Tired Tourists...

Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life.          ~Jack Kerouac

Lanny and I recently returned from another European trip! This time we went to Switzerland-- we wanted to see the Alps.

We were gone for two weeks, living out of our suitcases. We tasted the food of this wonderful country, we shopped and learned about the country's government, education system, transportation system, and so much more. We spent 2 weeks with a group of Americans we'd never met, getting to know them much better than we expected. We got to know some our guides and instructors, all of whom were enthusiastic Swiss people, who loved to show off their beautiful country.

We were up sometimes before the sun to get on the next train. We sat in more trains and buses than I can possibly recount here. We walked more cobblestone paths and saw more "old town" cities, learned a lot of Swiss history. We saw medieval castles and toured the latest Swiss engineering feat-- boring a hole through the Alps 35 miles long to carry trains and a highway with cars. We watched them make cheese and try to sell watches priced at over $40,000 in the shop window... We saw glaciers and mountains and palm trees (yes! palm trees grow in Switzerland!!). We heard cowbells and clock towers striking the hour (at 3 am... and 4 am... and... well, you get the idea...)

We tried our best to see and do everything we could, and when we arrived home, we were exhausted. We slept for 12 hours the first night, and then 9 or 10 the next. Our brains are still a little fuzzy from all the travel and time change and jet lag...

I have not been able to concentrate on much, so I have tried to focus on downloading photographs from the camera to the computer. I managed to take over 1100 photos so there are lots to sort through. I promise not to try to share them all with you, but for now, I thought I'd show a few of my favorites. Just a few...

Here we are at the Matterhorn... amazing!

Oh my, did I enjoy shopping in the chocolate shops!!

Lake Briens as seen from above Interlacken

The old bridge in Lucerne dates from the 1400's. A portion of it burned in late 1990's and has been rebuilt.

A Swiss chalet

Small Swiss villages all have church steeples you can see for miles... 

This is our train, heading into the mountains... all trains were electric and very efficient!

We are tired tourists, but one fond memory is our last evening in Zurich, when we spent a little time at a sidewalk cafe sipping the local beer and toasting our journey. And as tired as we were, we talked about where we'd like to go next...