| Switzerland – Travelling from Basel towards Lucerne May 7th 2011. The journey begins and I’m totally excited. Yet another silly o’clock taxi ride through deserted early morning Bristol streets. This time to the train station, Temple Meads. Train to London. Tube to St Pancreas. Eurostar to Paris. Change to different station and then the TGV to Mullhouse before catching road ride to Basel, on the banks of the river Rhine at the point where France, Germany and Switzerland meet. Check into a hotel about 2 miles from the centre. Grab a meal then Jo and I head out for a late night walk through broad avenues of 19th century architecture, the evening air warm and a little muggy; we cross a bridge over the Rhine and I think back to Karl Proud and his Black Forest campaign for Warhammer RPG with strong Call of Cthulhu theme. Brilliant memories and now I’m here walking across that same river.Getting back I stay up for a while, alone in the hotel bar, supping delicious dark beer and working on notes for the Yellow Dawn overhaul (moving to 2.5) and planning the campaign I’m going to be running for the kick-start of playing YD with my game group in July. It’s a nice moment in time.
Next morning it’s an early start and we hit the road – next stop Lucerne
SUNDAY: The city of Lucerne. Spectacularly enclosed by its stunning mountain views. I’ll be plunging into the old town, surrounded by immense stone ramparts, a medieval tangle of twisting lanes and alleyways cascading down to a serene lakeside. Going to stroll along the Chapel bridge – symbol of the city – a covered wooden walkway crossing the lake supported by stilts and then pound pavement with headphones clamped to ears, absorbing the historic centre with its tall houses, beautifully frescoed, and brightly painted shutters.
The photo above is of the evolving scenery of Switzerland as we head towards Lucern. I’m pondering the views I may get later as we reach the alps; but already the landscape is undulating wildly. |
| Switzerland – The Lion of Lucerne |
The Lion of Lucerne was completed in the early 1800′s and commemorates the Swiss Guards who were massacred in 1792 during the French Revolution, when revolutionaries stormed the Tuileries Palace in Paris, France. Mark Twain praised the sculpture of a mortally-wounded lion as “the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world.”
| Switzerland – Lucerne – The Chapel Bridge |
The Chapel Bridge is 204 m long. It is the oldest wooden covered bridge in Europe, constructed in 1333, was designed to help protect the city of Lucerne from attacks. Inside the bridge are a series of paintings from the 17th century, depicting events from Lucerne’s history. A lot of the bridge was destroyed in a 1993 fire, though it was quickly rebuilt.
The adjoining tower is the 43 metres tall Wasserturm; and has served as a prison, torture chamber, watchtower and treasury.
| Switzerland – Lucerne – The Chapel Bridge |
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Jo and I wandered around the city for a few hours; grabbed a coffee by the river (£5) and decided not to have the cheese on toast, which would have been £20!!!
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Some of the buildings had very strange and intricate designs painted onto their exterior. Lucerne does enjoy a very medieval vibe blended into a 19th century, 20th and 21st century vibe.
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| Switzerland – Lucerne – What’s wrong with this picture? |
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| Switzerland – Lucerne – painted panel on bridge |
An example of the medieval heritage of the city.
| Switzerland – Lucerne – Djr |
You can see the Chapel Bridge in the background.
Not your typical example of a Swiss woman. We started to explore some cobbled streets that took us upwards. Found a massive wall with ramparts and towers…
| Switzerland – Lucerne – Blue Dragon Boat Ride |
Took a 1 hour boat cruise around the lake. Very nice to just sit up deck with a glass of beer, headphones on and watch the scenery unfold.
| Switzerland – Lucerne – Cheeky Chappie |
Caught this just as I was leaving the city. Next stop, Interlaken in the heart of the Alps.
| Switzerland – between Lucerne and Interlaken |
Heading into the Alps.
| Switzerland – between Lucerne and Interlaken |
Same view as above but zoomed in tight onto the crazy mountain slope residences. Bit of a bugger if you get back from the shops and find you forgot to get the milk.
Pulled over in this tiny town of Brienz, next to a lake with the most incredible colour water. Stunning.
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I walked along the lower edge of the tiny town, following the lake shore. Couldn’t stop grinning.
And I’m still not “up” into the Alps yet. Just skirting the ever rising terrain.
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| Switzerland – Beatenberg – Dorint Hotel – OJ |
This is the view from the balcony of our hotel room; a place we’re using for the next three nights. OMG. When we opened the door to our room the view from the balcony slammed into the back of my eyeballs – I just swore and then doubled over, laughing; I couldn’t believe it.
Roll back to leaving Brienz; it’s only another 30 minutes or so to Interlaken, which is a large sprawling city straddling the gap between two lakes. From there you get the 101 bus up to Beatenberg – way way wayyyy up on the mountainside.
The hotel room enters into a main lounge with two sofas, coffee table and access to the amazing balcony view; there’s also a spiral staircase that takes you up to the bedroom and bathroom area.
MONDAY: Today it’s a cable car ride like no other in the world. Four phases take me past vast hulking cliffs to the top of the Schilthorn, a mountain peak rising to over 9,000 feet, and location of the James Bond film ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’. I’ll get eye-popping views of the Eiger, Jungfrau, Mönch, Mont Blanc and a hazily distant two-hundred other peaks. After this I drop down to the cliff-side village of Mürren and on to the glacial valley of Lauterbrunnen.
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| Switzerland – Heading towards Lauterbrunnen |
Next morning caught a ride to Lauterbrunnen where we’d take the first of four cable cars hauling us up to the top of the Schilthorn, a mountain peak rising to over 9,000 feet.
| Switzerland – Heading towards Birg |
We’re on an identical cable car heading up towards Birg, which is at 8783 feet; one more change of cars to reach Schilthorn which is the final destination.
Do not look down.
| Switzerland – Leaving Birg |
A lot of people in the crowded cable car went very quiet at this point.
| Switzerland – Scene from the James Bond film ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’ – Schilthorn |
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| Switzerland – Schilthorn – Djr |
So we reach the top and my head is throbbing a little from the altitude. The views are staggering. I’ve got my big headphones clampedon and playing OST for Tron, by Daft Punk, total soundtrack to the trip. Awesome soundscapes that complemented the panoramic views.
The Piz Gloria a revolving cafe bar and the location of the bad man (Telly Savalas) in the Bond film.
I get eye-popping views of the Eiger, Jungfrau, Mönch, Mont Blanc and a hazily distant two-hundred other peaks.
The mountains surround you on all sides. It’s staggering and beautiful.
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Where Terry Savalas meets his end.
| Switzerland – Schilthorn – Terry (taken from Bond film) |
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| Switzerland – Murren – Djr, Oj |
Coming down by cable car we stopped 2/3rds of the way down and grabbed lunch at the quaint village of Murren.
TUESDAY: The town of Interlaken and a rail journey to the ‘Top of Europe’ – the Jungfraujoch. At over 11,000 feet, this is the continent’s highest station and chance to grab ascending photos of Lauterbrunnen Valley, lined by dramatic cliffs and shimmering waterfalls; pushing ever higher, I’ll pass through magical dark forests before arriving at the mind numbing bulk of the north face of the Eiger. A long tunnel dating from the 19th century plunges through the very heart of the mountain and gives spectacular panoramas of a sea of ice.
| Switzerland – a view of the Jungfraujoch and Sphinx Observatory. |
Tuesday: I was really undecided what to do about today. I’d planned to go up the Jungfrau, Europe’s highest train station, and further, up to the Sphinx Observatory which lies within the saddle of the Jungfraujoch at around 11,500 feet.
But would it just be the same as yesterday? Cable car rides and mountain views? The Schilthorn was 9,000 feet. This was 11,000 feet. So what? I thought.
Anyhow, finally decided to do it – booked an early morning ticket and thank God I did because it was one of the best days of the whole trip.
This photo was taken by me from the balcony of my hotel room, looking ahead and a little to the left. Can you see the man-made blocky outcrop in the middle of the saddle? That’s where I was going.
Jungfraujoch is saddle between the Mönch and the Jungfrau in the Bernese Alps.
| Switzerland – a view of the Jungfraujoch and Sphinx Observatory. |
On full zoom.
| Switzerland – heading up towards Jungfrau. |
Chopped wood by the side of a mountain road.
| Switzerland – heading up towards Jungfrau. |
Engineer hand cranks a cargo wagon along rail ratchet.
| Switzerland – heading up towards Jungfrau – view from Eismeer “station”. |
It took three seperate trains to get from Interlaken up to Jungfrau. The final train spent an hour pushing upwards at a steep angle through some tiny wormhole in the vast flanks of the mountain… I felt like I was in some kind of Jules Verne or H.G.Wells epic.
The tunnel runs behind the north face of the Eiger, stopping at Eigerwand, where there is a window (empty aperture) about 8 m long and a metre high, halfway up the face itself. This window was used for one of the final scenes of a Clint Eastwood spy movie the The Eiger Sanction. The train stops for five minutes so you can actually get off to admire the view. The tunnel then turns west, heading towards the Jungfrau. This picture was taken at the second tunnel stop where I was able to peer out of another window looking out on the Eismeer or “Sea of Ice”.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Djr |
Unlike Schilthorn, which was just a small eating place – the complex at Jungfraujoch is huge and wandering around it was very much like being in a Bond film, or some other Thriller / Adventure as you shuffle along barren tunnels carved out of virgin rock – head pounding from the altitude – everything feeling a little spacey and surreal.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch |
Looking down on the glacier from the Sphinx Observatory, I saw a helicopter below. I thought they might have been running chopper tours of the mountain peaks, but then learned that this was actually somebody’s private helicopter: not bad if you can afford it.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – view from Sphinx Observatory |
When I first got up there the visibility was terrible due to a huge bank of cloud sweeping across the mountain tops; on the other side of the Sphinx there was a blizzard swirling around the guard rail and the temperature was seriously sub-zero with wind chill.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Djr |
So with no visibility I departed the panoramic viewing platform and found a place where you could go sledging with my new partner in crime, a bloke called Keith.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Djr |
It was a spectacular run. You’re on the roof of the world and just have this endless vista ahead and below you with jagged mountain peaks snarling black and frozen fangs above you on all sides.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – The return tube |
Now, how many times as a kid did you go sledging down a brilliant steep slope and only wish there was a quicker way back to the top again each time. Well, here’s the perfect solution. A MASSIVE conveyor belt inside of a plastic tube. You finish the run and scramble a few metres with your sledge into the bottom of the tube and a few minutes later it spits you back out at the top so you can do it all over again. How fab is that?!
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Keith P |
My partner in crime is a bloke who Jo & I met in Murren, along with his wife, Di, when we had lunch coming down the cable cars from Schilthorn. I met up with him and two other fab folk for this trip (Eric and Margaret). Back in Murren I nearly spat my beer out across the table when he told me what he had done during his career; the man used to co-own Games Workshop! A company that radically shaped the form and direction of my life from the age of 11 years old.
Keith is a legend. On my first run down the slope I thought I was doing the sledge run pretty darn fast, slamming my spine every time I hit a bump; throwing up sprays of snow as I landed or put a heel down to adjust direction… then I heard this “Whooooo-hooooooo!!!!” holler from behind me, and suddenly Keith hurted past -lying on his belly!
Another time he was going down so fast and out of control he crashed into and THROUGH the safety net which was the only thing stopping people from flying out onto a steep descent of several miles. Hilarious. He and I were both in stitches as I tried to take this photo with him standing on the wrong side of the safety fence.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Djr |
Coming back up.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Eagle sculpture at the Ice Palace |
Inside the main complex there is an ice palace with a load of different sculptures carved from the ice.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Looking back towards the Sphinx Observatory |
Walking through a labyrinth of passageways and staircases you can find a doorway that opens up onto this panorama point. Here I’m looking back towards the Sphinx Observatory and you can just see another brutal blizzard cloud sweeping in from the left.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Djr |
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| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch |
So I’m above the clouds looking down across Switzerland – you can even see France and Germany in the distance. Then a huge gust of wind nearly freezes my face off and I glance to my left and see another huge blizzard cloud swirling towards me.
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch |
Freeeeeezzzzing!
| Switzerland – Jungfraujoch – Djr |
A much better view than before, thanks to the clouds sweeping away for a while.
| Switzerland – descneding from Jungfraujoch |
Finally its time to leave. Jump back on the train down through the mountain tunnel; and then switch to a different route back from the one I took to get up there, thanks to a top tip from Uwe, the congierge at the Dorint hotel earlier that morning. Wow. Look at this view – with a small valley floor settlement stretched long and thin below gargantuan cliffs.
| Switzerland – descneding from Jungfraujoch – Interlaken |
Those who knew the man will understand when they look at the three clocks in this picture – which I call… Dominico O’clock.
I got back to the hotel and was on a total buzz. Had a fantastic night in the bar with the crowd who had formed there.
Finally went back to our room; Jo went to bed and I stayed up for ages, with the lights off, sitting by the open balcony door… gazing at the hulking outline of the nearby mountains and peering down at the headlights of cars zipping along mountain roads far below on the opposite side of the valley.
WEDNESDAY: Today I’m on the legendary ‘Glacier Express’ to St Moritz. This is documented as being one of the most stunning rail journey’s on Earth. The train is purpose designed with large panoramic windows and has to undertake several changes of locomotive in order to cope with the varied gradients. It’s not the Orient Express (Simplon’s Paris to Istanbul) but I’m not quite ready to fork out five-grand on ticket – need to sell a few more books before that can happen. The Glacier Express is a six hour journey that winds and twists through mountain ranges with sparkling waterfalls, rich forest drenched hillsides and ravines of raging rivers; it seemingly levitates as it traverses lofty viaducts and is unstoppable as it pushes through dark mountain tunnels.
At St Moritz I head south and I’m looking forward to seeing the scenery become less rugged, with the bold slopes covered in sceneted pine-forests; I’ll observe buildings begin to adopt iconic Mediterranean pastel colours – ochre, magenta and yellow – amd terracotta tiled roofs. Abruptly, I’ll be in Italy and descending towards Lake Como.
Wordsworth described Lake Como as ‘a treasure the world keeps to itself’. Long, still and narrow, surrounded by abundant vegetation, it is cusped by a string of picturesque and romantic villages. I’ll be staying in a lakeside hamlet with views across the scintilating clear waters to Como. This hamlet will be my base of operations for the next three nights
| Switzerland – leaving Interlaken – Oj |
Wednesday: An early start and back on the road – descending down from Beatenberg through Interlaken and beyond towards the start point for the Glacier Express.
| Switzerland – heading out of Interlaken. |
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| Switzerland – boarding the Glacier Express |
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| Switzerland – aboard the Glacier Express |
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| Switzerland – aboard the Glacier Express |
Welcome to the middle of nowhere. The train takes 6 hours to reach its final destination in St Moritz, still inside the borders of Switzerland – I was amazed how quickly those 6 hours rushed by.
| Switzerland – aboard the Glacier Express |
Despite the title of the ride; apart from a few minutes at a high altitude where there’s signs of snow and surrounding mountains; most of the ride goes through either bleak and barren landscapes (the Swiss Grand Canyon) or through interesting forest scenes like this – flying over aquaducts with utterly ball-shrinking drops below your nose where it’s pressed up flat against the window: eyes rooted down.
| Switzerland – aboard the Glacier Express – Djr |
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| Switzerland – leaving St Moritz |
From St. Moritz it was all downhill and across the border into Italy. The roads were utterly nuts at certain points; like this view of only one tiny section of hairpins that zig-zagged almost on top of each other, vertically, down several hundred metres.
| Switzerland – about to enter Italy |
The shift from Switzerland to Italy was immediately noticeable and quite dramatic. The immaculate roads, buildings and public spaces gave way to crumbling roads, shabby structures and unkempt gardens. Arrived at the hotel late at night after one heck of a day of travelling… and after the Alpine Spa vibe of the Dorint, this place, on the shore of Lake Como – in the dark – just seemed dismal by comparison. However – after a solid sleep I woke up the next day feeling really good about being there. It’s a new phase. It’s not Switzlerland – so I just needed to switch gear and get on with it.
THURSDAY: I’ll be taking a boat ride across the lake to Bellagio, probably watch my wallet errupt into flames; probably tour some cafes and find places to grab writing time. (POST-EDIT: Ironically, it transpired that Lake Como, even Bellagio was very cheap when compared to Switzerland).
| Italy – Cernobbio, Lake Como |
Thursday morning. Hello Italy.
Breakfast was good. The coffee was gooood. I strolled outside to get my head around my new location. The skies were heavy with cloud but I could see the sun starting to burn through; there was an insane wind howling off the lake but it was pretty mild – and a bunch of ducks were having a real hoot flying into it and just sort of… hovering as the flapped against the gale.
| Italy – Cernobbio, Lake Como – Crazy Italian Duck |
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| Italy – Cernobbio, Lake Como – More Crazy Italian Ducks |
They would literally flap with all their might and simply be left hovering there as the wind battered them back. Hilarious!
| Italy – Cernobbio, Lake Como |
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| Italy – Lake Como – heading towards Bellagio |
Grabbed the boat from a small ferry terminal near the hotel, all very Victorian and quaint. The whole shoreline of this massive lake is strung with narrow ribbon settlements. Like pearls.
| Italy – Lake Como – heading towards Bellagio |
Some amazingly stunning buildings on the shoreline. Check out the private launch at the small jetty.
| Italy – Lake Como – heading towards Bellagio |
Support structure for buildings built over the lake shore.
| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
One of the many quaint sets of steps leading up from the shore, threading through the narrow alleyways strung through the length of the small city.
| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
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| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
I lit candles for my mum and dad here.
| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
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| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio – Djr |
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| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
A window that is never much used.
| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
Found a narrow winding cobbled alleyway that snuck away from the main part of town and let into this little labyrinth of quiet places.
| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio – Djr |
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| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
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| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
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| Italy – Lake Como – Bellagio |
Waiting for the ferry boat to take Jo and I back to Cernobbio, we sat outside a bar and watched the world stroll by – whilst I nuzzled a glass of grappa.
Took a day trip from Lake Como into Milan.
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| Italy – Milan – Stained Glass window inside Duomo |
The Duomo is an incredible cathedral – the 3rd largest in the world. This is just a fragment of a vast stained window showing an epic battle between forces of good and evil.
| Italy – Milan – remembering the dead, inside Duomo |
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| Italy – Milan – spooky & tragic animal companion face inside Duomo |
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| Italy – Milan – daunting stained glass window inside Duomo |
This is literally one of those items that is too large to comprehend, never mind being too large to photograph. It is a staggering size… several stories high of beautiful stained glass.
| Italy – Milan – a closer look |
Same picture as above but with more of a tight zoom. Have you ever seen such incredible blues in a stained window before? Truly a wonder to behold.
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| Italy – Milan – Duomo – Statue of St. Bartholomew |
Not far from one of the small side entrances, in the interchange between the nocturnal gloom of the cathedral’s vast interior and the eye-burning sunlight pouring in from outside, is this surreal and incredible figure presiding over your arrival.
| Italy – Milan – Duomo – Statue of St. Bartholomew |
Carved by Marco d’Agrate, it’s called Statue of the Saint Bartholomew – with his own skin. He’s draped it across his shoulders. It was sculpted back in 1562. It’s nearly 450 years old.
450 years!
And skinned!!!!
| Italy – Milan – Paladino’s sculptures in Piazza |
Very striking. Amongst all this grand and historical architecture and ancient sculptures you have this bright, modern concept. Works very well.
| Italy – Milan – Madonnina statue atop Duomo |
This is the “Madonnina” perched on the main spire of the cathedral; a baroque gilded bronze statue placed 108.5 metres above the ground below. A law was passed that no surrounding buildings should ever be tall enough to obscure view of the Madonnina from the gaze of the people of Milan. It was erected in 1762, or to put it into some context, 13 years before the American War of Independance broke out; it’s been there ever since.
| Italy – Milan – Street Scene |
Old-boy businessman stops on his moped for a mobile phone natter.
| Italy – Milan – Street Scene |
Woman goes shopping.
| Italy – Cernobbio, Lake Como – Djr |
Final night in Italy and the approaching end of an amazing trip. The sun burned through the final mist and treated Jo and I to an amazing sunset. Later that night the sky danced and shimmered with lightening before a huge rainstorm crashed down upon us – and everyone sitting outside on the terrace drinking into the night.
| Italy – Cernobbio, Lake Como – Old man contemplates |
Lovely moment.
Italy – Cernobbio, Lake Como – Djr
That’s it. The end of an AMAZING voyage.
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