This picture was taken minutes before things became a little fraught. We had been enjoying a relaxed morning ahead of our calculated leaving time to get to the train – the first stage of our long trip to Geneva – and thought a little leaving photo would be nice. By the time we finally got into the car and was pulling out of the drive we suddenly realised we only had the very minimum amount of time necessary to drive to Kiama to catch our train and thus in turn our plane. Tension was rife as we all questioned what the hell had happened but we pulled up just in time to get on the train despite the ticket machine not printing one of our tickets and having to pay for yet another one – no time to get a refund! Slightly frazzled we collapsed onto our seats and began our 32 hour trip! Being knackered prior to a long trip is actually a good thing I think as you are more inclined to sleep on the plane and we did manage a few good hours before landing at Heathrow where due to cancellation of our original flight we had to wait 7 hours for a plane to fly us for a mere 2 hours! On landing in beautiful 30 degree temps my lovely sister-in-law whizzed us off to her gorgeous house in St Prex for a slap-up dinner outdoors by the pool and amidst much animated conversation and aperol spritz we really felt our holiday had begun.

NO jet lag was allowed as the very next morning she had planned a belated surprise for the MOTHs 70th and with instructions to pack an overnight bag we were whisked off at 7am to a mystery location high up in the mountains. She had arranged for tickets to the European Masters Golf Championships at Crans-Montana with a game prior on the adjacent course. My injured companion was so sad that he couldn’t participate – such bad timing that he had injured his knee 2 weeks prior to our trip – but he manned the golf cart and we enjoyed the scenery and a lovely lunch before everything went very dark and a huge storm raged over the mountain. The temperature plummeted as the rain fell scattering everyone into the champagne tents (hello!) and to the merchandising areas where the jumpers were snapped up in a jiffy despite their exorbitant price and we waited and waited for play to resume but sadly in vain as they decided the electrical storm made it too dangerous to continue.

So we were driven across the valley to the opposite mountain where we were treated to a night in this lovely little hotel with amazing views and typical Swiss decor…it was delightful. It is at the base of the 4 valleys ski lift which takes you up to Verbier in the winter but was full of flowers and birdsong on our visit. We could even hear the tinkle of the cowbells at the top of the mountain and we felt completely transported!

The reason we were here was to visit some dear friends of my sister and brother-in-law who we had met previously when they spent Xmas Day with us in Australia! It had been a long time in between drinks but we took up where we had left off and had a fabulous evening at their beautiful little chalet up at 2000 feet. The air was so crisp and clean and they cooked us a beautiful meal of locally sourced meat and foraged mushrooms as we chatted about all that had passed over the last 30 years! They live a simple life up there living with a few chosen pieces from the past and with very little consumerism but lacked for nothing as far as we could see…a really unique environment that’s for sure. The next day we joined them in the sunshine for a game of petanque with a sensational view before another locally sourced lunch with raclette and dried meats from local farms all washed down with some delicious wines – what’s not to love! They were so very generous to have us and it is one of our favourite memories of our trip.

Another night was spent with our old friend Duncan who lives in Villars where the MOTH had worked all those years ago. He has a gorgeous old chalet with all the traditional carvings and cute shuttered windows that when flung open look out across the valley to the mountains opposite (N.B. there are ALWAYS mountains to look at in Switzerland!) We had drinks at a great bar underneath a sheer mountain cliff used by crazy mountain climbers to train and we were serenaded by the beautiful Swiss cows with their huge cowbells around their necks who wandered the nearby fields – I just needed Heidi to complete the picture of complete and utter Swissness!

We caught up on all the adventures he had been having since we last met which were many as Duncan is a VERY adventurous guy. He keeps venomous snakes, loves to paraglide, traipses around the world more than anyone I know and also happens to have a light airplane that he loves to fly. He invited the MOTH to join him on a scenic flight over the lake and around the mountains which was instantly agreed to. His partner and I came to the airfield to watch them take off and someone was very excited on his return to tell me that he had been granted permission to take the controls by himself for a while and the whole flight had been a huge buzz of excitement. What a weekend!

A couple of relaxing days followed with walks into the local village for coffee and a day out on the lake on their boat with a scrumptious picnic and icy cold wine. We went out into the middle of Lac Leman and felt like we had the entire lake to ourselves as we bobbed gently, listening to music and generally feeling all was well with our world. The MOTH had a slight miscalculation on returning to the marina and exiting the boat resulting in a broken toe and a slashed shin to go with his torn knee ligament! Poor bugger …talk about the universe telling you to slow down a bit!!

Our final few days in Suisse were spent in Interlaken and Michel decided to take us there via the scenic route. He had remembered the cutest little restaurant off the beaten track in the mountains where we ended up enjoying a fabulous fondue. This made the MOTH so happy as he has fond memories of them from when he lived in Switzerland as a young man. The farm where the restaurant was located made their own cheese and it was great to wander around the back and see the huge copper pot and muslin cloths used to make it daily. Talk about paddock to plate!!

Interlaken is a lovely town situated on the river Aarne which is a glacial river of the most beautiful colour and it is in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss alps with names like The Eiger and The Jungfrau making it famous. We drove to the cute mountain town of Grindewald where we caught the train up to Kleine Scheidegg at 2061 metres where the air was like liquid gold and oh so clean. The Swiss really love hiking and it was amazing to see people – some well into their late 80s – trailing like ants up the mountains above us, one Grandma was even pushing a baby in a stroller!! It made us feel rather sloth like but next time we’re back and injury free we will attempt some of these picturesque walks for sure.

We were continuing our trip by train as the many photos we had seen of hugely busy airports had well and truly scared us off and even though things had improved a lot we have always loved trains and far prefer it as you can see the countryside as you pass through and no long security queues to deal with either!! So after a fabulous week we said a fond farewell at Interlaken station and began stage two of our holiday to Italy. Our first stop is Portofino….