Jungfrau and Lauterbrunnen

Morning dawned over Switzerland and it was overcast and cold. This country is as beautiful as I remember from the last time I was here. I am in a different area now then I was when I was last here (although I have been to the Canton of Bern before)  but it is still equally beautiful.
Today was taken up with the most expensive extra on the Contiki trip. We went to the top of Jungfrau Mountain, the third tallest mountain of the Bernese Alps. It has large claims to fame because it has the highest railroad station in the world as well as the highest Chocolate Store in the world. There were some stunning views on the way up once we broke through the first layer of clouds.

Once we got to the top, Anita (Australia), Kate (Australia), Rory (New Zealand), Kim (New Zealand), and myself had some food and then headed over to the Swiss Chocolate shop. I didn't get anything but the shop is pretty.

Then, we headed through the tourist route. The first stop was at the panoramic video of Jungfrau and then we headed through the areas that had monuments to the people who carved the tunnels and built the area at the top of the mountain.

Once we got to the exit we went outside. It was white-out conditions so we couldn't really see much, but it was still really cool to see. It was 12 degrees Fahrenheit, so it was really cold.

We went back inside and headed over to the Ice Palace. This might have been my favorite part of the visit. Walking through tunnels completely made of ice was really a cool experience and seeing the ice carvings was cool.

After we left the mountain (it's about a 2 hour trip up and down by train) Anita, Kate, and I went and walked up behind one of the waterfalls in the area. There are several but this one had a path carved out to go up. It was really cool and a fun trek that we were all happy about after.

We walked back to the campsite through the city. Lauterbrunnen is a quiet town and very cute. They have sheep everywhere. The sheep all have bells around their necks so they can be found in bad weather so the town always sounds like bells. Tomorrow, we will head back to Germany and to Heidelberg, but tonight I will leave you with a picture of sheep.