Switzerland: Broc Chocolates

Next stop, the chocolate factory of Cailler (at Broc Fabrique), the oldest brand in Switzerland, which has been owned by Nestle since 1929. Our tour included a history of chocolate, Cailler and a glimpse into the production process.

The highlight of the tour was of course the tastings at the end. Cailler offered unlimited samples of some of the chocolates that they make, a tip when you next visit; hold off until get to the Ambassador range – they are by far the best………..

Oldest chocolate house in Switzerland

Chocolate production line

Almost ready for eating

Travel date: 29 April 2012

The best of their range

Switzerland: Gruyères Cheese

Finally, the day that we had been looking forward to most arrived, a chance to feast on cheese and chocolate at the factories in the heart of Switzerland.

Breakfast was described as “hearty” on the hotel website, what they omitted to mention was that it included the specialities of the region Guyere cheese and meringue. In the interest of research, we had to sample the various aged Guyere on offer and the meringue with fresh strawberries and “yogurt”, which looked surprising like the double cream we had the previous night!

The tour of the cheese factory at La Maison du Guyère was an audio tour with Cherry the cow as our “guide”, some interesting facts that we learnt:

Each cow eats 100kg of grass and 85L of water a day to produce 25L of milk
12L of milk are used to produce 1kg of cheese
7 million litres of milk is the certified AOC production of Guyere, of which 2/3 is consumed within Switzerland

We were able to see the cheesemakers at work through the various stages of production and the sample at the end was 3 small pieces of 6, 8 and 10 month Guyere… The group was split as to which was each of our favourites, so you will just have to try all of them and make your own mind up!

First part of cheese making

Second part of cheese making

Third part of cheese making

Fourth part of cheese making

Fifth part of cheese making

Ready to eat - Best part of cheese making!!!

Travel date: 29 April 2012

Switzerland: Murren & Gimmewald

On recommendation of the Lonely Planet, Gimmewald and Schilthorn seemed like a good way to spend half a day before making our way to Guyeres.

The cable car to Grütschalp (1487m), then the train to Mürren (1684 m) were relatively straight-forward; however the cable car to Schilthorn was closed due to the strong winds ; so on to Gimmewald it was. On our walk we passed snowy front gardens, waterfalls, avalanche defences, grazing cows, countless pinecones and of course a snow capped mountain or two!

After a picnic lunch at Gimmewald, with a view of the mountains and winds which threatened to blow away anything lighter than a bottle of water. We took the cable car to Stechelberg (922m)a spectacular cable car ride with a single pylon and the cliff is a sheer drop of about 500m; with the sound of waterfalls and the wind tossing the cable car; it was definitely a memorable 10 minutes! The walk back to Lauterbrunnen followed the river and involved crossing a stream with a bag of pinecones, river stones and non-waterproof shoes!

Travel date: 28 April 2012

Holding up the shed near Gimmewald

View on walk from Murren

Valley below and the crazy cable car ride

Postcard Switzerland

Switzerland: Lauterbrunnen & Staubbach Falls

Lauterbrunnen was still quite sleepy when we arrived, as they were between the winter and summer tourist seasons. Our hotel had a view of Jungfrau from our room balcony, which would have been a great way to spend a lovely spring afternoon and evening if it wasn’t for the strong smell of cow manure!
Despite the limited restaurant options for dinner, we managed to indulgence in the Swiss favourite, the fondue complete with garlic, mushrooms and onions at Hotel Oberland; which mysteriously seemed to have an Australian flag above the door.

Travel date: 26 April 2012

Fondue – Yum!

Staubbach Falls in Lauterbrunnen

Switzerland : Jungfrau and train rides

Dressed in our warmest clothes, we purchased our tickets up to Jungfrau; which in the end totalled 137 CHF (or 100 GBP)! We then boarded the trains to the highest station in Europe from 796 m (Interlaken) to 3454m (Jungfraujoch), the journey takes about 2 hours; despite being able to see Jungfrau from our hotel balcony! As 2012, is the 100 year anniversary of the opening of Jungfrau, there was a special DVD played when we passed through the tunnels of the Eiger mountain; which was always designed as a tourist attraction and took over 16 years to build. I’m sure that today’s environmental impact statements would never see this built!
The views from Jungfraujoch include the main mountains of Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau, the glacial fields, the meteorological station called the Sphinx and the valleys of Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald. Despite some of the terraces being closed due to recent snowfalls, we braved the snow, cold winds and hordes of other tourists to get some good pictures! The Ice Palace had quite a few ice sculptures and more opportunities for cheesy pictures! The best way to describe the experience is AMAZING!!!
After a hearty lunch of wurst and rosti at Kleine Scheidegg, we attempted to walk it off with a walk down the mountain to Grindelwald, however the paths were closed to walkers due to the volume of snow; so another train journey awaited us!Grindelwald is a small town, larger than Lauterbrunnen however, most of the shops were also closed; luckily for us the chocolate shop of Läderach was still open! I definitely suggest the Champagne and Congac batons if you are anywhere in Switzerland.
The limited food choices of Lauterbrunnen saw us back at Hotel Oberland and the mystery of the Australian flag was solved when the owner spoke and revealed himself to be a fellow Sydney sider….

Travel date: 27 April 2012

Jungfrau with friends

Highest train line in Europe in altitude & price!

View of the glaciers from Jungfrau

Jungfrau area

Switzerland : Interlaken & Riggenberg

We took a train from Lucerne to Interlaken, a beautiful train journey (which is on the Swiss Golden Pass route), it is best to sit on the right hand side of train; as this will provides a spectacular view of the lakes and if the weather is good time will just fly by (as will your camera battery!)

At Interlaken, we took a slight detour to Riggenberg Church (approximately 20 minutes by bus from the train station); a happy accident as we just jumped on the first bus that can along. Riggenberg overlooks Brienzersee another series of postcard worthy moments. We managed to have the site, a church from 1671 and originally a castle (first built 1230) to ourselves.

The highlight of the day was exploring the various features of our cameras and using the managed which was anchored to the safety rails of the castle walls, my heart stopped more than once trying to anchor the camera; so hope you enjoy the results!

Lauterbrunnen was still quite sleepy when we arrived, as they were between the winter and summer tourist seasons. Our hotel had a view of Jungfrau from our room balcony, which would have been a great way to spend a lovely spring afternoon and evening if it wasn’t for the strong smell of cow manure! Despite the limited restaurant options for dinner, we managed to indulgence in the Swiss favourite, the fondue complete with garlic, mushrooms and onions at Hotel Oberland; which mysteriously seemed to have an Australian flag above the door.

Travel date: 26 April 2012

Brienzersee near Riggenberg

Riggenberg

Ringgenberg with minature feature in camera

Switzerland : Lucerne

Following a late arrival into Zurich airport, we have managed to dispel a number of myths:
1. Not all custom officers are unfriendly and mean, I was provided useful advice about when was the best time to visit Jungfrau – and she was right!

2. Not all Swiss trains run on time, ours into Lucerne was over 30 minutes late!

Lucerne itself is a small but beautiful city, with two wooden bridges, (originally built in 14th century) spanning the river and linking the two sides of the town. This part of the old town is picture postcard Switzerland with lake, mountain and bridge.
Lake Lucerne is quite scenic with lots of towns dotted along the shoreline with the snow capped mountains providing more photographic opportunities, which we took advantage of. A boat on the Lake is a must as the mountains form an amazing
backdrop.

The downside of Lucerne was obvious in the afternoon when groups of tourists seem to flood the chocolate and souvenir shops before jumping on their buses, eavesdropping on them seem to suggest that many of them were from China or India. Another tip, if you are in Lucerne, make sure you have dinner early, as the kitchens seem to close at 9 pm.