Thanks to my job, I got to come back to Zurich again. I always wanted to see the imposing Jungfrau and it was in my plan. However, according to the weather forecast and the webcam on its official website, there’s no way I could go up there without being disappointed. Pilatus and Matterhorn were also not our options due to the annoying rain and fog, so instead of going up the mountains, we decided to immerse ourselves in the stunning views of Oeschinen Lake and the Rhine Falls.

To save our cost of transportation, we bought a 3-day youth pass (CHF185 – everything here is so expensive), with which we can travel almost everywhere in the country. After a 2-hour nap in the hotel (we landed in Zurich in early morning), we embarked on our trip to Kandersteg, a tranquil village in the Bernese Highlands in Switzerland. To reach the Oeschinen Lake, we had to walk around 20 minutes to a cable car station, took the ride up and hike another 30 mins. Remember not to miss the mountain coaster (CHF5 per ride) located just right next to the cable car station. With a lot of twists and turns, the coaster allows you to slide down the Alps while taking in the beautiful mountain views.

On our way to the lake, grey fluffy clouds started shading the sky with lightenings brightened it up in the blink of an eye, and followed by the drizzle. “Oh no…” We brought our umbrellas but it’s very likely that we wouldn’t be able to take those amazing photos that we’ve seen in Instagram. We managed to capture some nice pictures before the rain got heavier that everybody took shelter in the souvenir shop nearby. If the weather was good enough, we would take a 10-min bus to Blausee, a crystal-clear, deep-blue lake in the Kander valley. Some people call it the “jiuzhaigou in Switzerland”.

Back to Zurich, we joined two of our friends for dinner at Le Dézaley, which is well-known for its cheese fondue. We had a three-people portion with two basket of bread cubes. The first few mouthfuls of cheese-wrapped bread were rich and delightful, but the taste of wine inside began getting stronger and stronger that at some point I was a bit sick of it. Maybe the experience would have been better if I paired the meal with a coke or a bottle of sparkling water instead of a glass of white wine.

We learnt that weather is one of the most important factors of travel experiences, so we did our research (the weather forecast from Google is actually quite accurate!) before leaving our creature comforts the next day. Our first stop was the Rhine Falls, the largest plain waterfall in Europe. Don’t compare it with the Niagara Falls in the US; it’s not fair. We got off train at Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall, the southern banks of the falls. You could pay CHF5 to enter an observing deck or get-up-close-and-personal with the falls by signing up for a boat trip. We did neither of them, but took a short boat ride to cross the river to the northern banks, where we could capture the entire falls from a short distance. If you’re not interested in boat trips, get off at Neuhausen am Rheinfall (the northern banks of the river) directly.

A 40-min bus ride from the Rhine Falls is a historic town called Stein am Rhine, famed for its medieval houses with painted facades. Situated west of Lake Constance, the small town is easy to stroll around. Upon stepping in the town centre, we were serenaded by a beautiful symphony played by a small orchestra. The town was holding a theatre festival! Locals and tourists alike gathered in the plaza and enjoyed the music performed by emerging talents, who made the historic town more energetic than ever.

In order to fully utilize our youth pass, we decided to visit one of the few museums in the city and randomly picked Lindwurm Museum, which showcases how respected families lived back in 1850s. We had 15 minutes to explore before the museum closed at 5pm, and that was more than enough as I would describe it as a haunting experience (only to me I guess). Inside the quirky house, there were several mannequins which pretended to be the people who were once living there. They looked very scary and it seemed that they would come alive after dusk (maybe I have watched too many horror movies.) To make you feel that the owners of the house have just left, they even put live chicken in the basement….