4th Sep 18
Breakfast at the hotel before walking down the main street, which seemed to be full of shops selling expensive high end watches, towards Interlaken Ost station to find the funicular which would take us up the 60% angle to Harder Kulm in less than ten minutes - much easier than climbing.
Described as the top of Interlaken it offers fantastic views over the town and lakes Thun and Brienz which straddle Interlaken and Unterseen. From an altitude of 1322 metres above sea level you can also see some of the more distant peaks covered in snow and ice. We headed straight for the platform which juts out over the valley to offer the best views, and is also home to a large model cow. Having done our usual tragic best to take selfies where our heads and the scenery are actually close to being straight, we decided to get some coffee and chips. The weather was glorious so sitting outside even at this altitude was perfect.
We then followed a wooded trail around the top of the mountain which offered only occasional views over the valley, but a cooler environment for a walk, and eventually back to the restaurant. Time for a little rest after our exertions, so we sat for a while contemplating the beauty of the place over a cold beer, before heading back down on the funicular.
Stopped off to pick up leaflets describing the boat trips available, then headed back towards our end of town until we reached the Hohematte Park which is on the main street, and is where the paragliders were landing. Realising we were hungry we found a place with great views of the park and surrounding mountains and ordered Raclette. This involved melting slices of cheese on miniature coal shovels over our heated contraption for about two minutes, then mixing the results with potato, pickled onions, bacon, pickled gherkins, and paprika. Very tasty and good fun until Michelle managed to set fire to the heating device’s wooden handle. A bit of flapping around with my spatula followed prior to me deciding that smothering the flames with my napkin might be more successful - thankfully I was right. The other downside of our chosen restaurant was that the manager was obsessed by the Spice Girls cover - Two become One by Scary Pockets ft. Rozzi Crane which was played repeatedly, despite this we forced ourselves to stay long enough to enjoy ice cream sundaes.