Switzerland - Day0

Another year, another vacation. My brother planned this out, and I agreed to it without knowing any of the itinerary. Sure, I could have read the planning email chain and done my own research, but that would ruin the surprise. Truth is, I love this chaos.

Dramatis Personae:

• Adam - My brother
• Dani - His wife
• Sage - Their 19 month old daughter
• Curtis/Hannah - Friends of Adam/Dani
• Me/Mom/Dad - me/mom/dad

Adam/Dani/Sage/Curtis/Hannah had all flown out a few days prior, and my parents and I had a 6pm flight out to join them. The advantage of a 6pm flight is I could finish packing, set up the cat feeders, and still had time to attend an emergency conference call for my work project, which officially begins production today.  The disadvantage of 6pm flight is it arrives at 8am Swiss-time, aka 2am Baltimore-time, aka bedtime.

The flight was pretty unremarkable. I almost spotted my shop (Baltimore Hackerspace) from the air, but I got distracted when I saw where the Key Bridge wasn't. Then we arced up the coast and across the north Atlantic, racing towards tomorrow far too fast. I managed to grab about 3 hours of sleep in 15 minute chunks -  punctuated by muscle cramps, limbs falling asleep, cabin announcements... It was rough, but better than no sleep. We passed over Paris (which is massive) just before dawn, and an hour later I got my first glimpse of Switzerland: Very green, and never flat.

I bluffed my way through customs (I have no idea where I'm staying), but I have an American passport and a return ticket, so they don't really care. Then we grabbed our bags, exited the airport, crossed the street, descended an escalator, and immediately hopped on a train.

Our train was packed, so I ended up sitting next to a (pedal) biker with a broken hand, who dressed like he was homeless, didn't smell like he was homeless, and spoke zero English... I'm not complaining, just curious. Most of the views were tunnel walls or fences, and our glimpses beyond were very foggy. Cities are cities, the farms are cute, and a scattering of churches and castles on hilltops, just like Italy.

For our second train, we had to make a two minute transfer.... but unlike Italy the swiss trains are precise. The two minute layover is intentional, because they know the trains will be there exactly on time, sharing the same platform, and they've timed how long it takes to disembark, take a few steps, and board the connection. This time we chose seats on the second level for better views, and sailed down the coast of some huge lake on our way to Interlaken (which makes sense: Interlaken means "between-the-lakes"). I shot a few practice shots on my new camera to get used to it... I'm pretty sure it's smarter than I am, and I left my DSLR at home to force myself to learn it... we'll see how it goes.

The weather in Interlaken is cold with a side of downpour. We darted between awnings until we found a grocery store the size of a small mall, with clothing, mobile phone, and restaurant departments. We all bought sandwiches and, revitalized, planned our next move.  It was two busses and a 1/2 mile hike to our hotel. On low sleep, in the cold rain, with our bags, uphill.   Or it was a $20 uber. Sold.

The roads are windy, and so narrow it's barely enough for one car, let alone passing... it's like Irish back roads, only in Switzerland they all go dramatically uphill.  We got to the hotel, but we're far too early to check in, so we're just hanging in the lounge, which is all couches with a wall of glass looking out over the valley. Dad napped, mom did email, I wrote this, and now that the rain's stopped I'm gonna head outside and wander a bit. Small wander, not a big wander. Ciao. I mean, Guten Abend? That's definitely not quite right either.... <Break>

Everyone else got back from their hike, we finally checked in, mom didn't like that room and we got a free upgrade, and after all that, it was nap time! I thought it was reading time until I woke up 20 minutes later. Despite the rain, we took a half-hour walk down to an Italian place. The town is super cute, all the homes have gardens and excessive wood trim, and there are basins? troughs? fountains? of water all along the sidewalks. They look like they're for watering horses... but I haven't seen any horses yet.

Dinner was pizza, which was great, and Sage spent the whole time flirting with the waitresses and being shy to the waiters. The menus are in German, French, and Italian (3/4 the official Swiss languages. The 4th is Romanche and rarely used), which meant we basically knew what we were getting, but the details were all a surprise. During the meal the rain cleared up, and the fog lifted to become low clouds which is a vast improvement. Afterwards, we meandered back up to the hotel - cutting through random alleys (in our family, this has become known as "Cinque-Terre style") and admiring fish-ponds, ornamental flowers, and meeting one very social kitty. 

And with that, it's like 8pm! I'm going to read and then sleep until I can't anymore....