Adventures in Switzerland

This weekend started with the stunning sunset painted over the Rhine, completed with a misty spray of rain and the perfect rainbow. On our walk from the bus back to our host home to pack, I couldn't help but be captured by the simple beauty that I had loved walking past on my way home for the last three weeks, and knowing that this was my last time to do so, I perched myself on the shore and enjoyed one last sunset on the beautiful river Rhine. In the middle of the wee morning hours, we were on our way to Interlaken, Bonn behind us, and Berlin ahead. Arriving to Balmer’s Herbege in Interlaken (hauling all of my belongings) was a huge relief after traveling throughout the night and the morning. Soon after we checked in, we stacked our belongings in the luggage room and went to the Irish pub next door in search of lunch before embarking on our canyoning excursion. Suited up in all of the canyoning gear, complete with a helmet bearing the name "cockles" across the front (I don' t want to talk about it) I jumped in the van and had absolutely no clue what I was getting myself into. Repelling into the canyon was a scary start but once we got going, I didn’t want to stop. Jumping from boulders into icy rushing streams of water does a body good. Afterword, we were able to relax in the hammock room at Balmers. We enjoyed dinner outside at Balmers and then set off to walk around Interlaken. The sheer beauty of being nestled in a lush green valley in the middle of the Swiss alps is something that I will never forget. As is typical for our group, we came across a playground that was too good to miss out on. After we had our share of childlike fun, we walked back to Balmers and enjoyed the rest of the night in Interlaken. On Saturday we were able to make our way over to the Thunsee in Interlaken. Walking around to explore what we wanted to do there, I stumbled upon a small path to a bench perched on the shore of what is the most beautiful lake I’ve seen in my 20 years of life. I enjoyed taking a few minutes to sit and enjoy that moment. Caleb and Mikaela ventured to go paddle boarding, Michelle, Morgan, Jooey and Katharine rented a paddle boat, and Meredith and I sat and enjoyed some mediocre Swiss hot chocolate (still beat a good cup of American hot chocolate any day) and relaxed. Eventually we had to make our way back to Balmers, haul our stuff to the train station, and get on our way to Lucerne. We took the scenic train from Interlaken to Lucerne. The train took us straight through the alps, exposing me to what I think is the most beautiful landscape that I’ve witnessed in my life thus far.  Arriving in Lucerne, I had my expectations of the city completely reversed. We arrived to a large hauptbahnhof, flooded with people, and upon emerging outside; the cool breeze of Interlaken had been traded for the heat of a crowded city on a summer afternoon. Naturally, on our way to the bus, the strap on my duffel back gave out in the middle of the crosswalk, and it was then that I realized, I wanted to go back to Interlaken. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Lucerne. And let’s be honest here, a bad day in Switzerland is still a great day in the big scheme of things. Shortly after we arrived to the hostel in Lucerne, we ventured out to a restaurant to enjoy some Swiss fondue for dinner(something the Swiss never do in the summertime). After dinner, we walked around the corner to see the dying lion carved into a stone wall, a beautiful and moving depiction. Sunday morning we all ventured to Mt. Pilatus.  An adventurous gondola ride up brought us to what looked like the top of the world. We enjoyed the snow capped peaks and got in a few of the walking trails. Once we were back down to the bottom, Jooey, Meredith, Caleb, Mikaela and I enjoyed the rest of the day strolling around some of the beautiful sites in Lucerne including but not limited to the Chapel Bridge, a second visit to the dying lion, sitting by the lake, and lastly Mr. Pickwicks pub. Sadly, it came time to return to the hostel, sneak in a shower, and get to the train station for our journey to Berlin. We had a mishap in interpreting the bus times, and before we knew it, we were running for our lives (with all of our luggage in tow) to catch the last bus that would get us there on time.  By a sheer miracle, we made it. The next 13 hours was probably the roughest train journey we’ve endured but we all made it to Berlin!