The Europe Trip: Salzburg

Salzburg was the last stop of our Europe trip. The vibe was different. Unlike Innsbruck, Salzburg felt rowdy. There were more people holding bottles of alcohol on a broad daylight at the railway station. We even passed by a haggard looking guy who shouted repeatedly, "don't touch me!" Nobody seemed to be touching him, though.

 

It was almost three o'clock in the afternoon when we arrived in Salzburg. We had kebab at Euro Gyros and then found our way from the station to Meininger Hotel. Compared with other Meininger Hotels, the one in Salzburg was a bit rundown. Case in point, a day or two later, parts of the ceiling in the lift suddenly fell off and scratched my daughter's arm! 

A typical old town in Western Europe. 

Looking back, I was probably fatigued by our journey. We had gone a long way and traveled more than 1,000 km since our arrival in Geneva. By the time we reached Salzburg, things had become repetitive and lost its element of surprise. At this juncture, what we went through were roughly the same: river, old town, old buildings, french fries. As nice as Europe actually was, it felt like the holiday had run its course.

Still we explored Salzburg. On the first day, as we couldn't find any decent eateries nearby our hotel, we finally ate at Il Capo Dei Capi, the Italian restaurant next to our hotel. The kids and Yani had a big bowl of spaghetti bolognese while I ordered scudetto pizza. The portion was so big that we couldn't finish it!

Yani and the Sound of Music tour bus.

The next morning, Yani went for the Sound of Music tour, fulfilling her childhood dream. The rest of us lazed around on our bed until lunch time. We planned to meet at Mirabellgarten, so I brought my daughters to eat at Mr. Wen, a Chinese restaurant. It was there that I learnt the German words for fried rice: gebratener Reis. 

It was a slow afternoon, so slow that even Audrey fell asleep at Mr. Wen. When Yani appeared, we crossed the street to buy bus tickets. But what was supposed to be a Salzburg Card was wrongly purchased. Due to miscommunication, we got Hop On Hop Off bus tickets instead. The incident that caused us about EUR 60 dampened the mood. 

Anyway, since we got time before the next bus departure, we explored Mirabellgarten. The garden was featured in the Sound of Music, when Julie Andrews and the kids sang Do-Re-Mi. After that, we boarded the bus, going one round of city tour and returned to the same stop. We had a break at Backwerk, the coffee shop close to Mr. Wen, and again the kids fell asleep!

Along the river. 

It was late afternoon by the time they woke up. We passed by Mirabellgarten and walked along the river Salzach, then turned back to the city to have a glimpse of Mozart Residence. From there, we walked towards Steingasse. This are was like an old town, with lots of cafes and eateries. We eventually stepped into a Vietnamese restaurant named Uncle Van for early dinner.

The next day began with the visit to Mozart's Birthplace. I like this museum because it felt real. It was like the feeling I had the time when I visited the house where John Lennon grew up in Liverpool. There was this thrilling thoughts that once upon a time, a person named Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart really lived there with his parents and sister. But I didn't spend much time there because Audrey got bored. I exited the museum after a while and headed to Starbucks with her while Linda and her Mum stayed there.

Salzburg, viewed from Festung Hohensalzburg.

We had our lunch at Nordsee, easily the most expensive one paid by Yani because mine had scallops, haha. From there we headed to Festung Hohensalzburg, a fortress perching on the hill. It was a typical fortress, not very different from ones you'd normally see in the movies. When we were done with it, the last stop was the Mozart Monument. You see, Mozart was probably the most popular citizen of Salzburg, so he was celebrated everywhere. He even got his own chocolate, the Mozart chocolate balls, which were quite delectable. 

We still had half a day after we were done here, so we headed back to the railway station to purchase the ticket to return to Zürich. There was a quiet restaurant called Tida Thai Imbiss nearby and that's where we had our lunch. Yes, after almost two weeks in Europe, I'd go for anything Asian! The food is more tasty and oily, just the way I like it!

Our last stop in Salzburg was a decent mall called Forum 1, a short walking distance from the station. I learnt that the gelato in Austria was cheaper than Singapore, so I bought two scoops, haha. After the ice cream, we went back to hotel. We called it a day after a McD dinner on the floor. It was a reminiscence of what we did back in the beginning of the trip, when we were in Geneva. 

Audrey and Mama in Zürich.

The train ride to Zürich took about five hours, passing cities such as Innsbruck and Feldkirch. We arrived in Zürich at 1:20 pm. After taking our lunch (Japanese food this time), collecting the rucksack that I lost in Lauterbrunnen and buying the iconic Swiss railway clock, we explored the Old Town. It was the second time for me since I did my Strava time the first time we visited Zürich. When we were done, we finally went to Holiday Inn Express Zürich Airport. We stayed one night there to catch our morning flight. 

Zürich Airport is much bigger than its counterpart in Geneva. Finding the check-in counter could be confusing, too, at least for me, because of the term gate that has a different meaning than the ones in Changi. But we made it and were eventually on our way to Doha. We had more time this round to appreciate the airport. Yes, it is impressive, but Changi is still better, haha. And we landed in Singapore the next morning. Home sweet home!

Last photo in Switzerland. 

Liburan Ke Eropa: Salzburg

Salzburg adalah kota terakhir yang kita kunjungi selama berlibur ke Eropa. Berbeda dengan suasana di Innsbruck, ada kesan was-was di Salzburg. Di depan stasiun terlihat orang-orang berjalan sambil menenggak alkohol di siang bolong. Kita bahkan berpapasan dengan pria tua lusuh yang berulang kali berseru dengan keras, "jangan pegang saya!" Padahal tidak terlihat ada yang memegangnya. 

 

Hari sudah sore ketika kita tiba di Salzburg. Kita menyantap kebab di Euro Gyros dan kemudian naik bis dari stasiun kereta ke Hotel Meininger. Dibanding Meininger lainnya, yang satu ini terlihat lebih tidak terawat. Dan benar saja, di hari berikutnya, sebagian dari langit-langit lift runtuh dan menggores lengan putri saya! 

Kota tua di Eropa Barat.

Bila saya lihat kembali, bisa dikatakan bahwa saya sudah lelah mental saat kita tiba di Salzburg. Kita sudah menempuh lebih dari 1000 kilometer terhitung dari sejak kita mendarat di Jenewa. Di kala kita sampai di Salzburg, apa yang kita lalui mulai terasa diulang-ulang dan tidak lagi menimbulkan rasa decak kagum. Semuanya mulai terlihat sama: sungai, kota tua, gedung-gedung tua dan kentang goreng. Memang Eropa itu indah, tapi liburan ini memang sudah sampai titik jenuh. 

Namun kita tetap menjelajahi Salzburg. Di hari pertama, karena tidak menemukan tempat makan yang cocok, kita akhirnya makan di Il Capo Dei Capi, restoran Italia di samping hotel. Anak-anak dan Yani berbagi semangkuk besar spaghetti bolognese sedangkan saya memesan scudetto pizza. Porsinya besar, sampai-sampai dibungkus pulang ke hotel! 

Yani dan bis the Sound of Music.

Keesokan paginya, Yani ikut tur the Sound of Music dan memenuhi impian masa kecilnya. Saya dan anak-anak bersantai di kamar sampai jam makan siang, lalu berangkat ke Mirabellgarten karena kita janjian untuk bertemu di sana. Di kawasan tersebut, kita makan siang di Mr. Wen, sebuah restoran Cina. Di tempat ini saya baru mengetahui bahwa bahasa Jerman untuk nasi goreng adalah gebratener Reis, hehe. 

Sore itu berjalan lambat, sampai-sampai Audrey tertidur di Mr. Wen. Saat Yani tiba, kita menyeberang untuk membeli tiket. Yang harusnya kita beli itu Salzburg Card, tapi yang kita dapatkan justru tiket Hop On Hop Off bus. Insiden seharga CHF 60 yang terjadi karena miskomunikasi ini sempat membuat suasana liburan terganggu. 

Karena kita masih punya waktu sebelum bis berangkat, kita jalan-jalan dulu di Mirabellgarten. Taman ini muncul di film the Sound of Music, saat Julie Andrews dan anak-anak menyanyikan lagu Do-Re-Mi. Setelah itu, kita naik bis mengitari kota dan kembali ke tempat yang sama. Kita beristirahat sejenak di Backwerk, kedai kopi di seberang Mr. Wen, dan anak-anak tertidur lagi!

Di tepi Sungai Salzach.

Linda dan Audrey baru bangun saat sore mulai menjelang senja. Kita melewati Mirabellgarten dan berjalan menyusuri Sungai Salzach, lalu berbalik arah untuk melihat Mozart Residence. Dari situ, kita berjalan ke arah Steingasse. Kawasan ini adalah kota tua dengan banyak kafe dan tempat makan. Kita akhirnya masuk ke restoran Vietnam bernama Uncle Van untuk makan malam. 

Hari berikutnya dimulai dengan kunjungan ke Mozart's Birthplace. Saya suka museum ini karena ada suatu perasaan yang nyata. Rasanya seperti saat mampir ke rumah di mana John Lennon tumbuh dewasa di Liverpool. Terbayang di benak bahwa pernah ada orang bernama Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart yang tinggal di rumah ini bersama orang tua dan kakaknya. Saya tidak lama di sana karena Audrey mulai bosan dan rewel, jadi kita pun menunggu di Starbucks sementara Linda dan mamanya lanjut melihat-lihat. 

Salzburg, dilihat dari Festung Hohensalzburg.

Kita lantas makan di Nordsee yang terletak di samping museum, mungkin makan siang paling mahal yang pernah dibayar oleh Yani karena ada kerang simping dalam pesanan saya, haha. Setelah makan, kita menuju ke Festung Hohensalzburg, sebuah benteng di atas bukit, mirip seperti yang kita lihat di film-film abad pertengahan. 

Monumen Mozart menjadi tempat persinggahan berikutnya. Mozart ini adalah putra kebanggaan Salzburg, jadi dikenang di mana-mana. Dia bahkan jadi suvenir bola coklat yang enak rasanya. 

Kita masih memiliki setengah hari saat selesai menjelajahi kawasan tersebut. Oleh karena itu, kita ke stasiun untuk membeli tiket kereta dengan tujuan ke Zürich. Ada restoran bernama Tida Thai Imbiss di dekat stasiun dan kita pun makan siang di sana. Ya, setelah hampir dua minggu lamanya di Eropa, saya selalu mengincar makanan Asia. Lebih enak dan berminyak makanannya. Pokoknya lebih sedap! 

Tempat terakhir yang kita kunjungi di Salzburg adalah pusat perbelanjaan kecil bernama Forum 1 di samping stasiun. Di mal itu baru saya ketahui, ternyata harga gelato di Austria lebih murah dari Singapore, jadi saya beli dua porsi, hehe. Hari tersebut pun berakhir dengan makan McD di lantai kamar hotel, mirip seperti yang kita lakukan di awal liburan, saat kita berada di Jenewa. 

Audrey dan Mama di Zürich.

Kereta dari Salzburg ke Zürich memakan waktu lima jam, melewati kota-kota seperti Innsbruck dan Feldkirch. Kita tiba di Zürich pada pukul 1:20 siang. Setelah makan (kali ini menu masakan Jepang), mengambil tas ransel yang sempat hilang di Lauterbrunnen dan membeli jam stasiun Swiss yang ikonik, kita berjalan-jalan di Kota Tua. Ini adalah kali kedua bagi saya karena saya sempat Strava sewaktu pertama kali tiba di Zürich. Setelah puas menikmati pemandangan, kita akhirnya pergi ke Holiday Inn Express Zürich Airport. 

Bandara Zürich jauh lebih besar dari lapangan terbang di Jenewa. Mencari konter cek in cukup membingungkan juga, soalnya istilah gate yang dipakai di sini berbeda artinya dengan yang di Changi. Tapi syukurlah semuanya lancar dan kita pun akhirnya terbang ke Doha. Kali ini kita memiliki lebih banyak waktu untuk menjajaki Bandara Doha. Memang besar bandaranya, tapi tetap saja Changi lebih bagus, wahaha. Dan kita akhirnya mendarat di Singapura di pagi berikutnya. Senang rasanya kembali ke rumah lagi! 

Foto terakhir di Swiss. 

The Europe Trip: One Night Only

Lucerne, the next city we were visiting, was about two hours away from Interlaken by train. When I read about Lucerne, I didn't find many tourist attractions. On top of that, the Chapel Bridge pictures I saw on the internet gave me the impression that Lucerne would be pretty similar in term of size and scenery with Interlaken. But it was nothing like what I would have expected. The railway station is much bigger than the ones in Interlaken. The moment we stepped out, the bridge and river Reuss immediately reminded me of Lyon. 

In Lucerne, on our way to the Lion Monument.

We arrived in the morning, which meant we got enough time to explore the city before checking in to our hotel. We stored the luggage at the station and headed to the Lion Monument. It was nice, but under renovation, so the scaffolding was kind of distracting. We didn't spend much time there and we continued to the Glacier Garden that is located next to the Lion Monument. But we couldn't really appreciate rocks and stones from million years ago, so it also turned out to a brief visit only. Good thing that the entrance fee was covered under Swiss Travel Pass, haha.

From there, we went to McDonald's for lunch. It was, according to Linda, the grandest McDonald's she had ever seen because it had a chandelier. After lunch, we walked through the Chapel Bridge and boarded the ferry to travel aimlessly. Apparently there was only so much lake or river cruises one could take in one trip. After a while, the view, no matter how beautiful it was, tended to look the same. My wife was alarmed that it could be quite a long ride, so we alighted at Hafen Weggis to catch the next ferry returning to Lucerne. 

At the grandest McDonald's ever.

That practically ended our sightseeing in Lucerne. We went to Holiday Inn Express in Kriens, which is like another city next to Lucerne. Since it was a holiday called Corpus Christi and raining as well, we didn't do much after our dinner at Subway behind the hotel. The next morning, we boarded the train at Mattenhof Station nearby the hotel, headed straight to Lucerne and changed train to Zürich.  

It took only less than an hour to reach Zürich. We went directly to Meininger Hotel to store our luggage and took the bus to Wollishofen before continuing to Lindt Home of Chocolate. As Audrey wouldn't have any interest in exploring the museum, we stayed at the cafe while Linda and her Mum enjoyed the tour. Not a bad deal, considering that we could have a waffle with ice cream and chocolate, haha.

At the Home of Chocolate.

But that's pretty much the end of it for Yani and the kids. They went back to hotel afterwards while I resumed the sightseeing and returned to the Old Town part of Zürich. It was the liveliest city in the entire Switzerland, I'd say. I walked around as part of my Strava time, checking out parts of the city such as Langstrasse and Lindenhof before walking back to hotel. As I left the Old Town and entered the suburb, I could sense that the atmosphere started to quiet down. At one stage, no houses were seen and there were only cows chewing grass on the side of the highway!

Again we had another train ride on the following day, the third one in the past three days. I received the news that my missing rucksack had been found and sent to Zürich railway station, but our departure time to Sargans was earlier than the opening hours of the lost and found office, so I planned to collect the bag only when I was back to Zürich. As we couldn't find any empty lockers, we had to bring all our luggage throughout our journey to Austria.

Sargans is like one of the last stops in Switzerland before you cross to Liechtenstein. We stopped there and took the bus to Vaduz. I always found Liechtenstein intriguing as it is a small, landlocked country between Switzerland and Austria, so I wanted to have a glimpse of it. Apparently it wasn't as quiet as what I had in mind. I was stunned to see lot of tourists from Mainland China there.

Strolling in Vaduz, Liechtenstein.

Now, Liechtenstein itself, while it is small, it still has a couple of towns. We only visited Vaduz, the capital city. It certainly didn't feel like one, haha. We went to Liechtenstein Center and buildings such as Rathaus are somewhere nearby. We sent postcards, had doner kebab (easily my favorite meal throughout the trip) then got a passport stamp as a souvenir. The journey by bus to Feldkirch in Austria happened right after that. It was so quick that before we knew it, we were already on the train to Innsbruck.

On our first day in Innsbruck, my wife and I took turn to see the city as the kids didn't feel like going out anymore once we reached Meininger Hotel. I went to where Hard Rock Cafe is, had my dinner at Gösser's then went back after buying Asian food for my daughters. Then it was my wife's turn to go out. She was scouting for Instagrammable places, apparently. But how do I know that? Because she brought us back to the same spots on the following day, haha.

The Old Town in Innsbruck.

Innsbruck is a nice and calm city, but it was there that I discovered some patterns about cities in Europe. Be it Lyon, Geneva, Lucerne, Zürich or Innsbruck, there is always a river and old town where the people could go and chill. We followed the riverside, explored the old town and returned to the hotel. We left Innsbruck and headed to the last city we'd be visiting: Salzburg.

Looking back, here's one thing I'd consider as a mistake in my planning. The idea of one night only for each city is not good, especially if we have kids tagging along. It was just too fast. Before I got to know the city and started enjoying it, I already moved on to another one. I simply couldn't feel the character of the city. Two or three nights per city would be just nice, just like Geneva and Interlaken...

Hofgarten, Innsbruck.

Liburan Ke Eropa: Semalam Saja

Lucerne, kota berikutnya yang kita kunjungi, bisa ditempuh dalam dua jam dengan kereta dari Interlaken. Ketika saya membaca tentang Lucerne, saya tidak menemukan banyak atraksi turis. Selain itu, foto-foto Jembatan Kapel di internet membuat saya membayangkan bahwa Lucerne adalah tempat yang mirip dengan Interlaken. Ternyata saya salah kaprah. Stasiun keretanya jauh lebih besar dari dua stasiun di Interlaken. Di saat kita melangkah keluar stasiun, jembatan dan sungai Reuss segera mengingatkan saya tentang Lyon. 

Di Lucerne, waktu kita menuju Monumen Singa.

Kita tiba di pagi hari. Ini artinya kita masih memiliki banyak waktu untuk menjelajahi Lucerne sebelum ke hotel. Setelah menitipkan koper di stasiun, kita menuju ke Monumen Singa. Monumen ini sebenarnya megah, tapi sedang direnovasi dan tiang-tiang steger penyangga yang ada di depannya terlihat mengganggu. Beberapa menit kemudian, kita berpindah lokasi ke Taman Gletser yang bersebelahan dengan Monumen Singa. Akan tetapi kita bukanlah tipe turis yang bisa mengagumi bebatuan dari jutaan tahun silam, jadi kunjungan ini pun tergolong singkat. Untung saja tiket masuk seharga CHF 22 per orang tidak perlu dibayar oleh pemegang Swiss Travel Pass, hehe. 

Dari Taman Gletser, kita ke McDonald's untuk makan siang. Menurut putri saya Linda, ini adalah McD paling bagus yang pernah dia lihat karena restoran yang satu ini memiliki lampu gantung kandelar. Setelah santap siang, kita melintas ke seberang sungai melewati Jembatan Kapel dan naik ke feri tanpa tujuan pasti. Dan setelah berpesiar di Danau Brienz, perjalanan serupa di Swiss terlihat mirip pemandangannya. Istri saya Yani melihat peta dan mengingatkan saya bahwa feri ini jauh rutenya sebelum kembali lagi ke Lucerne, jadi kita pun turun di Weggis dan menaiki feri berikutnya yang mengarah ke Lucerne.

Di McDonald's yang megah.

Dengan demikian, jalan-jalan di Lucerne pun berakhir. Kita lantas menaiki bis menuju Holiday Inn Express di Kriens, sebuah kota kecil di samping Lucerne. Karena hari tersebut adalah liburan merayakan hari Corpus Christi dan hujan pula, kita tidak memiliki aktivitas lagi selain makan malam di Subway yang terletak di belakang hotel. Keesokan paginya, kita naik kereta dari Stasiun Mattenhof yang berada di samping hotel, berganti kereta di Lucerne dan melaju ke Zürich.  

Zürich bisa dicapai dalam waktu kurang dari sejam. Kita langsung pergi ke Hotel Meininger untuk menaruh koper dan naik bis lagi ke kawasan tepi danau yang bernama Wollishofen sebelum melanjutkan wisata ke Lindt Home of Chocolate. Karena Audrey tidak berminat dengan museum, kita duduk di kafe sementara Linda dan mamanya ikut tur. Lumayan juga, kita menunggu sambil makan waffle es krim dan coklat, haha. 

Di Lindt.

Dan liburan di Zürich bisa dikatakan berakhir bagi Yani dan anak-anak. Mereka kembali ke hotel sedangkan saya meneruskan perjalanan ke Kota Tua. Bagian kota ini boleh dikatakan paling hidup dan ramai di Swiss. Saya berjalan sambil Strava, meninjau kawasan Langstrasse dan Lindenhof sebelum berjalan pulang ke hotel. Setelah meninggalkan Kota Tua dan memasuki daerah tepi kota, saya bisa merasakan bahwa suasananya perlahan-lahan menjadi senyap. Di bagian tertentu tidak terlihat rumah. Yang tampak hanya sapi merumput di samping jalan raya! 

Di hari berikutnya, kita kembali menaiki kereta. Ini adalah kali ketiga dalam tiga hari berturut-turut. Saya menerima kabar bahwa ransel saya sudah ditemukan dan dikirim ke Stasiun Zürich, tapi jam keberangkatan kita ke Sargans lebih awal dari jam kerja kantor barang-barang hilang, jadi saya pun berencana untuk mengambil tas saya lagi setelah saya kembali dari Austria. Karena kita tidak menemukan loker kosong, maka semua koper pun terpaksa dibawa-serta. 

Sargans adalah pemberhentian terakhir di Swiss sebelum kita menyeberang ke Liechtenstein. Kita turun di sini untuk berganti bis ke Vaduz. Liechtenstein terasa unik karena ukuran negaranya yang kecil dan dikelilingi oleh Swiss dan Austria, jadi saya ingin sekali melihat kotanya. Ternyata Vaduz tidak sesepi yang saya bayangkan. Ada banyak turis dari Cina di sana.

Liechtenstein adalah negara yang kecil tapi masih memiliki beberapa kota. Kita hanya singgah di Vaduz, ibukotanya yang tidak terasa seperti ibukota, haha. Kita mampir ke Liechtenstein Center dan Rathaus berada tak jauh dari situ. Setelah mengirim kartu pos, kita menyantap döner kebab, makan favorit saya selama di Eropa, lalu meminta cap paspor sebagai suvenir. Kita lantas melanjutkan perjalanan ke Feldkirch, Austria. Begitu sampai di stasiun, kita membeli tiket dan langsung berangkat ke Innsbruck. 

Kita tiba di Innsbruck sekitar jam tiga sore. Yani dan saya bergantian jalan-jalan karena anak-anak tak lagi berminat keluar setelah tiba di Hotel Meininger. Saya mengunjungi Hard Rock Cafe, lalu makan malam di Gösser's dan pergi membeli masakan Asia untuk Linda dan Audrey. Setelah itu giliran Yani yang keluar menjelajahi kota. Dia mencari tempat-tempat yang Instagrammable. Dari mana saya tahu? Karena keesokan paginya dia membawa kita ke tempat-tempat yang telah dilihatnya, haha.

Innsbruck adalah kota yang nyaman dan tenang. Di situ pula saya menemukan semacam pola serupa di kota-kota Eropa. Entah itu Lyon, Jenewa, Lucerne, Zürich atau Innsbruck, selalu ada sungai dan kota tua di mana penduduknya bisa nongkrong dan bersantai. Kita menyusuri tepi sungai, melihat-lihat Kota Tua dan kembali ke hotel untuk meneruskan perjalanan ke kota terakhir yang akan kita kunjungi: Salzburg. 

Bila dilihat kembali, ada satu hal yang saya anggap sebagai kesalahan fatal dalam rencana saya. Semalam saja di satu kota bukanlah ide yang bagus, terlebih lagi karena kita membawa anak-anak. Rasanya terlalu cepat. Sebelum kita bisa menikmati suasana kota tersebut, kita sudah lanjut ke kota lain. Saya tidak bisa merasakan karakter kota tersebut. Dua atau tiga malam di satu kota rasanya lebih pas, seperti yang kita lalui di Jenewa dan Interlaken... 

Jungfraujoch, The Top of Europe

One of the top tourist destinations in Switzerland is Jungfraujoch. Located in Bernese Oberland region, Jungfraujoch is a glacier saddle connecting 2 major Alps mountains, the Jungfrau and the Mönch. It lies at an elevation of 3,463 metres above sea level and it is covered in blissful snow throughout the year. Our kids never saw the real snow so we thought it was a good idea to bring them up there and let them have their first experience with snow. 

We decided to stay in Interlaken area because it is a strategic location to explore the Bernese Oberland region. A lot of tourists apparently had the same idea. We met a lot of people from many parts of the world in Interlaken. No wonder the price of accommodation in Interlaken was very high.

The following day after we arrived in Interlaken, we went to Jungfraujoch. We checked the condition of the weather in Jungfrau website the day before and was so delighted to know it would be sunny in Jungfraujoch. The website www.jungfrau.ch provided not only the weather forecast in the city but also the weather on the top of the mountain, so it was really useful.

From Interlaken, there are 2 alternative routes to go to Jungfraujoch. 

1. Via Lauterbrunnen - Wengen - Kleine Scheidegg - Jungfraujoch. 

2. Via Grindelwald - Kleine Scheidegg - Jungfraujoch. 

We took the Lauterbrunnen route by train when we went up to Jungfraujoch and took the Grindelwald route by Eiger Express gondola when we returned to Interlaken. By doing so, we could enjoy sceneries in both areas. Since we also wanted to explore Lauterbrunnen and had a closer look at the impressive waterfall, we made an hour stop there before taking the train to Wengen. We also took an hour stop in Kleine Scheidegg to enjoy the area and took pictures. I also wished we could stop for a while in Wengen, but then we would be too late to take the reserved train seat in Kleine Scheidegg at 12 pm. If you had an extra time in Interlaken, actually it would be better to spend another day in Lauterbrunnen and/or Wengen. One hour is not enough to explore the area. 

Tickets to Jungfraujoch are expensive. Round tickets from Kleine Scheidegg to Jungfraujoch cost CHF 218 in high season (June 1 to August 31). This is not including the train tickets from Interlaken to Kleine Scheidegg. Fortunately with Swiss Travel Pass, we can travel for free up to Wengen. From Wengen onwards, we got 25% discount on train fare. We also got 50% discount for Jungfraujoch tickets and children under 16 year old don't need to pay. With the add-on of reservation cost CHF 10 per adult, we paid around CHF 340 for 2 adults and 2 kids. 

It takes around 35 minutes from Kleine Scheidegg to Jungfraujoch by Jungfraubahn train. We enjoyed the breathtaking view of snowy mountains before the train went into the dark tunnel and went up to the mountain peak. When we arrived in Jungfraujoch train station and walked to the main building, we saw a lot of tourists flooding the room. Summer is indeed a peak season.

We took the lift to go to Sphinx Observatory and saw the panoramic view over the Alps and the Aletsch Glacier. We were lucky it was sunny and the sky was so clear, we could enjoy the incredible view of the glacier and the snowy mountain. I might be too excited to see the scenery I didn't felt any dizziness. But both my kids and husband felt dizzy when they were at the Sphinx Observatory. A normal phenomenon considering we were at 11,716 feet above sea level. 

From Sphinx Observatory, we walked to Snow Fun Park where the visitors can enjoy snow tubing, snowboarding, sledding, flying fox or simply making and throwing snow ball. Perfect place for kids who love adventures. That was our daughters' first encounter with snow. My eldest daughter was so happy and had fun making snowball and throw them to us. 

We continued our journey to the next attraction, Ice Palace. As we went through the ice tunnel, we saw a variety of ice sculptures including Scrat from Ice Age that was stuck inside the ice. Very cute. All of the tunnel surfaces, from the ceiling, wall and the floor, were made of ice so they were slippery. We needed to walk extra carefully. I couldn't take many pictures inside because my daughter kept complaining she felt cold and wanted to leave the place. After one fast round, we left the palace and entered a warm place, Lindt Chocolate Heaven. 

Lindt Chocolate Heaven is more than just an ordinary chocolate shop. It is the highest chocolate shop in the world.  Next to the Lindt shop, five exhibits provide information about chocolate making. A big multitouch table is placed in the center of the room where people can play the game while learning about the history of Swiss chocolate. In the shop we can find an extensive range of Lindt chocolates, more varieties than what we normally find in our home country. 

The last station is the souvenir shop and restaurant. It is exactly the same place where we arrived. All of us were tired and hungry. We bought chicken nugget and French fries. Simple menu but nice and memorable because we ate it while enjoying the scenery out of the window. 

On our way back home, we took Eiger Express gondola to Grindelwald Terminal. It is a very big cable car with an almost full length window. We watched the stunning view of Eiger on one side and beautiful mountain landscape on the other side. Our trip to Jungfraujoch eventually ended but the memory of it lasts forever in our heart...

The Europe Trip: Interlaken

Interlaken was probably a famous destination that I never heard of prior to this trip. It was a small town, even smaller and more laid-back than Geneva, with only one McDonald's to be found. Certainly not a town I'd visit, since I'd always preferred cities. But I'm glad that we spent three nights there. Looking back, it was the highlight of the trip, made possible by my wife's brilliant planning. 

The first half of the day was spent to get there. We headed to Bern and had our lunch in the capital city of Switzerland (teller kebab and two gigantic slices of pizza), then continued our journey to Interlaken. We were lucky that we could check in immediately. Right after that, we explored the town a bit. I thought that would be it for the day, but my wife dragged us to Interlaken Ost and Harderbahn. Thus began the climb to Harder Kulm.

Interlaken, seen from Harder Kulm.

Harderbahn is an inclined railway station and, with the top station at 1322 M above sea level, the funicular ride was too scary for my liking. It was so slanted that it was hard not to stare at the rope and start imagining things. But the view at Harder Kulm was so amazing that it was worth it. You'd immediately understand why the town is called Interlaken. That's because it is between two lakes. 

While we were up there, we had cheese fondue. The food and the magnificent scenery reminded me of Asterix in Switzerland. There was this scene where Obelix got drunk because he drank the whole pot of cheese. You could taste the alcohol in every bite of bread dipped into the cheese!

Linda trying out the cheese fondue.

We got lost as we took the wrong bus on our way back. It was the same bus, but scheduled to go to the opposite direction at that particular timing. Apart from the tiny mistake that I realized only after we approached the second bus stop, day one in Interlaken ended pretty well. 

We went to Jungfraujoch on the second day. On our way up, we took the route via Lauterbrunnen. I lost my rucksack here. I put it on a compartment above my seat and only remembered it after I came out from washroom at the train station. After an attempt to enter the same train that came back an hour later, I simply had to accept that I might have lost the bag and resumed our journey without it. 

Yani and Audrey in Lauterbrunnen.

With a waterfall from the cliff high above and tiny houses scattered on the mountain, Lauterbrunnen was a definitive version of a village from a fairy tale. Coming from Singapore, the landscape was almost unreal! But if there's anything I like the most in Lauterbrunnen, it had to be a pack of pain au chocolat. I finished almost all of them, haha. 

From Lauterbrunnen, we went up to Wengen. Don't recall much about it as we didn't stop there. We alighted at Kleine Scheidegg Station instead. The place was cold, but it was only a prelude of the weather we would face later on. The greenery surrounding us pretty much ended at this level. From here onwards, the view from afar was snow white. We had a coffee break here and off we went to the top of Europe!

Yani and Linda enjoying coffee in Kleine Scheidegg.

And that top of Europe was called Jungfraujoch. The moment I reached there by train, I felt giddy. The same feeling seemed to be experienced by my daughters, too. Linda shared my opinion that the building felt shaky. Audrey even laid face down on floor every time she was left alone. Only my wife Yani was excited to be there. The whole thing, plus the bloody cold wind, was an ordeal. 

But still it was nice to be there. There was a happy feeling as a father to see my daughter playing snow for the first time ever. If it sounded bizarre, I must explain that not all kids from tropical area could have this experience. It was only in year 2023, few months earlier in Japan, that I myself had a chance to throw my first snow ball. 

Linda in Jungfraujoch.

Jungfraujoch was cold, bright and high, so high that I couldn't resist sending a postcard from the top of Europe. After lunch, we began our descent down the mountain. From Eigergletscher, we took gondola to Grindelwald, then boarded the next train back to Interlaken Ost. At the station, I checked if they found my bag, but they didn't, so I filed a lost property report. When we reached the town, we decided to have Chinese food at Vivi's Wok for dinner.

The next day, again we returned to Interlaken Ost. This time was for the lake cruise. It was so tranquil that I remember thinking, how is it possible to be competitive at work when the environment is so relaxing? Not when you open your window and see all this beautiful view. Singapore, with its concrete jungle, is a much suitable place for work, haha.

With Audrey and Linda in Iseltwald.

The boat brought us to Iseltwald, a quiet village with a crystal clear water. I just had to sit down for a while to see the waterfowls swimming gracefully. Then of course the village was famous for Crash Landing on You. God knows what the story is about, but there was a long queue mostly formed by Asians. My wife found it irresistible, so she took her chance when the crowd disappeared. 

From Iseltwald, we continued the cruise to the end of Lake Brienz. The thing is, after Iseltwald, the rest looked less attractive, so the second half of the journey became just another boat ride. We had fish and chips in Brienz, then took the train back to Interlaken. 

On our way back from Brienz to Interlaken.

Since we still got half a day, I did my Strava time in the late afternoon. I stayed not very far from Interlaken West, so I walked to Unterseen, then turned to Höheweg and Interlaken Ost before walking back to Macdonald's. The town was indeed small! We eventually closed the day with dinner at Sri Manee Isaan Thai House for another round of Asian food. 

We left Interlaken on the following day. Our usual routine was to board the morning train from Interlaken West that headed to Interlaken Ost. By doing so, we didn't have much time left at Interlaken Ost, so we quickly boarded the next train to Lucerne. 

On our way to Lucerne.

As the train started chugging, I updated the lost property report so that the bag would be sent to Zürich if they ever found it. I couldn't help wondering, would Switzerland proven to be as safe as Singapore or Japan? That's something that I could only wait and see for now...

Liburan Ke Eropa: Interlaken

Interlaken adalah tempat wisata terkenal yang tidak pernah saya dengar sebelum liburan ini. Kota ini sungguh kecil, bahkan lebih mungil dan santai dari Jenewa. Hanya ada satu McDonald's di tengah kota. Dari karakteristiknya, Interlaken bukanlah kota yang akan saya kunjungi karena saya lebih suka kota besar. Namun saya senang kita menghabiskan tiga malam di sana. Kalau dilihat kembali, Interlaken adalah tujuan wisata yang paling berkesan, yang terjadi karena direncanakan dengan baik oleh istri saya.

Setengah hari pertama digunakan untuk mencapai Interlaken. Dari Jenewa, kita bertolak ke Bern dan makan siang di sana (pesanan kita adalah teller kebab dan juga dua potong pizza berukuran besar). Sesampainya di kota, kita beruntung bisa langsung mendapatkan kamar meski belum waktunya. Sesudah itu kita berjalan-jalan di Interlaken. Saya mengira hari itu akan berakhir begitu saja, tapi Yani lantas membawa kita ke Harderbahn di samping Interlaken Ost. Dari situ perjalanan ke Harder Kulm pun bermula. 

Interlaken dilihat dari Harder Kulm.

Harderbahn adalah stasiun kereta yang menanjak ke atas dan dengan stasiun berikutnya yang berada di ketinggian 1322 M di atas permukaan laut, perjalanan ke puncak terasa agak mengerikan. Posisi kereta mungkin lebih miring daripada 45 derajat sehingga sulit untuk mengalihkan pandangan dari kabel dan mulai membayangkan yang tidak-tidak. Akan tetapi pemandangan di Harder Kulm sangatlah indah. Begitu sampai di sana, saya langsung mengerti kenapa kotanya disebut Interlaken. Ini karena posisinya yang berada di antara dua danau. 

Selagi berada di sana, kita mencicipi fondue keju. Makanan dan pemandangannya lantas mengingatkan saya pada cerita Asterix di Swiss. Ada adegan di mana Obelix jadi mabuk karena menenggak langsung sepanci keju. Kandungan alkoholnya sungguh terasa di roti yang saya celupkan ke keju!  

Linda mencicipi fondue keju.

Kita sempat tersasar dalam perjalanan pulang. Di Interlaken Ost, bis yang sama dijadwalkan ke arah yang bertolak belakang dari tujuan saya. Beda jam, beda arah. Namun terlepas dari kesalahan kecil yang baru saya sadari setelah bis hampir mencapai halte kedua, boleh dikatakan hari pertama di Interlaken berjalan lancar. 

Keesokan harinya, kita pergi ke Jungfraujoch. Kita ke sana melalui rute via Lauterbrunnen dan pulang lewat Grindelwald. Di Lauterbrunnen, saya kehilangan ransel. Saya menaruh ransel di atas tempat duduk saat kereta berangkat dan baru menyadarinya setelah saya tiba dan keluar dari toilet stasiun. Setelah saya coba cari lagi di kereta yang sama saat kereta tersebut kembali ke Lauterbrunnen satu jam berikutnya, saya pasrah dan melanjutkan perjalanan tanpa ransel saya. 

Yani dan Audrey di Lauterbrunnen.

Dengan air terjun yang mengalir dari tebing tinggi dan rumah-rumah mungil di lereng gunung, Lauterbrunnen mirip desa kecil dari dunia dongeng. Bagi saya yang datang dari Singapura, pemandangan ini terasa seperti cerita fantasi. Tapi yang paling saya sukai dari Lauterbrunnen adalah pain au chocolat. Satu bungkus croissant coklat yang dibelikan istri hampir saya habiskan sendiri, haha.  

Dari Lauterbrunnen, kita pindah kereta ke Wengen. Kita sekedar melintasi desa ini saja. Di stasiun berikutnya, Kleine Scheidegg, barulah kita turun. Tempat ini terasa dingin karena angin yang menderu-deru, tapi semua ini hanyalah permulaan dari dinginnya iklim di puncak gunung. Hijaunya pemandangan berakhir di sini. Apa yang terlihat selanjutnya adalah gunung yang diselimuti salju. Kita berhenti untuk minum kopi sebentar di Kleine Scheidegg, kemudian lanjut ke puncak tertinggi di Eropa! 

Yani dan Linda menikmati kopi di Kleine Scheidegg.

Dan puncak ini terkenal sebagai Jungfraujoch. Saat tiba di sana, entah kenapa saya merasa pusing. Hal yang sama juga dialami oleh dua putri saya. Linda juga merasa bahwa gedungnya kurang kokoh dan agak bergoyang setiap kali kita melangkah. Audrey bahkan sampai terkapar setiap kali kita berhenti berjalan. Hanya Yani yang bersemangat di sana. Fenomena yang saya jabarkan di atas dan juga angin dingin di dalam lorong membuat Jungfraujoch agak sulit dinikmati. 

Namun tentu saja masih ada kesan positifnya. Ada rasa senang sebagai seorang ayah saat melihat Linda bermain salju untuk pertama kalinya. Jika pernyataan ini terasa membingungkan, perlu saya jelaskan bahwa tidak semua anak dari kawasan tropis memiliki kesempatan ini. Bahkan saya sendiri pun baru pertama kali mencobanya di awal tahun 2023, saat berada di Jepang bersama teman-teman. 

Linda di Jungfraujoch.

Jungfraujoch bisa dideskripsikan dengan kata dingin, terang-benderang dan tinggi, begitu tinggi sehingga saya jadi spontan tergerak untuk mengirim kartu pos dari puncak tertinggi di Eropa. Setelah makan siang, kita pun memulai perjalanan pulang. Dari Eigergletscher, kita naik kereta gantung ke Grindelwald, lalu lanjut dengan kereta dan kembali ke Interlaken Ost. Di stasiun, saya bertanya kepada petugas, apakah ransel saya berhasil ditemukan. Karena ransel sepertinya hilang tanpa jejak, saya akhirnya disarankan untuk membuat laporan. Saat tiba kembali di pusat kota, kita makan masakan Cina di Vivi's Wok.

Di hari berikutnya, kita kembali ke Interlaken Ost, kali ini untuk naik kapal di danau. Pemandangannya begitu rileks dan damai. Saya jadi berpikir, bagaimana bisa termotivasi untuk berkompetisi kalau tempatnya sesantai ini. Begitu buka jendela, yang terlihat itu hijaunya gunung dan birunya danau. Singapura yang dipadati gedung pencakar langit lebih cocok untuk kerja, haha. 

Bersama Audrey dan Linda di Iseltwald.

Kapal membawa kita ke Iseltwald, sebuah kampung sunyi dengan air danau yang jernih dan transparan. Saya jadi tergerak untuk duduk sejenak melihat unggas air berenang dengan tenang. Di Iseltwald juga ada lokasi yang muncul di serial Crash Landing on You. Saya tidak tahu cerita drama Korea ini, tapi ada antrian panjang yang hampir semuanya berwajah Asia. Istri saya juga tergoda, lalu turut berfoto di sana setelah antrian bubar. 

Dari Iseltwald, kita lanjut ke ujung Danau Brienz. Masalahnya adalah, setelah Iseltwald, pemandangan selanjutnya terlihat kurang menarik sehingga sisa perjalanan kita hanya terasa seperti naik kapal feri menyeberangi danau. Kita makan kentang dan ikan goreng di Brienz, lalu pulang menggunakan kereta ke Interlaken. 

Dalam perjalanan pulang dari Brienz ke Interlaken.

Karena masih sisa waktu setengah hari, saya beraktivitas menggunakan aplikasi Strava. Tempat tinggal saya tidak jauh dari Interlaken West, jadi saya berjalan ke Unterseen, kemudian berbelok ke Höheweg dan Interlaken Ost sebelum kembali ke Macdonald's. Ternyata memang kecil kotanya! Dan hari itu pun ditutup dengan santap malam di Sri Manee Isaan Thai House. 

Kita meninggalkan Interlaken di pagi berikutnya. Selama di sana, kita menaiki kereta pagi di Interlaken West yang menuju ke Interlaken Ost. Oleh karena itu, tidak banyak waktu yang tersisa dan kita lekas berganti kereta yang lanjut ke Lucerne. 

Saat menuju ke Lucerne.

Saat kereta mulai berjalan, saya memperbaharui data laporan saya supaya tas yang hilang bisa dikirim Zürich. Saya jadi kepikiran, apakah Swiss akan terbukti seaman Singapura atau Jepang? Ini adalah sesuatu yang belum ada jawabannya dan saya pun hanya bisa menantikan kabar...