Switzerland 2008: Day 4 - Second day in Berner Oberland

We woke up to beautiful views on our second day in Berner Oberland and began our hike shortly after breakfast. We first hiked up to Murren, a town about 200 meters higher in elevation than Gimmelwald.


View looking down towards Gimmelwald, although most of it is not in sight.


We stopped for lunch here near Schiltalp. This portion of the North Face Trail had snow coverage, making it a little more difficult to hike in. Luckily, we had our trekking poles to help us.


Along the the trails, we saw dozens of different wildflowers like these...


...and these.

Our view towards the end of our hike (w/Gimmelwald in the distance).

Complete albums of this day can be viewed at:
Nikon (109 photos) - http://www.flickr.com/gp/51685057@N00/97pbbp
Leica (59 photos, 3 videos) - http://www.flickr.com/gp/51685057@N00/6bq3Bn

Switzerland 2008: Day 3 - First day in Berner Oberland

Our third day of the trip started on the Panoramic Train on the Golden Pass, which extends from Montreux to Luzern. On this day, we took it from Montreux to Interlaken.


A fellow passenger enjoys the view on the panoramic train on the Golden Pass.


Paragliders dotted the Interlaken sky by the dozens.

We stopped and explored Berner Oberland, the Alpine region south of Interlaken, for 4 days. We stayed in Gimmelwald for 2 nights and Lauterbrunnen for the other 2.


Gimmelwald is a beautiful little town (of pop. ~150) suspended on the side of a mountain, making the views spectacular:)


We also got to live among the cows that make the delicious Alpekasse (Alp cheese).


After settling in at our hotel, we went on a short hike before dinner .

Here are links to the full albums on Flickr:
Nikon shots - http://www.flickr.com/gp/51685057@N00/pN4Sa3
Leica shots - http://www.flickr.com/gp/51685057@N00/492141

Switzerland 2008: Day 2 - Lausanne and Montreux

On the second day of our trip, we took the train from Bern to Montreux in the morning, dropped off our extra bag at the hostel and went to visit Chateau de Chillon (near Montreux).


Chateau de Chillon on Lake Geneva, near Montreux

It was a fascinating look at medieval life. The prison and latrines (both with the beautiful views of Lake Geneva) were the highlights for me.


Bonivard's Prison


Latrine, which is open to the lake below, also had views of Lake Geneva

After walking through the Chateau, we strolled along the lake to Montreux. We then took the train to Lausanne, the capital of the Olympic games (home to the Int'l Olympic Committee since 1915). We did a walking tour before it started to rain.


View of Lausanne from outside the Cathedral (Switzerland's largest).

You can view the entire album of photos of our day 2 in Switzerland by visiting Flickr at the following locations:
Nikon shots - http://www.flickr.com/gp/51685057@N00/G1J235
Leica shots - http://www.flickr.com/gp/51685057@N00/McACxP