Author Archives: icegreyer

With an inopportune time gap between leaving Lucerne and checking in to Zurich, I decided to make a detour to the western city of Bern (train station lockers are damn convenient, I’ve discovered). Much like my now-former destination, a significant urban area is dedicated to preserving the medieval history in Old Town. Fountains with purportedly-potableContinue reading “Crash and Bern”

When it comes to mountainous locales in central Switzerland, there are two choices: Mount Pilatus and Mount Titlis. Since I don’t have the flexibility for yoga I decided on the latter for my second day in Lucerne. From the foot of the alpine village Engelberg snowshoers, skiers, snowboarders, and sonderers all take a series ofContinue reading “Titlis Fight: Round 2 of the Alps”

With a heavy heart (and a grateful nose) I bid the livestock next door goodbye and left the provincial Saint Niklaus for a more urban climate in Lucerne. Whereas my previous stops were vacation destinations, this city truly felt like a lived-in place with businesses catering to tourists as well as locals. My timing couldn’tContinue reading “The Lion of Lucerne”

As predicted, jet lag hit me like a truck the moment I got into an actual bed in 48 hours. Not even the au naturale alarm of next door’s rooster roused me earlier than 11:00 so I had to hustle down to base camp ASAP (luckily I already paid for my lift ticket and skiContinue reading “Zigzagging in Zermatt”

“I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my bucket list” – Susan Sontag The ever-present “why” query made the rounds again whenever I mentioned Switzerland as my next intercontinental destination, and once again I’m without a solid answer beyond “I want to”. There’s certainly plenty to enjoy in the land of Neutral Chocolate Bankers (dibsContinue reading “Lost in Transition”

Welp, it’s that time again. I’m homeward bound after a quick stop off at the highly-commercial Blue Lagoon, and it’s been a fantastic voyage. A major objective on this trip was to feel more genuine in my own skin: to feel like the choices made reflect an internal rather than external authority. Some locations/events/foods wereContinue reading “I’m Leaving on a Jet Plane”

It’s unfortunate that I’ve gotten used to the 9:45 dawn just in time to go back below 60′ latitude, but I figured there was enough rental insurance to get one last ride into backcountry so I beat the rising sun to the Northwest Peninsula. Crossing under the mountains and over seas, I made my wayContinue reading “North of the Wall”

Every guidebook in paperback or electronic format will state the Golden Circle is a must-see in Iceland. While there is room for additional stops based on timing and desire, the three main locales are Thingvellir, Geysir and Gullfoss. Having my own rental car (and time table), I was able to hit the first destination runningContinue reading “Government, Geysers and Golden Falls”

Reykjavik was getting familiar at this point, and my hiking boots were itching to be used (I thought I had gotten rid of the infestation). The first stop on my backcountry tour was the Lava Tube, a 5,000 year old cavern dug out by a river of molten rock. The constant dripping of water wasContinue reading “A Post of Ice and Fire”

One thing that does take a while to get used to in Iceland is the climate. While normally I’m a sucker for a good rainy day, it does induce some last-minute itinerary changes that can be frustrating. So when I get emailed from the car rental warning about incoming storms with metric-system values of windContinue reading “Reykjavik Roving Redux”