Wild Flowers and Cow Bells.

On our first morning in Switzerland, we were woken at 7p.m. by cow-herders leading the cows along the lane, and all the cow bells were ringing. It was great! I know you always think of Heidi in Switzerland, but I didn't think we would see so much that still seems the same as in the story.

We arrived at the pretty village of Lauterbrunnen on Tuesday. It was cold and wet, but we still loved it. The wild flowers are just beautiful, and the little mountain trains are very sweet. We found a nice cafe in the village with internet. It serves nice teas and home-made cakes. It also has sheepskin rugs to sit on, so you can pretend you're in the Himalayas on a wet day. There are lots of very thin waterfalls and a picturesque church. It couldn't be nicer. We saw the mountain today when the sun came out, and I took this photo. The cloud has been very low.

The campsite is very busy. There are a lot of young people who mainly seem to do base jumping, and every now and then we see one of them hurtling insanely through the sky. It's a relief when they open their parachutes

On Wednesday, we decided to try out the mountain train, and we did a round trip, going half way up the Jungfrau to a plateau, which was very bleak and cold. We couldn't see anything, but we got lovely tea, and apple pie with custard in a lovely warm cafe. I only ate a bit of Tony's, honestly! We went to Grindelwald on the way down, and then to Interlaken, both of which were very touristy. We are definitely in the prettiest place. The train ride up the mountain is really lovely on a sunny day.


We thought the Alpine gardens sounded nice, so we headed up there on Thursday. It was just like winter in the Lakes! We got caught in a hail storm, and it was really too early for the flowers, because the snow is only just receding. We did the British thing and ate our picnic in the rain. But then we got a few breaks in the cloud. It was breathtaking! Below is one of the photos I took.
Getting back to Heidi, it was interesting up there because it's the summer pasture. We saw the houses where the cow herders live and make cheese throughout the season.

Yesterday, the weather was much the same, and as our ticket allowed us a boat trip, we went on a boat on Brienzersee. The town of Brienz was really pretty, and the sun was out, too. There was a very old street, and a very pleasant walk by the lake. So it was a lovely day.

As you will know from Facebook, we went up the Jungfrau today. It was fab. So watch out for the next post. I'm going to write it on Monday, before we leave here. I am so glad we did this!

In the Land of Fairytale Castles.

When we arrived here in St. Goar, on the banks of the Rhine, I was delighted to see that our campsite was overlooked by a lovely fairytale castle. St. Goar itself is a prettylittle town, which is typical of the region. There are half-timbered houses, and lovely small streets lined with coloured buildings, vines, paintings on the hotel walls.......I think you get the idea.

One day, we went to Boppard by train. It was very similar to St. Goar, but bigger. The town square was lovely, dominated by a beautiful church. As ever, you could walk down to the Rhine for a stroll along the river. We had our usual coffee and tea in a gorgeous cafe, which was run by a family, and was very old fashioned. I wandered about, taking photos, while Tony sat by the river. We were both tired that day, as it is very noisy here at night.

I think that our favourite day here was the day we went down the river by boat to Bacharach. It was a short, but lovely journey. You can see why this is such a famous area. Every small town seems to have attractive spires, and its own castle, or two! The valley is quite deep here, and wooded, so altogether it's a very picturesque place. Bacharach was extremely quiet and lovely. We found a hidden, very old part of town which was very peaceful. It was quite fascinating. It was another day of quiet strolling, drinking tea and thinking how lucky we are.

Today we went to Koblenz. We were underwhelmed at first, but when we got to the old town, things cheered up a bit. To begin with, the sun came out.There were the usual beautiful squares, full of cafes. There was a particularly nice church there, too, with some lovely quiet spaces for prayer. We spent ages in there.

Then, down by the river, we found a beer garden and a park, with a buzzing, fascinating car boot sale. I went straight into "Bargain Hunt" mode, and had to stop myself buying all sorts of very attractive rubbish that I don't need, much as all the small children were doing.
When we got back, we had "van concoction" for tea, which consists of throwing everything into the wok. We have been out for a couple of nice meals, though, and I'm afraid to admit that bratwurst and chips has been on the menu, too. It's some consolation for missing out on ice creams and cake!
Tomorrow is washing day, and maybe a trip to the castle in the little train, with all the Japanese tourists and old folk. The train was broken the other day, so we couldn't go.
Time is flying, and we are heading for Switzerland next, which is to be the highlight of the holiday, weather permitting. Hopefully we will get wi-fi so that we can write another post from there.

Getting all Arty.

Lynn and John will recognise the name of this blog! It's something Tony always says on holiday when something goes right, or something lucky happens: "It's all in the planning!" It seems to fit here.

We are now camping in St. Goar, a small town on the Rhine. We are among the many caravans lining the river, all owned, it seems, by people of a certain age, sitting watching the boats go by. But I will write more about this place in the second blog. I want to start at the beginning with Brussels and Cologne.

We arrived in Brussels in the rain, had a terrible time trying to find the campsite, and then had to wait for two hours until it opened. What a funny place! It was small and a bit dilapidated and run by a committtee of volunteers. The lady in charge appeared to be very garrulous and enthusiastic, but Tony thought she had enjoyed the wine at lunchtime! However, the site was fairly well-placed for getting into Brussels.

In spite of the weather, we liked Brussels. It turned out to be a nice surprise. We had morning coffee in a lovely place in the main square, and then wandered about in the old town, doing touristy things. There was a gorgeous old bookshop in a small arcade. But the best bit was the art gallery. It was just wonderful. It was worth going in just to see the architecture, which was old and classical. I don't know the correct architectural terms, as you can see, but it was all arranged around a wonderful balcony overlooking the spacious entrance hall. We saw lots of great paintings, including some I have wanted to see for a long time. All in all, we enjoyed our day very much.

Next, we visited Cologne. We had an easy time finding the campsite, and it was so convenient for travelling into the city that we spent four nights there. As you will know, Cologne was completely destroyed during the war, so there is very little old left, except for the Cathedral, which is very impressive.

However, down towards the river you do get an idea of what the old streets would have been like. The buildings have been restored in a pretty way. There were lots of nice squares full of cafes. It's a very vibrant city, full of young people, music and street performers. I think that's what we liked about it; the atmosphere.




Again, we found wonderful art galleries, with lots of interesting paintings, and loads of information, so you knew what you were looking at. I did a course on German Art in the winter, and I kept getting excited when I recognised paintings or artists. I was in seventh heaven! Luckily, Tony seemed to enjoy the galleries, too. They all had lovely cafes as well. One was so nice that some people had their wedding reception there!

One of the joys of travel is when something unexpected and lovely happens. By far the nicest thing that happened in Cologne was when we walked into a lovely Romanesque church, to be greeted by some of the most beautiful and moving singing I have ever heard. It was a group of monks and nuns singing plain chant. I could hardly tear myself away. In fact, we went back and listened again another day. The church was beautiful, too. Because it had been completely renovated, it had a modern feel, even though the old structure and pillars remained. And then, dotted here and there against the white walls, were some of the colourful medieval carvings, all perfectly placed. It was a wonderful experience.

Well, as I say, we are now by the Rhine, where it is very noisy, with lots of huge barges, and two railway lines! Beautiful, though. We will be writing another post in a few days' time.