Rain, rain rain

It’s been very wet over the past few days, so we’ve mainly stayed at home. We did get out last night however.

We went down to Tapberne (the pub that used to be the Three Tells) in Matten. From the front, we have Ben and Tanja, Wil and Val, and Ali and me. The pub has transformed itself from an Irish bar into a tapas restaurant. With a party of 6 we could try almost everything on the menu, and it was all delicious. We even managed to get home without getting wet.

This morning the rain had returned. Val had an appointment at the doctors, but apart from that we’ve barely opened the front door all day.

Thun

It’s a nice day, and it’ll be even nicer down by the lake. We are heading for Thun, which is our nearest city. It’s a very scenic train journey.

Thun has a very nice old town.

It was just warm enough for lunch by the riverside. There’s a huge choice of restaurants here, and great views whichever way you look.

Steve has a solo gig at the Sunstar tonight, so we’d better go along and make some noise.

Noisy Monday

A nice view of the Jungfrau with a pink tint last night.

This morning we were woken by the sound of the gardener cutting the grass. He makes a very nice job of it, but it’s really noisy.

The last of the cows are coming down from the high pastures this morning. This herd is from Wengernalp – it’s been snowing up there this weekend.

The noise from the cowbells is absolutely deafening.

A nearby house is having a new roof, and of course that means that the old one has to be taken away in bits. More noise this afternoon, as a helicopter collected the old tiles and beams.

Colin is leaving for France tomorrow, so I guess there’ll be a few beers later.

Snowy Scheidegg

It’s a bright, cold Sunday morning. If we dress up warmly it’ll be nice up at Scheidegg. The summit of the Eiger peeps out over the station building, almost 2 kilometres above us.

The railway staff have made a good job of clearing the snow from the platforms and paths. View to the Lauberhorn.

Panorama looking east.

Tanja was working at the restaurant, so we stopped for a chat and a coffee. Back in Wengen we met Emily for lunch, and I found a nice pair of winter boots in the end of season sale at one of the sports shops. Music at the Sunstar later.

Gimmelwald

Last night we popped over to Gimmelwald to see Beanie, Sandro and the girls. Gimmelwald is very small – population about 100. There are no shops, but there is a mountain hostel where you can get food and drink. It’s very popular.

Live music too.

The menu is small, but you can create your own pizza by picking toppings from a list. Delicious!

Just like Wengen, there are no roads to Gimmelwald, it is only accessible by cable car. The trip back to Wengen takes about 40 minutes. It was cold and wet on the way home, so we weren’t surprised to see the first snow of winter this morning.

Brienz

Val has an appointment with her dentist today. The dental practice is in Brienz, a very pleasant little town at the end of the lake. I decided to go along. Lunch with a view at Cafe Walz.

Brienz is known for carpentry, and wood carving in particular. In times gone by they also produced a lot of boats, some of which have been preserved.

Fun fact. The only genuine Swiss cuckoo clocks in existence are made here in Brienz.

More cow chaos

Dave and Lesley are here this week. Time for a few shots in the Tanne.

More cows are coming down the mountain today; this herd have been at Spätenalp all summer.

After lunch we’re off to Grindelwald. Lots of marmots under the gondola.

We did a bit of shopping and headed back to Männlichen. The weather was still nice, but it’s pretty windy.

A nice day out.