kja

My long-awaited trip to Switzerland is nearly at hand, and aside from the fact that I’m not ready (panic!), I’m very excited. ☺ Thanks again to all of you who helped me as I planned my travels.

I would welcome comments on a few last questions:

1. I have reservations for two trains and one bus for which I believe my Swiss Pass provides only partial coverage. Am I correct in thinking I can take care of the extra charges once I reach the relevant stations or do I need to do something in advance?

2. While in Gruyeres, I’ll choose between (a) visiting the Maison Cailler and then walking from Broc-Fabrique to Gruyeres or (b) walking the Sentier des Fromageries from Moleson to Gruyeres. I’d appreciate any comments that might help me decide.

3. While in Fribourg, I’m thinking of walking just a bit into the Gotteron Gorge – maybe just a mile or so from the Pont de Berne before turning back. From what I can tell, the recommended walks are much longer. Is walking just a mile or so before turning back reasonable or would I end up missing too much to make it worthwhile?

4. I will have limited time in Bellinzona (4 or 4.5 hours at most), during which I hope to visit all three castles and the Chiesa Santa Maria della Grazie. From what I can tell, there are taxis in Bellinzona -- can anyone confirm that? Assuming there are taxis, I think I would like to take a taxi from town to the Castello di Sasso Corbaro. Once there, I could ask the taxi driver to wait while I admire the views and then take me to the Castello di Montebello. Or I could dismiss the taxi, visit the Castello di Sasso Corbaro, and walk down to the Castello di Montebello. I’d appreciate any comments that might help me decide.

5. How do I say "delicious" and "wonderful" in Romansch?

6. I read somewhere (sorry, but I’ve forgotten where) that trains in parts of the Lower Engadine only stop on request. Is that true, and if so, how do I do it? Speak to a conductor, pull a cord, press a bell…? Any tips about how I’ll know when to signal a desired stop?

7. To visit Zuoz, should I get off at the train station (or the bus station outside it) or is there another stop that makes better sense?

8. I hope to walk from Soglio through Castasegna (about 1 hour of easy downhill walking?), then on to Bondo and Promontogno (maybe another 1.5 hour, mostly flat?) – are these times and descriptions roughly on target?

Thanks in advance for your responses!

asps

Do not worry about Rumantsch. I speak Italian and German, but there are places in Switzerland where I cannot understand if I am talked in Rumantsch, German, a northern Italian dialect, or alternating all three at the same time. However, I looked up "delicious" in a Rumantsch dictionary. It comes in four variants according to the zone.

delizius (Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan and Vallader)
deliztigus (Sutsilvan)
delizious (Surmiran)
delizchus (Puter)

"Wonderful" has four variants:
mirveglius (Rumantsch Grischun)
marviglius (Sursilvan and Sutsilvan)
marveglius (Surmiran)
müravglius (Puter and Vallader)

kja

Grazia, asps! I'm not worried about Rumantsch, but I do like know a few words. And - bonus! - I should be able to remember these.

And oops - that was supposed to be a happy face!

undergrace

I spent 9 days in Switzerland a few years ago, but the only thing I can offer my two cents about is #2. We visited the Maison Cailler and it was pretty awesome! It is not a very long tour, but it is interesting to walk through the rooms and see how their chocolate is made. And in the end, the free sample room! We were the only ones in there, and I think I tried as much as my stomach would allow. Definitely got my 10CHF worth, that's for sure

Also, while in Gruyères be sure to stop by the HR Giger Bar for some beer, coffee, or even hot chocolate! He was a designer of the Alien movies and the architecture/decor certainly reflects that. By far one of the most interesting bars I have ever seen! We also had fondue at La Maison des Traditions Restaurant - super easy to find in the middle of the town's square.

Enjoy your trip to Switzerland!

neckervd

1. I can hardly imagine such trains or buses. Can you be a bit more precise?

2. There are 2 different hiking trails from Broc Fabrique to Gruyeres castle. None of them is spectacular. Count about 1 1/2 hrs for both. Load down a map, otherwise you will never find them, as the few signposts along them indicate other places than Broc Fabrique and Gruyeres. http://map.geo.admin.ch/?lang=en Plan your time in accordance with the activities in the cheese diary (usually morning only). Personally, I think that it might be difficult to fit this hike in any plan. Be aware that the chocolate factory closes at 4 or 5 pm, according to the season.
Le Sentier des Fromageries from Gruyeres to Moleson Village and back is a 5 hrs hike, 2 hrs more if you go up to Plan Francey and have lunch in a mountain restaurant.

3. don't worry about your Fribourg walk; you may also use the bus to or from Schoenberg.

4. There are of course taxis at Bellinzona railway station (city buses towards the castles too). But why will you be in such a hurry? Trains from Bellinzona to most other towns run every 30 min or so, until late evening.

5. The dialects spoken in Engadin ar Puter (upper part) and Vallader (lower part).

6. I suppose you read it in the official timetable. Stops on request only at La Punt, Madulain, S-chanf, Chinuos-chel, Susch, Lavin, Guarda, Ardez, Ftan. Press the bottom.

7. Zuoz is tiny. the railway station stop is OK.

8. OK for normal hikers.

neckervd

ad 5: wouldn't it be more useful to learn expressions like bun di, allegra, buna saira, arrivedair, gazia fitsch, bun plaschair, staziun da viafier, fermada da la poschta ... than delizchus?

kja

> Thanks, undergrace!

You are making a compelling argument for the chocolate factory! I’m a little worried about that testing room, though….

I’ve been reading about the HR Giger Bar. Sounds like quite a unique place – perhaps fortunately so!?! ;-)

Thanks for chiming in.


> Thanks, neckervd!

Well, I feel quite stupid! (I plead guilty of burning the candle at both ends of late, so please forgive me and bear with me.) My mistake about the trains (2 small stretches of the GoldenPass) and bus (from Lugano to Tirano) – I misunderstood something in the confirmations of my reservations and am glad to know that my Swiss Pass covers them. So let me revise my question: I have my pass and I have the reservations; do I need to do anything else before showing up for the departures?

Good to know that the walk from Broc-Fabrique to the Chateau de Gruyeres is not well-marked! After studying several maps, I had been thinking of taking the route that is close to the waterway, along what is labeled the Route des Marches on some maps. As I recall, another Fodorite had said it was quite pleasant. I believe that I can take that walk after the chocolate factory closes, given that I’ll be staying in Gruyeres that night and it will still be long before sunset. Any insights you can provide about what to watch for will be appreciated! As I mentioned, if I walk part of the Sentier des Fromageries instead of visiting the chocolate factory, then I would only walk from Moleson to Gruyeres; I’ll take a bus to Moleson. BTW, I don’t plan to visit the cheese factory, as I have visited displays of cheese-making elsewhere and have higher priorities for my time in this area.

I appreciate your suggestion that I can take a bus to/from Schoenberg to facilitate a short walk in the Gotteron Gorge. If I’m reading my maps correctly, it would be difficult to complete a walk from the Port de Berne through the gorge to a path into Schoenberg and get a bus back to Fribourg (or vice versa) in less than an hour, but maybe I am misunderstanding the options?

Thanks for confirming that there are taxis in Bellinzona. Because I’ll be visiting the Rosengart Collection in Luzern that morning (a VERY high priority for me – much higher than the castles), I won’t reach Bellinzona until mid-afternoon, and I would like to (a) visit some of the castle museums, even if briefly, before they close and (b) get to my next destination in time to check in and freshen up before dinner. And even if I had more time, I don’t relish the idea of that uphill walk! ;-)

I’m glad to know what to look for to request a stop at various places I plan to visit in the Lower Engadine. I know from painful experience that I sometimes forget to take note of that sort of detail until it’s too late! And I appreciate the info on Zuoz and about the walk from Soglio through Castasegna to Promontogno.

And LOL, neckervd, yes – the words you mention will certainly be useful! I didn’t ask for them because I already have some lists of basic words in Rumantsch. (But I’ll bite: what is fermada da la poschta? My very naïve guess is that it has something to do with the post-bus stops, and if not, I hope you get some good laughs from my misunderstanding.) In my travels to date, I have found that being able to tell someone that a meal is delicious, or that his/her town (or church or B&B or whatever) is wonderful, makes me feel that I've made the effort to communicate my enjoyment and seems to be appreciated, so I always try to learn those words in addition to the basics.

Thanks again for your input!

neckervd

Both, the Golden Pass train from Montreux to Zweisimmen etc. and the bus from Tirano to Lugano are fully covered by Swiss Pass. If you got your seat booking confirmation, you must do nothing more.

"I’ll be staying in Gruyeres that night"
That changes everything!
There are basically 2 itineraries:
1. from Broc Fabrique across the small plain to Broc Village and the Public Swimming Pool (Piscine), then all along the Sarine River up to the covered wooden bridge (Pont qui Branle) - Le Pont - Le Cheiny and Gruyeres.
2. from Broc Fabrique along the railway line to Forcel, then in direction of Praz Passy up to the last houses of Forcel, then along a small path below Praz Passy to Chapelle des Marches and down to the Sarine River path...

Gotteron Gorge/Galternschlucht: I agree, a bus ride to Schoenberg Dunant bus stop wouldn't shorten the walk in a significant manner. The path goes down into the gorge after the last houses of Schoenberg, at the end of Kleinschoenbergstrasse.

Rosengart collection: good idea. I suppose you know, that some Picassos from Rosengart hang actually in the Basel Kunstmuseum (Picasso Exhibtion).
Timetable of the citybus to Castello Montebello:
http://www.fahrplanfelder.ch/fileadm...013/62.204.pdf

Lower Engadine: all native people speak perfectly German too.
I suppose you know that the railway stations of Guarda and Ftan are rather far away from the villages.

You are right: fermada means stop/fermata/arret/parada/Haltestelle, poschta can mean post office (for everybody) or post bus (rather for older people, the word bus gets more and more popular)

BTW: for me, la tuorta da nuschs da la furnaria Giacometti a Lavin is really delizchus. May be you like the nut cakes (local speciality) from this bakery too.

kja

I've added notes about the bakery and nut cakes to my travel plan for Lavin - thanks, neckervd!

kja

For my final itinerary and trip report, see http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...any-thanks.cfm