My eyes eagerly watch the passing scenery. I’m trying to collect my thoughts and make myself believe where I am. Our tour bus continues down the narrow and cramped road; like every other road in Europe, just barely squeaking by in some of the tightest spots. Everyone on the bus is as eager as I am, after all, we are halfway across the world in the country of Switzerland.

“We are almost there!” comes through the intercom. Detlef, our bus driver, knows just
how excited we all are and is just teasing us with these miniscule announcements. A few minutes pass by, and I hear someone say “Look! There they are!!” I jump out of my seat and run to the other side of the bus and gazed out of the window in awe, as the absolutely stunning images of the Swiss Alps flood into my brain.
“Oh my gosh!” I exclaim, “ they are so awesome!” As my voice gets drowned out in the chatter and sheer excitement of my peers, my eyes gazing in awe at the mountains, and my mouth hangs open in disbelief. In the midst of all the craziness, we are all forced to sit back down and wait anxiously to arrive to our destination. The bus whirres and chugs along as we near the start of the changing of our lives.

The bus comes to a slow stop, and Frau Elsen comes over the intercom to tell us where to go. After we were all off, we had about an hour to roam around the small town and get some lunch. Next thing we knew we were boarding a gondola that would take all thirty some students, a few chaperones, and some other tourists to the top of the mountains. I hurried into the gondola, making sure I got a spot by the window. There was a sense of unease among the occupants, the ones afraid of heights stayed in the middle and quietly murmured about the sheer possibility of dying in the gondola. I looked out in the window in disbelief.

“I’m going to hike in the Swiss Alps” I thought, right as our swayey ride jerked into motion, and a subtle shriek was heard from some of the passengers. The ride was long and boring, but it was over before I knew it. We had reached the top.

The gondola came to an abrupt stop and every flooded out the gates like a small herd of cattle. I stepped out and on to the small rocks that covered the ground. A slight breeze, blowing thin, fresh air into my face. I took a deep breath, the crisp, thin mountain air almost hurt a little to breath. The sun shining down onto my skin; the temperature on the mountain was so perfect that I was only wearing shorts and a t-shirt. I gathered my senses and found my group of friends. We all snapped a few pictures and then started walking.

Our first point of interest was where the trail lead straight in head of us. At the end, was the highest point we had access to. We started walking, there were people everywhere, and they were all here for the same exact reason. We continued up the trail, my legs already sore from the past two weeks of walking on our trip. It’s getting harder to breath, the air is thin and my lungs hurt as my body screams for oxygen. After a little while, we had reached the top, which was the only spot with a railing. I stopped and looked out, I instantly stopped breathing, I had never seen anything more beautiful in my entire life. I felt like I could see the end of the earth, a vast openness of pure beauty and freedom. So high that I could see the rest of the Alps, the cities below, the rolling hillsides, and paragliders soaring over the valley.

Starting again, going back down the trail; with a demanding mix of large and small, sturdy and loose rocks, I was precariously placing every step. After a while of hiking, going down the back side of the mountain, and came across a small stream. It was melted snow from the top of the mountain; it was crystal clear and sounded as if it was straight from heaven, completely untouched by humans. The sound of the trickling water was soothing and peaceful as it flowed over the small rocks. It came across the path, and a couple of well placed steps and I was across. I bent down and placed my cupped hand under the surface. It was so cold and refreshing, I lifted up my hand and drank the life giving water. It’s cool, crisp, natural taste flowed over my taste buds. It was the most refreshing and purest thing I had ever drank.

Going on a little further, we come to a bend in the path, with a large gravel observation deck with a small meadow like area adjacent to it.

“Let’s go eat lunch over there!” I said.
“Sounds good to me,” Nick said, “I’m starving!” .

We sat down next to a large rock and ate our sandwiches, fruit, and candy, all while admiring the stunning scenery. The mountains are huge and make me feel like a tiny little insect, like I don’t even exist in the world. The gorgeous rays of sun hit my skin with a humble warmth as a slight breeze keeps it cool enough to handle. We finish our food and continue on down the mountain.

We can see the end of the trail, and the small shops and hub -bub of people milling around. Just up from that, there is a very small natural lake. The water so natural and crystal clear, it reflected the image of the towering mountains behind it. It reminded me again just how beautiful the earth is, and how we must do whatever we can to keep this extravagant planet.

Now it was time to go, and the teachers rounded up all of the students and we all made the bitter walk back to the gondola. We piled in, all cramped and sad for having to leave this place, as if we were chickens on a semi-truck, headed for the processing plant. The gondola jerked into motion, and the almost silent sighs of sorrowful feelings were felt throughout the tiny space. We all watched the mountains got smaller and smaller, our hearts sinking further every second. We came to a slow stop, and all slowly filed out and made the short and plaintive walk back to the tour bus. Everyone sat down in their seats with heavy hearts, beautiful memories, and mixed feelings. The bus started to pull away, and the air inside became even heavier with sadness. I looked out the window and looked up at the enormous mountains and thought to myself “I can’t even believe I was up there, or even Switzerland for that matter. I wish we didn’t have to leave.” The mountains grew increasingly smaller, and within a few minutes, they vanished from sight. My heart sank and felt as if a sandbag was tied to it. I laid my head back and let the images from the Swiss Alps flow into mind; carrying me into a faint slumber, only to wake up with a different view of the world than before this day.