Switzerland Day 3

Today was even sunnier and warmer than yesterday! (Apparently, in England they are having dreadful weather. Ha.)



We started walking along the lakeside promenade in search of a ferry stop. And admired the pretty Swiss houses and their gardens along the way.





We found the ferry pier just in time for the next ferry!



We decided to sail to Interlaken and back on the steam ferry that operates between various towns and villages around the lake. First stop was at Giessbach, which means that we saw the falls again - this time from the lake level.



There were about seven stops before Interlaken, so we saw various places...









....and people.







Finally we approached Interlaken which is a very popular tourist town set in the middle of the two lakes of Thun and Brienz.



But we weren't going to get off the boat. We sat down at the boat restaurant to have lunch on the way back to Brienz. We'd worked out from the boat and train timetables that if we went straight back, we'd arrive in Brienz a few minutes before the last but one mountain train leaves for Rothorn, so that's what we decided to do.



I'd been on a mountain train once before in 1995 when I visited my friend Fränzi in Vitznau, so I knew what to expect. Well, kind of. The beginning of the journey was what I expected: gentle ascend, nice views...





...but this train just kept climbing and climbing...



It felt more like a roller coaster than a train.



And so we got higher....



...and higher...


(there is another train in the middle of this picture - click for bigger version)

...and higher...






We kept ooo'ing and ahhh'ing at the view the higher we got: when we saw a glimpse of the lake below, when we saw the first snow top mountains in the distance, etc. The photos don't do the feeling justice. (Click on the photos for bigger versions - it helps a bit.)



And finally we got to the top!



We were at about 2350 m (7710 ft). The view from there was breathtaking.



Not sure why my polariser makes the sky more magenta colour... Must investigate.







(Someone has actually uploaded a video of this railway on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDWl_SUGmiE)

As I had the long lens with me I used it to get a closer look at one of the snow tops.



We only had about 15 minutes at the top before we had to catch the last train back to lake level.





And then it was time to drive to Lausanne!