Peek-a Boo with the Matterhorn

This is a story about not taking a photo of the Matterhorn. 

A viewing of the Matterhorn (which I really would have liked to see with my own eyes and through the lens of a camera) just didn't happen. The mountain behaved like a shy stripper.

Matterhorn and next door neighbor having a chat no doubt. (Wikipedia)

First she was all covered in silver grey clouds, and then she raised her skirt just a little so we could see her ankles. Next, she dropped her skirt down and showed us a bare shoulder… just enough to let us know she was really there. 

Eventually in the afternoon the sky cleared a bit and let the sun through to us. But Ms. Matterhorn was making her own weather, clinging to her lacy, cloudy garment, never giving us the opportunity to introduce ourselves properly to her.

A few days ago we left St. Moritz (a place I want to go back to a few times more… sort of like Disneyland, one can’t get enough) continuing on by Glacier Express to Brig, another Swiss German language village well equipped to handle a lot of tourists but which still maintains a sense of earlier times in its architecture and preservation. We made a day trip of going to Zermatt from Brig.

Zermatt, Switzerland www.hotelsofzermatt.com

Of course we all know what the Matterhorn looks like so we could live without witnessing her. Think of it as knowing what the moon looks like because astronauts took pictures. I must say there were many large posters of the mountain displayed up and down the street to remind us of what we missed.

There was plenty to do in Zermatt (the town nearest the base of the mountain) while we waited through late morning and early afternoon for the lady to show herself. The town has lovely hotels, restaurants and endless opportunities to comparison shop watches and do-dads with Swiss flags on them.

I should also mention that much of the touristy items are dishware and sculptures of the ever-present Swiss cow. Or, how about a rubber ducky to play with in the bath tub made in soft red plastic with a white Swiss cross on it? This last one would be a delightful gift for young adults headed for college.

I kept looking for gift items that were miniature trains or at least something that exploited the images of wonderful train system of this country. Machts nicht! So far I haven’t found anything like that. Swiss capitalists have missed this entire category. I might mention that the Glacier Express offered exclusive watches for about two to three thousand dollars. Well, I like watches but really…

In the end, our day was well spent enjoying the iconic Swiss design of the streets and buildings and the horses and carriages carrying tourists to their hotels. Car-free pedestrian streets have proliferated miniaturized electric vehicles mostly used by locals to get around the tourist. If you follow the primary, narrow pedestrian street back far enough, one finds a very pleasant park from which to view the mountain… or not.