Interlaken, Switzerland

Wow this weekend was like none other. I am not much of an outdoorsy girl but I definitely conquered a fear of heights by paragliding. I am so proud of myself. That was something that has always been on my bucket list and now I can check it off! I am happy to say I enjoyed every minute of it. 

Thursday/ Friday

The adventure began when Taylor, Kevin and Hana and I left the Florence train station at 9:00 Thursday evening with the travel company, Bus2Alps. The trip Included hostel accommodation (Balmer’s Hostel) and travel. Very much worth it. The bus ride was very long and we, unfortunately, hit traffic around 1:00 AM. We were at a standstill for two hours. This caused us to get into Switzerland at 7:00 AM. Once we arrived, we slept in our hostel room for a little over 1.5 hours but was well needed to survive the rest of the day. Taylor and I woke up and got the continental breakfast. The hostel was relatively nice and clean but I forgot flip clops for the shower so that was a little rough to handle. At breakfast, I had cereal, granola and milk. We walked around near the hostel and then took a group walk to Lake Brienz. We met another girl, Nicole traveling from Florence who we ended up chilling with the rest of the weekend! That is the beauty of staying in a hostel. The weather was awful and rainy but we powered through. Definitely not having a good hair day either which Nicole and Taylor had the pleasure of dealing with as I asked them to take a million photos of me. After our walk we explored downtown Interlaken and grabbed Hooters. I got boneless wings and fries. The meal was relatively expensive. After lunch, we continued to walk around and stopped by the Funky Chocolate Club. I got a dark chocolate covered coconut ball and dark chocolate covered almonds. After our little treats we took a nap back at Balmer’s Hostel. By that time we were ready for dinner! We made reservations for a local place, Husi serving Swiss food. Taylor and I split a salad and schnitzel. It was so delicious. Then we, of course, went back to bed. Going out was out of the question.

Saturday

This morning was paragliding at 10:45 with Outdoor Interlaken! Taylor and I were worried about the weather but it turned out just fine. We were picked up at the hostel and then driven up to the mountain to the platform where we take off. Nerves did not hit me until we were driving the winding roads and I would look over and see how high we were. In the car we were given the guide and of course his name was Tom and I knew it was a sign! Once we got out and walked to the top I was somewhat very relaxed. I saw everyone go one after the other. I went last! Tom told me to start running so you get enough momentum then you are off! So amazing. It was not until we were over trees that I was like a little scared. Then he told me to put my arms out and I was like “nooooo” I am not ready for that! About five minutes later I let go! Amazing experience! I talked to Tom basically the whole time just to calm my nerves. Since I was last, Taylor got some good footage of me landing which was pretty cool! 

After paragliding, Taylor and I made PB&J’s at the hostel and took a train to Luauterbrunnen. We were told there were many waterfalls but were unsure if they would be frozen. Once we arrived, we walked to a tourist office and the women recommended we take the tram up to Murren to watch a ski and snowboard competition. The train ride and tram ride were truly something. The views were perfect! Once we arrived, we sat at the Hotel Jungfrau outside and enjoyed a local beer, Rugen Brau and a chocolate lava cake! After a couple hours we made our way down the mountain and went back to Interlaken. For dinner we met up with Kevin, Hana and enjoyed a durum kabab from the restaurant next door to the hostel. Then, we got chocolate fondue. Now, of course after all the fruit is gone there is still plenty of chocolate left. Creative Kelly grabs an apple and clementine from the room and brings it to the table. No shame. Thats the way to do it. No chocolate to waste! 

Sunday

Kevin, Taylor and I woke up early to watch the sunrise. It was relatively nice but could have been better. Then we came back to go enjoy breakfast and after we went to the Funky Chocolate Club where we learned to make chocolate. We learned why swiss chocolate is known all over the world and its because of the dairy used! We got to try all different kinds: cocoa beans,100% dark, 70% dark (my favorite), semisweet, milk, white chocolate. We had such a blast together! Then we went to the top of the M Hotel and took some pictures before getting yelled at for not ordering food. We then sat on a bench to enjoy the lasting views. For lunch, we got noodles from the Noodle Bar! I had fried rice vegetable noodles. This was probably the cheapest thing to eat in the whole area. We then made our way back to Funky Chocolate Club to pick up our chocolate bars and back to Florence we went.

Tips: 

• Although expensive ($70), Funky Chocolate Club making was worth it! 
• If you are afraid of heights you can 100% paraglide
• I recommend getting a drink at the M hotel because those views of Interlaken were amazing for the 30 seconds I was there. 
• Bring food and snacks because Interlaken is expensive
• Don’t be afraid to go into a tourist office. You might stumble across something you never knew existed