Here, There and Everywhere: Interlaken, Switzerland Part Two

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Interlaken, Switzerland Part Two

Thursday was my second (and last) day in Switzerland. I was kind of bummed about the weather on Wednesday, and had decided I was only going to go up in the Alps if it was nice out when I woke up. I had a plan B (to go to the Swizz capital, closer to France), but was really hoping to be able to go with plan A.

I woke up around 9:00 on my lovely hostel bed/piece of foam, and was thrilled to see it was sunny out! As I was brushing my teeth, I said hello to the girl who had slept in the bunk above me. And who had let me in when I locked myself out at 3am. Turns out she was only there for the day as well, from Ireland, and had no specific plans. I told her what I wanted to do, and we decided to figure it out together.

I wanted to go to the top of the mountains, and eat at a revolving restaurant at the top of the world, called Piz Gloria, at 10,000 feet. It was made world-famous by one of the Bond movies in 1969, and is designed like a big spaceship anchored in the alpine bedrock.

It wound up being quite the adventure to get up there! It took us two buses, one train, and four cable cars. About two hours, each way.

I cannot begin to explain what it felt like once we got on the cable cars and headed into the snow. It was just unreal. As we got higher and higher, the amount of people we were with got smaller and smaller. Many of them stopped in a traffic-free town called Murren on the way up, and didn't continue to the restaurant. By the last cable car, there were only four of us. I felt like a tiny little speck on this Earth. It almost brought me to tears. It was a mix of what I was seeing, and how I was feeling. Pretty incredible stuff.

I'm so happy that I found a nice, friendly person to share the day with. We agreed that while we are both pretty well traveled, that that was the most amazing experience either of us has ever had.