Travel Day and First Day in Switzerland

(There was a beautiful floral shop in the Amsterdam airport. If we weren't in a hurry I would have taken more photos)

This may have just become a 4 part series instead of 3 because there was so much packed into the travel day and our one day in Switzerland before heading out to Italy that I thought I'd share an extra post. Find the first post here.

I don't know where you live, but we LOVE the Portland, Oregon International airport. It is one of the easiest to navigate and has been rated one of the best airports in 2017 according to this article in Travel and Leisure. Our flight was scheduled to leave around 1:00. We know our airport well enough that we didn't feel like we needed to get there unreasonably early, but we still wanted enough time to get settled. I think we arrived at 11:00. This gave us time to get checked in, get through TSA and to our gate. We grabbed some light food and a coffee for me. I will admit I was nervous, maybe even a little anxious...I wanted it all to go well, and smooth and it did. I worried for nothing. Yay. On domestic flights I definitely recommend packing your own snacks. On this international flight we packed snacks, but barely ate them because they offered food several times during the flight (meals and snacks). If I did it again, I'd probably just pack nuts. We also bring our own water bottles (empty) and fill them after we get through the TSA line, so we have plenty to drink during the flight. Wear very comfortable clothes and shoes that are easy to remove. I never wear jeans, it's either some type of jogging pant or in this case I found a super cute sleeveless dress at Columbia Sportswear last year and it is perfect for travel. I either wear a slip on shoe or in this case my Birkenstocks. 

(Waiting for our train to Bern)

We did purchase in flight wifi (actually my hubby did), we watched movies, I binged any available cooking shows but also read and played games on my tablet or in a puzzle book we purchased. Our neck pillows came in handy and I loved their offered blankets and I actually sat on the pillow they offered to make my seat softer. Our flight went from Portland to Amsterdam (10 hours), we landed, had to get through the passport check (clearly the people who plan layover times do not take into account waiting in these lines), then catch a 2 hour flight to Geneva. From there we had an hour and a half train ride to Bern where we met our daughter and hosts. LONG day! We found people very helpful and for the most part never really had an issue with the language barrier. So much was in English. We did discover that you often have to pay to use the public restrooms (but they're VERY clean). BUT the biggest tip we received was, DON'T give in to the temptation to take a nap once you arrive at your destination. You're tired. They are 9 hours ahead.You realize how long you've been awake, but it's important to get on track with the current time as soon as possible. I actually found it harder when we came home. One thing I was so thankful for, was the fact that we've been working hard at getting in better shape and health the last year and we could tell the benefits as we were hustling from place to place. 

(How cute is this room. The bed was actually very comfortable.)

(The kitchens are pretty small and the refrigerators are less than half the size of ours)

Once we arrived in Bern, we dropped our bags at the apartment we were staying at, changed our clothes, got settled and then headed with our hosts to the downtown area of Bern to walk around. What a beautiful city! I'll share more in future posts.  The people are used to walking, biking and taking trams everywhere. Even the children will ride alone and everyone watches out for each other. You wold not see that in Portland. Our friends were so helpful with tips for our trip and since our daughter had already been there 2 1/2 weeks she was familiar with how to navigate the area. After several hours of walking around, we headed back and enjoyed some amazing vegetable curry for dinner. 

 (Our first time figuring out how to buy tickets for the tram)

(I love how much she loves to travel and takes in everything around her) 

 (There are so many community gardens. It's awesome) 

 (We did shake our head at this scene...This crowd of people...EVERYONE was looking at their phones)

 (remember my MIL is Swiss...she grew up hearing the story of the Kindlifresser who ate naughty children. This is a stature depicting him.)

 (Checking out the city)

(It was so good seeing our girl and how well she had adjusted)

 (The Aare river in Bern...beautiful river)

(From the top of the Rose Gardens in Bern)

We had an early start the next day as we were leaving for Italy, so it was an early night for us. It was great to have this stopping point because we packed lighter for our trip to Italy and left the remaining things at the apartment. 

One of my biggest tips for traveling internationally is to do your research. It was helpful to know people in the country we were visiting, but I feel like as long as you are prepared, you'll be in great shape. And again, pack for comfort...comfortable shoes, comfortable clothes. 

Favorite Apps:
Omio
Trip Advisor
Yelp 
What's App
Google Translate
Airbnb
Google Maps

I know there were more we used and if I remember, I'll add them to the future posts. 




With Joy Unquenchable,