Vacation in Europe:
Montreux and Interlaken, Switzerland
days 8 - 9
After our hike in the hills above Vevay, we drove to Montreux, where we found the perfect picnic spot. We spent a long time trying to find it, because the coastline just didn't seem accessible; it was all cement and fences. But our perseverance paid off: we found a tiny staircase hidden by some trees that led to a cute little stone pier just big enough for two people. We had our picnic and then went swimming in the (still icy cold) lake.We continued on to Interlaken, which had more tourists in one place than we had seen in every other place put together. Interlaken is apparently *the* spot for adventure seekers: you can go rafting, canyoning, bungee jumping, skydiving, anything and everything that requires a sense of adventure and a strong constitution. Interlaken is in the Germanophone part of Switzerland, but because of the huge number of tourists we spoke mostly in English for the first time this trip. The locals seemed happier to speak English than French, so we went along with that.
The next day, my husband convinced me to try paragliding. I have to admit that I was kind of nervous, but he was so excited that I just couldn't turn him down. But it was fabulous. The pilot hooked a bunch of straps around me and then somehow hooked us together (with him behind me) and to the chute. Then we had to run down a steep hill and suddenly we were in the air, floating over the trees. My pilot adjusted my straps and then somehow the square piece of wood that had been hooked to my back became a chair - I was comfy as can be and gliding above the Swiss Alps. It was so peaceful that it seemed unreal. As we got closer to the ground, we did some turns and flips that were just exhilarating.
After the paragliding we drove on for pretty much the rest of the day; hours and hours through the Alps. We took a break to picnic by the riverbed and another a couple hours later to eat some berries and cream by a tiny stream, and then drove on to Italy.
Next stop: Milan Vacation Index
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