Travel Day to Switzerland

Walking to the train station in Bath we saw our first Baptist church. 

On the first of many modes of transport today.

In hindsight I should have allowed an additional day for travel, as getting from Bath, England to Murren, Switzerland in one day is not an easy feat, unless we want to leave at 3:30 in the morning (which we do not).

The train station is just a 5 minute walk from our hotel in Bath. From there its 2 hours on trains to London, Heathrow, a 2 hour flight to Zurich, 3 hours on 4 separate trains to Murren, and a short walk to the hotel. Of course all the connections need to be perfect and there are multiple waiting times throughout the journey. Needless to say, all the connections did not go as planned and it ended up being a 15 hour day of travel. But we made it through flight delays, a train locking the doors right before we tried to open them, missing another train, finding a bus and then the cable cars. It was walk, train, train, plane, walk, three trains, walk, bus, walk, cable car, walk, cable car and walk. We hadn’t eaten all day and it was 10 pm when we dragged ourselves and our suitcases up the hill to our hotel, so the kitchen was closed. However, the restaurant manager took pity on us and asked the chef if he could make us a sandwich. 

We each received a sack with all this in it and he wouldn’t let us pay him. So very kind. 

I’m going to post some pictures and call it a night. It’s almost 11:30. 

Most of the pics below were taken from a moving train so there’s a glare or reflection. 

Lake Thun

Riding the cable car up the mountain at night, Jo Anne couldn’t look. 

We sat out on our balcony eating our sandwiches so thankful to be here experiencing the grandeur of Gods creation. 

Breathtaking views, magnificent mountains, unspoiled nature, glistening lakes and genuine hospitality – this is the best of Switzerland!

The Bernese Oberland, also called the Bernese Highlands or the Bernese Alps, is a region in central Switzerland. It is part of the canton (state)  of Bern and it encompasses a portion of the Swiss Alps, including the Jungfrau massif, Lauterbrunnen Valley, Interlaken, Lake Brienz and Lake Thun, and extends west to Adelboden and Gstaad. That's probably more than you wanted to know.

The Jungfrau region is a smaller portion of the Bernese Oberland. This region includes the Jungfrau massif, the Lauterbrunnen Valley, Schilthorn, Mürren, Gimmelwald, Grindelwald, and Interlaken. The Jungfrau region is the touristy heart of the Bernese Oberland and this is where we will spend most of our time.

Some of the most iconic mountains in the Alps, the mighty Jungfrau massif, made up of Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau, dominate the region. Dominate is quite an understatement. I tried to think of a better, more descriptive word but it's just breathtaking and difficult to even speak, let alone describe it. It reminds me of something I read in a book called Heaven by Randy Alcorn. It was something like this, I imagine our first glimpse of heaven will cause us to simply gasp in delight and amazement, and that gasp will be followed by many more as we continue to experience new sights in this incredibly wonderful place. I think that's why I love hiking so much. It gives me a peek into what lies ahead for the Christian.

Murren is a traditional Swiss alpine village, car-free, with chocolate-box wooden chalets draped with the most colorful flowers and the tinkling of cowbells, with jaw-dropping views of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau. This little village certainly brings back memories. Kim and I were here on 9/11. We had taken a cablecar to the top of Schiltorn where we heard about the terrorist attacks in the US. The cablecar operator said, "you American?" When we said yes, he replied, "big White House go boom!" That was the beginning of a very interesting trip. Jo Anne and I just rode the same cable car  up to our hotel in Murren.

We are staying for the next two nights at Hotel Blumental located in the very heart of Murren. This is the 4th generation of the family running the hotel which was built in 1870.

I made the earth and created man on it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host.

Isaiah 45:12