Indeed, the day started with rain in the morning, which stopped after breakfast, but we didn't trust the weather, so changed our plans to see the Reichenbach Falls, Aareschlutz, and the Rosenlaui Schlutz. The Schlutz and the falls would be in full roaring glory in a rain storm, while getting caught out in the rain might not make anybody's mood better, and First is easily accessible by cable car from Grindelwald anyway.
The falls did not disappoint, and were huge. In fact, they were a bit too big, since when we got to the hiking path that would take us down to the valley it was closed, directing us to take the funicular down. Once we were down, we went to see Aare Schlutz, though Boen threw a temper tantrum at the extra walking involved, an indication that he was probably worn out from the day before. I would have been OK skipping the Aare Schlutz to humor him, but Savitha had never seen it, and Xiaoqin did not remember seeing it.
The schlutz was a walkway through a gorge with waterfalls, explanatory diagrams about how the river had carved out the geological features, and various signage. After we were done, we took the bus back to Meiringen where we took out the packed lunch Rosenlaui had provided for us while waiting for the bus back up. Bowen threw up on one of the cookies, and after checking the package we realized it had hazelnuts in it.
After lunch, we got onto the bus and went to one stop before Rosenlaui, for what's normally a gorgeous hike to the gorge, but of course it chose to rain there and then, with sounds of thunder coming at us though it was safe because we couldn't actually see any lightning, so it must have been quite far away. Boen again threw a temper tantrum and had to be coaxed into walking to the Rosenlaui Schlutz. The reason I didn't think the Aare Schlutz was worth doing was because the Rosenlaui Schlutz is far wilder and absolutely amazing in a storm. The waterfall inside was a cacophony of sound and fury, leaving us feeling quite deaf by the time we got to the exit.
After that we went to the hotel and got some ice cream. The weather looked like it might clear up, so Savitha and I took the bus to the top but it was foggy there. On the descent, however, the view from the bus was incredible. Wispy clouds floated over the mountains.
After that, dinner was even better. Bowen really liked the soup this time (a sweet potato soup) and he like the tomato bruschetta as well. We definitely ate well, and with rain pattering on the walls (Xiaoqin said she would see and hear thunder and lightning from her room), we slept a good sleep.
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