One of the hottest topics of discussion during the days that lead up to the wedding are – honeymoon destinations. It was no different for Humsafar and me. We virtually visited a number of countries during our courtship from Mauritius to Fiji to Norway to New Zealand. We kept vetoing each other’s choice and finally zeroed in on Switzerland- home to the mighty Alps, the paradise in Yash Chopra movies and a traveler’s delight.
Our first stop in Switzerland was Lucerne. This city has many attractions – the Chapel bridge, lion monument, Mount Pilatus and Lake Lucerne to name a few. The Chapel bridge is a 150 meter long covered wooden footbridge that extends across the Reuss River. 17th century paintings adorn the interiors of this bridge. An octagonal shaped water tower stands in the center of the bridge.
Just walking around the streets of Lucerne allow us to enjoy the city even more. The beautiful flowers, the manicured gardens, numerous cathedrals and the calm Lake Lucerne just make it look picture perfect.
The lion monument is a giant dying lion carved out of a single stone and overlooking a pond. It is a memorial for the swiss soldiers who lost their lives during the French revolution.
Mount Pilatus is the most popular attraction in Lucerne. Located at a height of 2200 metres, this mountain overlooks the entire town of Lucerne. Gondolas are there to take you all the way to the top.
Our last attraction in Lucerne was a beautiful sunset cruise on Lake Lucerne. The calm water, carrot cake-cream cheese and the serene surroundings marked the perfect end to our short stay at Lucerne.
Next stop: Interlaken – a city I was mighty excited to explore. This quaint city is home to Mount Titlis, Jungfrajoch – the highes point in Europe and lots of adventure sports. We hopped into a train from Lucerne to Interlaken and the journey was marvelous. The sight of lush green fields interjected by lakes and streams on either side made us forget all our worries .
Right after checking into our hotel, we decided to take a stroll down the streets of Interlaken. Our first stop was at a dessert shop to get a bite of the famous swiss fondue. One mouthful and I knew I had to return home walking to burn all those sinful calories:-)
During our stroll Humsafar signed up for paragliding and the two of us decided to go for some basic level of white water rafting. With an adventurous day ahead of us, I could hardly get sleep that night:-)
Paragliding was a wonderful experience for Humsafar and the two of us had a beautiful time white water rafting!!
Enroute Mount Titlis, we saw lush green landscapes which reminded me of almost all Yash Chopra movies. I could almost picture the Madhuris and the Sridevis running down the fields in their pastel chiffon saris!Nostalgic…
Unfortunately due to heavy snowfall,we couldn’t experience the Chairlift at Titlis ,but we did go all the way to the top in the Gondola.
Jungfraujoch- the highest point in Europe is situated at a height of about 12000 ft above sea level in the Alps.The highest point can be reached by a special train that runs specially through the mountain. This train leaves from Kleine Scheidegg, which can be reached by trains from Grindelwald.
Snow balling and sledge rides can be enjoyed at the top. Well fed huskies pull the sledge in a restricted area. They are as ferocious as cute as they look!
After a tired and activity filled stay at Interlaken, it was time to head out to Zurich to catch our flight back to Mumbai.
A picture perfect place and much more than just a honeymoon destination. In fact Switzerland is the only place to have made it to my ‘revisit’ list !! So jet, set and go!
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