Let me tell you a family secret…
When it comes to birthday gifts in our family, we’ve decided to celebrate with a daily trip to some unknown place in Switzerland we haven’t been yet. It’s a chance to have fun as a family and further discover the country we call home.
For my birthday this year, I’ve been searching for a spot for ages. I have to admit that it hasn’t been easy. I’m a bit of a perfectionist, especially when it comes to travel. After lots of contemplation and searching, I finally chose to visit the most spectacular and breathtaking region in Switzerland – the Jungfrau region!
We embarked on my birthday trip early morning May 7th and arrived in by Grindelwald 10h10. The Eiger village of Grindelwald in the Bernese Oberland is very welcoming and surrounded by a very commanding mountainscape, with the Eiger north face and the Wetterhorn. It’s this beautiful mountainscape in conjunction with its numerous lookout points and activities that make Grindelwald one of the most popular and cosmopolitan holiday and excursion destinations in Switzerland, as well as the largest ski resort in the Jungfrau region.
It was a magnificent day, and I was so pleased with the choice. Our first stop was Restaurant Grund for a quick coffee run. The coffee and the taste of the cappuccino were exceptional, while the view of natural and the surrounding mountains was enchanting. After this short stop, we had lunch at the Hotel Glacier’s restaurant, which was not too far from Grund Grindelwald. Lunch was amazing at this beautiful hotel restaurant and the panoramas we had on their terrace were just breathtaking! Just look at my photos and try to tell me otherwise.
With the sunshine beaming down on me yet another year, I felt a moment of deep gratitude and considered myself so lucky to benefit of this kind of moment in my life; everything felt amazing.
At about 15h00, we took the famous cogwheel train at Grund Railway Station in the direction of Kleine Scheidegg, which is considered the “top of Europe” because it’s the highest railway station besides being a ski resort and world renowned excursion destination thanks to its permanent snow and ice. But, unfortunately for us, we only stopped there for a few minutes to change trains to go to our next destination, which was Wengen, located on the other part of the Valley.
Wengen is a picturesque town that’s car-free. The Bernese Alps village is located right at the foot of the Lautenbrunnen valley and is only accessible via the Wengernalp Railway. Because there are no vehicles, the only way to describe the town is calm and relaxing! While there, Anastasya declared that we needed to find a playground for her with all the rest of our plans not as important to hers. Of course, we had to indulge in her wishes and found a very beautiful playground not far from the train station.
After she played awhile, it was on to our next stop, which was Lautenbrunner valley, which is considered one of the most beautiful valleys in the Alps with 72 waterfalls. Since the last Ice Age, various ice masses have melted and are why there are so many waterfalls, which is very rare in Europe. People across the globe come to see these spectacular views.
But the most impressive view you’ll see is the journey from Wengen to Lautenbrunnen, which is literally an unforgettable experience that needs to be done at least once in a lifetime. As I was living in the beautiful moment, I had this image of a Swiss postcar with green meadows, gorgeous cows, a church bell tower, chalets and more before gazing upon the famous waterfall called Staubbach.
It’s nearly 300 meters high and is one of the highest waterfalls in all of Europe. It’s been inspiration for various paintings, songs and poems, including one of my favorites from the poet Goethe. It was the inspiration behind his “Song of the Spirits Over The Water,” which goes like this:
The soul of man Is like the water:
It comes from heaven,
It returns to heaven,
And down again
To earth must go,
Ever changing.
When from the high, 
Sheer wall of rock
The pure stream gushes,
It sprays its lovely vapor
In billowing clouds
Towards the smooth rock,
And lightly received,
It goes enshrouded,
Softly hissing
Down to the deep.
Cliffs tower,
Opposing its fall.
Annoyed, it foams
Step by step
Into the abyss.
In a flat bed
It slinks down the grassy vale,
And in the waveless lake
All the stars Feast on their likeness.
Wind is the wave’s
Handsome suitor;
Wind stirs up from the depths
Foaming billows.
Soul of man,
How like to the water!
Fate of man,
How like to the wind!
By the time we have ended magical tour in Lautenbrunnen, we were all quite hungry and decided it was time to taste local fondue in the in the Restaurant Hotel Oberland.
It was a very delicious and interesting at the same time. It was actually a first for me given they seasoned it differently that normal. Usually, when you order fondue, it’s already prepared with seasonings like onion, garlic, parsley and more, but this time everything was served on the side so that you can add whatever suits your taste best. I actually loved how they served it!
After such a delicious break, we rushed to take the last train on day at about 19h40, which was headed to Grindelwald Centre. We arrived there at 20h15 and still needed to walk about 15min to reach Grindelwald Grund, where our car was located. Once we finally got in the car, the entire family was spent given the day’s long adventure. It was quite an intense day, but one of the most memorable by far, my best birthdays to date and I loved every minute of it. It’s a day I’ll truly remember for all time and it’ll be hard to top such a fun day for future birthdays and celebrations. I truly hope we can relive that day and visit again soon.
Here’s to another wonderful year filled with more travels and lots of fun with you my dearest muses… talk to you soon !
