Day 25: Giessbach Falls Part I
After the stress of being Kitchen Coordinator, I had the day off. I had no idea what I wanted to do but I knew that I wanted to leave the Chalet. I thought about going to a city but I decided to research the top waterfalls in Switzerland. I then found the next place that I wanted to visit....Giessbach falls!

I hopped on the bus and consequent three trains out to Breinz which is a town nearby Meiringen. I got off the train and on one side of the train tracks was the boat dock. I needed to take the boat over to Giessbach falls but the next boat was not coming for another hour! There was a small house that sold tickets and a miniature park looking out into the lake. The lake was large and that lovely pure turquoise colour. To the left, there were snowy peaks in the distance and rolling green mountains surrounding the lake.

I crossed the train tracks into the town of Brienz for a few minutes - I stopped in the Co-Op to buy a nectarine and chocolate milk to go with my lunch! I returned to the dock loading area just in time to catch the next boat! The boat reminded me of a mini cruise ship. It was a medium-sized motor boat with two stories. When I walked in, there was a ticket booth to one side and then there were two sets of stairs. One set of stairs to my right led down to the bathrooms. The set of stairs to my left led upstairs. There was also a restaurant and indoor sitting area on the floor of the boat right around the corner. I walked to the other side of the small cabin I was in to the deck outside. The deck extended on both sides of the boat but I gravitated to the side of the boat near the back. There were wooden benches nearby a giant Swiss flag flapping in the wind. I noticed the ducks swimming around the boat and sat on a bench close to the flag.

After a few minutes of waiting, the boat started travelling across the lake. The sun was shining bright, the sky was a brilliant blue and the water sparkled as the boat cut through it. On the left, I could see the town of Brienz and a small waterfall among the green terrain nearby Brienz. On the right, I could see the island that was my destination: a rolling green mountain covered in trees. In front, I could see snowy mountains in the distance. All in all, a beautiful boat ride. I got off at the first stop: Giessbach falls. I could see part of the waterfall from the front of the boat while I waited to get off.

I got off the boat and the dock led into a wooden building. In front of me there were maps of the area, brochures and a few benches attached to the wall. Behind me, the building opened up to the lake where the loading/exiting docks were. I saw signs for a funicular so I went up the ramp to look at it. So the funny thing is that when I went to Reichenbach falls I wanted to hike up next to the falls but I ended up taking a funicular after the hiking bit didn't work out. For Giessbach falls I expected to take the funicular up but the opposite happened haha. The Giessbach funicular was similar to the Reichenbach funicular; it was a scarlet red fancy trolley. The trolley followed wooden tracks up to the Grand Hotel Giessbach.

I decided to not take the trolley and I walked back towards the benches. I walked passed the benches and exited the building. I was feeling ravenous so I ate my lunch on a bench nearby the lake. I felt for the first time in a while "peace for my soul" as Helen Storrow would say. Ok, so a note about that. Brief history of Our Chalet: Helen Storrow provided the funds to build and operate the centre for 5 years but only if it was in Switzerland. Falk was a Swiss guider appointed to help Storrow and was the first Guider in Charge (now called World Centre Manager) for 20 years. Falk and Storrow found a spot in Aeschi which Helen Storrow thought was perfect because there she found "peace for her soul." Falk thought the area did not have enough adventure and she ended up finding the spot where Our Chalet stands now as a place that offers both adventure and peace for the soul.

After lunch, I decided to follow the "Wanderweg" signs to the hotel and waterfall. I climbed some stone stairs and after a short walk down a dirt path I came across the waterfall! Well, at least the end of it! There was a bridge that I crossed to the other side but on my right the water was cascading down rocks. To my left the water flowed into the lake. I decided to climb some of the rocks that were next to the waterfall but not completely covered in water. The rocks were really slippery and the mist was a slap to my face. I was about to climb up on a rock when my sunhat flew off and landed underneath the bridge. I carefully made my way down the slippery rocks to retrieve my hat (a successful mission!) and continued on my way. I followed a large dirt road that was surrounded by trees. The sun filtered through the green leaves and pine needles. Some of the tree trunks hung near to the path. I felt like I was in a fairy tale and on my way up to the castle (in this case a fancy antique hotel)!