glacier_kitty | Entries tagged with switzerland

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Yesterday we left Switzerland. :( We had to change trains in Bern and Geneva before getting to Paris (it seemed we left the mountains fast :(). Thankfully we had a bus take us to the other bus station there. Omg..driving in Paris is CRAZY. It doesn't really seem like there's rules and lanes so everyone's driving every which way and trying to squeeze in at weird angles and bikes/motorcycles are squeezing between the cars too. Crazyy. D: But we made it to the station ok and then rode the train back to London. We said bye to the group (*sniff*) and found our cab (same guy as last time) and drove to grandma's house. So nice to sleep! Today is laundry day, we have a mountain of dirty clothes haha

( last of the switzerland pics )

Today was our last day in Switzerland. :( :( We went up another mountain in a gondola and went hiking through meadows and tamarack forests and cool scenery. Mom and I did the moderate hike this time. It didn't seem too bad at first, but then we hiked up this huge hill to a restaurant..owww. Soo tiring. Dave (the guy we went to the cathedral with) is ALWAYS in front way ahead no matter the terrain, if we're going up and down or have been walking for hours. That man is a MACHINE haha..the group nicknamed him "Mr. Speedy." :P It was nice to eat at the restaurant after that awful hill haha. After lunch we walked all the way back to the gondola and went down. When you got down you could hike up to this gorge if you wanted to. I didn't exactly want to since I was already tired and sore, but mom was going so I did too. It was uphill again..I didn't think I would make it, but I did. The gorge was pretty..lots of water rushing by haha. Then we walked back to the bus station (it was rather far from the hotel so we took the bus there). Most people decided to walk back but there was no way I was..my feet were KILLING me and I was just so tired. While waiting for the bus this cute kitty appeared and got up on a wooden railing thing by us! I pet it and it purred and looked happy! Awwww..I've so missed the sound of a purring cat. <3 It was so nice to relax at the hotel haha. I'm definitely sore :P

I'm so sad this is our last day in Switzerland. :( Besides getting sick, this vacation was AWESOME. I absolutely love Switzerland and must come back! The group we came with were so nice and caring..I'll miss them too. I hope to add some of them on Facebook! Tomorrow we take the train back to London and mom and I will spend a few more days at grandma's house before going home (Wisconsin seems like it was a long time ago by now :P)

Today mom and I went to Zermatt to see the Matterhorn. I woke up feeling kinda better, but now mom has the cold! Boo. Luckily we just had to switch trains once on the way. It was another gorgeous day and all the mountains and glacial rivers looked so pretty! There was also a cool glacier you could see from the train. Mom had been to Zermatt before (many years ago) but when we arrived she said nothing looked familiar. We decided to take the gondola to Matterhorn Glacier Paradise (how could I not?? Haha). Mom wanted to do that when she was in Zermatt before, but it was too cloudy. She thought she'd never be back to do it! It was super epic..there were glaciers everywhere!! When you got high enough the gondola went right over these glaciers and awesome looking icefalls and crevasses and stuff. *swoons* I think I took too many pics haha..it's impossible not to when I see glaciers though. :P At the top was a building with restaurants and shops and stuff (there were lots of skiers too!). There were great views up there! It was over 12,000 feet though..I just felt weird. I had a headache and I felt shaky and not in my head all the way haha. We didn't stay there very long since we had to ride the train back, but I did manage to get a pic of me in front of the Matterhorn (epic mountain!). I felt awful on the ride down..my ears were all messed up (mom's were too) and I just felt..weird. Note to self..don't go up to high altitudes when sick. We tried to catch the next train, but there were no taxis and we weren't fast enough (there are no cars allowed in Zermatt, just taxis/buses and emergency vehicles, which are all electric). We had an hour, so we ate lunch and got on the next train. I was still feeling weird and there were all these screaming kids on the train..I felt like I was having an anxiety attack or something. We made it back in time for dinner, but I was not feeling well at all..I was nauseous and just couldn't take any more stimulation, so I went back to the hotel and took a nice shower and now I'm relaxing. I still feel weird though..I hope it goes away! I think I'm done with high altitude for awhile haha. I hope I feel better by tomorrow, since we're going hiking. We'll just have to take it slow..

( here, have some epic pics! )

Yesterday I woke up and knew I wasn't gonna go hiking..I really didn't feel well. Ugh, I get all the way to Switzerland and have to stay in bed?? It was such a nice day too. When mom got back from hiking she said it was strenuous and I wouldn't have made it being sick. She also said Dave (the guy who fell years ago) was almost always in front racing up the trail..the other people did well too. Wow, I guess they did surprise me. :P When mom got back we went into town (I was definitely ready to get out haha) and ate lunch and got train tickets to Jungfraujoch, which you'll read about in a minute. After that I went into the hotel's sauna, since I heard that helps when you're sick. It was nice for awhile, but being that sweaty is kinda gross. :P Mom also went in, then it was time for dinner. We went to bed early this night

I woke up this morning feeling sort of better, and excited to go to Jungfraujoch! (Today was a free day) Jungfraujoch is the highest railway station in Europe (11,388 ft). It goes up into the mountains by the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau, then the train goes through a tunnel in the Eiger and you end up at this building perched on a rock between the Monch and Jungfrau. You have to keep switching trains to get there haha. This is what I wanted to do most in Switzerland. It was soooo pretty and SUPER epic..it was so warm and clear! The three mountains and the glaciers on them are amazing (you get so close to them!!). I had been wanting to see the Eiger and go through the tunnel ever since I read about its climbing history. Inside the tunnel are some viewing windows..you look down the face of the mountain and at one the glacier is just right there haha..I was squeeing from the awesomeness. :P Eventually we made it too the top..omg so epic!! There's glacier ice everywhere, and I even saw the Aletsch Glacier!! I've been really wanting to see that glacier too!! Climbing up all the stairs in the building is annoying though..it's hard work at over 11,000 feet haha! The building had this cool ice palace, with some ice sculptures and cool tunnels through the ice. You're actually inside a glacier in there!! So cool. :D After exploring up there we took the train back down to Kleine Scheidegg (that is so hard to pronounce!), since it had great views of the Eiger and I really wanted a picture in front of it. We walked up a hill to a great view of the Eiger and I got my pics. :D Yaaay, a dream come true! I looked through binoculars at the North Face of the Eiger..it was soooo surreal to be looking at the features I'd read about so much and where the famous climbers were (like the Hinterstoisser Traverse, the key to unlocking the face). Woww. The North Face looked SUPER hard to climb..no wonder people kept dying on it. D: I so love I was able to see the Eiger and on such a nice day too! I bought souvenirs too..omg everything is so expensive here. D: The train goes a different way going back, and we passed right under the Eiger! Wowwowwowww..*swoon* All the little villages nestled in the valleys and meadows are so cute and make you happy and peaceful just by looking at them! No wonder Switzerland is one of the happiest countries. Mom and I were so sick of riding trains and being crowded with other people by the time we got back to Kandersteg..it makes you feel so dirty! We had dinner, but I wasn't really hungry anymore. Going back to the hotel was so nice..so tired!! So worth it though, today was amazing <3

Tomorrow our group is supposed to go to Interlaken, but mom and I passed through there already and want to do something else (other people are going to also..one group said they were going to Jungfraujoch instead..good choice ;)). We're gonna try to go to Zermatt to see the Matterhorn! Sweet! (My cold better go away too!)

This morning I woke up feeling not that great..like I was getting a cold. Ugh! Though I was actually kinda surprised I hadn't got sick already with all the traveling I've done..for some reason I usually get sick in some way in Europe. Everyone on the train yesterday sounded like they had the plague..I felt so germy, ew. After breakfast we walked to the cathedral (we took the guy I thought had a stroke with us since he was traveling alone..he actually fell off something years ago). There were definitely lots of bells ringing haha. We couldn't really explore the inside since it was Sunday (it looked pretty from what I could see though), but we could walk up to the top! (You had to pay though..wtf?) Lots of stairs, ow. :P I liked looking at the gargoyles and decorations on the facade (I felt like the Hunchback of Notre Dame :P). It was actually pretty foggy when we got up there so we couldn't see much..boo! Of course the fog lifted when we got back down..fail haha. I bought some souvenirs and walked along the streets and river. Such a pretty city!! At 12:30 I think we all walked to the train station and boarded the first train of the day. After entering Switzerland (not sure when that was..I didn't see a sign) we got off that train and boarded another one. Suddenly everything was in German..that's even harder to decipher than French haha. The scenery gradually became more hilly and mountainous. Eventually snow capped mountains appeared! So pretty. I saw what looked to be the Eiger, but wasn't sure. Then a guy came over and was like "that's the Eiger!" Yay!! That's the mountain I most want to see..it has such an interesting climbing history. After riding on that train for awhile we got off and boarded ANOTHER one haha! Crazyy. We were definitely in the Alps now..so lovely. It wasn't too long till we got to Kandersteg, where we're staying for the next week. It seems like a cozy little town. After checking in at the hotel we met with one of the guides and she told us about the hikes we'd do (there's an easy and moderate one). One said we'd hike to a place that overlooks the North Face of the Eiger!! Mom and I of course opted for the moderate hike for tomorrow..we didn't come all the way to the Alps to do some baby hike. :P Surprisingly, the guy that has a very pronounced limp (he said he was born that way..like his legs and one arm didn't form right or something) said he was gonna go on the moderate hike too. He was like "if *I* can do it, you can too!" I hope he'll do ok! After the meeting we had dinner..it was soooo good..pumpkin soup, braised beef, mashed potatoes, flan..yumm. Then it was time to relax. You have to pay for the Internet here..ugh. I really hope my cold doesn't get any worse..hiking with a cold does not sound pleasant :/

Lake Michigan and Chicago

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Tomorrow we go to Switzerland! I hope it's less hectic than London haha. I'll probably like it better anyway, since we'll be in the Alps :D

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Wow, so gorgeous!! This is one of the places we're going..I hope it's that sunny when we're there! (How do you pronounce that?? O_o)

It makes me sad how dead LJ has been lately :(

( 22. A .gif of your celebrity crush )

Would you rather have your identical twin be far more successful than you financially or romantically? Romantically

Today's trivia: The world's population increases by 237,748 every 24 hours

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