Bern

     I stayed in Bern with Cherine and her mother my entire stay in Switzerland.  Bern along with Lucerne were my favorite places in Switzerland.  On June 24, 2013, Cherine took me around the city where she was born and raised.  We had such a lovely time seeing the bears, rose garden and wandering around town.  We also stopped in a cheese shop where Cherine bought some gourmet cheeses for me to try.  Swiss cheese is delicious!  Afterwards, we went to a chocolate shop where I bought some amazing chocolate.  It was so delicious that I wish I had some more right now as I write this.  

 Capital Building

 Aare River

 Rose Garden

 Cherine and I

 Einstein House

 Swiss Cheese 

 My cheese expert 

 Swiss Chocolate

     In our spare time, Cherine and I watched a lot of Friends which is my favorite show ever made.  It is just so hilarious!  We also had a lot of great discussions comparing our two different cultures.  One thing I learned from Cherine's mother Anette is that the Swiss don't really have a lot of ceremonies like we do in the States.  For example, high school graduations and university graduations.  Anette was telling me that sometimes when they see all these ceremonies in tv shows and such, they want to have these kinds of ceremonies as well.  This was interesting for me personally because I could have cared less about my university graduation and decided not to go to it.  For me, it was just 3 hours I did not want to waste in my life, but I do see the appeal of course as many of my friends went to theirs.  

     Bern is the capital of Switzerland and yet it is quite small compared to Zurich and Geneva.  The main airports are also in these two cities.  The country has 3 official languages, Swiss German, Swiss French, and Swiss Italian.  Bern is in the Swiss German portion of the country.  I could not get over the color of the Aare River when I was there.  Absolutely stunning water!  I wish I could have swam in it, but unfortunately it was too cold during my stay.  This water is ice water that melts down from the Alps.  Switzerland is heaven!

"One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today". -Dale Carnegie

Hello from Switzerland! Lucerne/Zurich

     I arrived in Bern, Switzerland on June 22, 2013 in the evening.  It was wonderful to see my friend Cherine again!  She picked me up from the train station and we went to her house and caught up on our lives since leaving Vietnam.  I just love the beauty of travel.  Meet in one part of the world and then see each other in another.

     The following morning, I left for Lucerne by myself.  Cherine had some appointments she wasn't able to cancel.  It is an absolutely beautiful place!  The lake is really amazing.  Switzerland as a whole is just so clean and you just feel like you are breathing the purest air in the world.  I had a wonderful time wandering around.  The Lion of Lucerne is a a breathtaking monument.  My friend Sheila had told me about it months ago and it was so great to be able to see it.  If you go to Switzerland, go to Lucerne!  Even in the rain, which to be honest I am biased, I love rain, it is beautiful!

 Train ride to Lucerne

Lucerne Train Station

 Lake Lucerne

 I stood in at a Swiss German Church service for a little bit and it was lovely.

 Lion of Lucerne

 Chapel Bridge

Baroque style church

     After I visited Lucerne, I took a train to Zurich which is about 30 minutes away.  Zurich is also a beautiful place, but I am partial to Lucerne.  I walked around the city and had some dinner.  Switzerland is the most expensive place I have been to so far.  It is insane how much everything costs.  1 Swiss Franc is equal to 1.05 USD.  The values are similar as you can see.  I went into Starbucks in Lucerne and a tall frappuccino was 7.50 Swiss Francs.  Absolutely outrageous markup. I had dinner at a Chinese restaurant in Zurich and it was 18.50 Swiss Francs for sweet and sour chicken and fried rice.

 Lake Zurich

 Public water fountain for filling up your bottles.

$18.50!!!

I fell in love with Switzerland on this day!

"Green is the prime color of the world, and that from which its loveliness arises". 

-Pedro Calderon de la Barca