So it begins

Yodel-ay-hee-hoo!

Published Date : May 19, 1999

Royal Palace – Vaduz, Liechtenstein

It was a rough start for some of us this morning – I can’t imagine why! Although not feeling my best, I’m really looking forward to our destination for the day: Switzerland!!

First things first though: Liechtenstein. I slept for most of the morning, but woke just in time to take in the breathtaking beauty of the Alps as we entered the tiny principality. Winding our way through staggering mountain ranges, we stopped in the capital, Vaduz. Eating lunch in the shadow of the 12th century castle perched on the cliff top rejuvenated me and left me ready to explore.

Several of us trouped to the local post office to purchase a souvenir Liechtenstein stamp for our passports. Unfortunately, by the time we had eaten and collected our passport stamps, it was time to get back on the bus. I was charmed by the quaint mountain town though, and I would love to come back here and visit it again.

Back onto the bus – we’re now pros at loading and unloading. As we continued on to Switzerland, the rain that had been following us for the last few days set back in again. I spent much of the next few hours talking to Mark O from New Zealand. He’s in his early thirties and he sold his house and business before coming on this trip. After the tour ends in London, he’s going to continue around the world. His plan is to travel until the money runs out!

Talking to the Australians and New Zealanders on this trip has been a very enlightening experience for me. Several of them are just at the beginning or the end of spending a year or more overseas. I have to admit that my first thought on hearing about their trips was, “You’re allowed to do that?!” I’d never really given it much thought, but I guess somewhere in my mind I had come to the conclusion that travelling was only something that a person did for the occasional holiday, not as a lifestyle. I’m glad to have had my eyes opened to that particular misconception!!

High flood waters in Lucerne, Switzerland

The rain stopped for us just as we arrived in Lucerne for another short break. All of the rainfall had caused a fair degree of flooding in the small lakeside city. There were sandbags lining the banks of the Reuss River with water levels lapping at the base of the Chapel Bridge. The city had recently removed all the artwork from the bridge to protect it from the flooding! Much of the city was closed because of the deluge, but Sandi, Sheri and I managed to find a watch and clock shop. I had a moment of regret at spending so much on the leather jacket in Florence. There was one particular cuckoo clock that I would have loved to bring home with me. Ah well, it gives me an excuse to come back and visit again!

Back on the bus we continued south, winding our way through the beautiful mountain passes towards the village of Lauterbrunnen. The sun was setting behind the surrounding peaks as we arrived at our Chalet for the night. By the time we were settled and fed, it was too dark to explore, so we headed down to the Bomb Shelter for a night of revelry.

There I discovered a new shot called Red Bull. Apparently it’s some sort of energy drink mixed with vodka. Whatever it is, it’s definitely tasty! I didn’t go overboard tonight though. I plan to have my wits about me tomorrow morning…

Bungeeeeeeee!

Published Date : May 20, 1999

Today is adrenaline day! We were given three activity options for the morning: paragliding, canyoning, and bungee jumping!

Shaun, Ritz and I were the only ones crazy enough to go for the bungee jump. Another three or four in the group chose paragliding, but the majority went for the canyoning option. I was very tempted to choose the canyoning trip myself, but staying dry was a key factor in my decision. A big part of why I chose bungee jumping is because I’ve never been a huge fan of high places. What better way to cure that than to jump from a very great height?

We were up early and arrived in Interlaken to meet up with our Adventure World guides. The day was beautiful and clear, the peaks rising majestically around us. Shaun, Ritz and I signed all the usual paperwork then tried not go nuts with nerves while we waited. There were a couple of groups ahead of us and Ritz proceeded to get stinking drunk, while Shaun and I paced anxiously.

The Schilthorn cable car travels 1000 vertical feet between Stechelberg and Gimmelwald. It also stops occasionally at 100m and 180m so crazy tourists can jump from it! We had all elected to do the 100m jump.

After getting a safety briefing from our guides, it was time to board the cable car. As we travelled steadily up and the guides harnessed by ankles together, I distracted myself by looking at the gorgeous mountain peaks surrounding us. Finally we stopped at 100m and our guides asked which of us would like to jump first.

There was a long awkward silence as Shaun and Ritz looked at me expectantly. Apparently chivalry isn’t totally dead – it looks like it’s ladies first today. The bungee cord was attached to my ankle harness and the safety rope attached to my waist harness. As I was given last minute instructions, I could hear my heart pounding in my ears. Am I really crazy enough to do this?!

Shuffling towards the open cable car door, I briefly worried about falling before reminding myself that falling was irrelevant when I was already planning to jump! Then, standing with my toes hanging off the edge of the open cable car, 300ft in the air, surrounded by the beauty of the Bernese Alps, numbers started to fill my ears.

“Three…Two….One…Jump!!”

Just like that I was flying. The vertical cliffs raced by on either side of me as the ground rushed up to meet me. Then the elastic bungee cord caught me and I flew back up towards the cable car. For a moment, I hung motionless in the air, hearing the shouts and cheers from Shaun and Ritz in the cable car above me.  Then I was falling again. After the second rebound I started to spin mercilessly and worried briefly that I might be sick. Luckily the spinning subsided as fast as it started. Remembering the instructions I had been given, I grabbed hold of the rope running from my waist to my ankles and pulled my torso upright to stop the blood rushing to my head. Now there was nothing left to do but enjoy the view as I continued to rotate gently while I was lowered to the ground.

What!! A!! Rush!!

Ritz came next. Once safely back on the ground and thankful to be alive, he pulled me into a rib-crushing bear hug before heading back to the bar to drown the last of his nerves. Shaun jumped last and looked badly shaken when he reached the ground. He told us that his sandal had come loose halfway through the jump, but he had thought it was the bungee cord coming off!!

We had time to kill before the next shuttle back to our chalet, so Shaun went back up to try the 180m jump, while Ritz and I watched from the safety of the bar. His second jump went much better and left Shaun feeling satisfied with the day.

The paragliding group was waiting for us by the time we made it back to the chalet. All of them had enjoyed themselves immensely. Sitting around chatting over lunch, we waited for the canyoning group to return. Rod was one of the few who had not done any of the activities and he had spent the morning exploring the village and chatting to the locals. He said that many people were surprised that the canyoning had gone ahead with all of the recent rain in the area. There was a general tone of concern over the safety of the tour operators.

Some of those concerns were echoed when the canyoning group finally came back. Everyone had enjoyed the trip, but several commented on the lack of exits from the canyon. At one stage there was a 15m jump into a pool that many were uneasy about taking. However they had no choice because there was no other way out except to continue on. One of the girls suffered a badly sprained wrist from the trip through the canyon.

View from the Top of the World

After lunch and a brief rest, Pip collected us all for a train ride to the Top of Europe. We rode the train through the belly of the Eiger and Monch with a couple of brief altitude acclimatization stops. Our final stop was Jungfraujoch at a height of 3454m.

At the top, Pip handed out plastic garbage bags with instructions to “strap them to your bums and have fun!” For many of the Australians this was the first time they had ever seen snow. Even for the winter-hardened Canadians it was a fantastic afternoon. The crystal clear skies enhanced the beauty of the peaks all around us and offered amazing views of the surrounding countryside.

After a couple of hours of sliding over the icy snow and general tomfoolery, most of us were ready to head back down. Feeling the effects of the altitude, many in our group fell asleep as soon as they got to their seats, only to wake up fully refreshed once we descended a few thousand feet.

We finished off the night with a great evening of conversation and mellow drinking in the Bomb Shelter. There are only a few days left of the tour and everyone is sad to see it winding down.

[6 August 1999 – Last week there was a tragic canyoning accident that claimed the lives of several Contiki vacationers in Switzerland. It has been less than 3 months since many on our tour did the exact same canyoning trip. I’ve spoken by email with several of the people on my tour who took part in the canyoning option and all of them are thankful to be alive. Sadly, none of them were surprised. Based on their safety concerns while doing the same tour, several commented that they thought it was only a matter of time before something like this happened. Hopefully things will improve there now. It’s just a shame that so many had to lose their lives first.]