Day 3 Zurich, Switzerland - Glaciers, Ice Castles & Swiss Mountains

Joan's View

Cara skydiving in the Alps 2010

The day started early because I especially wanted to go to Jungfraujoch, the top of Europe. We walked 40 minutes to central Zurich and found our tour. The bus ride took us through Lucerne and Interlaken before stopping at Grindelwald. We saw lots of paragliders in the area. This is actually where Cara went skydiving over Interlaken back in 2010 when she took a weekend trip from her place in Florence. ➤

Tony on the Eiger Express, Bart is on the right & below

To get to the top of Jungfrau we took a gondola, the Eiger Express, where we stopped at an overlook to check out the famous Eiger mountain. From there we went to the top of the Jungfrau Mountain via a cog train. That is where we got to know Bart. Bart is from Poland and taught us lots about where he is from. He is a physical therapist, football player (the US football kind), former body builder, a Ravens fan, an adventurer. and a rebel. Tony & Bart bantered on the football talk and agreed that they dislike the Browns. We learned how he goes to the mountains in his area to get away. He is visiting a friend in Switzerland and may go back up the mountain at some point to do some parasailing. Fun times meeting another great person!

Loving the Eiger

At Jungfrau, the views were incredible. Helicopters were dropping off people in the distance. Tony & I threw our first snowball in August. 

Another highlight was going through the ice castle, and guess what?  We found the location where Scrat ended up after the last Ice Age movie! 

 Hang on Scrat. You may thaw!

Follow the ice

Slip sliding away.

We got one shot of an ice polar bear. That one is for all you ONU alumni who have ever experienced the ONU tundra!!!

3 Polar Bears 🧊

We slid out of the ice castle so that Tony could get a beer at the highest bar in Europe. Since he had a beer at the lowest bar in the world near the Dead Sea a few years ago, he sought to enjoy a beer at the highest point in Europe.

We had a little time left before our tour departed so we conquered the highest chocolate shop in Europe. Wade & Linda this picture is for you. We are picking out chocolate flavors just like you did in Italy. We even got 2 free upon checkout! We shared our first one in front of the Lindor greeter.

Lastly, we enjoyed the scenery on the train ride down the mountain. I loved getting to see where the Lindor chocolate comes from. The cows that we saw grazing on the mountain grass with their cowbells tinkling just like what you think of Swiss mountains are making the Lindor chocolate i.e.. making the milk for the chocolate. 😍

Tony's Extras

First of all, when talking to Bart about the NFL, I said that the Browns are loaded with talent. He looked at me and said they always look good on paper, but remember they are the Browns. I laughed thinking that even across the world in Poland, the Browns have a reputation 🤣. By the way, he was a linebacker and was 60 pounds heavier and was already well built. 

The first picture showing Cara skydiving out of a helicopter was the same time Wade and I cycled across country, see tonychasingwade.blogspot.com

Imagine there is only one person in our family to go skydiving, let alone out of a helicopter in the Alps and it was Cara. She is so adventurous. 

One last note, Joan begged to get her souvenir for the trip. Usually, you want to wait until the end of the trip, so you don't need have to carry it on the tandem the whole way, but it was on sale. Argh. She bought a backpack that we get to haul around for the rest of the trip. I do have to admit it is pretty cool, just early.