The Swiss Alps and the Matterhorn

So today I hiked in the Swiss Alps, and words cannot describe the sight. Even in the middle of July there is snow in the mountains. Being from the Southern part of the USA, I rarely see snow in December much less in July, so that was pretty exciting.

I had two days off in a row from work, so I decided to head down to the little town of Zermatt in the central southern portion of Switzerland. This town's claim to faim is the infamous Matterhorn. It has claimed many lives over the years. Below is a picture of a cemetery completly devoted to people who have lost their lives while attempting to climb. I did not make the attempt. There was the small matter of mountain climbing experience, a week of training, 1500 Francs. And oh yeah, I don't like heights.









While I was wondering around the city, I stumbled across three men playing their Alp horns. Elizabeth, I thought of you. The music was beautiful. One of the songs they played was Amazing Grace. I enjoyed it so much that when the moved to play on another street, I followed them so that I could listen some more. It was great free entertainment, Tim.

In order to hike around the Matterhorn and in the Alps, I had to take a cable car up to one of the peaks. The view from the car was absolutely breathtaking.





Some sheep I saw while hiking.

The Matterhorn at sunrise as seen from my hotel room. WOW.




Me in front of the Matterhorn.


Some of the houses that look down on the village of Zermatt. As we approached the town by train, I realized that this is what I expected Switzerland to look like. Zermatt has a strong German influence, and that is how I pictured Switzerland. The houses are built right into the side of the hills and there is so much green around the houses. It is very picturesqe. I love it. Oh and one more really cool thing about this town, cars are illegal. If the residents have cars they must park them outside the city limit. So the whole village is pedestrian friendly; it is great.

This is a close up shot of one of the houses.
Those large stone discs are supposed to keep rodents out.
I wonder if they really work.

So all in all I had a great mini-vacation in Zermatt. All that hiking I did in the hot sun gave a little sunburn, but oh well, a small price to pay for getting to see this most amazing sight.