The Switzerland you thought only existed in postcards

München turned out to be one of the best places we have visited so far. There is tons to see and do. The Dutches Museum is the best science museum I have been to outside of the Smithsonian, the English Garden is not to be missed, and the beer comes in liters and is extremely tasty. It is also within an easy day's train ride of places such as Dachau (the concentration camp) and Schloss Neuschwanstein (the fairy tale castle). We ended up staying a whole week because there were more and more things we wanted to do and see. Munich also has the best public transportation system of any city we have been to. Combine that with a cheap place to stay and a well equipped kitchen why would we ever want to leave?
That being said there is plenty more of Europe to do and see and its easy to get bogged down in a place and get lazy. That can be just as dangerous in travelling as trying to do to much. There is a delicate balance to strike of staying in a place and seeing all it has to offer while not forgetting about the other places yet to be discovered. With that thinking in mind we decided to head off to Switzerland. Neal wanted to do some hiking and get out of the city for a while and after seeing the pictures of Gimmelwald, I couldn't agree with him more. Gimmelwald is a tiny little town up in the Swiss Alps, in the Jungfrau region. Even though hordes of backpackers come here, in part thanks to Rick Steves telling people that it was one of Europe's best kept secrets, nothing can diminish its charm or beauty. It also has one of the best hostels we have been to. The kitchen is outstanding. There is a stove and a fridge, which is not something you always find, the price is good, and when you wake up in the morning you can look our across the valley to the glacier capped peaks of the alps. The hiking is breathtaking and mesmerizing, and very challenging. It is all up and down and very steep. We hiked about 8 hours yesterday and were so sore this morning that we decided to just enjoy the sun and air and do some reading. Tomorrow I am sure we will be back out the trails. It is easy to see why people come here planning to stay for a few day and end up staying for weeks or months instead. As tempting and delicious as that sounds--- not only is the view amazing but the food is outstanding, I had a piece of pear pie that was probably the best thing I have had to eat in all of Europe--- we will be heading to Hungary and the Czech after this for a whole new perspective on Europe.I hope everyone enjoys the pictures because they capture the beauty much better than I can.