Switzerland

Jungfrau Region, Swiss Alps. High above the ski slopes, a local quartet plays traditional songs that sound a lot like the Ricola commercial. As "Swiss" as it gets...

Lauterbrunnen Valley. This has to be one of the most scenic valleys I've ever seen...anywhere. Thousand-foot sheer dropoffs on either side of the valley, more waterfalls than you can count, and greener than the greenest green in the summer. Reminiscent of Yosemite National Park, but without the crowds.

Gimmelwald, Switzerland. This tiny alpine village (pop 100) is perched on a narrow ledge at the upper end of the Lauterbrunnen Valley. The highest of the Alps surround the area on all sides and really make you feel...small. This is a great destination for hikes in the summer, and cross-country ski runs in the winter.

Lake Geneva, Switzerland. "We all came down to Montreux, by the Lake Geneva shoreline..." Every rock & roll fan knows those famous lyrics from the song 'Smoke on the Water' by Deep Purple. Well, here's Lake Geneva, near Montreux, and there's even a little smoke (fog in this case) on the water. Funny to actually see the real place after hearing about 10,000 repetitions of that song on the radio over the years. It's a beautiful lake with the snow-capped Alps as a backdrop, and lush greenery growing along the shoreline even in the middle of winter.

Swiss Alps. Talk about unlimited hiking potential. Trails crisscross the Swiss landscape, with something for every hiking level from easy day trips to super-challenging multi-day hikes. Cabins are available on some trails for overnighters, even including cooked meals.

Grindelwald, Switzerland. One of the more unusual super-scenic trails in the area: Grindelwald Cliff Walk.

Aletsch Glacier. Near Interlaken, Jungfraujoch is billed as the "Top of Europe". There are actually many places in Europe that are much higher than this, but why get picky. Getting up here involves an expensive train ride through a mountain on a steep cog train but that sure doesn't deter the huge numbers of tourists. Still, it's worth checking off the bucket list if only for the scenery, including the largest glacier in Europe - the Aletsch - laid out right before you .

Wengen, Switzerland. In many regions of Switzerland (mostly around the larger ski areas), public transport consists of ski lifts and cog trains that connect to ski/hike areas, and even to neighboring towns. On this lift above Wengen you can pay a few more franc's and ride on the roof! Highly recommended.

Zermatt, Switzerland. Ahhhh, Zermatt. The 'Aspen" of the Alps. Meaning it's very exclusive and very expensive. I'm not sure what we were doing here. Actually we were staying on the 'poor' side of the hill: the pointy peak at the top of the lift is the Matterhorn and on the other side of it is Italy. That's where we poor folks were staying. Luckily Cervinia (Italy) and Zermatt (Switzerland) meet at the top of this ridge and the ski runs actually cross the international boundary. And a lift ticket here works on both sides. It's the only place where I've ever skiied from one country to another. There's a border checkpoint at the top but since it's all EU now you don't have to show a passport or anything to cross. But being passport-stamp collectors we stopped and asked for a stamp for each country. The border agents just looked at us like "... are you f-ing kidding me???..." and half-heartedly rummaged around for a stamp, claimed not to have one, and sent us on our way. Which made me wonder - what the hell do these guys do up there all day ?!?

Swiss Alps. This photo was taken somewhere near Grindelwald in the Swiss Alps. On this day the persistent snow clouds finally lifted enough to get a good picture down-valley.

I thought they were supposed to put brandy in those little barrels, not champagne ?!? If I'd known that I would've gotten in trouble more often up on the mountain!