Western Europe - Day 4

Biel-Bienne / Grindelwald (SWITZERLAND) Weather forecast -3 to 3°C I woke up at 4 am feeling rested and good. The fever had gone, much to my relief.  Outside my window I could hear the hushed chatter of tourists arriving at the train station across from the hotel.  Two ladies sat on their luggage and exchanged pleasantries with one another.

Train station opposite the hotel

Last night, we'd reached the hotel in total darkness. Nothing was seen that could be. This morning, daylight spread out slowly across the darkened land revealing a spectacular sight.

Mountain village at the foot of the Eiger.

Grindelwald is situated at the center of a high mountain and glacier region. The mountain village at the foot of the Eiger is the perfect starting point for a host of excursion. DRAMA ON THE EIGER NORTH WALL In 1936, a roped team of four men attempted a climb at the middle of the wall. One man was injured when the *pendulum traverse was used.

*Pendulum traverse is a technique for moving sideways across a section which is too difficult to climb and involves swinging across the wall to reach a certain point. 

They reached the "Death Bivouac" where four climbers from Munich had frozen to death the year before. While descending, three fell to their deaths. Mountain guides were alerted but could not reach the last remaining man due to severe snowfall and avalanches.

Kurz the survivor, untwisted the strands of remaining ropes and knot them together. This was lowered down to the guide. They attached a rope and he pulled it up. Kurz knotted two short ropes together and lowered himself down.  Five meters above his rescuers, the knot jammed in the carabiner and the poor man froze to death.

Taking all the above into consideration, I decided not to climb up the Eiger on this day.

Notice how small the coaches are.

Village at the foot of the Eiger

Buildings in the vicinity of the hotel.

The Eiger as seen from the hotel.

We were ushered into the coach to be taken on a picturesque journey to the Jungfraujoch Train Station about half an hour's drive away.

Babbling brook from the alps. Train station on the right of picture.

At 3454m, this is Europe's highest-altitude railway.

We weren't wearing proper shoes so poor Michelle fell down twice up there at the Top of Europe.

Jungfraujoch has the highest altitude post box in Switzerland, highest altitude chocolate shop in Europe and highest altitude watch shop in the world.

The Jungfrau Railway generated electricity with trains traveling downhill since 1912

There were at least two stops at various points along the way. It took about an hour to reach the top.

Europe's longest glacier (Aletsch Glacier) is 22 km long and almost a km thick.

We gathered near the above signboard waiting for the missing Michelle. After a lapse of between 15 to 20 minutes when poor Michelle was still missing and could not be communicated by phone, we assumed that she had decided to walk around on her own. Hoping to bump into her eventually, we took Switzerland's fastest lift to the Sphinx Terrace at the Top of Europe.

Picture taken at the Sphinx Vantage Terrace 3571 m (Vantage point in the heart of the Alps)

JUNGFRAUJOCH (SWITZERLAND) From the Sphinx Terrace, we moved on to the Plateau where all sorts of snow activities like toboggans etc were available for a price.

Spectacular panorama view over the Alps

Michelle was still missing. We had not bumped into her. At the Plateau, (picture: left) we noticed a trial of tourists walking into the distant hills and wondered if Michelle was there. I thought it was brave of her to follow that trial.

All that walking about and looking out for Michelle was giving me palpitation. I could not keep pace with the rest of the group and had to stop frequently to catch my breath and to see if Michelle was anywhere in sight. She had a broken arm and I was worried that she may be lost somewhere in the snow alone and exposed to the element. While the rest of the group visited the Ice Palace, I rested at the Souvenir shop.

Sculpture at Ice Palace

Ice Palace

Finally Michelle showed up for lunch at the restaurant. I was relieved to see that she was not lost in the snow, alone and exposed to the element. However, she had fallen down twice at the Sphinx Terrace and at the Plateau.

Fried chicken thigh, pumpkin soup and ice cream

Interlaken (SWITZERLAND) Weather forecast 11 to 19°C After lunch, we were back on the train to be taken downhill towards our coach. Free chocolates were distributed to all passenger. Interlaken is the economic and cultural center of the Jungfrau region. It is a small city in central Switzerland, located between two Alpine Lakes.

Beautiful mountain scenery

Casino

The stop at Interlaken was a paradise for the avid shopper amongst us. Watches, chocolates and bags were on the display shelves. Michelle and Jackie were in their element. Bread cake

Pork chop with potato omelette

As for me, I was in a state of jubilance. I had survived another high altitude excursion. I need not tell you but I will, that I slept very well on this night and all nights thereafter.