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Taking on the Swiss Alps, Part 1

Lisa / August 7, 2009 / Switzerland, Travel

Larry and I have spent a beautiful week here in Adelboden, Switzerland. We’ve had mixed results on the weather so while we had the beautiful, sunny days we’ve split our time between working on the balcony in the sunshine, admiring the beauty that surrounds us, and taking on a bit of nature in the form of some hikes. Last Sunday afternoon, while we had a break in the rain, we decided to hike up to the Engstligen waterfall, the large, 600-meter (almost 2000 feet) waterfall that dominates one end of this valley and is clearly visible from our apartment balcony. The rain sputtered off and on while we were there but we had a great time climbing up and Larry even managed to get off some beautiful shots.

Looking back down on Adelboden, where we live

Last shot of the waterfall before we head down

Later in the week, we drove over to Elsigbach and bought a one-way ticket for the tram up to the top, Elsigenalp. While up there, we had a picnic lunch of bread, locally made cheese (bought from the vendor at the tram station down below), and peaches while surrounded by a beautiful plateau. Afterward, we hiked to a little lake, the Elsigsee. We had decided to take the tram only one way so that we could hike back down to the car when we were through. My legs were not properly prepared for so much downhill turf (550 meters descent – a little over 1800 feet), and they were grumbling noisily by the time we hit the bottom.

As you can see, we had absolutely perfect weather the entire way down. It was a gorgeous day and we look forward to more days in the Swiss sunshine.

Yodel-ay-hee-hoo!

Lisa / August 2, 2009 / Switzerland, Travel

After leaving beautiful Annecy we crossed the border into the neutral territory. Switzerland proudly maintains its independence from the rest of the European Union. Euros are not accepted here, which I was reminded of as I tried to buy Cokes with Euros when we stopped at a gas station.

After much painful searching – the most difficult time we’ve had so far in finding an apartment to rent – we were able to find a place in Adelboden, which was in our target area of the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland. We spent some time in Murren (a tiny car-free town hanging on a cliff just above Interlaken) on our first anniversary trip and really wanted to come back to the Bernese Oberland area. We spent many hours searching – Switzerland is very expensive and because it is August, places were very booked up. We lucked into an apartment that turned out to be right in the middle of this beautiful small ski town, with a massive balcony overlooking the entire valley below, as well as with a view over to the 600-meter Engstligen waterfall. Wow. We were both pinching ourselves when we saw the view. Imagine getting up out of bed in the morning and looking out the window to this? It’s what we get to do for the next 2 weeks!

View to the left from our apartment balcony

View to the right fro our balcony. You can see the Engstligen waterfall in the distance.

We also happened to join Switzerland on August 1st, which is Swiss National Day – the major annual holiday celebrating the formation of Switzerland. We were treated to fireworks throughout the valley, viewed from our balcony, for most of the night. People here don’t just light off firecrackers. These were full-on professional fireworks. Larry even documented the neighbors just below and next to us shooting off theirs. What a great way to begin our stay!

Adelboden had its own fireworks celebration as well

A Serendipitous Discovery

Lisa / August 1, 2009 / France, Travel

When I was in business school at Thunderbird, I spent a short winter semester at their satellite campus in Archamps, France – which is actually close to the Swiss border and Geneva. While there, my fellow students and I spent our down time and weekends getting rental cars and exploring the region. One day while out exploring another town, we decided to stop in a place called Annecy, which we had heard was kind of neat. That was an understatement! Despite the freezing, foggy January weather, I instantly fell in love. Annecy (on the French side, about 40 minutes from Geneva by car) is like a clean, Swiss/French version of Venice. A gorgeous, tiny, ancient town on canals, bordered by a large turquoise blue lake (Lake Annecy, of course). I have never forgotten about it and vowed to be back.

I had the chance to go back, and to share it with Larry, two years ago on our first anniversary trip. Because of our frenzied schedule on that trip, we rolled into town late one rainy night and only had the morning to spend there the next day, so it was a quick stop. But – Larry fell in love too. He couldn’t believe such a place existed, one that no one apparently knows about. The truth is that a lot of people do know about it (unfortunately) – just not Americans. You will find all sorts of British, German, and French tourists while walking the restaurant and souvenir shop-filled streets.

So – we made a point to go back on this trip. It wasn’t hard to work it into the schedule. About halfway between where we were staying in Provence and our next destination in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland, it was easy to stop for a night. We got into town about 7 pm and headed straight for the old town and dinner at a restaurant we discovered and fell in love with on our last visit. Larry got some unbelievable night shots with his camera and tripod.

Seriously, there are too many good shots, I can't stop adding them

The Calanques at Cassis

Lisa / July 31, 2009 / France, Travel

Our return trip from the coast involved a stop at the small and charming port town of Cassis. We had read and heard about the famed Calanques: Mediterranean inlets with steep sides, similar to a fjord, and wanted to experience them for ourselves. Along the way we made a quick stop in Cannes for lunch, just to see it.

Seriously dude, are you that rich and bored?

Cassis is a small port town, fishing village really, not far from Marseilles but completely different in size and character. The entire town is a postcard and unfortunately, judging from all the tourists, it has been the subject of many a postcard mailed home. It took us forever to even find a parking space. This is what happens when you visit someplace in its peak season.

We finally parked the car and headed for the port. What we really wanted to do was visit the Calanque d’En-Vau, which is completely enclosed on 3 sides and boasts a spectacular small and sparsely populated white beach on one end. Unfortunately the Calanques are difficult to reach. One must hike for an hour and a half or more, or have a private boat that can get you there. We didn’t have time for either. Not to mention I can’t imagine making that hike in such heat!

We settled for just being driven around the Calanques with a 5-Calanques boat tour given by the one and only monopolistic tour operator in the port. We sat at the very front of the boat to get the best view, which also ensured that we would be sprayed with seawater from time to time. It felt good in such sweltering weather. The water was a crystal clear aqua blue – truly a living postcard.

White limestone forms the sides of the Calanques

The color of those cliffs in the background remind me of Southern Utah

Calanque d'En Vau with its secluded beach

There were cool caves everywhere. Some of them are now immersed but were inhabited during the Paleolithic Era. You can dive them and see the paintings on the walls.

We loved all the limestone rock formations

After returning from the boat tour, we decided we really needed to put in some beach time, so we carved out a spot for ourselves and enjoyed the refreshing waters of the Mediterranean. I had a near-miss with a tiny jelly fish (the woman floating next to me was not so lucky). Larry spent over an hour with his snorkel, just enjoying the water and the creatures. He spotted no less than 50 jellyfish on his tour but luckily gave them all enough berth that he escaped unharmed as well.

We finished the night with a very good Italian meal at a restaurant in the port. Cassis is such a charming city, we’ll be back – next time we’ll figure out a way to spend the day on the beach at Calanque e’En-Vau!

Orange County – I Mean the Cote d’Azur – and the Glamour of Monte Carlo

Lisa / July 29, 2009 / France, Monaco, Travel

We are in our last week here in Provence and have yet to visit the actual famous part of the coast, the Cote d’Azur. It is a bit of a drive away from where we are, so we decided to make an overnight adventure of it. I booked a hotel near Nice, we packed our swimsuits and beach towels, and took off.

Driving into Nice we had the feeling that we may as well be in Los Angeles. The landscape and the traffic reminded us both of Southern California. Way too crowded. Way too developed. We both counted our lucky stars that we didn’t end up renting an apartment closer to the coast. We’ve been so much happier where we are. We got to Nice in time to grab some amazing Italian food in the old town and walk along the famed Promenade des Anglais, catching some of the local street performers along the way. The air down there is much more humid than where we are. Steamy!

Ahh the glamorous French Riviera traffic — Ahh, the glamorous French Riviera traffic

After spending a couple of hours in Nice we got back in the car to drive East along the coast to Monte Carlo, passing through the towns of Villefranche-sur-Mer and Beaulieu-sur-Mer (which we promptly dubbed Beaumont-sur-Mer in honor of one of our favorite movies), bypassing St.-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and the medieval cliff town of Eze.

Driving toward Monaco - looking back at Nice

I had visited both Nice and Monte Carlo back when I was doing an exchange program in Switzerland during college, but that was many years ago. They are almost exactly how I remember them, including the crowds and over-touristed way of Nice and the true-to-life James Bond glamour of Monte Carlo. Monte Carlo, despite being miniscule in size, makes up for it in flashiness.

The post-stamp size principality lives up to its 007 reputation, particularly the area around the casino where one can find numerous Ferraris, Lambourghinis, Bentleys, Rolls Royces, and other vehicles that cost more than the house I grew up in, just lying around in the parking lot while their owners throw away who knows how much money in the famed casino. It’s great fun to see and experience in person. Unfortunately we couldn’t go in the casino because the one dress code they have is pants, and Larry was wearing shorts. Oh well, maybe next time.

Can't you just hear the Bond music in your head? — Can't you just hear the Bond theme in your head?

The thing I love best about Monte Carlo license plates: 4 digits only