Switzerland: Winterthur
Winterthur was our 10th and final stop in #FLeuro2016, my backpacking trip across Europe. Thank the lord but also oh no because Switzerland was hella expensive and we did not have a lot of franks or euros or pounds left to spend. We were essentially using our credit cards for everything – but hey! Swiss banks are safe.
Our airbnb hosts were 2 young guys around our age or younger – Yurich and Flo. One was in school and the other was a teacher. Their 3rd roommate was out traveling, which is why they have a room to spare for airbnb. Somehow they are able to afford a modern and new flat with 3 bedrooms and a huge living room and kitchen and a wall that can hold up bicycles.
Yes, Switzerland was expensive. I was appalled – actually appalled – when I saw a bag in a coffee store for 7 franks at the train station. That’s like $10 CAD… #wtf.
As you may have guessed, because of our limited budget, we didn’t do much in Winterthur, but one thing on my bucket list was to go on a hike and enjoy the Swiss alps. Yurich and Flo recommended us to hike the Ebenalp – the mountain with Wildkirchli, a famous restaurant situated on the side of a mountain.
Everything sounded perfect – I love hiking and hiking is free, right?
Nope. The return train tickets to Ebenalp were approximately $80 CAD, but we already committed so we continued to Ebenalp anyways. The hikes/trails were all under 3 hours (one-way), and it was a beautiful hike up. There were cows and we ate a simple meal halfway through. I also took off my sweaty shirt and waved it around for awhile. Nobody was around.
We got to Wildkirchli and sat down next to an elderly woman and man. The woman’s name was Elise and she was celebrating her 70th birthday with her friend, Theo. She spoke 4 languages and told us stories of how her family has lived in the same house for 7 generations. She also told us her travel experiences when she was young. She gave us advice on how to be happy in life – always come back to family, stay on the right path even if you walk alone, and how if you find someone you truly love, nobody else will ever compare.
Elise then offered to show Fatima and I the rest of the mountain, including the caves and church. She translated all the history plaques, making the rest of the hike much more meaningful and interesting. When it started raining, she offered Fatima her extra rain jacket and insisted on paying for our gondola ride down. We told Elise that we would pay for our own tickets, although technically we had planned to just walk back down to save money, but Elise was persistent, telling us it was dangerous to walk back down now that it has rained and the trails are slippery. She reminded us that it was her birthday and that it was a pleasure for her to have met us during such a special day, although we can definitely argue the opposite.
In the end, we let Elise pay for our tickets and thanked her many times for her generosity and kindness. She simply brushed it off, saying that when she was a girl traveling, many people were kind to her and she was now happy to do the same for us.
We will certainly pay it forward – thank you to our Switzerland angel, Elise, whatever you may be doing right now! You have made our trip to Switzerland incredibly memorable.
After the hike, we returned to our airbnb where Yurich and Flo made us dinner. My favourite dish was the rosti, a traditional potato dish in Switzerland.
On our last day in Winterthur (and our last day in Europe!), Fatima and I went on a nice walk up to a local viewpoint to see the city. I spent my night writing postcard souvenirs and packing and getting ready for the long trip home.
Fatima and I reflected on #FLeuro2016. A part of us still couldn’t believe that it was finally coming to an end – this was the trip we planned for all year. It was our first backpacking trip and neither of us got hurt, scammed or lost (too lost) and most importantly, I feel like we became closer friends through it all.
Sincerely, Loewe