Nine Nightsin Switzerland

day01-01

The Flight

Here's the thing nobody tells you about the overnight to Zurich: you might actually sleep. We both boarded braced for the usual red-eye misery and instead got, genuinely, decent rest. Broken, sure. Jonathan went a little green from some turbulence. But the food was outstanding, and it was, against all odds, a nice flight.

Lindsey, who famously does not sleep on planes, woke up convinced she had six-plus hours left in the air.

She had one.

We'd started the flight watching two movies together, both quietly fell asleep partway through, and somehow rolled into Switzerland functioning like real people. Now we're muscling through the rest of the day so we can bank a full night before Mount Pilatus tomorrow.

Zurich Airport: Suspiciously Clean

First impression of Switzerland: how is everything this clean and this efficient?

They had a dedicated Wi-Fi kiosk. You scan your boarding pass and it just... connects you. An entire machine, for that.

We could not figure it out.

But we respected that it existed. Deeply.

The Train, and the Weather Plot Twist

We packed for rain and cold. We got seventies, maybe low eighties, and blazing sun. Absolutely beautiful, not a single complaint, except that hauling our luggage from the Lucerne station to the apartment turned into a bit of a sweat lodge situation.

Worth it. No idea how many perfect-weather days we get here, so we'll take this one and say thank you.

day01-03

Galaxy Apartments, and the Kindest Man in Lucerne

The apartment was bigger than we expected, we travel small, so this felt palatial. Our host met us out front, waited around, and helped haul bags up to the third floor, where we discovered the elevator is roughly the size of a phone booth. We each took solo trips up with the luggage like a very slow, very Swiss relay race.

Then the classic international traveler gut-punch: we had zero correct adapters for any of our chargers. Not one. Our host just... brought us two spares to borrow for the whole stay.

Legend.

But the best exchange of the day came earlier. Jonathan, taking in the very industrial, very under-construction surroundings, asked if the area was safe.

The host looked at him. Deadpan.

"This is Switzerland."

Point blank. Case closed. Of course it's safe. Then he pointed us toward a fondue place near Chapel Bridge that we haven't tried yet but fully intend to.

day01-04

The Evening: A Cheese-Fueled Walking Tour

Bags dropped, we headed out and hit the Lion Monument first. Then we let ourselves get pleasantly lost.

Dinner, Storchen Café Ambar. Jonathan went pesto pasta. Lindsey ordered crispy potatoes with green onion, sour cream, crispy parmesan and olives, plus a white wine. Jonathan eased in with two German beers.

Round two, Bierliebe and Friends. Because why stop at one? Lindsey got a ginger mixed drink, Jonathan ordered a flight, and we crowned the hazy one the winner. We split a Swiss dog: a hot dog tucked into a proper piece of bread with raclette cheese, onion and pickles. Ridiculous. Excellent.

day01-05

day01-05b

day01-05c

day01-05d

The Ending

Full and happy, we crossed back over Chapel Bridge in the evening light, found a gelato spot, and split a stracciatella cone.

Then we went home to our third-floor apartment and played Mario Kart in the living room until we couldn't keep our eyes open.

Bridge. Gelato. Mario Kart. Day one, in the books.

day01-06

day01-06b

day01-06c

Next: Mount Pilatus. A boat, the world's steepest cogwheel railway, and a toboggan run. Assuming we wake up.

day02-01

Breakfast, Chef Jonathan Presiding

First full night of sleep did its job, we woke up around seven, seven-thirty, human again. And Jonathan had already been to the Coop the night before, because breakfast was a production: prosciutto, arugula and green salad with burrata, a soft-boiled egg with pesto, chopped banana, peach and pear, a croissant, blackberries, and coffee for two.

Reader, we are being spoiled on this trip and we know it.

The Wrong Boat (a comedy in one act)

Out the door just before nine, down to the water. We knew there was a boat right past Chapel Bridge, and it was just about to leave, so we did the responsible, well-researched thing and jumped on without checking which way it was going.

It was the wrong boat. Dock one. We were supposed to be at dock two.

We figured this out roughly thirty minutes later, cruising confidently in the wrong direction. And honestly? We didn't mind even a little. We weren't in a rush, the lake is stunning from any angle, and a wrong-way boat ride on Lake Lucerne is not exactly a hardship. We hopped off at a stop and caught the correct boat back, a vessel named the Gotthard, which Jonathan got an unreasonable amount of joy out of.

Course corrected. Onward.

Up the Steepest Railway in the World

At Pilatus we grabbed our tickets, and with time before our cog railway slot, we did what any serious mountaineers would: a Hugo Spritz for Lindsey, a beer for Jonathan.

Then the Golden Round Trip began. First the cogwheel railway, the steepest in the world, grinding up to the summit. Up top: viewpoints, big open air, birds wheeling overhead, gorgeous weather, the whole valley laid out below. We took it all in.

The Zip Line (because the toboggan said no)

Heading down a little, we hit a ropes course and some activities. The toboggan run wasn't available, but there was a seated zip line that sends you gliding through the ropes course and the trees. So we took that instead, and it dropped us right near a restaurant.

The Wood Fire (this is the part that matters)

Here's where the day quietly changed.

Jonathan: All day we were tourists mixed in with a bunch of tourists, the boat, the train, the crowds. Then we sat down and found out we had to cook our own meal over a wood fire. And that was the moment we got our own peace and serenity. It was ours. There weren't many people around. Up there in the Alps, cooking our own veal-beef sausage, our own raclette, our own baked potato, with the mountain view in front of us, it felt like home. It was surreal. And you could hear the cattle bells chiming from the hill below us while we ate.

That's the thing about this day. The task that could've been a hassle, cook your own food, turned out to be the one moment that belonged only to us. Sausage, raclette, and a baked potato over the fire, a beer for Jonathan, another Hugo Spritz for Lindsey, cattle bells in the distance. A home-cooked meal, at altitude, that came from our own hands.

day02-02

The Way Down

We took the gondola down the far side of the mountain, the opposite side from where the cog train brought us up. Cute ride: we sat next to a man and his godson, good company the whole way, until they hopped off a bit before us to hit a playground.

Back at the bottom and walking home, we passed a man playing piano near Chapel Bridge. Perfect soundtrack to end the mountain on.

Dinner: The Best Thing Lindsey Has Ever Eaten

For our final Lucerne night we went to a place Lindsey had found on Instagram, Osteria Valle di Zerz, and it delivered:

- Beef tartare with grilled bone marrow, "probably my favorite thing I've ever eaten" (Lindsey, with full authority) - Burrata with Hokkaido pumpkin cream, mixed tomatoes and peppers - Tagliolini with mushroom foam, butter, and truffle shaved on top

Then home, to our little third-floor apartment, for our last night in Lucerne.

day02-03

Next: we leave Lucerne for the mountains, a scenic train, a village on a hillside, and a hill that will become legend.

day03-01

Leaving Lucerne

Sunday morning, bags packed, one last walk past Chapel Bridge. Jonathan lugged most of the luggage; Lindsey carried a rollaboard and her backpack. Coffee and a croissant each, and then we settled in for what might be the most beautiful train ride either of us has ever taken.

We rolled past Sarnen, where Lindsey's family is from, and watched lake after lake slide by, a cow on every corner, the whole thing looking staged and perfect.

Three Ways to Ride a Train

Jonathan: The seats were reserved but it was open seating around us, and this old woman, seventies or older, gestured at the two seats across from ours. We were more than happy to wave her in. She kept to herself, a smile, mostly quiet, just taking in the panorama. Could've been her first ride or her ten-thousandth.

Then three women took the seats beside me and talked in German the entire way, hands going the whole time, chatting nonstop.

And that was our whole world on that train: the silence of one woman and the chatter of three, side by side, and Lindsey and me in the middle of it, just taking it in together.

What stayed with Jonathan was the woman herself, paying in coins and francs from a red wallet with the Swiss flag on it, a croissant, a coffee, an old iPhone. Maybe visiting family in Lucerne, maybe a girls' trip. It didn't matter.

Jonathan: Coming from America, it was just lovely to see someone our grandmother's age with the autonomy to have a travel day on her own, still living her life. I really took a moment to embrace her.

It was a quiet glimpse of a future where getting older doesn't mean getting smaller, and we got to witness it together, riding into the town where, two days later, everything would change.

The Hill (or: the legend begins)

Then we got to Grindelwald and met our nemesis: the hill up to the Airbnb.

It looks like about a mile. Walking down takes ten minutes. Walking up, with all our luggage, in the heat, is an entirely different story. It is steep. Jonathan took the brunt of it, at points shoving the massive checked bag up the incline with two hands out in front of him like he was pushing a boulder. Lindsey handled the two carry-on rollers for stretches.

We arrived at the top absolutely drenched. A quick shower, a brief lie-down of the soul, and then, exhausted but refusing to waste the day, we decided to head back out to Lauterbrunnen.

Reward First

On the way down to the station, Lindsey wisely suggested a drink as a reward for all that suffering: a Hugo Spritz for her (in the polka-dot dress Jonathan got her), a beer for Jonathan. We earned it. We also took a wrong train at one point, becoming a bit of a theme this trip, but sorted it out and got where we needed to go.

Lauterbrunnen by E-Bike

Tired as we were, renting e-bikes was the best decision of the day. Easy rental, electric assist, and off we went down the valley.

It was breathtaking. Cows and goats with their bells all along the countryside, towering green walls, a bridge with rushing water beneath us, a waterfall pouring down the mountain face. We had the most incredible time gliding through one of the prettiest valleys on earth.

day03-02

Betsy's, and a Very Swiss Corn Dog

We'd barely eaten all day, so after dropping the bikes we stopped at a little shack Lindsey had seen on TikTok, Betsy's Corn Dogs. We split the very-Swiss option: a pork sausage with Gruyère, potato fries on top, and all the recommended sauces. Interesting. Delicious. Exactly what two starving cyclists needed.

Horner Pub, and the Heart-Shaped Pickles

Then to the Horner Pub for the Swiss traditionals:

- Raclette, melted regional cheese with jacket potatoes and pickles… and the pickles were cut into little hearts, scattered across the cheese. Delicious, delicious, delicious. - Alpine shepherd's macaroni, potato, onion, cream sauce, served with local applesauce.

We couldn't finish it all, so the macaroni came with us as leftovers.

One More Stop

We weren't done. Took the train back to Grindelwald, passed on one pub that couldn't seat us, and found a better one anyway, the Avocado Bar, with live music, taking requests from the crowd, playing Johnny Cash. Jonathan had a lager ("Lager Hell"), Lindsey a white wine. People playing ping pong and cornhole, a great easy evening. We ducked into a couple of shops to eye some merch we'll go back for.

The Hill, Round Two

And then the walk back up the hill, which, without the sun beating down and without a hundred pounds of luggage, was a completely different animal. Almost pleasant. Almost.

Home to the chalet, leftovers in the fridge, legs thoroughly earned.

day03-03

Next: the Top of Europe.

day04-01

Up, Up, Up

We'd booked our tickets the day before and caught the 7:46 AM train from Grindelwald Terminal. The route to the top is a whole ascent in stages:

- Eiger Express gondola from Grindelwald Terminal, a 15-minute glide up to Eigergletscher (7,612 ft / 2,320 m) - A train the rest of the way, about 26 minutes, with a stop to hop out at the Eismeer viewpoint - On to Jungfraujoch, the Top of Europe, sitting at 11,332 feet (3,454 m)

We were on one of the very first cars up, so the crowds were thin, which up here is a gift.

The Summit

First stop, the viewing platform, stepping right out into it. Freezing and windy, we were very glad we'd hauled the winter jackets up. Then back inside to warm up and explore.

We walked the discovery tour and through the Ice Palace (Eispalast), a giant ice cave full of sculptures, including, inexplicably and wonderfully, the squirrel from Ice Age, which got a big laugh out of us.

Back outside to the viewpoint with the flag, and again, almost nobody there. Blue skies, brutal cold, and all the room in the world to take photos at the top of the continent.

day04-02

The Part Where It Became an Adult Playground

We ducked in for a hot tea and a coffee to thaw, Jonathan picked up a beanie inside that Lindsey loved and wanted to re-shoot a photo in. On the way back to the flag, we noticed a previously closed section had reopened. Outside, we found a bar, Lindsey got a schnapps tea (very strong, very warm), Jonathan a beer. We'd barely eaten, so it hit fast, but it made the cold gloriously bearable.

Then we spotted the zip line, grabbed tickets, and flew it side by side. The scariest part: sitting on the platform and dropping a little before it fully launched. Nobody told us how to land, so we just slid to a stop on the thinning ice, unclipped, and walked back grinning. About five minutes later it closed temporarily, it had started to rain out there. We'd made it just in time.

Next to it: sledging and snow tubing down a snowy slope. We did that for nearly half an hour, up and down, over and over, feeling exactly like little kids. An adult playground in the clouds.

By the time we headed back to retake the flag photo, there was a massive line, so we skipped the flag itself and took a few shots nearby in Jonathan's new beanie. And then it started to rain and snow a little, which was a delightful surprise at the top of Europe.

day04-03

Lunch at Altitude (a cautionary tale)

We finally sat down for lunch at the restaurant inside, and went a bit big:

- Burratina, semi-dried cherry tomatoes, mountain cheese, shallots, and rocket - Swiss lamb (veal) main, veal jus, oven mashed potatoes, red-wine onions, veal bacon, pearl onions, chive oil - Lobster soup with a king prawn - An Aperol Spritz each

Here's the cautionary part: between the schnapps tea, the beer, the altitude, and all the stairs up and down, those spritzes were a battle. We were tipsy, tired, and lightheaded from 11,332 feet (3,454 m) and a hundred flights of stairs. But we soldiered through and made our ride back down in time.

Back Down, and the Secret Outfit

Back at the apartment we changed, and this is where Lindsey finally got to reveal the outfit she'd been hiding all day.

Jonathan: The bottoms I got her reminded me of a 1950s picnic set, the exact plaid you'd remember from taking your first girlfriend out on a picnic, paired with a beautiful white athletic top. She concealed it the whole time up at about 39°F (4°C); there was no taking photos in it up there. But she kept warm all day and then made a point of doing a little shoot, frolicking in the farm field across from our Airbnb.

Red-and-white plaid biker shorts, a field, a valley, golden light. Worth the wait.

day04-04

The Reconnaissance Mission (that nobody knew about)

There was a secret purpose to the evening's walk. We took a different, more scenic route down toward the church, but Jonathan had a reason.

Jonathan: I wanted to check the morning route for the proposal, the way down to the valley where we'd grab the first tram up to Grindelwald First. On the way we met a gentleman who'd just come down from paragliding. I heard him say "thanks, mate," so I figured he spoke English, and I was genuinely curious what a tandem paraglide down that mountain was like, so we talked. It was near closing time. He showed us where to buy the First tickets, and I just bought them on the spot to avoid any fuss the next morning.

Best decision of the trip. On proposal morning, the ticket line was huge and packed, and we breezed right past it, tickets already in hand from the night before. The scouting run paid off in ways Lindsey didn't even know to notice yet.

The Quiet Evening

We wandered down to the church area on that scenic path, past a few shops, and stopped to split a pizza, piccata, basil, arugula, sun-dried and cherry tomatoes. Passed the cutest cat on the way home. Then a glass of wine out on the patio, valley in front of us, day thoroughly earned.

day04-05

Next: the day everything changed.

day05-01

Some days you plan. This one, it turns out, half of our families had been quietly planning right along with us, we just didn't all know it yet.

The Morning (or: how everyone knew but Lindsey)

It started slow and ordinary. Apples and blueberries, an espresso shot, the usual getting-ready routine, makeup on, memories to capture, same as every other morning of this trip.

Except Jonathan was off. Not that Lindsey could tell. But that morning he posted a normal little Instagram from the Airbnb, Lindsey had grabbed a photo and a quick video of him, and within minutes his dad, half a world away, took one look and said: "There's something wrong with him." Read the nerves right off the screen. That's the thing about the people who've known you since you were a kid. They can see it in a still frame.

Lindsey, standing right next to him, had only the faintest inkling.

Jonathan: I thought I had her completely fooled. Turns out I had her fooled, just in a totally different way than I understood.

Lindsey: I was excited for the outing, and honestly a part of me hoped he'd propose this trip. But in my head, if it happened, it'd be later, the day we do the wine tasting at a castle. That felt orchestrated. Today felt too organic to be The Day. Which is exactly why it was a real surprise.

The Backpack (Exhibit A)

Here's the detail that gives it all away in hindsight.

Lindsey was going to wear a green athletic set, leggings, sports bra, the hiking uniform. Jonathan gently suggested she wear a dress, "so I can bring the camera gear and take some nice photos." She agreed, on the condition he pack their athletic clothes too, because obviously they were still doing the hike to the lake.

So into the backpack went: both sets of athletic gear. Both swimsuits. All of his camera gear (which never got used). And, unbeknownst to her, his suit jacket, a change of shirt, and slacks.

That man carried an entire wardrobe down a mountain. And Lindsey was none the wiser.

The Rope

Beautiful weather at the top, which it had no business being. The forecast said rain all day. (Hold that thought. It matters more than you know.)

They got off the gondola not quite sure which way to go. Lindsey told Jonathan to take the lead. And then Jonathan, rule-follower Jonathan, walked them straight toward a path with a rope across it and a no entry sign.

Lindsey: I was shocked. Usually I'm the rule-breaker and he's the one who follows them. So I was thrilled he was being carefree and a little bad-boy. I teased him about it and hopped the rope happily, because it's exactly what I'd have done anyway.

What she didn't know: on the other side of that rope was a secret paraglider launch spot only the locals use. And Jonathan wasn't being spontaneous at all, he had the photographer, Maciej, feeding him live location photos over WhatsApp, shot by shot, go here, cross there. One last glance at the phone: a rope, and the instruction go right through it.

So they did. Lindsey skipped down the mountain, frolicking, taking in the view, completely free. Jonathan gave Maciej a thumbs up. The trap was perfect, and she'd walked into it delighted.

The Moment

A gentle head nod. Let's go over there, away from the launch. He dropped the heavy backpack, both of them dressed to the nines now, and there it was: a flower bed, a champagne bottle, and a giant boom mic on a tripod that Lindsey couldn't place.

She froze.

Lindsey: He'd told me to take my jacket off on the way down and I didn't think anything of it at the time. Then he just... took a moment and looked back at me, and we locked eyes. That's when I started to tear up. He dropped his bag and got on one knee, and I kind of blacked out from there. My hand was shaking violently and he just held it. I think he asked me to marry him. I think I said yes.

Jonathan: I blanked. I stumbled reaching for the box, for a second I couldn't remember where I'd put it. I remembered to hold my posture. I opened it and said, will you marry me.

She let out a big breath of relief. And said yes.

The Champagne Had Other Plans

The photographers came down, Maciej on stills, Olga on video, and told them to just take the moment in before the shoot.

Then, as Jonathan was gently working the wire cage off the champagne, the cork launched itself. No shaking. No thumb on it. Maybe the heat, maybe the hike up, but that bottle decided this was the moment. The cork grazed Lindsey's eyebrow and hair, less than a foot from her eye. Maciej and Olga came sprinting, "Wait! Wait! Too soon!", because they'd wanted to film the spray.

Nobody got a black eye. They picked it back up, Jonathan shook it properly, sprayed it everywhere, and they toasted to the engagement.

The Ring (a family conspiracy)

Lindsey saw it for the first time on that mountain. But it had traveled a long way to get there.

Jonathan designed it with Lindsey's cousin, Donnie, at Vail Creek Jewelry Designs, Donnie being part of Lindsey's Swiss side of the family, the ma and auntie of Swiss descent, the same side she'd traveled through Switzerland with as a kid. Getting it to Grindelwald was a whole family relay: Jonathan's sister signed for the package back home, the delivery timed carefully around his parents' house.

So: a ring built by her Swiss family, delivered by his, and put on her finger in Switzerland. A full circle none of them could have drawn on purpose.

Lunch, and Two Omens

Up at the restaurant they shared a beer with Maciej and Olga, travel stories, promises to reconnect if they make it to LA next year. Their server, newly engaged himself and getting married in Portugal, offered the only wisdom the day needed: above all else, respect your partner and love them. One table over, a couple from Colorado was celebrating their fifty-third wedding anniversary.

The mountain was basically handing out blessings at that point.

Grandma Sherry's Sunshine

Here's the part that holds the whole day together.

The forecast called for rain, all day, like it had for much of the trip. Instead, it was the sunniest day of the entire trip.

Earlier this year, Lindsey lost her grandma Sherry, her dad's mom. Grandma Sherry called her sunshine. That was their whole connection, sunshine and lightness. And both of us, independently, throughout the day, had the same quiet thought: this was her. She held off the storm so we could have a perfect day.

The rain finally let loose only when we were a block from the apartment, and we'd only have been caught in it because we kept stopping for one more photo.

Lindsey: Through the proposal I was crying, but Jonathan held it together, he had so much to coordinate. It wasn't until lunch, when he was telling me about the day and brought up grandma Sherry and the sunshine, that he finally shed a tear. That's when he got emotional. That was the moment.

The proposal was the plan. That was the surrender.

Calling Everyone (or: the running gag)

Then came the phone marathon, and a bit we accidentally invented: point the camera at the mountain, say "look at this view!", and wait for them to spot the ring.

Almost nobody spotted it right away.

- Lila and Shane (our neighbors, whose love story started when ours did, whose engagement in Mexico we were at earlier this year) got the first call. We later learned Shane woke Lila up saying "Lindsey's calling, Lindsey's calling", they had a feeling. - The dads and Jonathan's parents all told us to move our hand out of the way so they could see the mountain. Classic. - Ari, Jonathan's mom, cried and had to go get tissues. - Lindsey's mom missed the first call, then spam-called and texted six times mid-other-call; when she finally saw it, she cried. - Grammy Sharon, loud, immediate, emotional the second she saw it. - Lexi (Lindsey's sister), in bed with her retainer in, answered and said: "I knew it." - Jonathan's sister clocked it instantly too, of course, she'd already seen the ring in person. - Sarah-Amy answered with "are you engaged?" before we could even point. - Paris (Lindsey's brother) and cousin Kelly, Paris cried; Kelly was over the moon. - Plus a long tail of calls and callbacks: Tallinn/Cally, Dawson and Christian, and Jonathan reaching Oscar, Julio, Carlos, and coworkers Vini, Stan, and Bobby over dinner.

The theme of the whole day, really: everyone else saw it coming before Lindsey did.

Dinner in a Gondola

Lindsey had secretly booked dinner before any of this, a private two-person gondola car, parked on the ground by the train station. Truffle fondue, potatoes and bread to dip, a bottle of champagne. It started to lightly rain as we ate, cozy inside our little cabin.

Grandma Sherry, we figure, finally let the storm come. We were exactly where we needed to be.

The Souvenir We Didn't Plan For

We came home sunburnt. All of it, Jonathan's whole face and head, Lindsey's arms and chest, from hours in that impossibly bright sun taking photo after photo (lunch out on the terrace probably sealed the deal). Turns out grandma Sherry's sunshine came with a catch. New tan lines to take home, right alongside the ring.

day05-02

She said yes. On the sunniest day of the trip, on a mountain, with a ring made by family, under sunshine that wasn't really luck at all.

Our first full day engaged. Our last full day in Grindelwald.

We woke up slow. Overcast, gray light through the windows, and me still grinning at the ring on my hand. I don't think I even slept in it. I was afraid to lose it, so it spent the night in the box, but it was the first thing I put on that morning.

The first thing I noticed was Jonathan outside the Airbnb with the bouquet from the night before. The flowers had been badly dehydrated after the afternoon photo shoot, so he'd already put them in a pot of water the night before. Now he was out there unwrapping them, taking the rope off, cutting them down and rearranging them into something that would fit the vase. They'd been choking themselves, he said. He wanted the arrangement to last as long as possible, because they were beautiful and they reminded him of the day. How we'd ever travel home with them was not his worry. He just wanted them good for as long as we had them there.

day06-01

I ended up pulling some apart later and pressing them, and those made it home with me. A nice little bookend to him fussing over them that morning.

One thing about the ring: it stayed behind at the chalet that day. We knew Oeschinensee was going to be a wet, rough adventure, and I didn't want to risk it, so there was no ring out on the trail. But even that one day in, it already felt strange not having it on. I kept glancing down at my bare hand and getting a little jolt of panic, looking for something I'd only had since the day before. One day, and it already belonged there.

Getting there

Eventually we pulled ourselves together and walked down to the train station. The route out to Oeschinensee is a proper trek. Grindelwald to Interlaken, a change at Spiez, then on to Kandersteg, the better part of two hours. Jonathan hadn't realized quite how far out it was.

Kandersteg was rainy and gray. We walked around a bit, and thank goodness I remembered to bring the umbrellas Jonathan had packed for us, because we had them out most of the day.

At the top of the gondola, the first thing I spotted was a vending machine full of cheese. You buy a block for your hike. Obviously we did that.

day06-02

The loop, in reverse

Then we came to the split. You can go straight down to the lake, or do the full Panorama Trail loop. There was almost no visibility. Cloud right down on us, still drizzling. On the way up we'd been saying, dude, there's probably going to be no views at all.

Here's the thing neither of us said out loud at the time. Before the trip, the one thing I'd told everyone I was most excited for was this lake. So when we got to that fork, I was being so careful not to force Jonathan into the hard version in bad weather. And Jonathan, partly because he knew how much it meant to me, pushed for the loop anyway. Maybe the weather clears, he said. Let's take full advantage.

I'm so glad we did.

Jonathan had never done this hike. We were going in blind, so he downloaded AllTrails and read the map as we went. It told him the mileage and the pace to keep, and it told us the one thing we hadn't known: the last gondola down was at 6 PM. We'd only reached the top at 1:30. So quietly, underneath the whole afternoon, we were racing. Taking as much time as we could to actually enjoy it, while making sure we'd reach that last cable car.

That's why we ran the loop in reverse, to get the steep climb, the hardest part, done first. We started at a twenty-minute-mile pace. On the slick, steep rock it slipped to thirty-five. Still drizzling on the way up.

And then we crested the top clearing, and it opened up.

The clouds were sitting right at our level. Below them, the bluest water either of us has ever seen, waterfalls pouring in all around the lake.

day06-03

We took our time at the scenic bench up there, the one you see all over Instagram. Birds chirping everywhere. Jonathan had carried a beer up with him, and I had a little mini bottle of wine I'd swiped from the flight over. We sat and drank them and looked at the water.

day06-04

Then we kept walking. We passed two other people going the same way, and that was about it. All the crowds people complain about on this hike, we just didn't have them. It was ours almost the whole way. Little streams to cross, little bridges. I saw a newt. I saw chickens. And finally, cows, up close and personal, which were a joy.

The plunge

Down at the water, we saw five guys off to the side of the lake. Two of them stark naked, and in they went.

We'd hiked five miles in bad weather. We were not going to skip the reward. So we found our own little nook, changed into the swimsuits we'd packed, and made the plunge.

It was glacier water. Freezing. Absolutely worth it. Jonathan wanted to stay in as long as possible, partly because he was filming us jump, wanting to capture our last day there. I was ready to get out the second I hit the water. He stayed in anyway. We shivered the whole way back and didn't regret a second of it.

day06-05

This was the part Jonathan had his eye on all day. He knew it was our last day in Grindelwald and he wanted one more real adventure out of it. We just did a tough hike, he said, we're here, let's jump in the cold water.

Home to the chalet

We made the gondola. On the walk back up to the Airbnb that night, I saw a cat.

And then Jonathan cooked, and this one was planned. Somewhere along the way we'd made a quiet commitment: every stay, at least one home-cooked meal, breakfast or dinner. Knowing we'd get in late from how far Oeschinensee was, Jonathan had stopped at the Coop after Jungfraujoch the day before to make sure the last night was covered no matter what time we walked in. It doubled as cleaning out the fridge, but really it was about ending our final night in Grindelwald just the two of us, celebrating being home together for the first time.

He'd picked up pasta, pesto and chicken, and we had burrata and olives and a bottle of wine. I made the salad while he worked on the pasta and chicken, and I cracked a soft-boiled egg over some leftover salad from earlier in the trip.

day06-06

Our first dinner engaged, at the little kitchen table, the rescued bouquet on the counter, on our last night in the town where it happened.

Next: the Golden Pass down to Montreux, and an afternoon in the Lavaux vineyards.

Looking back, the bus was the beginning of it.

For the first time, we didn't fight that legendary hill in Grindelwald. We checked out, loaded all our bags, and took the bus down. And that small, easy thing turned out to be the hinge of the whole day. The adventure was over. It was time to enjoy the full luxury Switzerland had to offer.

The Golden Pass

It was a long train day, and we settled in for it. Somewhere along the line Jonathan finally pulled out the Nintendo Switch he'd been hauling around the entire trip, and we played Mario Kart. For the record, Lindsey won a round. We'll leave it there.

We hadn't booked seats, and we lucked into a beautiful view in first class on the Golden Pass, cars that happened to be unreserved. We figured out how to read the little reservation tags as we boarded, which felt like a quick perk. Then we mostly just put the controllers down and watched Switzerland roll by, lake after lake, changing trees, the whole way down.

day07-01

And then a lovely coincidence. The couple we'd run into the day before the proposal, the paraglider Jonathan had chatted with on his secret scouting walk, we ran into them again. This time we got to show off the ring. His wife was thrilled, he congratulated Jonathan, and they wanted to buy us a drink, except they were at the far end of a different hotel and it never quite worked out. It didn't matter. Just crossing paths again closed a little loop we didn't know was open.

The Fairmont

We got off at Montreux and brought the bags round to the hotel. Lindsey still hadn't seen a single thing about where we were staying, so walking up to the Fairmont for the first time was a genuine reveal.

Inside, to the left, a striking entrance to a bar and restaurant, and a jazz bar behind that. To the right, the rooms. Check-in was smooth and easy, and here's the part that made it: Jonathan had quietly told the concierge ahead of time that the proposal had happened. They had the discretion to say nothing at the desk, which meant Lindsey got to take the whole thing in on her own terms.

The room had been upgraded to a junior suite, with a balcony over the lake. There were chocolates, a slice of cake, fruit, and a note congratulating us on the engagement, addressed to Mr. and Mrs. Gomez.

Seeing that written out for the first time was jarring and giddy all at once. One day engaged, and there it was in ink. It made Lindsey extremely giddy to read.

day07-02

From the balcony we could watch the boats chug along the lake, the Swiss flag trailing behind them, the light changing over the water through morning, afternoon and sunset. That balcony is the image we'll both keep from Montreux.

day07-03

Wine in the Lavaux

We changed and went out for a wine tasting in the Lavaux terraces. Honestly, it didn't stand out the way tastings in Napa or Italy have for us, and we learned afterward that the front desk could have set up a more private estate experience. But we were on a bit of a time crunch, so we went with the public one, tucked beside a little waterfall, which was still very cute.

We enjoyed the wines, and Lindsey loved the French accents of the waiters. And it was the red here that planted a seed: it left Jonathan craving lamb, and that craving ran all afternoon and decided his dinner.

We walked back along the water afterward and passed a sign that said manifestation, which Lindsey loved.

day07-04

The spa, dinner, and a jazz nightcap

Back at the hotel we changed again and went down to enjoy the spa, no massages booked, but a massive indoor pool, an outdoor pool you could swim out into from inside, a hot tub with jets, and a sauna with a warm back-relaxant nook. We had about an hour before it closed, and it felt like the reward for every hill we'd climbed.

Then dinner in the hotel restaurant. It opened with complimentary bread, four kinds, with olive oil and balsamic, and a little salmon-yuzu taster. We ordered an artichoke dish in a chili verde with peas and vegetables that was delicious. Jonathan finally got his lamb, a fillet with a balsamic glaze and fig on the side. Lindsey had a truffle pasta, and we split a side of seasonal veg, broccolini and carrot.

day07-05

We finished the night at the cocktail bar, jazz drifting over from the lounge. Lindsey had something genuinely unique called a Maria Maria, after Santana, chosen because we'd just seen Santana in concert with Jonathan's family for Ari's birthday. Vodka, dry vermouth, feta, balsamic, watermelon, tomato and herbs. Complex and strange and delicious. Jonathan had a beer.

And on the way back up, a little tipsy, Lindsey spotted a piano, sat down, and played a song. A perfect way to close the first full day of the luxury half of the trip.

day07-06

Next: Zurich, the old town, and a steakhouse.

Jonathan managed to upgrade us to a 4 PM checkout, and that one move shaped the whole day. It gave us a slow Montreux morning and time for the castle before we ever thought about trains.

A last Fairmont morning

We woke up and took in the balcony view one more time, then went down to breakfast under the glass ceilings. It was pure luxury: sauteed mushrooms, cheeses, avocado, vegetables, prosciutto, good bacon, pancakes, anything your heart could want, and coffee. A beautiful room to eat it in.

day08-01

Château de Chillon

Then the castle. This one had a private meaning for Lindsey: in her head, if Jonathan was ever going to propose, she'd thought it might happen here. We dressed up a little to explore it, and Lindsey wore her shimmery copper Victorian dress with green accents. It suited the rooms perfectly, like she belonged in them.

Chillon was stunning. Incredible architecture, level after level to wander through, old knight's armor and the weapons they'd have used centuries ago. One of Lindsey's favorite things was a room with a crest, half fleur-de-lis, half the Swiss cross, and a wonderfully contradicting wood pattern running all over the walls.

day08-02

day08-03

Cards and a piano do-over

Back at the hotel we brought our bags down to be held in the lobby, which freed us to wander and enjoy the place a little longer.

The piano was unoccupied, so Lindsey went up to play again. The night before she'd been a little tipsy and playing quietly so as not to disturb anyone late at night, so this daytime do-over, fewer people, no need to whisper on the keys, felt like the real performance.

When she finished, a woman playing cards nearby with her father cheered her on. They got to talking. She turned out to be one of the head salespeople at Mary Kay, in town for a conference, so a lovely little business connection came out of it. They swapped details, texted through the rest of the stay, and it's a friendship Lindsey intends to keep.

Then down to the bar, luggage waiting out front, a beer for Jonathan and a glass of wine for Lindsey, before the train.

day08-04

On to Zurich

The train carried us to Zurich, and we found our stay at Hotel Hirschen in the old town. Check-in was easy, one flight of stairs up with the luggage and then an elevator, plus two very sweet dogs to greet us. We dropped the bags, and the desk pointed us to the restaurant right downstairs: Simon's Steakhouse.

It did not disappoint. When they asked whether we wanted to sit inside or outside, we chose outside, because the hotel and the steakhouse sat right on a perfect little town square. There was live music playing, and we were lucky to catch it. Lindsey was already humming along to one of the songs. [SONG: fill in what was playing]

There was something wonderful about walking into a Friday night in a European town square and just having dinner out, people hustling and bustling around us, everyone enjoying their Friday evening too.

We went in early and got a drink at the bar first, where the bartenders were playful and fun and instantly won us over. Lindsey started with a gin-basil-smash sort of thing.

Simon's Steakhouse

Seated outside, Lindsey moved on to a Cosmo topped with currant berries, and those berries were their own small time machine. She got to tell Jonathan they used to see them growing up at our cousin Victoria Nola's house in Sarnen.

She had the ribeye, cooked perfectly, probably her favorite thing she ate the whole trip. Jonathan had lamb again. We shared truffle fries and a side of truffle tagliatelle you could order on its own, and the bread was delicious too. We walked around a little afterward before heading up to the room.

day08-05

Next: the Porsche, three alpine passes, and a spontaneous run to Lake Como.

This last day bled straight out of the one before. After the all-nighter and two hours of sleep, we should have been wrecks. But somehow, in the morning, we both felt energized, still riding the excitement of the day before.

An empty Sunday

Zurich's old town was nearly deserted. It was Sunday, and we figured most people were at church, because the shops were shut and even some of the coffee places hadn't opened. We wandered the quiet streets until we found the one café that was open and snagged a bite, a banana bread muffin and a croissant, both of them shared between us.

Then the airport, and the small relief of getting through security and out the other side, so we could stay in that mellow, easy mode we'd worked so hard the night before to earn.

day10-01

The seat home

It felt genuinely surreal to finally sink into that seat. Almost like we'd only just boarded the flight out to Switzerland, and now here we were heading back, with so much having happened in between. Nine nights, and we'd wrung every drop out of them. Hardly a regret between us. We really did make the most of it.

And it had settled in for Lindsey that she was flying home with a ring on her finger. She was excited to get back and talk it all through with family and friends, to soak it in a little more. She still couldn't quite believe it was on her hand, and yet the day it had been off, back at Oeschinensee, it had already felt wrong. Like it simply needed to stay there.

She couldn't stop staring at it the whole trip. On one of our Uber rides, the sunlight caught the stone and threw a little kaleidoscope of stars across the car ceiling, and Jonathan looked over and caught her quietly lost in it. That might be the image we both carry: how beautiful the ring is, how perfectly the whole engagement came together, everything falling into place.

day10-02

What we carry home

For Jonathan, it's the views Grindelwald gave us. Such a beautiful place to propose, to draw the whole relationship together into one moment. All the adventures, all the beauty Switzerland handed back to us so we could take in that one special thing. The imagery of this trip is ingrained in his head and heart for good.

And the proof it all landed? Any chance she got, Lindsey kept flashing the ring at him. That was everything he needed to know she was completely happy.

We came for the mountains. We left engaged, a little sleep-deprived, and already talking about every place still on our list.

day10-03

The end of the trip. The beginning of everything else.