Author: Jayne Lawson

“This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24

Today we embarked on our 8-hour journey to see the Matterhorn (No, we are not going to Disney!) We are hoping to get a glimpse of the 4,478 meters high (14,553 feet) peak during our stay in Zermatt.

Morning in St. Moritz

 

We left St. Moritz around 9:15 am, and as we rode through the Alps, I listened to an instrumental CD of Christmas music. Some may think it’s too soon (never!), but Christmas hymns were perfect for the serenity of the Alps.

There were many river gorges on this trip, but the Rhine River Gorge was particularly striking. It is sometimes referred to as the “Swiss Grand Canyon.” According to the Swiss, the headwaters of the Rhine River are here.

We passed through many small towns, where homes dot the hills. Some are found very high on the hillsides. Everything looked so serene. The places we saw reminded me of the book, Heidi, a childhood favorite of mine.

Finally, we headed up to higher elevations, leaving the green valleys below. The highest point for us on the Glacier Express was Oberalpass. We were 2,033 meters (6,607 ft) above sea level and, due to the steep grades, we made the journey with the help of the cog wheel.

I thought we would see glaciers on this trip, but so far, not a glacier in sight! However, we did see lots of interesting scenery.

Past winter avalanche path

 

Pedestrian bridge across a river gorge

 

Cows grazing on the slopes of the Alps

 

Lai da Curnera Dam – An alpine dam that is over 500 feet tall. It is the 8th largest dam in Switzerland.

 

Finally, just before reaching Zermatt, we saw this glacier!

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This is my Father’s world, And to my listening ears

All nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres.

This is my Father’s world: I rest me in the thought

Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas; His hand the wonders wrought.

 (from “This is My Father’s World” lyrics by M. D. Babcock)

 

 

 

“Thou are worthy, O Lord to receive glory and honor and power; for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created.” Revelation 4:11

This morning we embarked on our first scenic train ride. (Although I do think the train ride to St. Moritz from Zurich was pretty scenic!) We left St. Moritz at 9:30 am and headed into the Alps. As we gazed up the slopes of the mountains, we could clearly see the tree line. It is here the coniferous forests abruptly end, and tundra plants become the main vegetation.

I was so intent on getting a picture of our train on the track, I didn’t realize there was a glacier in the background!!

Here’s a better look at the glacier.

Ospizio Bernina – the highest point of our ride at 2253 meters (nearly 7,500 feet).

We stopped at Alp Grüm (2091 m) for a photo stop.

Our view of Poschiavo, Switzerland (1,014 m) as we descended on the switchback tracks!

We approached Brusio on the circular viaduct. It’s the famous part of track for this scenic train ride.

The first part of our ride terminated in Tirano, Italy. Here we had a couple of hours to have lunch (paninis and gelato!) and explore before reboarding the train for the trip back to St. Moritz.

The train ride itself was very smooth. No “rickety-rackety” that is usually associated with trains. This train is electric, and the railroad ties are bolted down, so it was pretty quiet. At one point, we rode at a 7% grade! I may not have heard any train noise, but my heart was sure thumping! Yikes!

On our way back to St. Moritz, we sat on the opposite side of the train, so we had new vistas! The scenery was absolutely gorgeous!

Lake Miralago

Pontresina, Switzerland

Lake Bianca

Isn’t it breathtaking? Our God is so amazing! His works are overwhelming in beauty and majesty, and so glorifying to Him!

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All Thy works shall praise Thy Name, in earth, and sky, and sea;
Holy, holy, holy; merciful and mighty!
God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!      (from “Holy, Holy, Holy” by Reginald Heber)

“All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made.” John 1:3

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Take a moment and look around at all God has created… then praise His holy name!

“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.” Proverbs 17:22a

International train travel is not the easiest thing I’ve ever done, but it certainly has shown me that a pound of patience mixed with a cup of humor and a pinch of sensibility can yield a wonderful adventure! I found that it doesn’t matter how much you’ve prepared before embarking on this type of journey, it’s best to expect the unexpected. In this case, it was finding out that English is NOT the international language I’ve heard it to be. Just about everywhere else we’ve traveled, things have been written in both the native language and English. Not so in the Italian and Swiss train stations!

At first, when we entered the main terminal in Rome, it was overwhelming, but we realized it was important to put our heads together and figure out how to get a ticket. We took our paper receipt to the automatic ticket machine. Good news! It had an English translation! Bad news… we still couldn’t figure it out. Better news! A train station employee came over and started punching buttons on the machine for us. He was explaining everything he was doing while pointing at our receipt. Not so good news… he was doing all this in Italian. When he gestured for us to follow him, a lady intervened. She said, “I was eavesdropping. Just thought I would tell you that what you have is your ticket. You just need to get on the train with it.” Laugh #1.

We managed to find our platform and boarded our train. The next thing we knew, we were leaving the station! Whew! We’d made it through phase one of this “after cruise” adventure. Next stop was Milan, Italy, so time to settle back and watch the world go by. It went by fast! As we watched the informational screen on the train, we saw we could track the train’s speed. It was steadily rising! We were traveling at 283 km per hour. Good thing I knew that it took more than one kilometer to make a mile, but just how fast is that? What was the conversion factor? It doesn’t really seem like we’re going that fast… Middle school science kicked in and I did the calculation of metric to customary. Yikes! We were moving at 183 mph! What?? Yes, very true. I never saw telephone poles zip by so fast! Laugh #2.

When we arrived in Milan, we figured we had it made. We had successfully maneuvered through the Rome train station, so how hard could Milan be? Well, it wasn’t the station that was challenging, it was the train itself! It was a bit smaller than our speed rocket. Before we squeezed into our seats, we had to stow our luggage. Hmm… where do you put your luggage when there’s no room for it? Anywhere you can find a spot!! There are places designated, but when a gazillion people get on with you, you better be fast! We did manage to find a spot for our one suitcase, so that was good. I found out that John is good at smashing backpacks into very small places. Other people chose to sit on their full size bags in the aisles. That didn’t go well with the conductor. By the way, did you know you can travel with your dog on a leash on the trains? We didn’t either. Laugh #3.

Well, after enjoying some of the best scenery on the planet, we finally made it to Zurich, Switzerland! Phase two was successfully completed! Now we had to find a way out of the station. Since these train stations are so big, if you exit from the wrong side, it’s a long walk to where you really need to be. The solution? A map! We checked our map and found the “You are here” spot. Did you know there really aren’t any huge arrows in the train station that actually show you where you are? You have to figure that out all by yourself! We knew the name of the street we needed, so we started reading the signs in the station to determine the direction we should go. Oh yes, everything was written in German. Hmm… We took a chance and headed in a “cross your fingers and hope it’s right” direction. We made it outside the station. By the way, did you know that many of the streets don’t actually have their names listed anywhere? We found that out in Rome, so as we exited the train station, we looked everywhere for any hint of a street name. Guess what? Right in front of us was a pole with the street names clearly on it. Laugh #4.

After a relatively easy walk, we spotted our hotel. I reviewed foreign phrases in my mind. “Buon giorno” “Danke schoen” “Bonjour” Not really applicable, but the best I could conjure up in my brain. We walked up to the desk, and I introduced myself, hoping I would be able to conduct a decent conversation with the desk clerk. The man behind the desk looked up with a smile and said to us, “Ah, we’ve been expecting you. Welcome to Zurich, Mr. and Mrs. Lawson.” His English was perfect. Laugh #5.

“Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them.” Psalm 126:2

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How has God added joy to your travels in life? I’d love to know!

 

“God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;” Acts 17:24

While it was sad for us to leave the ship, we knew a new adventure awaited us in the Eternal City, Rome! We rode a shuttle to the train station in Civitavecchia, and was able to buy our tickets without a problem. In less than fifteen minutes, we were on board and heading south to Rome. 47 minutes, we arrived at Rome Terminali.

We hoofed it to our hotel, a hot and humid jaunt. I waited in the hotel lobby until our room was ready, and John headed out to explore.

Our hotel is on the left side near the red flag. Across from our hotel is “St. Mary of the Angels and Martyrs” basilica.

After we settled in, we boarded the hop on-hop off bus to explore the sights. We sat on the top of the double decker bus and plugged in our earphones. As we listened to Italian music, we headed off.

Rome is closely linked to Venus, goddess of love. So much so that Rome’s secret name was “amor,” which is Roma (Italian for Rome) backwards and means “love.”

My first “ooh” and “ ahh” moment was passing Rome’s Colosseum. As we passed it, I was struck by how huge it was and how massive the walls were. When I thought of how many spectators (85,000) would come to see the games of “sport,” which included the killing of Christians who were forced to face hungry lions for their faith, it was sobering.

Palantine hill is the oldest and largest of Rome’s seven hills and overlooks the Circus Maximus (500×150 ft), which is another area of sport. Chariots races and war games were held here.

Altare della Patria

We visited Capitoline Hill and saw the monument to Italy’s first king, Vittorio Emanuele II. He is the one who united Italy into one country. Beneath his monument is the tomb of the unknown soldier. Currently, it is a museum dedicated to the unification of Italy.

The Four Rivers Monument

This monument pays tribute to the four known continents at that time by representing a river from each continent: Nile from Africa, Ganges from Asia, Blue Danube from Europe, and Rio de la Plata from South America.

Pantheon

It’s pretty incredible to actually visit places I’ve only read about in textbooks. The Pantheon was a temple dedicated to all the gods of pagan Rome. It was built between AD 117-138, and is noted for its Roman architecture (arches), it’s dome (world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome), and it’s circular opening (oculus) at the top.

Trevi Fountain

Toss in a coin and make a wish! (They supposedly collect 3,000 euros a day from this fountain!)

Segway

This was the best way to see Rome! I don’t know how many miles we rode, but I never would have made it on foot. I had a great “wingman.”

No smile because I was trying to take our selfie while riding. I guess kids aren’t the only ones with guardian angels! (Psst… Don’t tell Samantha!)

There are spring-fed water fountains all over Rome. They are perfectly safe to drink from and are quite refreshing on a hot and humid day!

Of course, no post is complete without the food pictures. We ate lunch at an outdoor cafe on the banks of the Tiber River.

Next stop: Zurich, Switzerland

“And the fame of David went out into all lands; and the LORD brought the fear of him upon all nations.” 1 Chronicles 14:17

Today we traveled through Tuscany to get to Firenze, or Florence as it’s known in the English speaking world. This region of Italy is known for its wine. For a long time, the Medici family ruled, but they were not royalty. They were bankers who collected art. When the last Medici died without an heir, she gave all the art to the city of Florence.

 

The Oldest Bridge in Florence
This bridge was built in 1345. It is on the Arno River. The houses on it are shops just as they were in the Middle Ages. All others bridges in Florence were destroyed in WWII.

 

Holy Cross Basilica (Basilica Santa Croce)
This church is in the Piazza Santa Croce. Galileo, Michelangelo, Machiavelli, and others who contributed to the arts are buried here. There is a statue of Dante in the front. He was the author of “The Divine Comedy” and “The Inferno.” While we were here, we stopped here at a leather shop, a gelateria, and we walked over to see the Arno River.

 

Palazzo Borghese
We had lunch in this palace, where once lived Maria Luisa, the sister of Napoleon. We had a pesto-type lasagna, beef, spinach and potatoes, and tiramisu.

 

Uffizzi Museum
Here we saw works of art by Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raffaello, and Botticelli.

Clockwise from top-left: Michelangelo’s “Holy Family with Young St. John the Baptist,” his only documented work on wood; Botticelli’s “The Birth of Venus;” Raffaelo’s “St. John the Baptist,” and Da Vinci’s “Adoration of the Magi.”

Statue of David
This sculpture is considered the best representation of male Renaissance beauty. It was sculpted in three years by Michelangelo.

Fun Fact: The symbol of Tuscany is Pinocchio because the writer was from here.

Next stop: Rome, Italy

“Thy righteousness also, O God, is very high, who hast done great things: O God, who is like unto thee!” Psalm 71:19

We traveled for about an hour north of Genoa to reach Milan. Most of the terrain were the foothills of mountains with occasional stretches of flat farmland. This agricultural region grows mostly grains such as rice and wheat.

Castello Sforzesco

This castle was built at the end of the12th century and beginning of the 13th century. It has many frescoes, which are paintings painted directly on a freshly plastered wall. Many were done by Leonardo Da Vinci. Da Vinci lived here for a time and was commissioned by the king to paint “The Last Supper.”

 

Church – Santa Maria Delle Grazie

This church was commissioned to be built by the king so the people could come and pray for the monarchs. It is here that Leonardo DaVinci painted “The Last Supper,” completing it in 1498.

The Last Supper

Leonardo Da Vinci

He was paid a monthly stipend (like a retainer fee) to do what he preferred, so instead of painting “The Last Supper” all at once, it took him 22 years to finish ”The Last Supper.” This was because during the time he worked on “The Last Super,” he also worked on various other projects as well, including ”The Mona Lisa” (which he worked on for 60 years until his death). Regarding “The Last Supper,” Leonardo spent three years just to find a man whose portrait he could use to paint Judas. The dimensions of “The Last Supper” are approximately 160 x 350 inches as compared to the Mona Lisa, which is about 12 x 18 inches.

On the opposite wall of the church is the painting, “The Crucifixion” done by Giovanni Donato Montorfano in 1495.

Duomo – Milan Cathedral

This world’s largest Gothic cathedral is in the city’s main square, the Piazza del Duomo. On the tallest spire is a golden statue of Mary, the mother of Christ. Its construction began in 1386, and it took more than 500 years to complete. To visit the interior of the cathedral, one must purchase a ticket.

On one side of the main square is the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a four story structure housing restaurants and stores that are very expensive. Prada’s original store is here as well as designers such as Louis Vuitton, Versace, and Chanel.

Our guide gave us free time to shop here. John and I just laughed to ourselves and headed out to find a gelateria.

La Scala Opera House

La Scala’s music season begins December 2nd. Here well-known operas and live concerts are held.

Across the street is Piazza della Scala, a small square with a statue of DaVinci.

Next stop: Florence, Italy