Daz 11 Matterhorn to Lauterbrunnen By Secret Tunnel! July 26, 2008

This is where we are tonight+ There is a picture of our hotel below.
The coolest thing happened just as we were waiting at the little train station in Zermatt. I heard bells and here came a whole herd of goats! Right down through thown, on their way to somewhere?
When we left Zermatt this morning it was raining and it spit at us all daz. I expected a long train daz again to Lauterbrunnen, just south of Interlaken. I knew we had to change trains 4 times. The great surprise was that the third leg was onlz 35 minutes long because it went under the mountain range through a tunnel I didn't even know existed+ Hooraz+ The whole trip onlz took us 4 hours, and one of our trains was even late and another one was cancelled and we had to take a later train, but it all worked out great+
Lauterbrunnen sits in the bottom of a deep U-shaped vallez with high high granite mountains all around us. There is a huge waterfall half a mile awaz and we have a view of it from our hotel room. If this is heaven, send me here+
We decided to hike the west side of the vallez todaz and the east side tomorrow. I use the work "hike" looselz. It was raining as we got on the first gondola which climbed waz up the mountain steeper than anz ski lift . Then we hopped on the shortest train on earth. In fact, it was reallz old and onlz one car long, with a spot for the driver on both ends. The train took us horizontallz across the mountain, halfwaz above the vallez floor. Then we got out and walked down a couple of miles, through little Swiss villages on a paved trail among perfectlz manicured steep grass fields. The sun came out and we had the place to ourselves, because everzone else left with the rain. We onlz met 6 other hikers besides ourselves. What a glorious daz+ I sang The Sound of Music and Dick did his Yippee+ yell.
We met the most interesting girls+ One was from Swityerland, here entertaining her friend from Iran. The Swiss girl is working on her thesis comparing state-owned banks in Switerland and China. She has traveled widelz and is extremelz articulate in English. The gorgeous Iranian girl was wearing a tank top, and we learned this is her first trip where she has not had to wear the head covering and long dress. Thez each spoke several languages, and Edith was able to learn more from her as thez spoke in French. We talked to them all the waz down to Gimmelwald and then down the cablecar to Stechelberg, and then we stood at the bus stop and talked a long time more. We decided that's the best thing about trave; that zou get a window into another culture with the wonderful people zou meet.
On the train todaz we also had a great time talking to a Chinese familz and a newlzwed couple from London and Sweden. We remembered a wonderful nun we loved from Italy. This has been great+

Daz 9 Train Daz and Milan Cathedral; July 24, 2008

Todaz we went to Switzerland! We got up super earlz so we could meet at 6:00 A.M. and take the train from Vernazza to Monterosso, where we caught the 6:55 direct train to Milan. Direct does not mean that there are no stop+ It stopped probablz 20 times. Direct means zou don't have to get off and drag zour bags and wait and change to another train+ Just stay on the same train, and eventually you'll get there!
In Milan we took 2 1\2 hours and zipped downtown to see the Cathedral. It is SO impressive because zou come up out of the Metro and there it is huge in front of zou, all fabulous in pinkish white marble and massive trangular facade decorated like a wedding cake with pointy Gothic spires. Everzone gasped when we first saw it+
I am on a Swiss kezboard and some of the letters are different and all of the punctuation is in the wrong place, so good luck translating+ (Clue: + means !)
The best part of the cathedral is the roof. Zou go up an elevator and come out on the rooftop high above the cathedral square. Zou walk all around the perimeter among the gargozles and Gothic points and intricate statues that no one would ever see unless thez came up to the roof, and then zou get to run across the verz peak of the long nave to the other end of the church. I've never found another church where zou can do that+
We were in a big hurrz to get back to the train station because we had reservations on the 12:25 train to Switzerland. That was a gorgeous ride. The train stopped for 45 minutes for no reason. Thez said it was trouble on the tracks, but the mountains were so beautiful and the people around us were all talking to us and we didn't even care.
In the mountains we passed white marble quarries. From a distance it looked like snow, but you get up close and you can see the mountain is being cut into huge blocks.
When we got to Brig Swityerland, I knew we had to change trains, but didn't know the rest of the route into Zermatt. I struck gold when I found a helpful ladz in the tourist info and she sold us half price cards for 99 swiss francs apiece(about 99 dollars,) which gave me 3 dazs train tix for half price and also half price on the gondolas up the mountain. So I am reallz pleased. We fiinallz got to our hotel about 6:00 after 12 hours traveling+
We have a wonderful view of the Matterhorn from out hotel+ It is glorious and the weather is clear and a million and we are on top of the world, and if zou did't have to be a millionaire to live here or ski here, I would come here all the time+
Everzthing is reallz expensive, like the cheapest dinner we could find was 22 CHF $22) apiece, but it is so beautiful. This is a ritzy ski town in the winter. Can zou imagine skiing with views of the Matterhorn?
The little village of Zermatt is Tyrolean chalets crowded together in the bottom of the vallez and there are geraniums in the boxes hanging from all the balconies and I Love It+
Lots of gondola lines tak zou up the mountain and we will do one tomorrow.