Wednesday
Probably the most anticipated day of the trip. Can there be a bad day when it includes a cheese factory and a chocolate factory tour? For most people not, but of course I managed to get a stomach virus so it was definitely not my best day... This day took us to La Gruyere region of Switzerland, a day trip from Bern.
We went at a normal pace rather than a Lauren pace but it was also a bit rainy so that worked out. Our first stop was Gruyère for the cheese factory. We had planned a trip up into the town which is really beautiful but it was raining so hard we decided to skip it. We ate lunch in the factory restaurant instead.
From there we took the train to Broc Fabrique for the Callier chocolate factory tour. It has changed a ton since our last visit. We started out seeing some old films on chocolate to pass the time while we waited our turn on the tour. The tour itself was quite interesting and completely animated with lights and sounds to bring ambiance to the story. It started from the discovery of chocolate and led us through to the current factory. There was a bit about how chocolate is made, without giving away any of the secret recipes of course. Following the tour and buying a few souvenirs, the kids played in the Calliers playground while we waited for the next train.
Here's what the girls have to say about what they liked best:
Morgan: I liked learning the history of chocolate because it was interesting.
Maia: I liked the tasting of the chocolate and the movie theater part.
(They are still girls of few words when put on the spot.)
We returned to Bern exhausted but in time to prepare dinner and to play a couple games of foosball before calling it a night.
Thursday
We checked out of our hotel and took a few final pictures of Bern before heading to Lausanne. It was a an hour or so which was a nice rest for me as I was still a bit under the weather. Our main point of attraction was the Olympic Museum.
We took the metro down to the lakeshore where we had some food by the lake. From there we walked along the water spotting some really fun paddle boats. I'd love to have something like that on one of the Madison lakes for weekend enjoyment. We continued our walk until we came upon the Olympic Museum. We weren't allowed to take any pictures inside the museum but we did get some fun ones on the outside.
Here's what the girls have to say about what they liked best about the day:
Morgan: The torches were the most interesting part.
Maia: Everything!!!
When we finished at the museum it was time to head to Luzern for the night. I have always loved the beauty of that city and in past visits have wanted to stay there. We arrived to find that we were upgraded from the Rosli Guest House to the Baslertor Hotel about which I certainly wasn't going to complain.
Showing posts with label Switerland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Switerland. Show all posts
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Switzerland, A City View: Bern
Monday
We arrived at our hotel in Zurich around 8:30pm on Monday. Easy to find and great location. Typical Swiss hotel, no AC. It was around 25ºC/90ºF with our room on the 5th floor of the hotel. HOT! But the beds were comfortable as well as the sofa sleeper so that was the most important. We took military style showers or sponge baths as the water was ice cold. Apparently the water heater must have been out and they couldn't divert the sun to heat the shower water. Once we were out it felt good in the room.
Tuesday
First thing Tuesday morning we found breakfast at the pastry shop on the corner. Then we gathered our belongings to head to Bern. We'll be back in Zurich for the weekend so we didn't take the time to see any of it at the moment.
We hit Bern around 11:30 and quickly caught a tram to the Backpackers Hostel. They are closed between 12-3pm so we would have been stuck with our luggage if we hadn't arrived in time. Our room is phenomenal. Spacious with 2 single beds and 2 bunk beds along with lots of floor space, a very unusual find in Switzerland.
Another sweltering hot 90 degree day. We grabbed picnic lunch and headed to a park. Challah and salami with gruyere followed by some fruit hits the spot. By the way, the pre-made challah sandwiches were with ham. I never quite understood that combination but it always humors me.
We then headed down the main shopping street towards the bear pit or perhaps I should now say enclosure as it is a much improved space over the original dry barren pit. The pit now has a small gift shop and the enclosure is a large hillside with a water stream below.
We abandoned our original plan to head to the Rosengarten due to the heat. Instead we opted to head back to the hotel for our bathing suits and check out the free public pool beside the river, a perfect spot for a steamy hot day. The pool was definitely refreshing. After a bit of swimming, Maia and I decided on a short float down the river. The current is extremely fast and we didn't have good shoes to wear so we went barefoot. Staying close to the shoreline was a bit hard on our feet but we weren't going to venture too far, only from one stop to the next. A nice experience but a bit scary with a kid. Maia, my amusement park thrill rider, didn't want to do any more than what we had done. The float part was fine but the getting out was challenging. Maybe when she is older we'll be a bit more adventurous about the experience.
After a brat, another dip in the pool, and some ice cream, we were ready to head back to the hostel. We walked by the Parliament and the splash park after riding the tram up the hill.
On our way back we realized that the stores close at 7pm and we still needed to buy dinner and breakfast. One of the nice things about our hostel is the ability to buy, store and cook food in the kitchen. So after a bit of grocery shopping we were in for the night. Fed, showered and exhausted, we headed for bed.
Scenes of Bern
We arrived at our hotel in Zurich around 8:30pm on Monday. Easy to find and great location. Typical Swiss hotel, no AC. It was around 25ºC/90ºF with our room on the 5th floor of the hotel. HOT! But the beds were comfortable as well as the sofa sleeper so that was the most important. We took military style showers or sponge baths as the water was ice cold. Apparently the water heater must have been out and they couldn't divert the sun to heat the shower water. Once we were out it felt good in the room.
Tuesday
First thing Tuesday morning we found breakfast at the pastry shop on the corner. Then we gathered our belongings to head to Bern. We'll be back in Zurich for the weekend so we didn't take the time to see any of it at the moment.
We hit Bern around 11:30 and quickly caught a tram to the Backpackers Hostel. They are closed between 12-3pm so we would have been stuck with our luggage if we hadn't arrived in time. Our room is phenomenal. Spacious with 2 single beds and 2 bunk beds along with lots of floor space, a very unusual find in Switzerland.
Another sweltering hot 90 degree day. We grabbed picnic lunch and headed to a park. Challah and salami with gruyere followed by some fruit hits the spot. By the way, the pre-made challah sandwiches were with ham. I never quite understood that combination but it always humors me.
We then headed down the main shopping street towards the bear pit or perhaps I should now say enclosure as it is a much improved space over the original dry barren pit. The pit now has a small gift shop and the enclosure is a large hillside with a water stream below.
We abandoned our original plan to head to the Rosengarten due to the heat. Instead we opted to head back to the hotel for our bathing suits and check out the free public pool beside the river, a perfect spot for a steamy hot day. The pool was definitely refreshing. After a bit of swimming, Maia and I decided on a short float down the river. The current is extremely fast and we didn't have good shoes to wear so we went barefoot. Staying close to the shoreline was a bit hard on our feet but we weren't going to venture too far, only from one stop to the next. A nice experience but a bit scary with a kid. Maia, my amusement park thrill rider, didn't want to do any more than what we had done. The float part was fine but the getting out was challenging. Maybe when she is older we'll be a bit more adventurous about the experience.
After a brat, another dip in the pool, and some ice cream, we were ready to head back to the hostel. We walked by the Parliament and the splash park after riding the tram up the hill.
On our way back we realized that the stores close at 7pm and we still needed to buy dinner and breakfast. One of the nice things about our hostel is the ability to buy, store and cook food in the kitchen. So after a bit of grocery shopping we were in for the night. Fed, showered and exhausted, we headed for bed.
Scenes of Bern
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