From the rainbows of Ireland, to the mountain tops of the Swiss Alps,
to the culture and cuisine of Italy, and to the beaches and beauty of Spain.
We are so excited to leave for a trip we’ve been dreaming about and saving for since we got married over 3 years ago! We want to start a blog about our travels for several reasons. One- to share about our trip with friends and family. Two- to spend time together reflecting on and remembering the details of each day (planned and unplanned) so we can look back on this trip for years to come. Three- to share the places that have captivated our hearts, in hopes that someone may benefit for their own trip planning from hearing our experiences.
We depart in a couple days and are so excited to enjoy our Savior, enjoy each other, and enjoy the beauty and culture that awaits us on this trip!
We woke up early and arrived at our meeting spot for paragliding before 7am. Still being jet-lagged, it seemed even more crazy to me to go run and jump off a mountain. Our guides were hilarious and made the winding drive up the mountain more enjoyable. We hiked about 10 minutes through the trees to the clearing where we would run and take off with our guides. I was the first to run and jump, and while the takeoff felt scary and awkward, the rest of our 20 minutes in the air was so peaceful and relaxing!
Interlaken
We landed in a wide open park in the middle of Interlaken and walked back to our place to get our day packs ready for the Jungfrau! The town of Interlaken is so beautiful with turquoise alpine rivers running through it!
Interlaken
The Jungfrau is the tallest point in Europe. It sits with two other peaks high in the Alps and can be seen from just about anywhere in the surrounding area. We took a scenic train ride to the cute town of Lauterbrunnen on our way up to the Jungfrau. Lauterbrunnen is known for its waterfalls, including level 10 Trummelbach Falls. We also hiked up to a waterfall we could walk behind, which was refreshing in the heat! Our next stop was the Top of Europe, called the Jungfraujoch. Our jaws dropped as we looked out the train windows (we had been inside of tunnels for about 15 minutes leading up to the highest point). We were blown away by the gigantic glacier that was set before us! We got to walk around outside and through an ice palace inside of the mountain. Crazy that we were freezing up here but an hour prior we were sweating our brains out in the mountain villages leading up to the Jungfrau.
Top of Europe
The next morning we went for a walk down around the turquoise lakes of Interlaken before taking the train to Zermatt. Unfortunately, it was a rainy day, so we were not able to hike up to our hotel. Instead, we took another train up into the clouds to Rifleberg, where our hotel was, overlooking the Matterhorn. We were welcomed with mimosas and comfy bath robes in our rooms! We unpacked and started on a hike from the hotel to the top of Gornergrat, which overlooks the Matterhorn. After the hike we enjoyed the hotel spa and a beautiful 4-course dinner at the hotel restaurant!
The next morning we left by train for Geneva, where we flew out to Italy, our next stop!
We arrived in Switzerland eager to be in awe of the Alps and before we even touched down, that was accomplished.
We picked up our rental car and drove to Montreaux, where we toured a medieval castle called Chateau Chillon. Next we drove to the medieval village of Gruyere, which is known for its traditional and magical cheesemaking. The cows didn’t know how great of a view they had in this amazing town surrounded by the Alps. We had fondue for the first time at a cute place called Challet de Gruyere.
Gruyeres, Switzerland
Next we drove to the capitol- Bern. They have a fast moving river flowing through the entire city and “grass beaches” along the river where people were laying out and jumping in the river to float. Ethan and I jumped in with the locals and couldn’t stop laughing because of how funny it felt and looked to be moving so fast in the river.
We then drove to Lucerne and checked into a lovely B & B in the outskirts of Lucerne in a town called Meggen. The next morning we hiked up Mt. Rigi and enjoyed some beautiful views of the mountains and the water. This was just a taste of what was to come later that day.
Mt. Rigi
From Lucerne we drove to Interlaken and went directly to the trail head of the Hardergrat. This ridge line extends for miles and would take an entire day from sunrise to sunset if we did the whole thing. We found an entrance point that allowed us to make a steep hike up to the ridge and catch some of the best of the hike. I cried when we got to the top because of the beautiful turquoise water and the surreal steep ridge that lay before us. The drops from either side of the path on the narrow ridge were incredible and terrifying! Ethan was in heaven as we enjoyed the rest of our hike on the ridge! By far our favorite part of Switzerland!
That evening we walked around the town of Interlaken and split more cheese fondue for dinner! When in Switzerland…
We headed south to Killarney and stayed at one of our favorite hotels- the charming Lake Hotel in the Killarney National Park, overlooking the lake!
We took a day to drive around Dingle Peninsula, where we got out many times to go on long walks on the beach and go on shorter “hikes” up the hills along the coast. At one point we were hiking in the clouds because they were so low. There were crazy Irish people surfing and swimming in the sea! We ate at a quaint restaurant on Inch Beach and headed back to Killarney.
We finished our time in Ireland with a relaxing day in Greystones, walking around the town, eating fish and chips, playing cards at a picnic table, and getting dark hot chocolate from the Happy Pear one last time!
We had a big 25 hour travel day with every type of transportation- driving to OHare airport, flying on three different planes, and running through airports to catch our flights.
We started in Dublin and walked around St. Stephens Green, Grafton Street, and Temple Bar. We stopped at the famous Bewley’s for coffee and croissants before driving to Greystones.
Greystones is Ethan’s home away from home where he studied abroad for a semester through Taylor. That evening we hiked up to Big Sugar Loaf around sunset and managed to see a rainbow over an emerald green field of sheep in our first day. Classic Ireland.
The Happy Pear has become one of my favorite spots in Greystones with delicious healthy meals and baked goods and drinks- our favorite is the dark hot chocolate! We started off our next day with free porridge at the Happy Pear before taking the Dart train to Bray and walking and hiking about 6 miles back to Greystones along the coast! So beautiful!
Then we packed up and headed to Glendalough, one of Ireland’s most preserved monastic cities and scenic locations to hike. Glendalough actually means “Glen-between-two-lakes”. We hiked an 8-mile trail along both lakes, which then cut up the mountain and took us along the ridge to some breathtaking views of the entire valley.
We practically waddled back to our cars and drove a few hours to Killarney where we will spend the next couple days.
Travels with Ethan & Macey 