My Month in Europe, Part 3  Germany and Switzerland

Germany
Due to time constraints, I only visited one town in Germany.  I chose Hechingen, the home of Castle Hohenzollern.  Hohenzollern has been wonderfully restored and is worth the journey to see.  Artwork, casements, bomb-proof cellars, spires, stained glass, towers and turrets make this place magical.  The view from the top is arguably the best in Europe.  Again, I was hiking through snow to get to the top.  This is the snowiest April in a long time and I was happy to experience it!

As I was riding the trains throughout Germany, I noticed that a majority of the houses and barns had solar panels on them.  Some of the villages had every roof covered with solar panels.  Czech, Austria, and Switzerland also had an abundance of solar powered houses.  These countries also have footpaths throughout the countryside so that people can get out and enjoy nature.  I saw so many people horseback riding, bicycling, walking, jogging, and scootering along these paths.  Scootering----I'm talking about kid's scooters, not the motorized Vespa-type scooters.  And OLD people were on them!  The commuters would carry scooters with them on the trains and then when they reached their stop, they hopped on the scooters to get to their workplace.  It was revealing to observe how independent Europeans are from cars.  It really is easy to get around in Europe without a car.  I really enjoyed the rail system and all of the pedestrian friendly cities.

Switzerland!
Switzerland was my favorite country to visit.  The scenery is magnificent and traveling by train is the perfect way to take it all in.  I stayed in two cities in Switzerland, St. Moritz and Zermatt.  St. Moritz is in the southeastern part and Zermatt is in the southwestern part.  The train that runs between the two cities is called the Glacier Express.  This train ride takes you through tunnels, over towering bridges, and through the stunningly beautiful Swiss Alps.  It is an unforgettable journey and the views are indescribable.  The reward for arriving in Zermatt is seeing the Matterhorn.  I took another train up to the Gornergrat, which is the closest, easily accessible lookout point for viewing the Matterhorn.  The glaciers were visible, the Alps surrounded me on every side, and it was a beautiful, crystal clear day with the skies colored royal blue. I stayed on that mountain for a couple of hours just taking in all of God's amazing creation.  It was an unforgettable experience.  My only regret is that I didn't get off on the stop that featured toboggan rentals.  I really should have taken the time to toboggan down part of the Swiss Alps.....definitely next time I will be flying down the side of one of those mountains on a toboggan!