train ride to Olten. When we arrived in Olden Terris, Tavis, and myself walked across a bridge to see the train station from across the river. It was really hot though and we only had 15 minutes so we quickly walked back and we decided to ride in the family train car on the way to Spiez. Ari enjoyed playing in the kids area while Addison, Ayva, Terris and myself played a game of rocket during the 1 hour train ride. It went by quick and as soon as we arrived in Spiez we crossed the platform and hopped on our bus to Krattigen with about 1 minute to spare.
We got home around 6:45 and enjoyed a delicious meal of burgers made with local Switzerland beef. They were amazing. Now we will put in a last load of laundry as tomorrow will be our last day in Switzerland before we continue our journey to Italy. I wonder where the adventure will take us tomorrow?