A view from the gondola of the valley below Murren.
We have arrived in what is possibly the closest place to heaven on Earth: Murren (MEW-rehn), Switzerland. Tiny Murren seems to hang off a cliff overlooking the Lauterbrunnen Valley and lies across from the most spectacular mountains I have ever seen: the Eiger (the ogre), the Monch (the monk, protecting the maiden) and the Jungfrau (the young maiden).
Every day is a new experience and adventure on this tour. Imagine traveling to a village that is only accessible by two gondolas silently gliding up from a mossy green valley to an out of sight destination. When our bus driver dropped us and our luggage off at the Stechelburg cable station, Tom and I watched warily as our group of 29 and a lot of other travelers with their luggage, and base jumpers with their gear (more about them later), filled the gondola – could it possibly handle all this weight? Easily! We glided up and over the mountain, exited then entered another gondola in Gimmelwald (GIM-mehl-vahlt), and up and away we went again, to Murren.
Another cable car from Murren takes you up to the top of the Schilthorn for skiing, hiking, sightseeing and dining at Piz Gloria (a solar-powered revolving restaurant). This mountain was featured in the James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service - but Murren was our destination, and a welcome one, at that. Murren has two small streets and we were led by Tara up the higher one towards our hotel. I'm not sure about the rest of our group, but I had a hard time keeping up as I was mesmerized by the colorful flower and vegetable gardens flanking chalet-style houses and businesses, and the peaceful feeling that surrounded us.
Murren is traffic-free and filled with bakeries, cafes, and base jumpers who jump off the side of the mountain with a parachute on their backs and pray that it works. There’s no full-time doctor, not one police officer. The “Milch Express” delivers fresh milk and eggs from a cart to hotels and homes in the town.
By the time we arrived at our hotel, Hotel Jungfrau, I knew three nights here wouldn't be nearly enough time to get my fill of this tranquil alpine village.
I took a moment to rest from our journey and gazed out our hotel window at this and listened to the melodious sound of cow bells. We were told the cow bells weigh up to 10 pounds and can cost more than 2,000 Swiss Francs each. I doubt the cows like the weight or the noise very much, but to a tourist, the sound is heavenly. (The tracks take a funicular to the top of the mountain.)
We were told we had a surprise waiting for us after dinner and what a splendid surprise it was: two local musicians who entertained us with an alpine horn and an accordion. Sitting on the hotel's back deck, with a panoramic view of the Swiss Alps, we listened intently as they performed for an hour. Then they encouraged members of our group to try the alpine horn. We had a good laugh over some of the sounds they made and we learned how difficult it is to play this unique instrument. YOLO!!