Our drive to Interlaken took about 1 1/2 hours. Not too far. We were able to check in when we arrived, so we got settled before heading into town to see the sights. We are staying at Susie's B&B.
Interlaken, the original alpine resort. Interlaken's glory days are long gone, replaced by new chalets and elegant hotels up in the mountains villages. Today, Interlaken is full of tourist shops, chocolate shops and plenty of restaurants.
We found the information center on the hotel map and headed that way. Interlaken is full of tourists. After picking up some fliers and info, we headed across the street to get some lunch. I enjoyed a nice cold beer. Why do beers taste so much better in Switzerland and Germany!
After lunch we decided to ride the tourist street train so we could get an overview of the town. I didn't expect much of Interlaken. Rick Steve's guidebook doesn't give it much credit. I ended up pleasantly surprised. It's a an enjoyable little town.
One of the sluices used to control the Aare River as it drops 18 ft from Lake Brienz to Lake Thun.
The color of the river is caused by 'suspended particles' in the glacier water.
Unterseen. This was a town when Interlaken was only a monastery.
Although you can get on the tourist train (tram) anywhere along its route, the main stop is near the park where the hang gliders land. We took a break and watched several land.
Interlaken is a mecca for hang gliding.
Brandon checks out a model of the Schilthorn. We went up this mountain lift last August. It was spectacular.
I had heard that Interlaken had a model train shop. I asked the tram driver and he was happy to show me where it was located. We found it on the opposite side of town - only a few blocks. It turned out to be a tourist, toy and hobby shop. When I saw that, I didn't expect much. Once again, I was pleasantly surprised. They had a nice assortment of trains. Unfortunatley most of it was very expensive. I didn't buy anything.
At the information office we had picked up a flier for a funiculare. At the top is a playground, an alpine slide and a model train layout. So, of couse we headed that way.
Waiting for the funiculare to leave
The grade is short but steep
We purchased tickets to ride the alpine slide twice. The track was really thrilling as it twisted and turned through the forest and down the hill we just rode up on the funiculare. This was by far the steepest alpine slide we have been on. Too bad it was so short.
Brandon is ready to go...
Off he goes...
We spent the late afternoon wandering around taking pictures and checking out the town, then headed back to the room for a bit.
Brandon spots an ICE train going through town
And the cow jumped...through the wall.
This evening we walked to a Chinese restaurant we had spotted earlier in the day. We had a pretty good meal, then walked back to the room in rain showers.
Tomorrow we head up Jungfraujoch.
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