My Switzerland

On Saturday we engaged in our normal Saturday fare, hiking. We were hiking in an area about an hour from home, near Walensee, called Flumserberg. We skied once here this winter and also did a short winter hike here as well. This is the Alpine area closest to our home.

Although the morning had started out rainy, and resulted in us leaving home quite late, Bob had read that tomorrow's weather was to be very nice and figured the odds were that the weather would clear as the day progressed. He was right.

As we reached Alp Fursch, (pictured below) where there is a farmhouse as well as a restaurant, we noticed that a young boy and man who was presumedly his dad were leading some cows down the road and into the barn. Farther up the road (which also doubles as the Wanderweg), were the remaining cows meandering down toward the barn. We tried to walk up the road, but as the video shows, the cows were blocking the road and not very eager to share the Wanderweg with us. Given the fact that the cows provide us with music while walking, delicious yogurt, cheese, ice cream and chocolate to consume, did not respond to our Swiss German commands to move, and the minor fact that they easily outweigh our combined weights, we decided to yield the road and hike through a bit of wildflower Alm.

But as we got to the back end of this herd of cows we notice a young girl, periodically encouraging the cows to keep moving, but much more intent on either text messaging or playing a game on her cell phone. (If you click on the above photo, you should be able to see her phone!) Not what a typical Swiss tourist is looking for. Most come wanting to see the children dressed as Heidi or Goat Peter, looking to buy Alpkäse in some high Alpine meadow while the cow bells ring and the Alp horn blows.

From what I have read, Swiss farmers are some of the most highly subsidized farmers in the world, partially to ensure that the rural, small farmer can survive financially which in turn allows Swiss tourism to also thrive. Ah, but this is the new Switzerland. Tradition mixed with new. I often wonder how long tradition in Switzerland will continue as I view the upcoming generation. But I do hope that these picturesque Alpine meadows are filled with the sounds of cow bells for many years to come. Otherwise, those 6 hour and 15 minute, 14 mile hikes will just not be nearly as much fun.