Waking up in such an amazing place on my birthday makes me realize just how lucky I am. But even though my birth certificate says I'm a year older, I refuse to give in!
The day started with another yummy Swiss breakfast. If you are ever fortunate enough to come to the Jungfrau region of Switzerland you must come to Lauterbrunnen. And if you do, I can't recommend the Hotel Staubbach enough. I discovered this gem almost by accident back in 1999 when I was in this part of the world to do Ironman Europe. This is now my fifth or sixth visit....I've lost count. This valley and this hotel both feel like home and the staff go out of their way to make you feel like that.
After breakfast Jo and I hopped on the train to Grindewald for a short visit. It's much more touristy than Lauterbrunnen but it has some amazing views.
After a short visit we were on the train again to Interlaken where we met Delanie. She had liked the earlier versions of the blog so much that she wanted to be a part of it.....so she hopped on a plane and jetted over to get in on the action.
We hopped back on the train and headed back to our idyllic valley. Although she had been up for over 30 hours already we decided that a short walk was in order. The skies were getting a little dark and they both asked if it was going to rain....no more than 1 or 2 millimetres I said, having checked the forecast. As we walked along the valley floor we heard the first clap of thunder. Jo asked if we should head for shelter. I made fun of her....as I usually do. Well it turns out that this time she was right. Moses couldn't have protected us from that mountain storm!
Fortunately we had already found shelter at the local campground. Under the shade of a huge awning we watched and listened as the thunder storm echoed up and down the valley. Oh look, what's that over there....a bar, well ok, if we must
We decided to wait out the storm and figured that we would just eat there.....ok well we already knew that we really liked it there. It was a very good birthday dinner.
After a few more frosty ones.....yes Sensei I had one for you.....the storm had passed and we went for a short walk along the river. Both the river and the waterfalls (72 in this valley) had swollen from the rain.
Eventually the skies started to clear, although some clouds lingered in the valley
But eventually they gave way, treating us to the usual evening view looking south down the valley
What adventures will tomorrow bring......hmm, let me ponder
Thanks again to all my family and friends for the birthday wishes. Wish you could all be here to share in the adventure!
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