So I finally made it to Switzerland, land of chocolate, cheese and clocks. I must say it is damn cold here. -15C. I can’t do the math but anything in the negative has got to be surely freezing. I had forgotten my heavy jacket back at home and luckily was able to swing by Sports Basement in SF during a layover to pick something up. Nearly missed my connecting flight by 15 mins.

Let me start by saying Switzerland in the winter is pure bliss. The people are friendly, the countryside is spectacular covered in snow. It’s total winter wonderland. Ski resorts are a skip and a hop onto a train and your at the resort of you choice. I was pretty impressed with the infrastructure that Switzerland has to enable skiiers to get to the mountain. My cousin and I took a side trip to Engelberg which was only about 60 mins from Luzern. I didn’t have my board with me but man did I wish I could have been out there. The views from the top were amazing. It makes Lake Tahoe look dinky in comparison.

Luzern is a quant little city with a central river. I probably could have walked the entire city if it weren’t so cold. Got to experience my first Gluwein which is a warm rose wine infused with spices like cinnamon. It was a treat to drink something warm when it was bone chilly outside. Cousins and I walked about the Central market but we didn’t go far because of freezing temperatures. The family even took me to Zurich to a Vietnamese Christmas party. I felt sorta out of place but hey whatever. I had a good time watching the locals celebrate. I’m gonna have to come back to Switzerland when it’s greener. I hear Interlaken is a backpackers dream.