Therme Vals, Switzerland

Well, here I am sprawled out on a chaise longue in the spa, overlooking the most magnificent view. Words cannot describe the majestic snow-capped peaks, covered with firs right up to the treeline. Even my photos don’t do it justice. It’s a bright blue sky with fluffy white clouds scudding past from time to time. We are alive! We are happy! After yesterday’s trauma, we deserve it!

We started off VERY early from Marckolsheim (7.45am!) and drove uneventfully to Colmar, where Keeley was determined to find the “pretty village” part. It’s now a big industrial town so that wasn’t as easy as you might think. I opted to stay in the car and eat breakfast- delicious Fruit and Fibre cereal from Lidl, which I discovered in London last trip, followed by a raisin pastry, and a glass of pure apple juice.

Keeley returned from her mission with some good photos but didn’t find the “little Venice” she was looking for! After having her breakfast, we started off towards Switzerland. I had done the google maps from Marckolsheim, but the GPS was taking us a different, “shorter” way.

The trip was uneventful until we reached Zurich. We were supposed to bypass it according to google maps (I found this out later), but the bloody GPS took us right through the centre of the city! I started to feel a bit panicky when I saw trams! Yes, you guessed it- I HATE trams! Even more than I hate buses and trucks and cyclists and pedestrians! I would NEVER, EVER drive in Melbourne! But I remained calm for Keeley’s sake, and tried to concentrate on getting us out of the city and back on the highway. All went well, until I told Keeley to do a left turn one street too soon. I realized immediately it was the wrong street, not only was it the wrong street- it was a TRAM only street, and we were driving ON the tramline. There was NO lane for cars! People were gesticulating at us but there was nothing we could do! We were the only car in the whole street! Trams were passing us inches away (on the other line) and I was crying pleading with Keeley to please get off. I didn’t even care if she had to drive on the footpath! Finally she pulled into a side street where our trusty GPS says it doesn’t recognize the area! I begged Keeley to stop for a while, so I could recover from my severe panic attack, but no, she resets the GPS, and drives back into the traffic. Her plan was to get behind a car so at least we knew we weren’t on a tram-only street and that we were not driving down a one-way street. Her plan worked for one block until all the cars in front of us got through the green light, but we had to stop. (There were trams waiting at this intersection as well!) I had seen where the car that had been in front of us had gone and we took that path, and finally made it out to the highway. So, this experience tops the list. I was the most terrified for the longest period. All of my other bad experiences may have been paranoia, (what are the chances of the Eiffel Tower lift crashing to the ground?) but this was a very real scary experience! I also woke up with the feeling that I had used up all my lives, and my guardian angel had deserted me, but obviously she hasn’t. I say she, because a male guardian angel would have given up on me by now!

The rest of the drive was beautiful, if a little scary, driving on narrow mountain roads. Of course I am sitting on the cliff side, Keeley joking all the way, saying what would happen if we crashed off now? She has such a morbid sense of humour. She doesn’t get that from me! But I remained calm all the way to Vals.

When we arrived, we couldn’t find the hotel, even though it’s the only big building in the whole town! In our defence, there is not a single identifying sign. My expectations of our room here were a small room in a demountable building with shared lockers. In fact, our room on the second top floor was like a big cabin on a ship with two bunks, and an extra one built into the wall, with its own balcony with a spectacular view, small kitchenette with fridge and stove, and a separate bathroom. We also had a desk, a small table and two chairs. On the balcony was a table with two more chairs! There was enough cupboard space for a dozen people, with cupboards built in right up to the ceiling, like a motorhome. You could stock up and hibernate here for the winter! Each of the beds has its own shelf the length of the bed, plus each of the beds had back cushions so you could use them as lounges. And the piece de resistance?  The beds were sooo comfy and both had huge feather doonas. Keeley was so happy to have her own bed. I must admit sharing a futon in Marckolsheim was a bit squishy.

Well, I’m back into the mineral spa! What temperature should I choose? There’s a cold one at 14C- no thanks! I like the 42C one, but I can’t stay in there too long. The outdoor bath is perfect at 37- beautiful to swim in, or just float and soak in the peacefulness of the scenery as well as the health-giving benefits of the water.

We’re off to Austria tomorrow, with whistle stops at Vaduz and Neuschwanstein Castles.