THUNERSEE

It's our first full day in Interlaken and it would be a shame not to spend time on the beautiful lake Thunersee.  Fortunately our Eurail ticket covers boat as well as rail travel and we have sufficient coverage to spend a day cruising.  We notice the leaves are just turning autumnal as the lake is circumnavigated in bright sunshine.  It has been such wonderful weather these past four weeks.  Thunersee is serviced by a number of cruisers, one the paddle steamer Blumlisalp with a first class upstairs lounge and table service.  We opted for the shady side downstairs as it was hot and my trusty Panama had absconded while we were lunching outdoors in Burgundy.

The good ship Blumlisalp stops at a number of towns including Spiez that has a historical castle set in the middle of a vineyard.  We alighted at Oberhofen and walked about town looking for somewhere to eat.  "Terrasse" screamed the blackboard in a town that had shut down for lunch.  "Guten tag, here is your menu". Yum, that goulash soup was so good and seasoned just right. The Swiss do tend to be a little heavy on the salt, but not this time.

Our hotel the Continental Central sits astride an island surrounded on two sides by the River Aare.  It's a 19th century establishment with improved plumbing but no fridge, and as the name suggests centrally located.  We sit on our Juliette balcony drinking wine and watching the descent of hang gliders and the swift flow of the Aare.  The Eiger and Jungfrau are hidden behind the clouds.

Interlaken is an interesting dichotomy.  The glitzy strip commencing east of the railway station is a capitalists' dream ~ high value jewellers, expensive hotels, snooty head waiters and deferring chronograph salespersons of your own nationality all eager to test your credit rating.  A Chinese guy with trailing salesman walked outside and pointed to the watch attached to the photo of a model.  "That one!".

The other side of the tracks is monopolised by low-rent bars and restaurants all offering a selection of vegetarian, Indian, halal, and the ubiquitous pizza ~ often at the same spot.  Opposite the station is a newish shopping mall with two supermarches offering a decent selection of fresh vegetables missing from those restaurant's offerings.  I didn't realise I was so lacking in the life preserving vitamins vegies provide until I ate an energising vegetable soup in Zermatt. 

We were therefore fortunate we chanced upon Restaurant Baren not far from our hotel.  Initially we were testing the waters with a refreshing beverage when we noted the clients all knew each other and were sharing a meal ~ it was the local.  A genuine pork schnitzel with potato dauphinoise hit the spot.  A consecutive night at Restaurant Baren reinforced our opinion.  Excellent!

"Uberschreite der Glase verboten".  Don't worry, I won't cross the rail track, I've seen how fast those babies move.  It's a pity the boy racer in the red Opel didn't heed Swiss traffic advice.  You have to follow the rules if you don't want to be unavoidably detained.  Crunch!!  Our post-cruise reverie over a bottle of red on our Juliet balcony was interrupted by Interlaken's major traffic incident of 2018.  Before too long high-vis vests were being worn by all and sundry, and luminous wands were being waved directing traffic inexpertly.  Bang!  The 215 bus to Fahrplanfelder came into contact with an overhanging 30k zone sign but didn't stop.  He knows when a high-vis vest takes precedence.