Well, it's a good job I didn't go with Google Maps' estimate of what time I needed to catch the Tube to the airport - I'd have been late! Anyway, I made the airport with ten minutes to spare - Terminal 1 again, ah, the nostalgia! Aer Lingus, whom I normally fly with, moved to the revamped, shiny new Terminal 2 last month; seems Swiss Air aren't due to do so until October. And they were right down the back!
Duly checked in, I bought meself a backpack - my mother pointed out over the weekend that I didn't have one, for these hikes I'm optimistically planning! It's also a computer bag, which is handy for the equipment I brought with me.. then I needed something in the Duty Free. What IS it with the people there? Do they think no-one is rushing for a flight? There was no-one on the desk I needed, I had to grab someone from somewhere else. I then had to wait forever for someone to take my money.
Meantime, my gate was announced - later than scheduled. Thankfully. I couldn't believe it when I saw their estimate of time taken to walk the distance was 25 minutes - but they were pretty accurate! Up and down escalators.. up and down, round and about. I don't know where they sent us, but I was so glad that every board we passed just said "go to gate", rather than that boarding had started. Indeed, it still hadn't started by the time I finally arrived at the gate - but it really should have, we were obviously delayed. At least it gave me time to run to the Boots adjacent to the gate, for the things I hadn't had time to get!
One of the nicer things about Swiss Air is that, for no extra charge, they gave me the option of an aisle or window seat. I went with window - although all there was to see was a vast cloudscape. My though, it's been a long time since I had a free snack on a plane - which was very welcome, I was starving. Surprisingly refreshing, it was. And finished off with a sizeable chunk of Swiss chocolate, with the Swiss Air logo. Cartoons on the drop-down electronic screens kept us occupied for the remainder of the flight.
When we landed, I needed the toilet - but it seems a feature of Zurich airport that toilets are few and far between! Despite them apparently being award-winning. Also a feature is the difficulty in finding a lift! I had two cases, and escalators were a challenge. I had an issue with buying my train ticket too - although the machines take both Euros and Swiss Francs, and I had both, the notes were too large. It rejected my credit card, and didn't seem to know what my debit card was, so I ended up queueing for a ticket desk, where a very helpful, multilingual lady (she'd just been dealing with someone in French, then dealt with me in English, despite being a native German speaker) gave me a return ticket to Sargans.
I set my watch by the trains that were leaving as I waited for mine. This is recommended - in a dispute between your watch and Swiss trains, your watch will lose. The trip by Lake Zurich was absolutely lovely, aided by a lovely sunny afternoon. But it was once we left the lake behind, and were immersed in mountain valleys, that I found the scenery most impressive. Very exciting for me, I do love my mountains! When we got to Sargans, it wasn't hard for me to see which way to go - the buses of Liechtenstein have a distinctive, canary-yellow colour, which is quite visible from afar. And they have ramps at this station! Joy and jubilation.
I soon identified the right bus, due to leave in a few minutes. I went over and tried out my German, asking him about getting a ticket and saying I was going to Malbun. "Yeah," he said, "get on, it's free." Um. Ok then! I arranged my luggage around myself - these postbuses don't have luggage space - and wondered why it was free. Then I stared at the mountains a bit - we were very close now. It wasn't until another English-speaking couple got on that I discovered why it was free - the ticket machine was broken! Wow, v obliging of them!
I had seen some beautiful scenery on the train, but the windows were a bit mucky to take photos. I had better luck on the bus..
The first, I took while we waited to leave Sargans station. The last is of Balzers Castle.
The driver took great pains to make sure I got off at the right stop - just as well, because I had no idea. I was already really tired - it had already been a long day. Turns out you change at a suburb of Vaduz, called Au, to the #21 to Malbun. Then everyone on the bus made sure I knew I had to cross the road! Just as well I had half an hour to wait, I was frazzled..
The second bus journey was a doozey. I'm only sorry I got no photos from it - the road was a real corkscrew, and twisted and turned so much as it climbed the mountain that it was hard to get a view of a scene for more than a second. But the view over the Rhine valley was stupendous! The inhabitants of Triesenberg, high on the mountainside, have a terrific sight to wake up to every morning. I shudder to think what that gradient must do to local motorists' engines and brakes, though..
At last we arrived, literally, at the end of the road. I certainly picked the right hotel - it's right across from the bus stop. Hard to get lost here, though. As you approach, the only entrance you can see is the one to the restaurant. Yes, that's the hotel entrance too. Sadly, because it means more steps - although, if you climb uphill to the other side, there are fewer of them. This is significant if you have two cases. There was then great fun - the place is family-owned and run, and they were busy with dinner. They eventually got around to me, and got me to fill out a guest form. Well, they tried - unfortunately, my German wasn't up to it and I had to be rescued by the cute teenage son, who obviously has the best English of the lot. :-)
The accommodation is actually in the block across the way, accessed by an underground tunnel, of all things. The accommodation block is a massive building comprising both apartments and individual rooms. I'm in one of the rooms, all of which (on the same level) share a balcony. The view is, potentially, terrific..
I had dinner in the hotel restaurant. It isn't cheap, but then, Liechtenstein isn't cheap. It was good, although maybe a bit salty - but the chef is a good one. We'll see what I do tomorrow - highly weather-dependant!
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