The benefits of exploring a city, and remaining observant are topics of a recent post. The chances of finding the unexpected, hidden side of a destination is easier with the help of a local guide. Maggie, my friendly, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic guide to Zurich, certainly showed me the nooks, and crannies. It’s unlikely many of these would have been found exploring alone. Guides …
Zurich, Switzerland; It’s all in the Details
How many tourists visiting Zurich, or any destination rush from one attraction to the next, ticking off a list of ‘must see’ sights, racing to the best coffee shops, and recommended restaurants? There’s rarely enough time to explore any city, let alone lift heads often enough to see anything other than the destinations ‘Top 10’. In a beautiful city like …
Riding the Rails around the Jungfrau
Riding the rails is often a pleasure, enjoying the scenery, listening to music while reading a book, or just staring out the window, watching the landscape change. The view from a train window, is certainly preferable to that of a plane, and driving is not relaxing. Train travel in Switzerland is especially pleasant, the scenery is usually stunning, the trains …
Skiing in the Shadow of the Eiger
The North Face of the Eiger is unmistakable, a great brooding, sheer face which stands over 1800 metres high. Stood in Kleine Scheidegg, staring at the cloud enshrouded mountain, it once again took my breath away. This is a mountain with a fearsome reputation, enshrined in the history of European mountaineering. Even now it seems menacing, taunting the foolhardy to …
Lucerne Museum of Transport – Planes, Trains & Automobiles
The opportunity to travel to Lucerne in Switzerland offered a further chance to establish some ‘culture vulture’ credibitlity, visiting several museums in just a few days. I especially enjoyed the Bourbaki-Panorama which was the pre-cinema equivalent of 3D movies. It is a huge walk-round painting which depicts the retreat of the French at Les Verrières in Switzerland in the Franco-Prussian …
Benedictine Kloster, Engelberg – A Monk’s Life
It is easy to become blasé visiting an attraction of the kind which has previously been visited on numerous occasions. Visiting the Kloster in Swiss Engelberg, having stayed in a few monasteries and visited more already this charge could have justifiably been aimed at me. Less than five minutes after meeting our guide it was obvious this was going to …