Montreux, First Swiss Taste

A Youth Backpacker in Europe
Part II Chapter III
Montreux, First Swiss Taste


City: Montreux; Country: Switzerland; Currency: Swiss Franc; Travel Date: 6/9/2008

Waved goodbye to my extremely short stay in Nice, I boarded on a flight that spared me from the 16-hour train ride from Nice to Geneva, Switzerland. However, Geneva was merely a transit point to my forty-euro-for-an-hour ultimate first class train ride from Montreux to Interlaken.

Information intolerant? That is exactly what I wanted! And now come the details.

The morning was gloomy and rainy, at the Swiss side. At the French side, it was fantastic. Still bringing with myself the warmth of summer, I braved into the Swiss storm. Luckily, a glimpse at the snow-capped Alps Mountains was still possible at the tail of the airplane. For the first time, I flew over the Alps, literally feeling I was on cloud nine.

And then I was on a train for another train appointment from Geneva, after a confusing manoeuvre in the airport – The Swiss, the French, and the German sides really are something not so fun to play with. But I got through it of course and started to digest everything Swiss that is welcoming me.

And so I witnessed the mountains, the lake, the typical small town, the Swiss knifes and the infamously expensive trains of Switzerland, all in Montreux.

That’s all about Montreux that I had experienced in 3 hours – a delightful Swiss introduction.

Oh wait, my train. It was a first class, first row seat at the very first carriage, even more advanced than the train driver, which offered the ultimate view of Swiss surrounding during the train journey, at a cost of a normal first class train ticket, plus a little reservation fee. What is it called? Golden Pass Line.









Captions (from top left):
Alps from airplane; typical Swiss scenery; lake in Montreux; also a typical Swiss activity - boat trip; Swiss child having fun with semi-nature; my train - my seat is the first one on the right hand side.