Bonjour de la Suisse: They won't insure you for that in the states?!? <em>Let's do it!</em>

Back in Geneva, we decided to take it easy and figure out the best way to stay cool. The big task of the day was trying to find a fan. Earlier in the week, ours had broke when G brought it up from our bomb-shelter storage area in the basement of our building. It did still work, perched precariously on the cat stand and balanced with one of our folding chairs. I thought in the interest of all of our safety, we should probably get another. But, at the "big" electronics store we were told the fans were "fini." Sold out.

It was Friday & tonight we were going out for my birthday dinner and wouldn't you know it... it started to rain! It was a welcome relief from the scorching few weeks we had had and a great b-day gift. The waiter talked us into sharing a "fondue Chinois" (Chinese fondue). None of us had ever herd of it, but it turned out to be amazing! We had a pot of boiling broth that we cooked skewered meat in. We were given about 15 different sauces to dip our meat into. It sounds strange, I know, but it was scrumptious! I would highly recommend it if you ever have the chance.

That weekend, Chica, G & I headed to Interlaken and the Swiss Alp towns in the rugged Berner Oberland. This really is classic Switzerland, and the mountains are beautiful! We took a gondola up through Gimmelwald and on to the town of Mürren. On the way we met a really cool Australian who was traveling alone. We ended up hanging out with her the rest of the day. We ate lunch 2,000 feet up, overlooking the valley floor below. Full from a traditional Swiss lunch, we were ready for a little adventure. The four of us rented mountain bikes and (after a few wrong turns) were headed down switchback dirt trails to the valley far below!

We biked over to the most powerful waterfall in the valley, Trümmelbach Falls, which actually has cut its way through the mountain side. It flows at a rate of over 20,000 liters (5,000 gallons) a second! I've never seen anything like it. Pretty cool!

That night we stayed at the famous Interlaken hostel, Balmer's Herberge. It was sort of like a frat house, they had a great beer-garden type area, their own bar & restaurant, dance club, pool tables, & internet! We even got our own room, which was actually big enough to sleep about 8 people. Our room overlooked the street outside, where the local farmers were parading their cows & goats (wearing traditional bells) around town heading for their summer pastures. It was wild!!

We knew we wanted to really experience the extreme adventure that Interlaken is known for, but we were having trouble deciding between paragliding and canyoning. At breakfast, we overheard some guys at the next table talking about what they had done the day before. When Chica heard one say, "Yeah, canyoning was awesome, and they won't insure you for that in the states!" Her eyes lit up!! We went to the activity desk at the hostel and they said the 1/2 day group had just left, but they would come back if we could be ready in 5 minutes. We scrambled to throw our stuff together and were whisked away to the activity center to meet up with the rest of the group and get our gear on. And when I say gear, I mean gear: wetsuit, helmet, life vest, harness, butt padding, & shoes.

So what is canyoning exactly? Well, our brochure described it as, "Canyoning is a challenging activity where you make your way down a narrow and steep gorge by tackling a series of waterfalls, climbing, abseiling/rappelling, jumping or sliding down cliffs." Sweet!

We hiked a bit and then entered the canyon. Our guides, Timmy (an Aussie) & Sam (from the US), were great! The initial shock of the icy glacial water was close to unbearable! After we eased into the water, there was quite a bit of hiking through the streams before we hit any of the big stuff. When we reached our first jump, I wondered if it was too late to turn back. I have been working on my fear of heights and I thought that repelling 165 feet off the Dumbarton Bridge last year kicked that fear, but I was wrong. I was positively terrified. One by one, I watched my group members disappear into the depths below, including Chica & G, so I knew I had no choice in the matter. Then, it was my turn.

I shimmied out onto a log that spanned the river gorge 30 feet below me, with sheer rook walls on both sides. "Okay, my love, lean over the edge and look below you," Timmy advised me, "You see that 2 x 2 foot pool of water down there? You must land in that. If you jump a foot too far to your left, you will crash into a massive rock shelf and, well, that won't be good for anybody."

Uh, thanks Timmy for alleviating my fears. I mustered up all my courage and managed to jump on the first count of three and landed on target. The day turned out to be one of the most amazing days I have ever had! By the time we reached the bottom, every one of us was sliding through natural rock tubes, swimming through hidden pools, and leaping off 30 foot ledges. (Sorry, no pics of us, our cameras would never have survived the trip.) Four hours later, we had forgotten just how cold the water was and were eager for more! We finally emerged from the depths of the canyon and celebrated with a late lunch and a drink.

We left Interlaken happy and triumphant! All three of us want to go canyoning again, but next time for a full day. The next day Chica and I were on the early flight to Amsterdam and more adventures!