A Visit to Graubünden

St. Peter, Switzerland

Last week, we took a 5-day trip to Graubünden, Switzerland. We really picked the right week to be there: the weather was just stunning, and there was plenty of snow to have fun in.

Graubünden is in Eastern Switzerland and is the canton (county) that includes famous resorts like St. Moritz and Davos. We rented a house in St. Peter, which is a small town in between Chur and Arosa. It was remote, but we enjoyed a convenient location to the local ski area, Hochwang, and a quick walk to the trainline.

I have to admit that I was a bit intimidated by the mountain because of the roads that we took to get there. We've heard that the road from Chur to Arosa has over 300 turns in it, and we figured that our homebase was around curve 180. We lost count after 100. The road there was one that had me hanging on to the passenger door, as if that would somehow help us stay on the road. Thank goodness for the favorable weather -- and this is a very good reason to take the train if you visit.

We first headed to the Hochwang area for some sledging to check out the mountain. I didn't know if it would be appropriate for skiing with the kids, partially because we couldn't get a sense of where the mountain top was at the base. There was no "foot" of the mountain to start at; we had already climbed up quite a bit of mountain to get to the parking lot! It turns out that the resort was a perfect place for the kids to practice their skiing, with gradual slopes and very few people. The warm weather didn't hurt either. Landon is really keeping up with us and Willem, although he still needs help, won't be far behind next year!

One of the highlights of the area is the Rhaitian Railway (RhB), a narrow gauge train line that takes just as many turns through the mountains as in the car, except you can really sit back and enjoy it while riding. We took the train to Arosa one night for dinner, and the bridges were dramatic. We also took a day trip to Chur via the train, and the boys had a treat to sit in first class behind the driver. They watched through the windshield the whole journey (30 minutes), like it was a video game. The Bernina Express line, which also leaves from the city of Chur, has been named an Unesco Heritage site and travels to Tirano, Italy. This is on our list of things to do in Switzerland, so this short ride really whet our appetite for it.

Back seat drivers

We learned that Chur is the oldest city in Switzerland, with history that goes back to the Bronze Age. During our visit, we walked around the old town, and visited the Rhaetian museum. The museum really catered to the kids, with a treasure hunt to keep them busy. I enjoyed learning about the area history. For example, I hadn't considered that the Alps were not always a tourist destination. Prior to the 19th century, people avoided the Alps or traveled through them as quickly as possible because the ways were so dangerous and remote. Interessant! (Interesting!) I'm happy that we were able to safely enjoy the area!