OUR SWISS-PARIS VACATION - Part I. SWITZERLAND

Somewhere in the world, autumn has begun to dress the trees in red and gold, and having almost always travelled abroad in summer, this year, we decided to experience a different season. So, on the evening of October 21, with bags packed and passports safely on our person, we rushed to the airport.

From then on, everything was just that – rushed! The Mumbai traffic had us sincerely praying we get to the airport on time, which we did. Barely. Once inside, we hurried to check-in or one bag, only to be attended to by the slowest airport staff on the planet. Uff! The flight to Delhi was uneventful, but once at Delhi Airport, it was run, run, run. The walk from the arrival gate to the immigration section is a very long one. The boarding for the connecting flight was almost about to begin and even while the attendant requested us to hurry, she expected us to request others already in line to let us get to the head of the line so we could clear immigration and board the plane. Thankfully, people were quite understanding and, completing the immigration and security check procedures, we ran towards the boarding gate, which, as luck would have it, was another very long walk away. Trotting as fast as we could, we huffed and puffed towards the boarding gate, where, we realized, the flight was delayed by a few minutes.

We arrived at Paris CDG Airport with barely a few minutes to spare before our next connecting flight to Zurich. Barely a few meters from the gate and the flight status changed to ‘boarding closed’. At the Air France help desk we learnt that there are only two flights to Zurich each day. The next one, later that evening, was already fully booked, so we opted for the one next morning. That being decided, Air France arranged for our stay at Paris and then, ensuring we had all the needed information, we headed to look for something to eat.

There seemed to be quite a number of people dining at Exki, so that’s where we decided to go. I selected a salami sandwich and something that looked like a pie stuffed with cheese and lots of ham. Sadly, what I thought to be ham turned out to be carrots. Lots and lots of carrots. And it tasted horrid.

  Meal done, we made our way towards the airport shuttle, stopping only at the tourism counter to pick up a map. The young lady at the counter was quite a cheerful thing who made an attempt to ask after us in Hindi, and she was quite thrilled to hear us reply in Hindi, too. She suggested an economical day travel pass that we could use if we wished to explore Paris for the day. It allows multiple use of all forms of public transport in and around Paris, so we purchased two of those (one for each of us) and then boarded the shuttle towards the hotel.

Moxy, the hotel assigned to us, was quite a nice one, not very far from the airport. The check-in process was smooth and swift, and our room on the 1^st floor, overlooking the front courtyard, was quite comfortable and just perfect for a restful night after all the hurrying we’d been doing since we left home. After a brief rest, we headed out into the city, using the opportunity to understand the workings of the Parisian public transport. We headed towards St.Michel and the Notre Dame, planning only to walk around the streets to get a feel of Paris.  

The streets were lined with cafes, and there were people everywhere, enjoying the sunshine and a drink with friends. Street stalls displayed quirky artwork, fridge magnets and post cards, and right there, across the Seine, stood the Notre Dame. 

We stood awhile on the Pont St.Michel, watching the boats going down the Seine. Outside the cathedral, we clicked a few pictures of some fat pigeons and then decided to try some French crepes at one of the two stalls nearby. Not bad, but not something I’d write home about.

Crepes in hand (and in mouth), we crossed the street, enjoying the sight of the many pretty cafes clustered together. I was quite taken by the cute patisserie La Maison ODETTE, which looked like something one might find in the pages of a child’s pop-up book. 

By now, the crepes were long gone and we began to feel rather hungry. Wanting to play it safe after the horrid carrot pie, we opted for something familiar and hopped into a McDonalds for a burger and coke. As we munched on our fries, we thought we’d go, next, towards the Tour Eiffel. However, being rather tired and wanting to ensure we were well in time for next morning’s flight, we headed back to our room at Moxy for a much needed bath and a short nap.

Later, after a very satisfying and delicious dinner at the in house restaurant, we called it a day.

Very early the next morning, we were back at CDG, sipping on a coffee at Starbucks, having completed security check and with lots of time to spare. Many, like us, seemed to have arrived early and were catching their forty winks on every available surface in the waiting lounge. Shortly, our boarding gate was announced and, a few minutes after that, we were on our way to Zurich.

As we neared our destination, I was hoping to see little houses and goats grazing on the mountainside (I grew up reading Heidi). All I could see were dense clouds with little bits of mountain peeping out here and there. Strange. Assuming I’d see rolling hills and frisky goats once we dropped altitude, I kept my camera ready and began to record our descent, only to find a dense fog blurring out the view. We landed in a Zurich that was foggy, cold and simply awesome! What a spectacular welcome that was!

After purchasing the necessary tickets, we headed towards Opfikon, via the Tram (line 10). Our accommodation for the duration of our stay, was at the home of Theofilos. The place is comfortable and conveniently located not very far from the city centre.

Having the rest of the day before us, we headed to the city centre and feasted on some delicious burgers at the Holy Cow Burger Co. They have plenty of interesting options in non-veg, vegetarian and even vegan burgers. Very delicious! 

We then walked around exploring the sights of the old town and the many bridges across the river, especially Zurich’s Love-Lock Bridge. 

We also spent some time watching the newly restored Rathaus Bridge Carousel and the goings-on on either side of the river. After a few short hours of exploring, we boarded a train to nearby Kilchberg and the Lindt Home of Chocolate, advertised as Switzerland’s new museum of chocolate.

In the lobby, the star attraction is the 9+ meter tall chocolate fountain with over a 1500kg of chocolate flowing through it. Then there’s the very, very attractive chocolate shop, already gaily dressed in preparation for Christmas. And there’s so much chocolate all around….I had to stop myself from grabbing once of every kind of chocolate there was in the shop.

Carrying my carefully selected bag of goodies, we climbed the stairs up to the first floor to begin our Lindt Chocolate Tour. This turned out to be far more enjoyable that I expected. Firstly, the exhibits, aided by the audio guide, were very interesting. I did learn a lot about chocolate here. Secondly, the tour allows for free tasting of chocolate, dark, milk and white. Then there are these little machines that you hold your hand under and a small slab of chocolate plops into your palm. You can eat it and try guessing the flavour added (I liked the orange ones best, and my hand kept finding its way under that particular chocolate dispenser). 

Finally, you get free chocolate samples and I was being very careful to take just one or two that I liked. That was until I saw others behind me stuffing their pockets with the freebies. Well then, what can I say?  In Rome I did as the Romans did, and I was all the happier for it!

On our way back, we grabbed a dinner of rice bowls at Rice-Up, an Asian fusion food outlet, and that was the end of our very first, very sweet day in Zurich.

The next morning saw us back at the rail station, enjoying a breakfast of coffee and delicious vanilla croissants at Il Baretto. 

In a short while we were on a train to the beautifully picturesque city of Lucerne. Located on the banks of Lake Lucerne and within sight of mounts Pilatus and Rigi, Lucerne has long been a favored destination among tourists, with the 14^th century Chapel Bridge being its star attraction.

With a history going as far backed the year 750, Lucerne has much to offer for those interested in history, architecture, food and simple natural beauty. Just walking across the Chapel Bridge in such a joy! Even the old town itself is absolutely beautiful with its historic buildings, public squares and cobbled streets. There are also plenty of churches, shops and ancient fountains scattered around the area. 

If you’re hungry, there’s a lot of options to choose from. Our choice for lunch was Manora, a buffet-styled restaurant located over a department store. The spread includes a nice selection of breakfast items, cold and warm meats, pastas, sandwiches, coffee and dessert. If you’re lucky to find a table by the window, you can also enjoy a view of the rooftops of Lucerne. There’s also terrace seating available, but since we’d stepped out on a very rainy day, that was not an option.

We spent the rest of the day walking around Lucerne, admiring the lovely architecture and enjoying the cold, wet weather, and that, dear readers, was day two of Zurich.

Interlaken

Our next destination, for which we once again found ourselves at the train station the next morning, was Interlaken, a mountainous resort town in Switzerland. Set between the sparkling, turquoise waters of Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, Interlaken is filled with parks & timbered houses and is surrounded by mountains and dense forests.

TIP: When travelling from Zurich to Interlaken, do sit to your left, facing the direction of the train, if you wish to enjoy the best views of the passing vistas.

Interlaken West is the more touristy section of town, with plenty of hotels, boutiques, stores and restaurants. Interlaken Ost (East), where we had chosen to stay, is the quieter, prettier side of town. Our accommodation was in the village of Bönigen, on the shores of Lake Brienz. 

Our room was very cheerful and absolutely pretty and suited us just fine, and the village itself was rather quaint, with many houses dating back to 1261. There’s a Volg and a bakery nearby, and even a little church and pharmacy. The houses have a pretty yards, flowerbeds and vegetable patches, all decorated with garden gnomes and fairy creatures. Many of the windows display handmade objects, the kind that children might make in school. There’s a sense of happiness hanging all over the village. I had a good mind to skip about singing, ‘little town, it’s a quiet village….’

Getting in and around Interlaken in fairly easy once you have the Visitor’s Pass that allows for unlimited travel on public transport for the duration of the stay. There’s one bus that plies to and from Bönigen, every 45 minutes. It goes right from Interlaken West to the village of Iseltwald, another fairy-tale village on the southern shores of Lake Brienz. 

Popular for its scenic beauty and boat rides, this village is popular among tourists, but, at the time of our visit, boating activities had just shut for the coming winter. Not aware of that fact, we purchased our tickets from the vending machine at 50 Swiss Francs. Lucky for us, we were told, on enquiry, that we might get a refund from the local train station, so we placed the tickets in our wallets, to be dealt with later.

After exploring Iseltwald, we spent the rest of the evening walking around Interlaken West, finding it to be more crowded with tourists and quite exciting really, with all its shops and restaurants. We also sat awhile at Schlosspark, watching the many paragliders soaring high above and executing neat landings a few meters away from us.

The next morning, well before dawn, we stood at the bus-stop, dressed in our warmest jackets, waiting for the bus that would take us to Interlaken Ost train station. Today, we had planned to go to the Top of Europe, Jungfraujoch. Here, you can stand on one of the highest points in the Swiss Alps, walk through an ice-cave, play in the snow and visit the Sphinx, one of the highest observatories in the world. 

To get there, we took the train towards Grindelwald from where we boarded the Eiger Express (cable car) that offers great views of the town and the mountainside far below. Next was the Jungfrau Express that takes you into the heart of the mountain.

After munching on a sandwich at the Jungfrau café, we began our snowy adventure. This was our first ever experience with snow, so we were very excited, I even took off my gloves to feel the snow. Big mistake. My fingers went numb almost instantly and it was quite a while before I could feel them again. All around us was snow as far as the eye could see. And it was windy, with snow swirling all around. The Ice Palace, a series of icy tunnels, is also quite interesting with its many ice sculptures. The best part of our visit was the time spent on the Plateau, posing with the Swiss flag and admiring the panoramic views of the Alps. We could hear the wind howling all around us, and the sun played hide and seek from behind the clouds, making the snow go blindingly white.

Having spent the most wonderful and most unforgettable time on the snow-clad mountain, we made our way back, once again taking the Eiger Express towards Grindelwald, another beautiful village nestled among the mountains. From here, one gets a nice view of the Eiger Express making its way up and down the mountain towards snow-clad Jungfraujoch. Grindelwald is pretty, with its main street lined with lovely stores and restaurants. For lunch, we entered Bebbis Restaurant, which, judging by the number of patrons, seemed quite popular. Here, at a table overlooking the street, we had our first taste of Cheese Fondue. Quite boozy it was, really. The rest of our order was quite bland.

The next day was our last in Interlaken. Waking up early, as usual, I decided to walk around the village. A couple of children were out and about working on their paper rounds, sporting pink cheeks and yellow reflector jackets. Keeping my eyes on the steeple of the local church, I tried finding my way to it, passing many beautiful timbered houses nestled together, all with bright flowers in the window-boxes, paper craft creations on windowpanes and fat little gnomes peeping from behind potted plants. This church itself was rather modern and stark when compared to the neighbouring houses, having been inaugurated sometime around 1957.

A little later in the morning, we headed back towards Interlaken Ost station, where we inquired about a refund of the boating tickets obtained at Iseltwald. We got back 40 francs, with 10 deducted as penalty. Pocketing the money, we decided to visit the Coop Restaurant nearby for brunch. Similar to the Manor at Lucerne, this restaurant, too, has a buffet system, with pricing for items set according to size of plate. Making our selection we were heading to the payment counter when we were stopped by one of the employees who looked at the contents of our trays and very kindly proceeded to shuffle around some items, adjusting combinations, which resulted in us having to pay much less than what might have been our original bill. Very helpful of him, really!

After the meal, we walked a while and then crossed a little bridge towards the Harder Kulm Funicular station. This viewpoint, located on the highest point of Interlaken is very popular with tourists. It’s said that the views from there are spectacular, but we skipped this attraction for two reasons. One, the prices were too steep, and two, the sun was at its zenith, almost blinding in its intensity, resulting in very washed-out photographs with us squinting into the camera. Walking along the river, we began to walk towards Interlaken West. It was a very pleasant walk of about a little less than an hour. It was sunny, but the path was well shaded by the many trees that lined the river bank, showering us with yellow-gold leaves every time the wind blew. We stopped at intervals to click pictures and to watch a senior couple feeding a handsome, but rather greedy swan.

Our long and pleasurable walk ended at the park, where we once again sat watching some paragliders sail by. A short while later we walked around a little more and decided to try some Irish Coffee and Hot Chocolate at Velo Café, that was surrounded by a street full of Indian restaurants and hotels, some with very questionable advertisements. 

Interlaken, I have realized, is very popular with Indians, as is the rest of Switzerland. I suppose this is all thanks to the Bollywood film industry.

Back to our coffee and chocolate….the former, the Irish coffee, was quite delicious and boozy. The chocolate was rather weak, thin, and not very hot.

We then headed back to our room to pack for the next morning, and then, later in the evening, went back into Interlaken West for a dinner of Bratwurst and Nachos at a nice restaurant whose name I can, sadly, not remember.

Geneva

The journey to our next stop, Geneva, began on time, but seemed to be jinxed from the start. The train we were on stopped mid-way due to technical difficulties and we had to hop into another one at Bern. Then, on reaching Geneva, we discovered that someone had nicked our camera bag and stolen our equipment. That’s a horrid thing to happen, really, and very heart-breaking, too.  It’s just not the monetary loss, it’s also the loss of all the pictures and memories it held. Then, there’s also the indignation that someone would be so wicked as to steal what does not belong to them, with absolute disregard of the loss and pain caused to others. 

Frantically looking around for the bag, we filed a report with the local police, who, like the railway guard, began by declaring that such things never happen in Geneva. In any case, they did file our complaint, but we had little hope of having our camera and lenses returned. Quite disappointed, we headed out into the city and made our way to the apartment we had booked for our stay, which happened to be on the second floor, in a building that had no elevators. Well, since this was just for a day, we had not booked an entire apartment, but a room in an apartment shared with the host, a woman who was genuinely sorry for the bad experience we had had. 

Still under the shadow of the unexpected loss, we set out again, trying not to let the event mar our day in Geneva. As originally planned, we made our way towards the UN building only to find that they were not permitting any visitors. We did, however, get a chance to visit the Red Cross Museum, which, although very informative, did nothing to boost our spirits. But it did remind us that people in the world face far bigger problems and losses than the one we had.

We then went back to the police station to inquire if any progress had been made in finding our bag. No such luck. We did however see a young man very deftly and smoothly pick the pocket of an elderly gentleman in the street. Ha! So much for ‘such things don’t happen in Geneva’!

After another burger meal at Holy Cow, we decided to call it an early day, thankful that we were leaving the very next morning. When compared to the wonderful places we had been to and the people we had encountered over the last few days, Geneva was quite a disappointment. It was blisteringly hot, there were pick pockets lurking around and most people seemed to have left their smiles at home.

It could be that our bad experience could have coloured our judgement, but Geneva, for us, will always be the one big blot on our travel memories.

We bid goodbye to Switzerland

The next morning, we headed back to the Geneva-Cornavin station, well in time for the next leg of our vacation. We were looking forward to our week in Paris and, waking up to a new day, had decided to let go of things beyond our control, and enjoy the rest of our holiday.

Geneva aside, our visit to Switzerland has been a very enjoyable and very refreshing one. We could clearly see why this beautiful county attracts so many visitors. With its mountains, turquoise lakes, timbered houses and friendly people, Switzerland is an absolute treat!

VERY IMPORTANT TIPS:

If you’re planning to visit Switzerland, don’t just look for a Swiss Travel Pass. Instead, getting yourself a Swiss Half Fare Card will be the best thing you could ever do. Considering the fact that everything in Switzerland nearly costs a kidney, the Half Fare Card is most ideal for short stays and excursions throughout Switzerland. What it does is allows you to travel by train, tram, bus, boat and most mountain railways at half the actual price. That’s a 50% discount, people! You can also use this benefit when buying tickets for most of the attractions around Switzerland. While you can purchase this card from the counter at the airport and train station, it’s also easily available online. Just ensure you buy it from a verified site.

Another thing to remember, if you wish to have a really smooth travel experience across Switzerland. Do download the free SBB App. It’s a great app to have as it provides updated transport related information, highlighting even the smallest delays, track changes and road blocks. You can use this app to consult public transport timetables and to book your tickets. Trust me, this app is an absolute must-have when in Switzerland. 

Pics by Misha.

To view my Swiss-Paris sketchbook, follow me on Instagram @misha.kamath