Geography - Trip to Switzerland - Expedition to China

Trip to Switzerland 2006

The Geography Department had the great pleasure of leading 34 Year 11 and 12 girls on a fieldtrip to the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland to study glacial processes and landforms as well as learning something about the tourist economy of this very popular Alpine area. Highlights of the trip included a visit to the famous Trummelbach Falls (a waterfall complex inside the flanks of the Jungfrau mountain!), walking the length of the Lauterbrunnen Valley with its towering 700m high valley side cliffs and viewing the famous mountain panorama of Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau from the moraine at the base of the Jungfraugleitscher. In addition, the Chairman of the Interlaken Tourist Authority hosted the group at his hotel, giving us a talk on the importance of tourism to this region of Switzerland and thanking the British at regular intervals for inventing the package tour in 1857 when Thomas Cook led his first group to the country!

Travel throughout the week was via the local Jungfraubahn mountain railway system and, yes, the trains do run exactly on time!

The party stayed at a Backpackers' hostel in Interlaken. This provided us with comfortable, if basic, accommodation and meals were typically Swiss in style at the local restaurant (fondues were a compulsory part of the experience). All in all, despite the inevitable blisters and tiredness associated with walking in this mountainous terrain, the girls all had a fabulous experience during which they saw some of the most spectacular scenery that Europe has to offer and learnt a lot that enriched their geographical education.

 

Click here for more pictures from this trip