Heaven on Earth
The views in Switzerland are too good to be true
The impression about Switzerland I had when I was little, which was probably the same for many Chinese back then, was that it was a nice country full of banks.
This impression came about because every time Switzerland was mentioned in a film, it was because someone was trying to hide their illegal-fortune in a Swiss bank account, or someone who was trying to bribe some official would say they were offering enough money that the of- ficial could move to Switzerland and spend his or her remaining years in comfort.
All this led to Switzerland looking like a super wealthy country that has a fantastic environment (and indeed it is).
The outstanding environment of Switzerland is breathtaking – super clean air, drinkable water from every fountain and beautiful natural scenery. I didn’t need to photoshop a single one of the pictures I took while there, because the bright, various colors of nature made for a great picture all on their own.
For a person that has been living in Beijing for years, the contrast in environments was amazing.
But of course, all that beauty comes at a price. The money I spent on transport, accommodation and food was much higher than what I spent visiting other countries.
No wonder those people in the movies had to be bribed in the millions of dollars.
I got my first glimpse of the real Switzerland in 2012. Although I hadn’t planned to make it one of my stops when I was traveling through Europe, I had to transfer trains in Zurich as I was heading to the Netherlands from Italy.
I was shocked by the scenery I saw along the way while I was on the train. I almost decided to change my travel plans right there and then, but I was also shocked by how much everything cost. The price for a meal at Burger King was twice that of other European countries, as was the price of a cup of coffee at Starbucks.
At the time I was at the end of my vacation and almost broke from all the traveling I had done.
So while I was waiting to change trains, I ate a bowl of mankind’s greatest invention: instant noodles.
I told my traveling companion that “one day I will return to Switzerland with more money!”
Although it was just a joke, that funny promise was fulfilled just this June as I got a chance to study in Geneva for a few weeks.
Truly, there’s no better place to experience mountains than Switzerland.
Although there is a lot more to talk about when it comes to the country, here I just want to focus on this impressive feature.
Glacier Express
There is an express train that crosses a 300-kilometer span across the Swiss Alps from St. Moritz to Zermatt.
The train has panorama windows that allow you to enjoy all the views along the way.
Although it’s called the Glacier Express, that doesn’t mean you will definitely get to see ice and snow.
There was no snow when I traveled in summer time, but
the view was still amazing as the train shuttled through rolling meadows and forests.
I imagine the view is very breathtaking during the winter because the mountains are sure to be covered in snow and ice.
Only the red express travels through the rugged snowcovered mountains. I bet it must look like a scene from that sci-fi movie Snowpiercer.
Neither is the train an express, since it’s the slowest train in the world. The whole route takes around eight hours. It felt like forever, considering it took me 10 hours to fly to Zurich all the way from Beijing.
Fortunately the views were made the trip worth it.
Zermatt
The Glacier Express terminates at this amazing car-free town, which is famous for its iconic pointy triangular mountain peak the Matterhorn.
Even if you haven’t been to Zermatt, you have definitely seen the mountain before, since it’s the logo for the worldfamous Swiss chocolate brand, Toblerone – the giant triangle chocolate you can find in many shops and almost all duty-free shops at airports.
Zermatt is located in the Canton of Valais and is a Germanspeaking region. Although the town is car-free, most places can be reached by foot. Hotels also provide small electric cars that pick tourist up at the station.
The local economy mainly relies on tourism and most buildings are hotels or vacation houses for those who do not live in Zermatt.
Zermatt is also known for its skiing. It has four major skiing areas: Sunnegga, Gornergrat, Klein Matterhorn and Schwarzsee.
The Matterhorn has long been seen as “the mountain of mountains” that climbers around the world dream of conquering. However, it’s not at all an easy climb and many climbers don’t survive. In the town, you can see tombs memorializing these climbers.
If you don’t want to go skiing, walking through the town or just hiking in the mountains is still an enjoyable pastime. It’s very peaceful and quite.
But it should also be pointed out that prices for accommodation and food are even higher in Zermatt.
Davos
Winter sports lovers should also not miss Davos, a mountain resort in the eastern Swiss Alpes.
Davos is world famous for its World Economic Forum, since the annual winter meeting is held there.
The city is full of fancy hotels in the city center and is very crowded in winter as ski lovers from all around the world head there for winter vacation.
Davos, the largest ski resort in Switzerland, has the largest natural ice skating area in Europe and is an ideal place for speed skating.
During the summer, it’s a great place to just walk along the mountain paths to feed some hazelnuts to the local squirrels.
However, some birds noticed that I had nuts and kept following me for quite some distance to get some food.
They kept flying to the trees in front of me and tweeting at me to get my attention. If you are lucky enough, you may also spot some deer.
Hiking
Switzerland doesn’t lack for hiking paths. Actually I was surprised to see that almost everyone there, despite their age, were going on hikes regularly with full hiking gear. That’s something rare to see in China.
While I was taking a train to Zurich, an old lady in her 70s dressed in full hiking attire sat next to me. She said she goes hiking at least two or three times a week in order to try and get the most out of life.
She’s not the only one. While I was hiking in the mountains, I came across a number of elderly people who could keep pace with me or even pass me!
It wasn’t unusual to see families taking their babies hiking as well.
There are several mountains that have stunning views, I recommend Mount Chäserrugg and Mount Rigi.