Zermatt is an easy place to spend a few days. There are no cars (but watch out for the silent electric mini-buses), plenty of shops, and great food. It has a population of nearly 6,000, which after being on the trails, seemed huge and bustling, and was a bit of an adjustment.
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| Michael relaxing on a day hike; for the the first time in 11 days, without a 25 lb. pack on his back!
Zermatt is a quaint, cute, touristy shi shi town.
While there are plenty of adventurists here engaging in climbing and
hiking, there are also plenty of general and jet-set tourists spending money in
the fancy shops and restaurants. Being Switzerland, there are plenty of
watch stores, and Michael got a bit obsessed with trying to find the town's
most expensive watch after seeing one for sale for $30,000. A day or so
of looking found some unbelievably expensive watches -- $42,000,
$58,000, $64,000 and, finally, a watch for $136,000!
 The Matterhof in the town center. It looked nice, but $600 a night was a bit out of our range. |
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| The afternoon "goat parade" through the center of town. |
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| Zermatt's main drag: a great stroll that takes about 10 minutes (unless you stop for beer or chocolates!). ********* |
The end of an
awesome trip!
Very enjoyable read - my son and fiancée are doing the route now and I am so worried about the ladders section! Hopefully they have an alternative (do they?)
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