Submitted by Emma Smith the 2024 Spring program in London, England…
This past weekend I had the opportunity to visit Interlaken, Switzerland. This place was like nothing I had ever seen before. As we drove from the airport to Interlaken, we were riding past beautiful snow capped mountains and turquoise lakes. We had to drive up the mountain and through tunnels in order to arrive in Interlaken. Interlaken gets its name from its location as it stands between Lake Brienz and Lake Thun. The lakes get their turquoise color from the melting of the glaciers on the mountains. This water is very clean and even drinkable. It is healthy for your skin, but unfortunately extremely cold. We went on a ten mile bike tour around the town of Interlaken and got to see the small villages and huge mountains surrounded by the lakes. We also were able to ride in a jet boat where we sped down the lake while our driver made sharp turns and told us many facts about the lake itself and the surrounding villages. Switzerland is very famous for making delicious chocolate so we signed up for a chocolate making workshop that was so worth it. We learned about the history of chocolate making and tried different chocolate depending on how much cocoa, sugar, and cream were in each. We made our own chocolate and got to take it home. Interlaken, Switzerland is an excellent place to travel to if you want to feel like you’re in a small town with many things to do and experience. I loved Interlaken because it was easy to get around and see many different parts of it, but also felt huge because I was surrounded by enormous snow capped mountains and deep lakes. This was definitely my favorite place I have visited so far. (Submitted on March 17, 2024)