• Home
  • About
  • Work With Me
  • Contact

Nutrition Nut on the Run

  • Recipes
  • Workouts
  • Running
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Beauty
  • Shop My Favorites
    • Shop Beautycounter
    • 2020 Holiday Gift Guide

Europe Diary 2015 // Switzerland (Part 2)

September 10, 2016 by Hillary 1 Comment

It’s crazy that is has been almost one year since my mom and I took off on our mother-daughter European adventure. It’s even crazier that I have yet to finish recapping our epic vacation. It truly was one of the best trips of my life.

Spiez, Switzerland

Our second full day in Switzerland took us to new heights, literally. After staring at the immense peak of Mt. Niesen, a.k.a the Swiss Pyramid, from our hotel window the past couple of days, we decided to just, um, go to the tippy top! This was actually recommended to us from the friendly Swiss family we met on the train traveling in to Switzerland. You can hike up the beast of a mountain, or you can take a train that takes you up the mountain in about 20-30 minutes — a vertical shot to the top.

Spiez, Switzerland

The itty bitty (but adorable bright red train) was a test to my anxious-self, but when we made it to the top, the 360 degree views were worth the shaky ride. At 7,749 in elevation, the beauty of the white-capped Swiss alps and lush green valleys is unbelievable and can hardly be captured in a camera lens. Standing on the top of a mountain in Europe that I will most likely never stand on again, with sunshine peaking through my sunglasses, and crisp, early October air nipping at my nose, a wave a gratitude rushed over me for this day, this once-in-a-lifetime experience… this oh so wonderful life.

Fun facts via Wikipedia:

The summit of the mountain can be reached easily by using the Niesenbahn funicular from Mülenen (near Reichenbach). The construction of the funicular was completed in 1910. Alongside the path of the Niesenbahn is the longest stairway in the world with 11,674 steps. It is open only once a year to the public for a stair run.

Spiez, Switzerland

Spiez, Switzerland

photo courtesy of Mom

Spiez, Switzerland

Spiez, Switzerland

Spiez, Switzerland

Spiez, Switzerland

Spiez, Switzerland

Spiez, Switzerland

Once we descended the mountain and returned to sleepy Spiez, we decided to tour Spiez Castle which was right across the street from our hotel. It is pretty neat to be able to stand in, and climb the creaky stairs, an ancient castle that dates back to the 12th century.

Switzerland took my breath away, encouraged me to venture outside of my comfort zone, and gave me the travel itch to see more of this beautiful Earth that we live on.

If I have the chance to visit this picturesque country again, I would in a heart beat.

Spiez, Switzerland

Spiez, Switzerland

photo courtesy of Mom

Spiez, Switzerland
Spiez, Switzerland

Mt. Niesen from inside Spiez Castle

Switzerland Adventures Take II #spiez #swisspyramid

Click To Tweet

Europe Posts

Europe Diary 2015 // Switzerland (Part 1)

Europe Diary 2015 // Cinque Terre, Italy (Part 2)

Europe Diary 2015 // Cinque Terre, Italy (Part 1)

Europe Diary 2015 // The Calanques (Marseille, France)

Europe Diary 2015 // Aix-en-Provence, France

Europe Diary 2015 // Paris, Day 3

Europe Diary 2015 // Paris, Day 2

Europe Diary 2015 // Paris, Day 1

Paris // Where We Stayed

Paris Bucket List

Our Europe Itinerary

Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: Mt. Niesen, Spiez, Swiss Pyramid, Switzerland

Europe Diary 2015 // Switzerland (Part 1)

July 12, 2016 by Hillary 2 Comments

That was what I needed: an entire weekend of 1:1 time with mama. Between our weekending of SUPing and bike riding, farmer’s marketing, shopping and baking blueberry peach crisp, she gently reminded me that I have not finished recapping our Europe vacation. How could I not finish this post series!?

Where did we leave off? Yes, that’s right… Italy, where Cinque Terre stole our hearts.

We reluctantly left sweet Sarah and her B&B and headed due north into Switzerland. It was yet another very long day of train travel, but the people we met in the train cars left lasting impressions, especially a pair of middle-aged Australian women with boisterous personalities. One of the two was on a several months-long European adventure, collecting rubber duckies (yes, yellow bathtub rubber duckies) from each city she visited for a nephew back home. Oh, was she a hoot!

A few train stations and many miles (kilometers) later, we arrived in Spiez, Switzerland: a small town on the shore of Lake Thun in the Berner Oberland region. We hadn’t heard much about Spiez prior to our trip, but we chose it for its proximity to Murren and Gimmelwald — which were high on our bucket list.

Switzerland

Switzerland is as fairytale-like as it is made up to be. For the three nights and two full days we were there, we must have pinched ourselves a dozen times each. Is this real life? Green hills, grazing cows, towering white-capped mountains, cheerful flower boxes, garden gnomes and red window shutters. This is real life!

After a simple dinner at our hotel’s restaurant, we got a good night’s sleep before we ventured to the touristy villages in the Swiss Alps.

After a cold breakfast of Swiss muesli and yogurt (of course!), we caught the train (of course!) towards Interlaken. From Interlaken, we caught a bus to Lauterbrunen, and from there, we rode an aerial tram (cable car) up, up, and up to Murren (which is unreachable by public road). Can I toot our own horn for mastering international public transportation?

Murren was a lot sleepier than I had expected. A few tourists here and there, but the single main street was not lively in the slightest. Some restaurants appeared open, though there wasn’t a lot of action per say. High among the iconic alps, you didn’t need anything else but wide eyes and a gracious heart. After all, the views are what you are there for. They are beyond breathtaking.

On the way up in the crammed tram, there were a few daring individuals with large packs of hang gliding gear. We learned that this was a popular place to do such, so as we sauntered through the quiet mountain villages, we watched for little parachutes against the piercing blue sky.

After moseying around Murren, we took the “hike” (a walk on a paved road) down to Gimmelwald, which we had read about in a Rick Steve’s travel guide. After admiring the petite (also traffic-free) village that is Gimmelwald, we caught the cable car back to Lauterbrunnen. We stopped at Airtime internet cafe for a bite to eat, which turned out to be gem with nutritious, mouth-watering options like the roasted butternut and apple sandwich that Mom and I devoured.

Fueled up with “good mood food”, we rode the bus and then the train back to Spiez where we wandered around town for a bit; a low-key evening and some down time was needed before Day 2 of our Swiss adventures — stay tuned!

Switzerland

Spiez, Switzerland on shore of Lake Thun

Switzerland

Our Swiss hotel on the harbor and adjacent to Schloss Spiez Castle

Switzerland

View of Mt. Nielsen (a.k.a. the Swiss Pyramid) from our hotel room

berner oberland

[sketch courtesy of Rick Steves]

Switzerland

Murren, Switzerland | Population: 450

Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland

Simple Swiss style

Switzerland

Taking a sip of refreshing, ice cold mountain water

Switzerland

Switzerland

Murren features a view of the three towering mountains: Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau

Switzerland

Switzerland

Mama in Murren

Switzerland

Mom taking it all in as we walked down the mountain to Gimmelwald

Switzerland

“Ain’t no mountain high enough… ain’t no valley low enough…”

Switzerland

The Honesty Shop in Gimmelwald — a self-service shop with antiques, trinkets, and souvenirs

Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland

The horizontal structures seen above are for avalanche protection

Switzerland

“Try our good mood food!”

Switzerland

Switzerland

Airtime Internet Cafe | Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland

Switzerland

Sweet Swiss architeture in Spiez

Switzerland

Switzerland

A Dream Day in the Swiss Alps #murren #gimmelwald #eurotrip

Click To Tweet

Catching up on Europe posts?

Europe Diary 2015 // Cinque Terre, Italy (Part 2)

Europe Diary 2015 // Cinque Terre, Italy (Part 1)

Europe Diary 2015 // The Calanques (Marseille, France)

Europe Diary 2015 // Aix-en-Provence, France

Europe Diary 2015 // Paris, Day 3

Europe Diary 2015 // Paris, Day 2

Europe Diary 2015 // Paris, Day 1

Paris // Where We Stayed

Paris Bucket List

Our Europe Itinerary

Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: Gimmelwald, Murren, Spiez

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Search by Topic

Instagram

This rare blue sky day in February is having me da This rare blue sky day in February is having me day dreaming about long, light-filled summer days... they’ll be here soon. 

#pikeplacemarket #seattlewashington
Leavenworth, WA • Where To Eat🍴 I was expect Leavenworth, WA • Where To Eat🍴

I was expecting all things beer, brats and pretzels in Leavenworth (not really my jam) 🍺🥨🧀, and while there’s plenty of it, I was delighted to find plenty of delicious eats for my “foodie” taste. 

We went to all of these 3 places more than once during our quick stay - highly recommend! 

☕️ @argonautespressobar: Located at one end of Front Street, this adorable coffee bar has delicious espresso drinks, breakfast items, and the best view! 

🥐 @tumwaterbakery: Incredible pastries, avocado toast on artisanal bread that’s a feast for your eyes... and I’m eager to go back and try their wood-fired pizza! 

🍜 @yodelinbroth: Literally some of the best food I’ve had (ever!), and that’s saying a lot. I had the Yodelin soup with housemade wild PNW halibut bone coconut curry broth, udon noodles, heaps of veggies and wild salmon - it was nourishing to my core as we ate it outside in 30 degree weather. I even bought some of the broth to recreate this meal at home, yum! 

#nutritionnuteats #leavenworthwa
winter wonderland getaway ✔️ We had snow much winter wonderland getaway ✔️

We had snow much fun exploring the picturesque Bavarian town of Leavenworth, WA for a much-needed mid-week getaway to the mountains. 🏔

We stayed in a cozy little cabin @logecamps right on the Wenatchee River (one day I’ll be back to stay at the stunning @phleavenworth), played in Enchantment Park, took a drive to Lake Wenatchee, and discovered some of the best food downtown (I’m saving my food recs for another post).

Nestled between the snow-capped Cascade Mountains with the river running through town, it’s quite magical in the middle of winter. ❄️ I’m already dreaming of heading back for some summer adventures!
I’m sure Koba is wondering why we ever lived in I’m sure Koba is wondering why we ever lived in Florida for two years.

#takemetothemountains #snowday
dog [noun] companion, loyal comforter, playmate, f dog [noun] companion, loyal comforter, playmate, forgiving, loving, energetic, protective, best friend.
this is the season ✨ she will make beautiful th this is the season ✨

she will make beautiful things

not perfect things 

but honest things 

that speak to who she is

and who she is called to be 

— Morgan Harper Nichols 

#happynewyear
Follow on Instagram

10% off Primally Pure

My Favorite Collagen Peptides

Recent Posts

  • A Few of My Favorite Things: 2020 Holiday Gift Guide
  • Six Months in Seattle
  • My Amazon Favorites
  • Farewell Florida
  • 10 Years + A Life Update!
  • An Inside Look at My Health Using InsideTracker

Connect with Me

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Keep in Touch

Get the Nutrition Nut Newsletter delivered to your email inbox.

Follow
Privacy Policy & Disclaimers

Copyright © 2021 Design by Deluxe Designs