It’s grey, mild but still very windy. The railway will take you up the mountain, but there won’t be any ski lifts open when you get there. Nevertheless some holidaymakers optimistically wait for the train; I guess they have little alternative, particularly if they have kids.
It’s just the sort of day for a really good warming meal, so I’ve spent the afternoon peeling potatoes which we’ll have with some lovely braised beef.
In the UK it’s called Ciara. The Norwegians call it Elsa. Here in Switzerland it’s been christened Sabine. Whatever you call it though, it’s bad news.
No trains or lifts today, and that leaves an awful lot of people with nothing to do. You can’t even go for a hike, as we’ve been advised to stay away from the forest in the high winds.
The guys who run the cable car get a chance to do some maintenance.
Temperatures are high. The football pitch is doing its best to become a lake again.
Another hard day doing nothing.
What on earth is an iltis? I gather it’s some sort of animal, but I’d never heard of it. It turns out that iltis is a German word for the European Bobcat.
They’re fairly common in Switzerland, but they’re protected as they’re sensitive to habitat loss. Why do you need to know this? Well, the property we’re viewing today is called Chalet Iltis. It is one of a group of three chalets situated alongside the railway line just below the station.
Usually in Wengen, chalets and houses are large, and are subdivided into apartments. This one is different; it’s small and self contained – you get the whole chalet. Period 1970s decor and furnishings.
It has been empty for five years, but you’d never know it – it’s like stepping back in time. Everything is old, but it still looks like new. Look at those curtains.
Amazing views. We’re only five minutes below the village here, but it feels like we’re out in the countryside.
And a real fireplace.
Upstairs is nice, and there are balconies on both floors.
The exterior window shutters are electric, which must have been quite a luxury when it was built. In the basement is a sort of granny flat that we probably wouldn’t use, along with a laundry and cellar.
With some less garish soft furnishings, this could be a brilliant place. We absolutely love it.
It’ll be super busy today. The sun is trying to break through some high cloud and it’s very mild. Stampede for the train.
None of this will bother us however, as we’re off to see another apartment. This one is in Chalet Adler, which is one of the little cluster of houses at the top of the nursery slope.
It’s a bit dated, but still nice.
The best thing about this one though is the view back to the village.
A nice apartment, but it’s quite a hike up there and it didn’t have the ‘wow’ factor that we felt when we walked into Cosy Corner the other day.
Lively evening out at Rocks last night. Blurry selfie.
The busiest 4 weeks of the season are about to begin. All over Europe schools are breaking up for half-term holidays, and that means thousands of kids will soon be arriving. Preparing the nursery slope.
The village is looking good, and the forecast for the weekend is for more fine and sunny weather.
The weather’s much better today, and it’s busy at Männlichen.
We ski around to Scheidegg and have coffee and cake. The skiing’s pretty good once you shake-off the crowds.
Will you take our picture please? It’s that sort of day.
Spotted Michael, asleep in his favourite deck chair outside the tipi.
Music in Rocks later.
It snowed all day yesterday and all night. Not that we cared, as we were off to Interlaken for dinner with Val’s ski school colleagues.
Lovely Lebanese food prepared before our very eyes.
This morning the snow stopped at breakfast time. We popped up to Männlichen and had a ski – lots of bumpy new snow, and it felt properly cold.
Back in the village the big clear-up has begun. It isn’t sufficient just to plough the streets and paths; the snow has to be removed on a truck and dumped in the forest.
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