Above Cloud Cover

Today we went hiking in the Alps.  After a mishap with alarms (forgetting to set one after talking about it so much), we had a later start to the day than we planned, but it all worked out.  We caught two trains to Goldau, Switzerland.  There, we rode a creaky little train up to the top of Mount Rigi.  From the top, we could barely see 20 feet in front of us due to the clouds.  After some confusion and asking questions, we started on a gravel road/path down the side of the mountain to head towards a train station halfway down.  On the way, we followed this road through multiple herds of cows and slowly descended below the cloud cover so we could see the mountains and trees better.  We even had a little nervewrecking moment passing a herd of bulls who seemed to be the only animals without blockage from the path and were a little too interested in us (pictured above right before waking up and spotting us).  After arriving at the train station an hour later, we decided to continue on the hike all the way to the bottom of the mountain (it was marked very well) where we would simply catch the original train back to Zurich.  Once we were on this path, it turned into a real hiking trail - rocks, trees, and little creeks.  Eventually we found the road again, bringing us right back into town.  Total, this hike took us about 2.5 hours during which we descended around 1700 meters - something that our knees and quads will not be forgiving about when we wake up tomorrow.  Once back in town, we caught a train to Zurich and are now hanging out in a Starbucks to get free wifi and relax before heading to dinner.  After that we'll pack up and turn in early because we have a 6:15am train to Rome in the morning!