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Europe 2023

August - November 2023
Our 3 month sabbatical in Europe! Read more
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  • TravelerEurope 2023
    Day 12

    Zurich & Lucerne (Day 1), Switzerland

    August 17, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 81 °F

    What we did:
    - Another early wake up to catch our 6am flight. Had some time to walk around the city of Zurich - walked along the glacier blue river and Lake Zurich overlook before breaking in Switzerland right with traditional Fondue for lunch!
    - After lunch traveled onto the beautiful town of Lucerne. Took an hour or so break to regroup once we got there. Planned on doing a boat tour, but clouds/slight rain and unexpected cost led us to instead just explore the area on foot, and we were very happy we did!
    - We felt like true Euro locals as we had our 1st picnic of the trip down by the lake! Throngs of locals all hanging out and not a single one staring at their phone… need to import that back to the US somehow.
    - Capped the night in the land of chocolate by enjoying a box of assorted Swiss chocolates while reading on a park bench down by the lake that had an unreal view of the sunset on the mountains. Probably safe to say Steph’s trip peaked in that moment, and folks, we might be all downhill from here.

    Where we ate:
    - Lunch at the highly recommend Swiss Chuchi! Lots of hype coming into this and it lived up - true Swiss fondue with bread, steak, pickles/onions and potatoes. Some cold Chasselas wine that locals say helps your stomach with the cheese. 10/10
    - After gorging for the last few days we hit the local grocery store for salads to picnic at the lake.
    - Couldn’t be tooo healthy so grabbed a box of assorted chocolate from Bachmann’s (this place is Steph’s Mecca).

    Fun facts:
    - Fondue is typically only available in the winter so not many places serve it summertime. Fondue originated in Zurich!    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    11
    Day 13

    Lucerne, Switzerland (Day 2)

    August 18, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 86 °F

    What we did:
    - Lazy morning sleeping in and lakefront jog for Trent
    - Headed up to Mt. Pilatus on the “Golden Route” that included a gorgeous 1.5 hour cruise down Lake Lucerne, then a Cogwheel train up the mountain, and finishing with a Gondola down the other side.
    - Cogwheel train was broken so bit of a wait (and not too comforting)
    - Did a short hike to the top of Mt. Pilatus after the cogwheel. Worked our way through a Trent panic attack due to the sheer cliffs but we made it to the top! Celebratory beers on the gondola back to Luzern.
    - Trent was extremely hot from this hike and our hotel did not have air conditioning. See his love for the fan in the pic below.
    - Grabbed a drink at La Bonne Cave wine bar on the river before picking up poke for picnic round 2 by the lake in Inseli Park
    - Friday night and town was buzzing! Grabbed gelato for a walk along the lake and FT of Jackie D. before pulling out our books to read. Are we old and boring for reading in a park on a Friday night?

    What we ate:
    - Cliff bars for breakfast and picked up to-go sandwiches from Twiny Station
    - Poke from Pazo Bowl
    - Amarino Gelato 🔥🔥🔥 and ate by the lake.

    Fun facts:
    - Mt. Pilatus peak was in 007 Majesty’s Secret Service (George Lazenby). Might have pre-dated us a bit    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    Day 14

    Bern & Interlaken (Day 1), Switzerland

    August 19, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 90 °F

    What we did:
    - Slept in a bit and then fumbled morning breakfast in town by not being ready in time so we ended up grabbing coffee and a sandwich on the hour train to Bern.
    - Wandered along the crystal clear, deep green river Aare through the capital city of Bern. We WILL be coming back! In the summer they have a tradition where they put their stuff in dry bags and float this river for miles through town. On this 85 degree Saturday the river was full of people enjoying the float - it looks so peaceful and refreshing. The fomo was real.
    - Climbed up to the Rosengarden park overlooking Bern to have a nice outdoor lunch and enjoy the scenic views. Steph spilled salad dressing all over her white pants making it look like she had an accident.
    - Hour train into Interlaken and quick walk to our Airbnb…. We may have been swindled on this booking.. The bed sheets had not been cleaned/were in a ball (fortunately they had a washing machine so we cleaned them ourselves) and this was an attic apartment with no AC so steaming hot on the 90 degree day. Also no door to our attic! So open for anyone in the building to technically just come up. We opened the window for a bit but bugs got in so we had to close it….Later that night contactless blind Trent stumbled right into a MASSIVE 2-3 inch long spider hanging from the door frame… maybe the first bit of morale dip on the trip.
    - After checking in we did hit the grocery store for a quick sandwich dinner and walked around town before crashing early.
    - Debated going up to the Harder Kulm but decided to save $$ and see if we thought it was worth it later on since it only gives you a view of Interlaken. We opted for a quick TV episode/reading instead.

    What we ate:
    - Coffee and Bachman sandwich on train for breakfast
    - Lunch at Restaurant Rosengarden in Bern, including good pasta, fish, and Prosecco!
    - Sandwiches from the grocery store for dinner (Switzerland coop’s have solid premade food).

    Fun facts:
    - A big “coming of age” moment for Swiss kids in the Bern area is the first time they get to float the Aare with their parents.
    - Weeknights after work people will “float”home from the office. Per Jenna’s point, undetermined what they do with their laptop.    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    Day 15

    Interlaken (Day 2) - Mürren & Gimmelwald

    August 20, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 79 °F

    What we did:
    - Canyoning day! Picked us up at 9am to bring us to the shop and put on our wetsuit, helmets and lifejacket. It was a big group going as a mix of Americans, hungarians, Swiss, Brits, Spaniards, and French. It was a 30 minute drive up in the vans to the mountain and then 1-1.5 hours in the canyon!
    - The trail went through a 3-5 foot wide glacial river with large rock faces on both sides (i.e the canyon). Super cold glacial water so shout out to the wetsuits and 85 degree temps! Steph was still numb and shivering by the end. The trail was a mix of climbing through the river/rocks, sliding down rock faces into deep pools, jumping 10/15ft into other pools, and rope repelling down.
    - We grabbed a beer in the shop with the other guests before heading back to the BnB.
    - After regrouping, we took the trains/gondolas up to Murren! Absolute awe the whole way up. Walked the town and enjoyed the scenic overlook with some beers and Rosti while admiring the hang gliders (and freaking Trent out for our paragliding excursion the next day)
    - Walked the 30 mins down from Murren to Gimmelwald and possibly single best views and most peaceful walk we may have ever had. Stunned the whole way down
    - Gimmelwald is a postcard town - small swiss chalets with panoramic views smack right in the mountain. Stopped for beers at an idyllic patio at the Pension Gimmelwald overlooking it all.
    - BIG EXCITING NEWS - Mid Gimmelwald beers Jess and Joe facetimed us to tell us that they are officially engaged!! Great time catching up with them on the big day! Steph had been tracking Jess on “FindMyFriends” for a good 72 hours hoping to guess when it was going to happen

    What we ate:
    - Made eggs and sandwiches in the airbnb for breakfast/lunch
    - Snack of our 1st ROSTI at Hotel Alpenruh. Essentially a skillet of potatoes, swiss raclette cheese, ham onions and pickles 🔥🔥🔥. Trent was in heaven.
    - Another grocery store sandwich for dinner

    Fun Facts:
    - Trent forgot to tell them he had a previous knee injury until after we were in the canyon, which our guides weren’t thrilled about, but was easier to stomach than the man last week who let them know he had severe epilepsy once in there.. knee hung strong though!
    - Steph was shocked every time she was dunked in the canyon because it was soooo cold. She would have floated over waterfalls a couple of times if Trent wasn’t there to catch her!    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    Day 16

    Interlaken (Day 3) - Wengen, Switzerland

    August 21, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F

    What we did:
    - Excursion round 2 - this time we are jumping off a cliff! Paragliding was straight up sensational. We took the gondola up to the top of Murren with our French and Spanish guides. These fellas just like soaring - having given tandem hang gliding and skydiving tours all over the world, we like we were in good hands.
    - You both get attached to a harness together and have to run full speed off the cliff, essentially running in midair while the parachute catches. After that it feels like you're on a sofa in the sky - so calm and peaceful just floating through the mountains and over Murren/Gimmelwald and Lauterbrunnen. We go the chance to fly over a canyon that is hard to reach via car or hiking, so awesome to get that opportunity.
    - Trent flew for 20ish minutes (that extra weight matters) while Steph was in the air for 30+ minutes. Steph had a false start on the take off due to wind changing directions, but after that was super smooth (albeit a bit nerve-wracking). Trent opted for some flips and spins at the end of his flight!
    - We grabbed celebratory coffees in Wengen at Hotel Caprice balcony with unreal Mountain Views - vibes were so high as we recapped our flights. 10/10 recommend paragliding.
    - In the afternoon we hiked the 2-3 hour Panorama trail from Mannlichen to Kleine Scheidegg (took multiple attempts to type those). Great trail and views but a big sheer cliff/drop for Trent so he had mild to moderate panic and had to be talked down
    - After the hike went through downtown Lauterbrunnen for beers at scenic Restaurant Schutzen.
    - The evening was spent booking Oktoberfest tents.
    - MASSIVE SPIDER KILL COUNT at 2.5 - Undetermined if we got the third guy. Trent is phased after he came face to face with the second one again. Airbnb indoor temp registered at 31 Celsius - 88 degrees fahrenheit. Panic is slowly setting in…

    What we ate:
    - We need a Swiss Coop grocery store rewards card at this point. Made eggs and sandwiches in airbnb for breakfast/lunch and frozen pizza for dinner

    Fun Facts:
    - Hardo hang gliders will fly for 300-600 kilometers! You read that right - straight up human airplanes. They’ll get up to 15,000 feet and just float across the country.
    - Guides give 6 flights a day and each one is different based on the time of day, wind and heat.
    - In order to stay up or go higher you can catch “Thermals” which are pockets of hot air that help you gain loft. So midday/afternoon flights can be longer, but are a bit more choppy than early morning.    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    Day 17

    Interlaken (Day 4)-Lauterbrunnen &Mürren

    August 22, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F

    What we did:
    - Airbnb saga hits the crescendo. After a sweltering nights sleep interrupted by dreams of spider attacks, we woke up to someone in the unit. They were downstairs but we understood that our host was gone. Trent talks to the guy, and as it turns out, there are many other roommates that have access to this “shared space” and therefore our unit.
    - We follow-up with our Airbnb host again on the growing list of issues, and that we essentially want out of the reservation. Under Airbnb rules we have a host of complaints that enables us to leave. However, our host Daniel is extremely unhelpful, blames us, and generally throws a fit (Trent absolutely despises Daniel). Daniel is unwilling to find a compromise so we pack up and leave the apartment and file a formal complaint with Airbnb for a refund.
    - We rebook to what turns out to be an awesome place up in the mountains of Wengen, and after 1-2 hours of phone calls won our refund battle with Airbnb handily. Nice profit on the refund too! Take that Daniel 🖕
    - Morale and great vibes reestablished (spider fears may take longer to abate) we set off on the picturesque North Face trail from Murren, up through the mountains and then ending down in Gimmelwald. Absolutely a top 3 hike ever for both of us - Switzerland is a gift to the earth; the place is incredible.
    - Back to Pension Gimmelwald for another big beer to celebrate our battle against Daniel and rave about our views from the hike. Steph’s retirement might be running a coffee shop in Gimmelwald and Trent can be the bartender.
    - Stopped for dinner in Lauterbrunnen and crashed in our clean, comfortable, and spider free hotel room. Daniel 🖕

    What we ate:
    - Made big egg and veggie scrambles at the airbnb before leaving and packed sandwiches for lunch.
    - 1st tourist entrapment of the trip with $65 for two burgers at Restaurant Schutzen in Lauterbrunnen… we know better but places close early in Switzerland and we were running out of options. Reminder - check the menu prices!

    Fun Facts:
    - Airbnb support is top notch
    - You CANNOT die from a spider bite from Swiss spiders.    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    Day 18

    Interlaken (Day 5) - Grindelwald

    August 23, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 72 °F

    What we did:
    - Slept in after a glorious nights sleep and wonderful to wake up in the mountains! Nice coffee in town before making the trek towards Grindelwald
    - Grindelwald was easier to get to from our old airbnb so a bit of extra train travel to get over there but oh well!
    - Walked through Grindelwald before taking the 25 minute gondola (super long but picturesque Mountain Views) up to the top of First Mountain.
    - Solid two hour round trip hike to lake Bachalpsee capped by the “First Cliff Walk”. Cliff walk is single file grated floor/glass railing walk over the valley floor. Trent did okay heights wise given the railings and how many tourists there were.
    - First day of the trip where we really saw a large group of Disney World-esque tourists that kind of took us out of it. Everywhere else shocked us by how uncrowded it was so we were bound to get this at some point. Not our favorite hike but still solid.
    - Had a nice pizza dinner back in Wengen with an awesome night cap at a patio bar with live music and views of the mountain/cobblestone streets. Great cap to the Jungfrau region!
    - Read in the hotel and called Mom/Helen to plan for Amalfi!

    What we ate:
    - Coop grocery breakfast bars and pretzel bun sandwiches (this place rocks).
    - Salad and pizza dinner at Ristorante de Sina. Sticking strong to no alcoholic drinks at dinner - thriving on the big bottles of sparkling water!

    Fun Facts:
    - For friends/family wanting to do this trip, we recommend the first two days stay in Grindelwald (do canyoning, the First hike and Panorama/Eigen trails) and then transfer to three days staying in Wengen/Lauterbrunnen area (paragliding, North Face walk. Murren/Gimmelwald)    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    Day 19

    Interlaken (Day 6) & Zermatt (Day 1)

    August 24, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 81 °F

    What we did:
    - Woke up in Wengen sad to leave the Jungfrau region, but pumped to keep moving! About four hours of trains to our final destination of Zermatt, so we cut the travel in half with an amazing pitstop in Kandersteg. - We put our luggage in a locker at the train station, grabbed a quick coffee at Schweizerhof bar looking up at the mountains and then took the gondola to the top of the mountain. We’re back in the land of greenish blue glacier lakes - Lake Oeschinensee is gorgeous.
    - We took a two hour hike around the lake before enjoying our lunch on a bench at the water's edge. There were a couple of Brits whining about the water temperature that temporarily scared us off from swimming. But before potential regret kicked in, Trent took the plunge and dove in. The Brits were right! It was freeeezing, but super refreshing to swim around and enjoy the Mountain views. Steph opted for warmth on shore and documenting Trent's swim with her camera.
    - We finished up our hike and trek down from the lake, grabbed some rather large beers in town (at Schweizerhof again) and continued the remaining two hours onto Zermatt. Exhausted from the last few days we grabbed take out dinner and watched some TV/read on the couch in our very nice Airbnb before an early bedtime. Daniel 🖕.
    - We were in love at first sight walking through the picturesque Zermatt ski town - might be back for winter ski season! We can tell this is what Vail and others have tried to emulate.

    What we ate:
    - To-go breakfast quiches coffee and pastries from Bakeri Konditorei. Also bought sandwiches there for lunch.
    - Trent’s 1st Euro Kebab at "Take It Doner" in Zermatt

    Fun Facts:
    - Zermatt is consistently voted #1 or #2 ski resort in Switzerland and always the top priced lift tickets    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    Day 20

    Zermatt, Switzerland (Day 2)

    August 25, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    What we did:
    - Woke up and had a nice breakfast of breakfast bars and hard boiled eggs that we made the night before. We walked through town and took the Sonnegga cogwheel to the Sonnegga outlook. We hiked part of the "5 Lakes Trail" to get to lunch at Chez Vrony. We were intending to the whole 5 Lakes Trail but after reading some poor reviews of it we opted into just hanging on the mountain the rest of the day.
    - We planned the lunch at Chez Vrony a while back for Trent's birthday. The restaurant has a massive deck with umbrellas and lounges with great views of the Matterhorn. You can only get to the restaurant via hiking, biking, or skiing (in the winter). They gave us a free champagne toast to start for Trent’s birthday.
    - We were planning to do more hiking in the afternoon but Chez Vrony was advertising their sister bar/restaurant which happened to be only a 10 minute hike away with even better views. Needless to say we opted out of any further hikes and enjoyed some drinks and coffees at the sister bar, Paradise.
    - We took the cogwheel back down to Zermatt and picked up little things for dinner from the Coop since we were so full from lunch. We capped it off by watching Jack Ryan and going to bed early. It was a wonderful day full of good drinks, great weather, and views!

    What we ate:
    - hard boiled eggs and yogurt from Coop for breakfast
    - Chez Vrony - we ordered 2 glasses of white wine, a summer salad, Swiss rösti, risotto, and THE chez burger. All was absolutely delicious! They capped it all off with a chocolate cake for Trent’s birthday.
    - Sandwiches, salads from co-op for dinner.

    Fun facts:
    - Zermatt offers year round skiing.
    - We decided that Zermatt is our favorite ski town, even without being there during ski season! It seems that most US ski villages have tried to copy the Zermatt village, building structures, and vibes.    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2023
    1
    Day 21

    Zermatt, Switzerland (Day 3)

    August 26, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ 🌧 59 °F

    What we did:
    - Great lazy day! Slept in and then headed up the 30 minute Gothard Bahn to the top of the mountain for some hiking. Well… started spitting rain and blowing really strong wind when we got to the top. The top is just shy of 12,000 feet and even in late August it was still covered in snow. Ever the adventures and trying to avoid regret, we set off down the mountain for a few hour hike questioning our life decisions - within 5 minutes we were scrambling back up to the station. Sideways rain at 12,000 feet of elevation with snow still in view was not our idea of vacation. Cool views and happy we tried, but down the mountain on the gondola we went, Grabbed an awesome lunch in town while it rained before just hanging in the airbnb for a few hours. Around 6 we headed out for a bar crawl! So much for not drinking on this trip. Over a few hours, three bars and many beers later we came back and crashed fairly early. Inches from giving in and getting McDonald’s we did show some self-restraint! Have to be proud of the little things.

    What we ate:
    - Hard-boiled eggs for breakfast
    - We split delicious Thai curry and rice bowl for lunch at Manud
    - Grocery store sandwhichs for dinner
    - Bar crawl to Hexenbar, Brown Cow and Grizzlys

    Fun facts:
    - Hangovers still exist
    - Steph needed a new hair clip so we popped into a “pharmacy” with some in the display case. She comes out in a panic, beyond phased, as the €.98 cents price tag was actually €98.00 Swiss franks… the lady wouldn’t let us return them so Steph’s now the proud owner of the nicest designer hair clip you’ll ever find 😂. Baffled yet slightly impressed at the Swiss’s ability to swindle us    Read more

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