Hotel Simi Zermatt

I am only stayin the night just to see the Matterhorn. The sun is out and I took a hike up nearby hill. It was about an hour and a half uphill walk with regular short stops to catch my breath. I think I have had enough of hiking now, I did 4 hours of it at Montreux as well, I must have the best **** at the moment. Spectacular view of the mountain at the hilltop though. It's less of a mountain and more of a giant pinnacle of rock. It looks menacing, to prove it there is a nearby graveyard full ...

... let alone Europe, we ate Maccas for tea! Even Maccas cost us about $30 for each of us to have a burger and share a water and some wedges.

We then felt we needed something sweet to wash the burger away so we went and had a hot chocolate in a little Swiss chocolate shop and watched the town from their first floor window. Zermatt really is such a pretty little town, it’s the kind of town you would see covered with snow on a Christmas card.

Day 2 – ...

We had packed up the Landy by about 8 a.m., and were ready to plan the route to Val d'Isere. With no roadbook to follow, the GPS was put into use, and a quick check against the maps verified that the best route was probably down towards Milan to join the motorway, and take motorways towards Aosta.

So, not much in the way of navigating to be done, except to check the road signs now and again, so the hunt for bingo photos was driven hard today ...

... took Evie back up via the Tram to the top of the Klein Matterhorn just before the last ride at 4:30p. Along the way, they watched a parade of swiss dancers with typical accordian players as they paraded down main street as part of an annual traditional festival.
 
                 

Farmor agreed to watch Evie and Tyler for 2 days while Sue and Tom hiked to Hornlihut, the refugio at the base of the Matterhorn. Hornlihut is at 3200m directly below the Matterhorn (4400m) and serves as the base camp for those ascending the Matterhorn. When we called for reservations, they asked if we were ...

... way up to meet Evie and Sue at the playground (after a 5 euro hot chocolate) and we all walked down through some delightful traditional Swiss towns.

                                                 

Went to buffet. Checked out. Owner tried to charge me extra on confirmed and guaranteed reservation. Wanted to charge me extra for Parker, clearly stated that only for kids over 12. She redid bill.

Walked around some more. Kids convinced me to get a walking stick to use when I have my foot surgery. So, we went back and I got one too with my first name and Zermatt ...

... skier! Tonight started off as a normal night, well so I thought anyway but it finished very differently. On our way back to the hotel after dinner John very unexpectedly proposed! Of course I said yes even though I was nearly speechless. So now we are engaged! 25/12 - Merry Christmas!! It was even snowing for my Christmas morning for the first time since arriving here, so yes I got my wish for a White Christmas. Well after still ...

Quelle journée parfaite!! Après une nuit aussi parfaite qu'un dortoir de 6 personnes le permet, je fais la connaissance de Jerry, le type à la réception. Jerry est un Suisse-Allemand qui parle parfaitement français.Malgré mon anglais rendu très "fluent" et l'accent québécois que je dois abandonner, il fait bon parler français! Ne suivant pas les conseils de mon père (une chance!), je demande suggestion à Jerry pour une piste de hiking. 4 jours plus tard ...

Zermatt, what a pretty place. It started snowing as soon as i arrived it town and continued to snow for hours. The skiing was unbelievable, there are sooooo many different runs, and the resort is over 3 mountains. If you really want, you can ski to Italy!!