| Jul 29, 2007 - Pontresina
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 | | show all 11 | | view from top of Muottas Muragle | | looking down on Pontresina | | hiking down to Alp Languard | | |
| Today I left the tropical heat of Lake Lugano for the cool, crisp mountain air once more. I took a scenic bus ride called the 'Palm Express' which connects Lugano with St. Moritz, traveling through Italy along Lake Como and up into the Alps. It was a nice ride through some pretty scenery. I have to say that I am glad to escape the heat and be up in the cool mountain air once more.
I am staying in Pontresina, which is in a beautiful area called the upper Engadin, in the provence (or canton, as they are called in Switzerland), of Graubunden. Its geographically the largest Swiss canton and also the most remote, surrounded by mountains on all sides. Its also the part of Switzerland where the people who speak Romansch live, an ancient language related to latin, and the 4th official language in this country (German, French, Italian and Romansch). I think this is my favorite part of Switzerland so far. I am not exactly sure why, it could be that its so beautiful, but then most of Switzerland is beautiful. There's not a lot to do outside of hiking in the summer and skiing in the winter and I think a lot of tourists would be bored here. Maybe that's it, it just feels so peaceful here, and the air is so fresh. Maybe its the people who are so friendly, including my hotel clerk Andrew, who has very long, dark eyelashes. I swear I can feel a breeze everytime he blinks, whoosh!.
The hotel I am staying at is great and very, very quiet. This is the best sleep I have had the whole time here. Most of the places I have stayed so far are in the middle of cities or towns and can be pretty loud (thank god for earplugs!). Last night I slept with my window open and breathed in the sweet, cool mountain air, without earplugs, ahhhhhh.
Today was action-packed. I spent the morning in the nearby towns of Samedan and St. Moritz checking the info in the book, then came back to Pontresina and rode a funicular up to the top of a nearby mountain called 'Muottas Muragle'. The views from the top are incredible, you can see the lakes in the valley below and all the surrounding peaks and glaciers. Its way up above treeline, and a bit cool in the wind, but bright and sunny. I did a 2.5 hour hike along the ridge and down to another mountain right above Pontresina called 'Alp Languard'. I had lunch in a little mountain restaurant overlooking the valley, with herds of goats and cows meandering by. As I sat on the deck of the restaurant sipping hot cocoa and listening to the clang of cowbells I half expected Heidi to come skipping by. It was getting late, so I decied to take the chairlift down to Pontresina rather than walk. I've never ridden a chairlift in the summer before. It was basically the same as riding it in the winter, except there was no snow, but it was almost as cold with the breeze blowing. Not that I am complaining, after the heat of Lugano it felt good to shiver. I met a nice older Swedish couple on the lift, and ended up having dinner with them. It was nice to have some company at dinner for a change. I don't mind traveling solo, but it can get a bit lonely at meal times, esp. dinner. It was one of the best meals I've had on this trip so far - homemade ravioli with mushroom sauce, a big green salad and a glass of red wine, mmm-mmm. It cost more than my entire daily food allowance, but who cares. It was well worth it. Tomorrow I say goodbye to the upper Engadin and have a long day of train travel to Appenzell. |
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