Gimmelwald, Switzerland

After our relaxing evening in Murren, Jenn and I decided to be ambitious and hike down 1500 meters to Gimmelwald. We were told to follow the paved path to the tiny town but of course we didn't follow instructions very well and ended up on a small hardly used path in the middle of private cow pastures.

Concerned we would be the "lost couple in Switzerland", Jenn began to panic a bit until we finally found a road. While in the cow pasture, we passed a momma and three calves humbly eating alpine grass. Each had a bell around its neck so it could be found if the weather became foggy. Once through the pasture, Jenn thought it would be a great idea to film the calves so all you blog readers could experience first hand the sound of real cow bells. This turned out to be a terrible idea because it really pissed off one of the calves who charged the flimsy wooden fence we were hiding behind. Realizing he probably wasn't going to stop we both began running down the mountain for fear of being bucked in our faces.

Following the winding road down to Gimmelwald we saw first hand what it was like living in a tiny alpine village. Most homes are plain and life there isn't what you would imagine it to be. Many of the families aren't that wealthy and make their living farming or making cheese. While we were inspecting one farmer's goats an old man named Hans stopped us and invited us in to a tiny hut. We followed close behind and as he cracked the door to the hut the stench of sour milk poured out. Behind the door lay dozens of cheese wheels that had been curing there for months.

Hans, a retired vice-president of a popular Swiss bank, came to Gimmelwald to market the cheese in Geneva for a family who makes it. The family was poor and Hans enjoyed marketing the cheese as a hobby. He told us all about how the cheese was made. It is such a precious commodity to this area because of the high price it fetches from 5 star hotel chains in Geneva, Zurich, Prague, Paris, etc...To be considered Alpine cheese, cows have to eat the grass that grows at a certain altitude from June - September. If the cows eat at a lower altitude or any other food source, the cheese cannot be called Alpine cheese and it must be called Mountain Cheese. There is a huge distinction in price between the two.

The cows are milked each morning at 4 a.m. and again in the evening. They enjoy being milked we were told, because it relieves pressure inside the cow's body so they return to the milking station voluntarily most of the time.

The milk is then made into cheese which cures on rough boards so air can circulate under the wheel. The wheel is rotated every so often so that air can circulate around it. It also loses its weight as the water evaporates from it.

Hans allowed us to try some Alpine cheese and some jerky made there in the mountains. To show my gratitude I bought some and tipped the guy for his 40 minute lecture. We then left and began hiking more.

Once back in Murren we grabbed lunch and hit some of the small shops for Swiss chocolate. Then back to the hotel for dinner and relaxation.

The views were stunning. There is no way to describe them. The scenery changes every 30 seconds because of the clouds and weather. Jennifer and I could not stop staring at the scenery and said "wow" to ourselves countless times as we strolled through the villages.

This is certainly a destination to return to.