In the morning we bid goodbye to Bergen to hop a train to Flam. It took 20 minutes to drag our rolling suitcases over the slippery cobblestone and extra narrow sidewalks. I cringed as I listened to the flimsy plastic wheels smack the ground and echo off the stone buildings. A taxi would have been... Continue Reading →
Switzerland by Train: Magical Montreux
It was a bit jarring at first when we arrived in Montreux, a beautiful but bustling waterside city. We’d just spent several days in tiny mountain towns and on trains that snaked through rural land. For a moment I felt completely overwhelmed. But it took surprisingly little time to get used to Monteux. Also, the... Continue Reading →
Switzerland by Train: The Peak of the Matterhorn
After spending 8 hours on the Glacier Express, I was thrilled to be moving my feet again. Zermatt, a completely car-free town, was even cuter and quainter than I expected. After aimlessly wandering up the street and attempting to decode roughly 12 German dinner menus, we landed on yet another fondue-focused establishment. I’m not yet... Continue Reading →
Switzerland by Train: The Glacier Express
The next day we set off for St. Moritz on the first day of our 8-day Swiss Rail Pass. The pass gets you unlimited rides on trains, buses, and boats, and discounted rides on scenic/mountain railways. My favorite part was not having to purchase individual train tickets – you just board your train of choice... Continue Reading →
Switzerland by Train: Zurich Zen
*Important note* - as is common, I am posting blogs about this latest trip at a slight delay. Doing so always feels preferable to lugging a laptop around on trains, planes, and buses while on the road. But a lot of terrible things have transpired since I stepped off the airplane and arrived home, and... Continue Reading →
Traveling Canada: Jasper & the “Wildfire Plan”
It was unfortunate that we only had one night in Jasper. There were nearby hikes, scenic roads, and ghost towns that we never had a chance to explore. We had to head down south again, back to Calgary, to fly to Vancouver early the next morning. We had originally planned to drive from Jasper through... Continue Reading →
Traveling Canada: The Icefields Parkway
I was so excited for our drive up the Icefields Parkway. There’s nothing that invigorates me more than a long, lackadaisical trip down a new road with mountains enveloping me. The weather forecast said to expect rain and thunderstorms, but the sky was a piercing shade of blue with only a sporadic cloud to block... Continue Reading →
Traveling Canada: Banff National Park, Day 2
Another early and tranquil morning in downtown Banff. The drive to Johnston Canyon for today’s hike was peppered with rain, but it moved through quickly like the weather here does. The trail to the canyon ran along rushing water, and it was a more relaxed pace than yesterdays. Passing a few waterfalls, the trail turned... Continue Reading →
Road Trip Montana: Heading Home, East Glacier to Billings
There was one last night on the road before flying home, and I felt the distance the minute we pulled away from Glacier National Park. The mountains beseeched me to stay but as the tires rolled along, and the landscape grew flatter, I had to leave them behind. Down that long stretch of road was... Continue Reading →
Road Trip Montana: Glacier National Park (East Side)
My favorite thing is the mountain air first thing in the morning. It’s infinitely gentle – full inside my lungs in a way that’s almost too much. We prepared for another pre-6am entry into the park to drive the Eastern side of Going-to-the-Sun-Road from St Mary’s Village. Our car rolled slowly down the quiet road... Continue Reading →