A night in an Igloo

Ok well, I made a promise to a lot of people and myself that I was going to stay on top of my blogs this year.  There is still a lot to catch up on from the end of last year, but I have to start out right. Of course I made this same promise last year, but I really hope to stick with it this time.

So after taking December "off" from traveling, we made our first trip of 2014 to an Igloo.  I am not really sure what made us think this was a good idea, I don't need to remind you all that we used to live in Hawaii and we grew rather accustomed to the warm weather.

Anyway so the Igloo, was in Switzerland and our friends Chris and Ann joined us for this quick adventure. We headed out at 7 am which turned out to be the perfect time because as we got to the mountain pass the snow had picked up.  We made a last minute decision to take the car train (sort of like a ferry but through a tunnel instead of across the water) this tuned out to be a good thing since the pass was actually closed and we had no other choice.  I should also note that had we tried the pass we would have missed the train because we were the last car allowed on. What luck!

The Car Train.

Figuring out Eucre

After the train and a bit more driving we arrived in Tasch where we caught another train (just for people this time) to Zermatt.  Zermatt is a no driving town - other than the little electric vans and a few buses that don't mess around.  Zermatt is also the base camp for the majority of the 4000 meter peaks in the alps including the star - the Matterhorn. We explored this lively little town, had a lovely lunch at a small chicken shop enjoyed some drinks at a little cafe and then headed further up the mountain to our "hotel."  

Exploring Zermatt

The boys throwing snow balls
Chris with the fox hat!

Zermatt from above

The igloo was at 9235 feet (over a mile high) and it was beautiful inside and out (though we didn't see the outside beauty till our trip down the next day).  We enjoyed a welcome drink had a tour around the "grounds" and then settled in for the night.  Every room of the igloo has beautiful ice carvings - including the bedrooms.

Gluwein!

Bar and Ice Carvings

Ann & Chris at the bar

Chris & Ann's Room

The night included dinner which started with a small appetizer followed by one large bowl of cheese and another of bread - Swiss Fondue.  It really was just cheese and bread but we made the most of it by adding some instant soup which was surprisingly tasty.  Later we went for a nice snow shoe hike and were able to see a bit more of the mountain - it was actually really neat because we watched all the "snow tractors" groom the slopes.

After Snowshoeing - the igloo on the right is where our guides slept.

Relaxing after our hike.

We warmed up a little with some cards and then a dip in the hot tub - yes a hot tub outside at 9235 feet. It was freezing but felt oh so nice when we were inside minus the wind on our faces :)  Despite getting dried off and changed in the "warm room" we still needed some soup and hot tea before heading to our rooms.  We had a double sleeping bag on a bed of ice covered with animal skin/fur.  Phil and I even sported our footie pajamas.  The sleeping bag allegedly was for -40 but if that was true that it must have been -80 because I was freezing all night.

Ready for Sleep

The next day we headed down the mountain taking a few short sled rides to breakfast in an actual hotel. After breakfast it was time to make the journey back to Vicenza. So a train down to Zermatt - during which we had the most gorgeous views of the Matterhorn - then another train to Tasch and back in the car.

The Tallest of all the Alps - The Matterhorn

Still visible from Zermatt

This time we were able to drive through the pass - though it took over an hour compared to the 20 minute train ride it proved worth it for the beautiful views.  (Plus we would have had to wait an hour for the train.) After making our way up and over the mountains we found a small place for lunch right before passing back into Italy.  Of course the place was more Italian than Swiss but since we had our fill of cheese the night prior that was fine with us.

Views in the pass.

The end of the pass and finally a clear sky without snow...
back to the warmth of Italy!

A bit more driving and we arrived safely and warmly back home.  Although I would still like to sleep under the Northern Lights someday now I would be content to do it in the comfort of a hotel with heat.  Our next trip we are going SOUTH... stay tuned!