Cheerio from the Swiss Alps!

Switzerland - the land of Alpine escapes, mountain villages, cheese and Brits. Yes, that's correct, Switzerland (especially the village of Wengen) was swarming with Brits on holiday in early March during our ski-tastic week in the Berner Oberland. We were exposed to more "Cheerios" than "Gruetzis" during our stay, but then again that could have something to do with the fact that all the Brits in Wengen happened to be staying in our hotel.  

Presenting the village of Wengen from our hotel room balcony

Hotel Falken in Wengen

We were by far the youngest people in our hotel, and although everyone else seemed to know each other, we still enjoyed the old world ambiance of the hotel, built in the 1890s. There were no TVs, but several parlors and a beautiful piano room and bar where everyone would gather for post-dinner entertainment. Jon and I would scurry out to the town to visit some pubs, and by the time we returned, the retired Brits were still singing away with the piano man and not even close to retiring to their rooms.

Our first day of skiing, we ventured to the top of the Jungfrau mountain. Once difficult to access, the Jungfraubahn cog railway now runs inside the mountain, up to the Jungfraujoch railway station at 11,332 ft, the highest in Europe. The glacial wind was incredibly fierce at the top, but we managed to spend a few minutes out on the observatory deck to gaze at the incredible views around us. The whole area constitutes the largest glaciated area in the Alps as well as in Europe. The Jungfrau complex is quite extensive with an ice palace, several restaurants and viewing platforms. 

In the Ice Palace, which had several ice sculptures on display

On Day 2 of skiing, we trekked to another famous peak, the Schilthorn via a series of cable cars. Once again, the view was magnificent and after enoying the panoramic scenery, we had breakfast in the revolving cafe at the summit. Jon was especially thrilled to be at the Schilthorn, as he calls his snowsuit onesie very Bonds-like, which fits at this location where the James Bond flick "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" was set. 

At the top of the Schilthorn

There was only one ski run down, and of course, it was crazy steep and narrow. I had been getting more and more anxious during our time on the Schilthorn thinking about the descent and was on verge of a freak-out when this picture was taken. But, like anything, after taking that first step forward, my anxiety dissipated, and by the end of the run, I even thought I might like to do it again.... but we didn't.

Jon making his way down the Schilthorn

The best snow and skiing was on the Schilthorn side of the mountain

The last day of skiing, we visited the third area of the Jungfrau ski region above Grindelwald. Although we still had patches of sun and blue sky, this was our first day to have any clouds. The skiing was still excellent, and although it took a lot of travel time to get to this area, it was worth it to ski the entire Jungfrau complex. We traveled via train, cable cars and ski lifts to reach the various ski trails. It is quite a mountain network!

Training on the Wengeralpbahn from Lauterbrunnen to Wengen

Jon  looking oh-so-Swiss

Three days straight of skiing can get quite tiring, so we made sure to make lots of rest stops for coffee, beer and gluwein. By Day 3, we had found our favorite places for mid-ski breaks and we planned our final run of the day to hit up all of them. 

The Rancher Bar in Grindelwald where we had a mid-ski coffee break 

Enjoying an Apres Ski party (complete with a band) at the Wasch bar

At the Allmend cafe where we stopped at the end of each ski day as our hotel was merely a short ski away

We loved being able to ski directly to our hotel (yellow building in distance)

Of course, no trip to Switzerland would be complete without a fondue experience. We had two! On two separate occasions we shared a delicious cheesy pot of fondue and a traditional Swiss rosti. It was quite yummy, but after our stint in Switzerland, we were definitely cheesed out for a while. I am so glad that we were able to experience this beautiful part of Switzerland that I had heard so much about, including Wengen, Murren, Lauterbrunnen, and Grindelwald. Although it was magnificent in winter, I would love to see the Berner Oberland in summer as well. Hmmm, who knows what the future has in store!