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  • Mary Kieran Gap Year
  • Mary Kieran Gap Year

Switzerland

A 8-day adventure by Mary Kieran Gap Year Read more
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  • Trip start
    May 8, 2024
    Mary Kieran Gap YearSwitzerlandTraveler

    Day 119: It Doesn’t Even Matterhorn

    May 8, 2024 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 50 °F

    First thing to know about Switzerland is it’s very very VERY expensive. We’ve been warned by many so we bought as much Italian pasta, sauce, and dried meats as possible and also looked for accommodation that isn’t at the main attractions, but close enough for short transit.

    Second thing to know is that April and May are the tourist season “maintenance months”. Recovering from winter and preparing for summer, many restaurants, hiking trails, gondolas, and attractions are shut down for repairs, cleaning, and much needed R&R. People online will say these are the cheapest months to visit Switzerland; we have a hard time believing that when hostels are $60 USD per bed per night.

    We slept in Stalden, a 1 hour train ride north of Zermatt and Matterhorn. The guest house was a 21 minute walk from the station on a road with no shoulder. It was the best decision though because we only paid $108 a night, had a kitchen, and could go up to Matterhorn when we wanted.

    We woke up, hit the grocery store for sandwich making, and took the train south. Zermatt is a beautiful little city and it had snowed the previous evening. Everyone was decked out in cute hats and snow boots.

    To our dismay, most alpine hiking trails were closed and both the scenic train and gondolas to Matterhorn were down for maintenance. It wasn’t a loss though because we planned our strategy for the next day and got to see all the touring skiers.

    We ended the day with a little hike around Stalden and some silly activities like spreading dandelion seeds.

    Spots:
    Zermatt
    Stalden    Read more

  • Mary Kieran Gap YearSwitzerlandTraveler

    Day 120: Nothing Else Mattershorn

    May 9, 2024 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 25 °F

    There are a few ways to see Matterhorn, one of the tallest summits in Europe. There is a scenic train, a gondola (also used by skiers), and you can see it from the town. Online sources agreed the gondola was worth it so we forked over the money for the trams. We desperately wanted to ski as well, but we didn’t have our gear or clothes so the rentals and jackets alone wasn’t worth the price.

    Visiting the gondola station the previous day, we power walked from the train and jumped on the next car. The gondola dipped up and down, and Kieran started to get motion sickness. We climb high enough that the casual skiers were hopping off, and we got very sad. We jumped off with them and took time to appreciate the slopes while Mary ate some snow. We finally make it to the top station at 3838 m and Kieran is feeling the altitude sickness. There is a panoramic viewing platform where you can see mountains and snow for miles.

    Across from Matterhorn is a huge slope where skiers must climb with gear and eventually ski down. We were excited to watch the skiers execute their runs and a man next to us says, “I have something for you” and pulls out some powerful binoculars. Mary immediately notices he has a Bethany Beach jacket, complements him, and says we are from Baltimore. Surprise Surprise he’s from Baltimore too! We spent an hour talking to Ron Goldstein outside on the viewing platform about travel, Baltimore, and life. We talk so long we get cold and need to get Ron on his way to Italy.

    The gondola pass also includes free entry into the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise Ice Castle which is carved into the glacier. We walk through pretty quickly because we lost all our heat talking to Ron. The ride down messed Kieran up and we needed food/water/rest immediately. Grabbed a half chicken from the grocery store and just sat at a park watching kids play ball.

    Kieran wanted to hike more, but we decided this was a bad idea and got him home. It was the right decision as Kieran either had food poisoning or altitude sickness the remainder of the evening.

    Spots:
    Matterhorn Glacier Paradise
    Zermatt    Read more

  • Mary Kieran Gap YearSwitzerlandTraveler
    1

    Day 121/122: Why Can’t We Live Here

    May 11, 2024 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F

    The last two days are bittersweet and a bit emotional. It was the first time Kieran felt the, “What could my life be if I lived here?”

    Friday we took a 1.5 hour train to Bern. We sat next to Professor Werner Mueller from Basel who was returning from an orthopedic conference in Milan. We had wonderful conversations and it was like talking to Mary’s papa. We walked 3 minutes from the central train station to the tram, and after a 7 minute ride, we walked 10 minutes into Bern suburbia for our Airbnb. The windows were all open, there was greenery all around, and families were biking outside and enjoying the sun. We opted for a nap and enjoyed quiet time and laundry. There are no dryers so we hung up our clothing outside in the sun.

    Saturday we trained out to Cholerenschlucht Adelboden for a 1.5 hour hike. The mountains and green hills were exactly how you imagine Switzerland. From there, we take a train to Interlaken/Grindelwald and we see skiers of all ages jumping on the train with their wet ski gear. There are families with mountain bikes and hikers with their poles. The train ride takes 37 minutes.

    It hit Kieran pretty hard that this pedestrian life style was possible with nature. The ability to hop on a train and ski at some of the best resorts in the world and come home after was heavy on his mind. He noted, “This is what Colorado wants to be so badly and it’s not even close. Same price, yet no trams or trains.”

    We hop off at Grindelwald and enjoy the traditional Swiss town nestled in stark mountains. Hiked down to a little stream and felt the cold glacier water on our hands . At 6PM, it was easy to jump on two trains and reach Bern by 8pm.

    We know Switzerland is expensive and rather homogeneous in its population. Also we will never have the level of amazing Asian, South American, and African food and diversity we have access to in Baltimore/DC. But America could definitely learn from Bern/Switzerland on sustainable public transportation.

    Spots:
    Interlaken
    Grindelwald
    Cholerenschlucht Adelboden    Read more

  • Mary Kieran Gap YearSwitzerlandTraveler

    Day 123: Scenic Train to Zürich

    May 12, 2024 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F

    With our Eurorail pass, we could use a Panoramic Train between Interlaken, Lucerne, and Zürich. First we needed to hop on a normal regional train to Interlaken.

    We find the platform, confirm the direction and train, and get onboard. About 2 minutes before we depart, the train announcer says this train his headed to Bern instead. We, and many others, look around confused and jump up to get off the train. None of us make it off the train as it pushes away from the platform.

    We determined that the train was originally headed to Interlaken, but a different train to Bern had been delayed by 40 minutes and they needed to get it out. The monitors didn’t update so many folks were misdirected. It was no issue though as the next station stop served both routes. It gave us more time to grab sandwich meats.

    After reaching Interlaken, we settle into the panoramic train and take in the sights of lakes, mountains, and valleys. They build the train so there is max window surface area.

    We get into Zürich and their metro trains are covered on the pass so we fork over the $9 euros to ride a train for 7 minutes 🥲 After unpacking at the hostel, we set up at a little cafe to get some work / research done for Austria. Because it was Mother’s Day, the owner made lemon drinks for all the women and it was delicious.

    Hostel: MEININGER Hotel Zürich Greencity

    Restaurant: Olive Ladencafé
    Food: Greek/Mediterranean

    Spots:
    Interlaken
    Lucerne
    Zürich    Read more

  • Mary Kieran Gap YearSwitzerlandTraveler
    2

    Day 124: Swiss Chocolate Tour

    May 13, 2024 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    Kieran originally signed us up for an English speaking chocolate tour, but the other guests canceled so the guide cancelled. So we decided to execute our own chocolate tour. We accepted today that we would spend a little money and actually pay for food instead of cooking pasta.

    We trained downtown from the hostel and started with a steak sandwich recommended by Enda from Armenia. Next, Kieran found 8-9 chocolate stores where we could walk, buy a piece, and move onto the next. It was so much fun and the chocolates ranged from traditional flavors to chocolates with alcohol inside and then pure chocolate liquid cups with strawberries inside.

    Next we found a local Swiss craft brewery and Kieran finally got a much needed stout. We debated our dinner choices because cheese fondue is famous in Switzerland but so is raclette, cheese scraped into your plate. We found a place with both! We enjoyed the meal and agreed that Kieran’s mom makes better fondue at home.

    Restaurants:
    Louis
    Raclette Stube

    Food:
    French Onion Soup
    Mixed Salad
    Steak Sandwich
    Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate
    Raclette
    Fondue

    Chocolate Spots:
    Confiseur Bachmann AG
    Rennweg 53
    Confiserie Teuscher
    Vittorio Vanini    Read more

    Trip end
    May 15, 2024
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