Working in Germany: Derek's Perspective

Derek has written a post that shares his life in the German workplace. Enjoy! 

Derek outside of his office in the Odenwald

While I was finishing my engineering degree last fall in Indianapolis, Courtney and I began talking about some of the opportunities that I should look into for after graduation. One thing we discussed is how cool it would be if I could get a job that would take us overseas for a year or two before returning to the States. I don’t think it was more than a couple weeks after that when I received an email from a recruiter who was looking for candidates that were willing to spend a year in Germany in a Product Design Engineering position before returning to the States. It couldn't have worked out more perfect. Four interviews and a month later, I was hired and we had to begin thinking about how we were going to pull this off.

The reason that Courtney and I were able to move to Germany was because my company, Freudenberg, is working to unify the knowledge and experience between the lead-center in Reichelsheim, Germany, and the competency center in Morristown, Indiana. I will learn what I can during the one year that I am here, and then bring that knowledge back to the United States to the plant in Morristown, along with the connections that I have made with the other product development engineers in Germany.

View from Derek's office window

Now I’ll jump forward to my first day. I first met with Dr.Thiel, the boss of the lead-center and he told me that the first important decision that I will have to make each day is what meal I would like to eat for lunch. I will get more into lunches, as well as meals in general later. We then proceeded to the office where he began by gathering everyone around, perhaps 30-40 people, and introducing me to the office, in German and English. Germans love shaking hands, not unlike Americans, and so the next half hour or so was spent walking around a shaking hands with people in my office. I discovered that unlike my office in Indiana that only has one window, which is on the door leading to the production area, my desk in Germany offers a view of a castle perched atop a small mountain on the other side of the small town. I don’t remember much more of the first day except eating at the Kantine, and then having my first experience with the after lunch routine. Every day after lunch, by custom, you must go outside and have the option of either walking a lap around the plant, or standing and talking with your co-workers. This lasts for typically between ten and fifteen minutes.

As far as the office environment goes, it is very relaxed. People are not stressed, they go to work, work, and then go home and enjoy their lives. At my work, overtime is not permitted for salary workers. In March, my boss even went so far as to send an email out to all of the salary employees, telling us that already this year there have been 17 instances of people working overtime, and that working more than ten hours in a day is not allowed; and if he discovers people working overtime again, there will be repercussions. This is something I don’t think I’ll have too much trouble getting used to. In America, it is typical to talk about work outside of work, such as with friends, family, etc., but in Germany this is almost never the case, and it fits well with their work hard, play harder attitude, where work and normal life seem to be very separate things. Germans also get at a minimum 24 days of vacation each year, and so companies that work with German companies are accustomed to having their contact go on vacation for sometimes three weeks at a time, during which work on the project pretty much stops.

Derek's Office Space

Lunches at the workplace are subsidized in Germany, and so for €3.25 I get to eat a warm meal for lunch every day. Now, if you are German, you will only eat one warm meal a day. This means that if you plan to cook dinner with your husband or wife that night, that you cannot eat anything above room temperature for lunch or breakfast, and Germans follow this rule to a T. I believe that part of their reasoning is that they believe eating warm meals (especially more than one in a day) is the way that you gain weight.  I did not know this at first, and so when my co-workers found out that I was eating two warm meals a day they were surprised, and joked about how I better make sure to workout hard or I would gain a lot of weight. Also, you must completely finish all of your food on your plate, unless the meal is unsatisfactory of course. I don’t know if this is because of a desire not to be wasteful, or just culture,  but it is different from the U.S. where it is perfectly normal for a person to not be able to finish all of the food they have on their plate. The one exception to this rule is the soup. If you think the soup is too salty, you must simply make a comment to your co-workers about it and then remove it from your tray.

Another interesting thing is the greetings and farewells here in Deutschland. Every morning begins with Morgen, Moin, Moin Moin, or something that sounds like Moisure. All are simple, and pretty much  just mean "good morning." Starting at 11:00 am (or 11:50 at my work since most people eat at noon) you will almost only hear people using Mahlzeit as the greeting, which literally means “meal time” and is used anytime you meet someone or pass someone during this time. This lasts until about 1:00 pm, but can stretch as far as 2:00 pm sometimes. When it is time to leave work for the day, there are some normal goodbyes like Schön Abend (have a nice evening), Bis Später (see you later), or simply Tschüss (goodbye, see-ya), but my favorite one is Schön Feierabend, which was translated to me as essentially "happy quitting time."

And on that note, I will leave you with Schön Feierabend and return with part Two of Working in Germany soon enough. Tschüss! - Derek

Living in Germany: Six Months in the Making

Abby captured this photo in our backyard

Is it almost August, already? I think back to last January and it seems as though we were just packing up our belongings and boarding a plane for Germany. But then again, a lot has happened since then and I often find myself needing to slow down and smell the roses.

I'm currently sitting in a McCafe in Saarbrucken, Germany. I've just gotten off a bus from the city and country of Luxembourg where I spent a final day and evening with my twin sister, Abby, before giving her a somewhat tearful goodbye this morning. I have a two hour "layover" before my train to Heidelberg, and then another hour until my train home. It was a wonderful month with my sister. We have been best friends since birth and been through almost every major and minor life event together and everything in between except for the last two years when she went to grad school in Saint Louis and I stayed in Indianapolis and now Germany. Now she is moving to Denver and I will move back to Indy; we are not sure when the next time will be that we actually live in the same city. So for her to spend a month here with me before starting her job and moving to Denver was amazing. It's the most time we have spent together since we went to Costa Rica two years ago after undergrad graduation. Anyways, it was fun to play "twins" for a month; we even bought the exact same shirt (color and all) yesterday.

Yes- we actually danced on stage!

For my own memory's sake, in the last six months, I've quit my job, moved to Germany, visited about 15-20 new cities and countries, met Derek's German family (now mine), finished planning a wedding, got an internship, returned to the USA for four weeks, went to Florida for a week and married my best friend, returned to Germany and spent four days in Sicily before picking up my sister for a month-long stay where we spent two nights in Munich, four days in Switzerland and enjoyed many wonderful dinners, festivals and glasses of wine. Derek and I have been on many adventures- we've skied in the German Alps, biked around the backstreets of Paris, and even slow-danced on stage at a wine fest to German folk music. We've had our share of adventure, but we're not finished yet!

To start with, we are in the process of acquiring my residence permit so I don't feel illegal. To clarify: I am not here illegally; I'm still on a tourist allowance. But I'll feel better once I have my paper saying that I can stay. Currently, we are having our marriage license translated into an international paper- a costly venture. 

I am also extremely excited to welcome my parents to Deutschland and Europe for a 1.5 week visit in September. It's their first time out of the country, so I look forward to making it a wonderful experience for them and I have no doubt that it will be anything but great! We are going to London for a night then visiting the University of Evansville sister college of Harlaxton Manor near Grantham, England. (My dad works at UE). Then it's back to Germany for a few days before heading to Munich and Salzburg for a long weekend. I'm packing the itinerary full!

The two largest trips that Derek and I have declared as "must-haves" during the rest of our time here are Rome and Sevilla, Spain. As an engineer, Derek is greatly looking forward to the architectural history of the Roman capital. And since I spent four amazing months in Sevilla while in college, I want to share the city with Derek. And eat some delicious paella while at it.

What I've Learned So Far

• It's OK to not be on the go constantly. Although it seems like we are, I've learned that during the week while Derek is at work, it's alright that I'm not constantly up to something. I learned this during my first month of arriving.
• You can get anywhere by public transit.
• Bringing our cat to Germany was the best decision ever!
• I can drink a liter of beer if I must.
• America needs more vacation days. They have a minimum of 24 in Germany.
• Not everything will go your way, but just roll with the punches. It's not the end of the world.
• Germany enjoys all genres and ages of music. I've heard more American oldies here than I've ever heard in America. 
• Bread is a staple to every diet and enjoying it with coffee at any part of the day is completely acceptable.
• If beer and wine are cheaper than water, why order water?
• The German language is very difficult to learn, but I need to try harder.
• I eat way more sausages then I ever thought possible.

What I Know for Sure

• Kaffee und kuchen is a tradition we are bringing home.
• If you don't put yourself out there, what's the point? ( I love this quote from a favorite movie, We Bought A Zoo, "All it takes is 20 seconds of insane courage")
• I'm losing (somewhat) my fear of spiders! (thanks to our furry child)
• With a smile on your face and kindness in your voice, you can get through almost any uncomfortable or difficult situation.
• I am so lucky to have this amazing experience. I wouldn't trade it for anything and I still can't figure out why we have been so blessed.

What's Left on My Never-Ending List

• Become conversational in German
• Brush up my Spanish while I'm at it
• Visit Rome, Spain, and the rest of Europe
• Tour a winery
• Visit Berlin and northern Germany
• Hike the Melibokus (the highest mountain in our backyard)
• Go on a natural adventure- camping, whitewater rafting, paragliding, etc.
• Race for the Cure in Frankfurt in September
• Learn to drive the BMW (this may be a stretch)
• Pick grapes at the vineyards for the wine harvest
• Tour the family bakery in Oberstenfeld
• Gain more experience to add to my resume for my future career
• Read some books that make me think
• Cook Thanksgiving dinner for our German friends

And the list goes on....

Have an idea? Let me know! Leave a comment in the section below or email me at: courtney.logel@gmail.com
If you're reading this as an email, click the Life as I Know It link and it will take you to the blog site.

Simba's New Hobby: The Exterminator

Is that a fly on the window?

Simba, our dear furry child, has completely adapted to life overseas. He enjoys his days by feeling the breeze through the windows, begging his parents for more food, and for extra protein, he enjoys catching all of the spiders and flies that get into our apartment. His latest two attempts were today.

This afternoon I heard a cry coming from Simba and Abby's room. I walked in to find Simba crying at a fly out of his reach. He awkwardly jumped at it, and sadly missed. This evening as Abby and I were enjoying dinner outside on the patio, I heard a noise. Simba had just ran into the door with his face while trying to catch a fly. Seconds later, he jumped three feet off the ground and caught it. He won't be hungry tonight.

Now you may ask, why so many bugs in our apartment? I ask the same question. However, we do live in a half basement, and basements are more prone to bug invasion. We also leave the wood shutters down during the day with cracks in them so that a breeze gets through. There are no screens, so this is another reason. Our land lady also likes to open the cellar door to our basement. This is another avenue of entry. Many of you know that I have a large fear of spiders, but thankfully I don't have to worry about that anymore since we live with an exterminator.

In other cat news, Simba has taken several trips lately. In June he spent two weeks at the cat pension, a two-story apartment for cats to stay at while their owners are on vacation. He was not so happy after spending two weeks away and seemed a little more aggressive when we returned home. He returned to the pension last week, before we went to Switzerland, and he had a wonderful experience this time! He made a friend! When Derek went to pick him up on Monday, Simba rubbed noises with his furry friend before getting into his suitcase to come home. He has been so sweet since returning from the pension. I sure am a proud momma.

Hey guys!

Simba is also no longer intimidated by the old fart of a dog that lives upstairs and barks at strange hours of the night. I think he would bark back if he could. Last night Simba woke Derek and I up at 3:00 am by trying to cough up a hairball. I woke up and thought there was a loud machine outside, but it was just our little guy trying to feel better.

I suppose that's all for a Simba update. More to come later!

Life's more fun up-side-down

Just a little snooze on the chair cushions

No one can see me!

But Daddy, I don't want to take a nap!

Ok, so what's for dinner Dad? This fridge is pretty empty.

Our Alpine Adventure in Switzerland

On Sunday evening we arrived home from our four day adventure in the chocolate loving, cheese making, and purely beautiful Swiss country. Switzerland lived up to all of my expectations, surpassing many of them, and simply left us wanting more. 

We piled in the car around 8 am on Thursday morning. Derek had taken off the last two days of the week so that we could take an extended weekend while Abby was in town. We had an uneventful drive to the border of Switzerland, about three hours away. When we arrived, however, we had to pay 40 Euros for a 2012 Swiss car pass, but oh well. Besides that, there were no customs and we didn’t need our passports that we had packed. We arrived at our first destination, Lauterbrunnen, after a stop at our first mountain lake, Lake Thun. Oh it was beautiful, and it sure was a great first impression of the gorgeous country. We couldn’t wait to get to our final destination to see what it had in store. 

At Lake Thun

Lake Thun

Abby and I had researched areas within the Berner Oberland – the “Jungfrau” region of the Swiss Alps. The Bernese area (hence the name Bernese Mountain Dog) is known for its three large mountains – the Eiger, Monch, and the Jungfrau- and also for its mountain lakes, beautiful Alpine villages and the tourist attraction and Swiss architectural feat of the highest railway station in Europe, the Jungfraujoch. The valley we were headed to, the Lauterbrunnen Valley, is known for its 72 waterfalls, as well as the Uneseco World Heritage Site of the Trummelbach Falls. We had seen a video of the valley on YouTube, and Derek’s reaction was “Places like that don’t actually exist!”

So when we arrived in the valley, through a few winding roads, we thought: It is true; places like this do exist! The valley was lush green with steep cliffs defining each side as waterfalls poured down, chalet style houses dotting the green pastures and the cute town of Lauterbrunnen providing a gateway to a scene that I had only seen on TV and read about in a storybook. Our first views:

Lauterbrunnen Valley

Overlooking the valley

Staubbach Falls

Looking over the valley

Lauterbrunnen Valley

Since we couldn’t check into our hostel, the Valley Hostel, until 4 pm, we decided to explore the town. We walked through the quaint valley town, filled with adventure seekers packing up their parachutes, campsites, and tourists snapping photos of the many waterfalls. After collecting Swiss Francs from the ATM, we headed to the Staubbach Falls- a 9740ft waterfall that frames the valley. The climb up and walk behind the falls was free, and beautiful. We then drove to the Trummelbach Falls, the only set of waterfalls that can be seen inside of a mountain. The river that flows through drains the Eiger mountain glacier. In total there were about ten waterfalls within the mountain, twisting and turning and providing a refreshing spray in the face. It was really interesting to see how the Swiss had created tunnels and viewing platforms to see each of the waterfalls. I’ll let the photos describe it better:

Derek inside the mountain

Overlooking a fall

Another fall gushing over

Abby and I on the viewing platform

Abby and I overlooking the waterfall

After the Trummelbach, we gathered some “appetizers” from the local COOP grocery store and checked into the hostel. Our host, a wonderfully friendly Lauterbrunnen local, showed us our clean, lovely room with waterfall view, explained that we must wear slippers in the room and gave us a tour of the kitchen and bathroom. This was the nicest, friendliest and cleanest hostel I have ever stayed at. For 33 Francs each (about $35 USD), we had a triple room with sheets, duvet, free wifi and a balcony with this view:

The view from our room

Our Hostel

Perfect place to watch the world go by

On our balcony

After getting settled, we spread out our fresh, warm mini baguettes, triangular Swiss Brie cheese, and local salami for our appetizer and late lunch. Thinking the prices in Switzerland were going to be outrageous compared to Germany, I also brought two bottles of wine. Come to find out, many things in Switzerland are comparable in price to Germany. The only huge difference we noticed was the price of dinner at a restaurant. We had a wonderful two hours of just enjoying the view of the clouds rolling in and out of the valley and the waterfalls. It even briefly rained, and then blue sky reappeared. We met a couple from Michigan who shared our balcony and were on a two week holiday after business in France. They decided to join us for dinner and we headed to a campsite restaurant about a ten minute walk away, a place that was recommended by our hostel host. We indulged in local Swiss cuisine of rosti with eggs, alpler magrone and wine. We had a great, conversation-filled dinner and headed home around 10:30 pm to go to bed in preparation for our very early morning to come. Here’s a look at our dinner:

 Alpler magrone: My dinner of a Swiss mac & cheese with onions, potatoes and apple sauce for dipping. It was delicious!

Derek's dinner of rosti:  A hashbrown with egg and sausage.

DAY 2

We woke up to our alarms sounding at 6 am and headed out the door for our Jungfraujoch adventure. We had bought the tickets at the tourist office the day before in hopes of a sunny day to follow. The valley was filled with clouds and fog when we walked out the door, but we tried to be optimistic that the top of the mountain would provide a view. Jungfraujoch is the highest railway station in Europe at 11,332ft above sea level- built in and upon the Jungfrau Mountain. It opened for business in 1912 and is the top attraction in the Berner Oberland. I had first heard about this attraction from Where in the World is Matt Laurer?- a special segment from the Today Show. (You can watch it here.) The Jungfraujoch is one of those places that you see on TV or read about in National Geographic, but never actually think that you would be so lucky to visit it. (At least, this is what I thought.)

We took the train from the Lauterbrunnen station up the mountain to Kleine Scheidigg, a mountain checkpoint and large railway station that connects the world to the Jungfrau. Here we switched trains in the misty fog and boarded the Jungfraubahn, a cozy train that took us 50 minutes further up the mountain. It stopped at a few “scenic” overlooks, and this is what I was able to take a photo of:

This was a "snow lake"- part of a glacier. 

We had no such luck with the weather at the top. We got off the train and found our way to the Sphinx Observatory deck. Again, this is what we saw:

Lovely!

I think this looks like something from Antartica

When it should have looked like this: http://www.jungfrau.ch/en/quick-navigation/top-of-europe/360-degree-panorama/

But honestly, it was still an impressive feeling to know what lay beyond the abyss – mountain peaks, glaciers and the beauty of some of the highest peaks of the Alps. After our semi-disappointing look at the observation deck, we headed through the rest of “tour” of the railway station. The next stop was an ice cave in the glacier. It was impressive, with several carvings portraying scenic and folklore traditions of the Swiss and the landscape. There were penguins, eagles and a large ice carving of Sherlock Homes, said to have solved a mystery on this mountain. It was very, very cold. Just ask Derek in the shorts. After the ice cave, we found another area outside that provided an excellent experience of ice cold white air and blowing winds. We managed to find another crazy person to take our photo with the Swiss flag:

I think we may dress warmer next time.

What a splendid view!

At the observation deck

After that adventure, our toes and fingers needed some feeling so we enjoyed some over-priced but delicious hot chocolate and coffee. With hope of the view clearing up and the ice melting away (yeah right), Derek and I headed back outside to for one last view at the top of Europe. Around 11 am we headed back down the mountain and snuggled in for a nap while it rained in the valley. When we awoke, we drove about 20 minutes to Interlaken, the “adventure sports capital of the world.” It was a nice raining day activity – we walked around the tourist-filled city, enjoyed watching some para-gliders land in the park and made our way to the COOP supermarket again to gather a hostel dinner of pizza and raspberry pie.

DAY 3

We awoke to a breath-taking blue sky filled with bushy white clouds. Our first thought: the Chinese family next to us sure lucked out- they have their winter coats on and are heading to the Jungfrau. We would have loved a view from the Jungfrau on a day like this. But, oh well. We checked out of the hostel and boarded a cable car for a two minute ride up a very steep mountain to the car-free sleepy village of Gimmelwald. If you’ve read Rick Steves travel books, you know he talks up this town like crazy. I had read his book and although I trust his advice for the most part, I wanted to see for myself what was nestled in this tiny corner of the mountains. When we stepped off the cable car, we saw why people love this hideaway so much. The view, for one, was unbelievable. There were waterfalls and green patches perched on the snowcapped mountains and wooden chalets with flower boxes dotting the little village. After a quick glance around, we headed for our second destination. We walked about 50 minutes uphill to the resort and mountain village of Murren. It was nice to get our blood pumping since we hadn't done much hiking yet, and Murren provided a great view of the Eiger, Monch and part of the Jungfrau. We explored a bit and the headed back to Gimmelwald for a longer walk around the town. At one point, we heard the cowbells ringing, but they were on sheep instead of cows and provided a wonderful alpine concert. It really was a beautiful sound. Here are a few photos:

Derek and Courtney (Me) in Gimmelwald

Log cabin in Gimmelwald

Barn made with no nails- just like Lincoln Logs

Beautiful View

And another view

Derek jumping for joy!

We started passing a barn on the way through town and the kids started running towards us. The baby goats thought we were going to feed them, but sadly, we had no food. This was their reaction:

Where's my food?

Goats with bells

Then we passed the cheese storehouse for the village and found a sign pointing to a house. So we walked up to the house and rang the doorbell. The owner of the house popped her head out of the window and I asked if she sold cheese. Sure enough, she let us inside to her cheese shack, and after getting used to the strong smell from the cheese rounds aging on the shelf, we tasted some Alpine cheese from 2010 and 2011 and decided on the 2011- it was softer and had a less intensive taste. The older the cheese, the more intense it is. Derek has become a cheese expert over the last four months, and he was very pleased by the delicious taste of this cheese. We asked the owner of the store if she actually makes the cheese herself. She said no, but explained that when her family sends their cows to the highlands to graze, the lady high in the mountains makes the cheese from the cows and then sends it back to Gimmelwald. 

The cheese store in Gimmelwald

The cheese house

I would have loved to spend a few nights in this sleepy town. There were a few guest houses and a hostel perched on the cliff. This is a place to get away from it all. When we had gotten off the cable car to arrive, nobody else from the car actually came into Gimmelwald; they all boarded another car to take them higher to the mountain, probably to the Schilthorn mountain at Piz Gloria.

After saying goodbye to Gimmelwald and all of its beauty, we headed back down the cable car and drove to another valley and large resort town of Grindelwald. Here we had hoped to board another cable car to take us far into the Alps for an alpine lake hike, but it was too expensive so we headed to our next location: Lucerne.

We drove through the mountains and through many, MANY well-carved out mountain tunnels. By the end of the trip, we had concluded that the Swiss engineers love building tunnels and whenever they get the chance, they go through the mountain instead of over it. On our way to Lucerne, we added a pit stop for Lake Brienz, another large fjord-like lake on the other side of Interlaken. (Interlaken means “between lakes”- between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz). We immediately were drawn to the port area and Derek found us a steal on row boat rentals. So, we rented a row boat for an hour and enjoyed some lake time. Notice the color of the water – it really was this color. The prettiest and clearest lake water I have ever seen. Derek decided to jump in for a swim. He soon realized that the mountain lakes really do drain from glaciers; he got out before hypothermia set in. After our brief lake outing, we arrived at our hotel on Lake Vierwaldstättersee near Lucerne. Derek found another spot to jump in the lake, this one much warmer, and then we headed into Lucerne for dinner.

Lake Brienz

Working hard in the row boat!

Derek in the glacier lake

Lucerne is the largest town on the lake and set into an inlet with a river pouring through it. It’s most famous landmark is a wooden covered bridge over the river that contains paintings from hundreds of years ago. It was a beautiful, thriving city and as the sun set, the lights reflecting off of the water provided the background for a picturesque promenade.  We walked along the river, passing many river side restaurants, and after much debate since the prices were very high for dinner, we settled on an Italian pizzeria.

At our hotel in front of Vierwaldstättersee

The iconic bridge in Lucerne

Derek & I in Lucerne

Day 4

Picking our sunflowers!

We enjoyed breakfast at the SeeHotel Sternen where we had booked a room from hostelworld.com. We used my National Geographic Swiss guidebook to find our next destination before driving back to Germany. We settled on a medieval town about 1.5 hours away, Stein am Rhein, and the Rhinefall, the largest waterfall in Europe. We packed up the car, drove through tunnels that were about 5 km long, and all to soon we were out of the beautiful Alps. Along the way, we spotted some yellow fields. Fields of sunflowers! Now that’s a dream come true! Derek, the wonderful husband that he is, found a remote farmland road that led to the large field, and Abby and I scurried over to take some photos. Once we found our way back to the main road again, we discovered that sunflowers are a specialty of this region – they were everywhere! I spotted a selbst schnieden sign, which means “self cut”, so we pulled off the road and picked our own sunflowers to take home. 

The town of Stein am Rhein

We arrived in Stein am Rhein soon after and were surprised at the absolute cuteness of this town. All of the buildings within the Altstadt (old town) were painted with scenes, life-size people, flowers, etc. There were fountains with flower boxes, bicyclers enjoying a refreshing Eis (Ice cream), and street side cafes covering the pedestrian-only area. The city lies on the Rhine River and drains from the Bodensee (Lake Constance). We enjoyed some ice cream, Derek found the bakery, and we had a wonderful stroll through the charming town.

Our next and final destination before heading home was Rhinefall. After paying a small entrance fee, we made it to the observation platform. My first thought- That is a lot of water.  It pours 11 million gallons of water over the rocks every minute. 

At the Rhinefall

The largest waterfall in Europe

And that was our trip! It was a great four days, and we did luck out with weather for the most part. I would highly recommend the Lauterbrunnen area of Switzerland to anybody. Especially if you are touring Germany, Switzerland and Austria with a car, we had absolutely no problem getting there. It was a wonderful weekend spent with my husband and twin sister and I feel so lucky and blessed to be able to have and share these experiences with them.

My Side notes:

• Everything was so clean in Switzerland. Except when we drove through Zurich on the last day, we noticed that the cities, streets, and tunnels were spotless through the rest of our travels. 
• The color of the glacier and mountain lakes still amazes me. It’s unlike anything I've ever seen. The lakes varied from a turquoise green, to an emerald green, to a turquoise/aqua blue. 
• The largest expenses that we noticed were dinners out at restaurants and the Jungfraujoch tour. Our hostel offered multiple kitchens and a nearby grocery; so many travelers can save by eating cheaply.
• In my next trip to the Alps (someday!), I want to do more alpine hiking. If we hadn't spent a lot on our ticket to the Jungfrau (on a cloudy day), we would have been able to afford the cable car to the hiking kickoff point higher in the Alps. 
• The Swiss make everything accessible. We could have traveled around the entire country, and into every nook and cranny, by train. By having a car, however, we saved a lot of money and we could stop when we wanted. The cable car system also makes it easy to visit car-free towns and to travel higher into the Alps for hiking.

Here are a few more photos:

The Jungfraubahn 

Inside the ice cave

Ice carving

The town of Murren

Hotel in Gimmelwald

We had to have a jumping photo

View of the Eiger and Monch mountains

Derek in front of our hotel

Derek swimming in Vierwaldstättersee