Swiss Miss in Interlaken

So you know the photo on the side of the Swiss Miss hot chocolate boxes? The one with the green grass and snow-covered mountains? Well, Interlaken is like that times a million. This is the most beautiful place I have ever seen. Interlaken, which is a small town in the valley of the Swiss Alps, and the surrounding areas have had more snow this year than they have seen in 10 years. (Ryan, the snow is amazing! You have to come back here in the winter and go skiing!) Everywhere we look is pine trees, snow-covered mountains just a stone's throw away, gorgeous green fields and modest chalets with green, red and yellow shutters.

Britt and I thought about going skiing or snowboarding, but it SO expensive. I think we will try to go in Innsbruck or Krakow though, where it is supposed to be cheaper. Instead, we went night-sledding last night. It was a little scary, but definetely one of the coolest things I've ever done. We rode up into the mountains with a guy who works at the hostel and about 10 other people. Then we got our sleds and rode up the rest of the way in gondolas. We slid down the hill, stopping every 20 minutes or so, and ended up an hour later at a tiny Swiss restaurant where we had fondue and beer and hashbrowns and eggs. It was really, really fun!

Today we met up with a new friend, Victoria, from Australia. We traveled with her by train up into the mountain town of Wengen, where we enjoyed incredible views and lunch overlooking the ski slopes. Tonight we are going to a chocolate factory to watch them make truffles! Does it get any better than this? Tomorrow we head to Bern for the day and then Lucerne for the night! More on that soon...

Interlaken is...
-simply gorgeous.
-red-checkered bedspreads and everything wooden
-extreme sports central (the downhill skiing world cup is held here every year)
-our first experience with German
-fondue and chocolate
-blustery weather and warm fires
-2 train stations a half mile apart?
-serene, lovely
-how can we leave this place?