A couple of months ago we began to mull over some possibilities for our anniversary holiday. Forty years together needed something special to mark the occasion! I had often thought it would be a good idea to revisit he Jan Luyken Hotel where we spent our honeymoon but beyond that we didn’t know what we wanted to do.
We looked at some very exclusive holidays that would have been wonderful but at the end of the day we’re just too expensive. Then one Sunday morning while enjoying our bacon rolls, I read an article in the Guardian about great European train journeys, specifically The Gotthard Pass route.
“The Gotthard is Switzerland. And Switzerland is the Gotthard. The mountain is intimately linked to Swiss identity,” states the article’s authors, Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries in their accompanying book Europe by Rail. The Definitive Guide. I’m not a rail aficionado but I was intrigued enough to buy the book.
Since the opening of the new Gotthard Base Tunnel in 2016 the old route over the Pass had fallen into disuse. The tunnel significantly cut travel time but at over 50km long it also misses the beautiful alpine scenery. The old line as originally opened in 1882, a technological wonder which allowed trains to traverse the mountains.
Baedeker, according to Gardener and Kries, called the route “one of the grandest achievements of modern engineering.” Like art, my understanding of engineering is limited but also like art I do appreciate and am in awe of the skills, knowledge and expertise that goes into the final achievement.
And so a holiday idea began to take shape. A revisit to our past in Amsterdam followed by a train trip to Basel where we could pick up the route as specified in the above mentioned book. The authors did recommend Luzern and Locarno as suitable stops although the train journey itself could be done easily in one day. We took their advice and stopped in Basel and Luzern. Today we have picked up our journey and are travelling over the Pass to Locarno where we will take a short break before continuing.
I will post photos later but for now I’m going to enjoy the view. See you on the other side
Significantly Different 