We started day 2 of our Swiss yatra early on Friday morning in Olten. Got on a train to Interlaken. The trains in Switzerland are amazing. The service, punctuality and cleanliness are unparalleled. We incorrectly assumed that this was a direct train that would take us all the way to Interlaken. Unfortunately, that was not true. We had to make a couple of changes along the way. But each of these changes was perfectly timed, we did not have to wait more than a couple of min at each station for the next train. 

We arrived at Interlaken around noon. Interlaken is a traditional resort town in the mountainous Bernese Oberland region of central Switzerland. Built on a narrow stretch of valley, between the emerald-colored waters of Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, it has old timber houses and parkland on either side of the Aare River. Its surrounding mountains, with dense forests, alpine meadows and glaciers, has numerous hiking and skiing trails. (Source Wikipedia). 

Interlaken has two train stations, Ost and West. We got off at the Ost station. The small town had the look and feel of a tourist destination. As we got out of the station, we saw groups of tourists from several countries. Interlaken, we have heard is a very popular destination for tourists from India. As a testament to that (I assume), an Indian flag flies high at the Interlaken Ost station. 

Our hotel named after holiday town(or is it the other around), Hotel Interlaken was a 5 min walk away. The history of the hotel dates back to 14th century. Several celebrities including well known poet Lord Byron stayed here. The rooms are modest, as you would expect in any European hotel, and prices not quite modest. We dropped off our bags at the hotel and were on our way again to the train station. Our plan was to do the full circle – Lauterbrunnen – Wengen- Kline Scheidigg – Grindwald – Interlaken Ost. We stop on the way to see the Trummelbach falls. 

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With some boxes sandwiches for lunch (from our fav market – Co Op), we boarded the train to Lauterbrunnen. A short bus ride took us from the train station to Trummelbach falls. The views of the mountains were amazing. We could start feeling the effects of the altitude. Lauterbrunnen is at an altitude of about 800 m (2600 feet). All of our local travels by train and bus were covered by the 4 day Swiss pass that we had purchased. At about $60 per day, it was worth every penny. We were to discover later that there are some exceptions. 

A 10F ticket (cash only) got us entry to the only glacier- waterfalls in all of Europe inside the mountain and accessible. The Trummelbach drains the glaciers of Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau with up to 20K liters of water per second. A short elevator ride took us about half the way and the rest was a walk through the mountain with the roar of the gushing waters. We walked up the rest of the way taking it the incredible views and the amazing wonders of nature. 

A short bus ride brought us back to Lauterbrunnen. We then got on a train to go to Kline Scheidigg via Wengen. The train conductor told us that the Swiss pass will take us to Wengen and beyond that we will have to pay additional fees for the mountain train. She also told us that the route we had planned will take us about 3 hours. Also, we will not sufficient time to go to Jungfrau and the weather may not be conducive for good views. 

We decided that we would get off the train at Wengen and spend some time at this mountain resort. A small alpine village, Wengen is at an altitude of 1300m/4200 feet. The town has a population of 1.,300 and is a very popular ski destination. The views of the alps were amazing. After some Swiss ice cream and coffee, we were on our way back to Interlaken Ost via Lauterbrunnen. 

After some chill time at the hotel, we decide that we would take the funicular to Harder Kulm, the Top of Interlaken. This was a fantastic experience. The Swiss pass got us a 50% discount on the 32 F round trip ticket on the funicular. The 8 min ride takes you up to about 1,300m / 4,200ft. Spectacular views of the two lakes and the mountains that surround them. Words cannot describe the experience at the Top of the Interlaken. Just incredible. After taking in the experience and several pictures, we made our way back to the hotel. 

A quiet dinner brought an action packed day to an end. Our aching bodies reminded us of all of what we had put our bodies through in the day – trekking, climbing, walking etc. We slowly walked back to Hotel Interlaken. The brightly lit streets against the backdrop of the gray nightly skies formed a perfect end to the visual feast that we had today. 

It was time to recharge our batteries and of course all our mobile devices for another day in the alps tomorrow. Gute Nacht Interlaken…..