Pics: Switzerland, Autumn Walk

I took the train from Barcelona to Switzerland; my first overnight train in Europe!  It was FUN!  At first the conductor put me in the wrong room, with guys, but then he realized his mistake, so I got to move down with a girl from Japan.  In the middle of the night, as we were going through France, the train stopped at the border and police got on.  They asked us all for our passports (which I found out was standard procedure traveling through Europe); they took them, checked them, and brought them back.  This was a little difficult for me to do at first, because I heard that I should NEVER NEVER let anyone else have my passport.  But I gave it to them anyway.  And it came back fine.  One of the girls next to us was taken off the train and questioned.

 I was praying for her.  She was from an African country, and was working in London, and I hoped that they weren't giving her a hard time just because she was black.  I wasn't sure if they had racial prejudices in Europe.  About 30 minutes later they let her back on the train.  She was a little shaken up.  I think they thought she was an illegal alien.  

We kept going through the night, and very early the next morning, the conductor announced that we were in Switzerland, and the next stop was the one I wanted.  I got my backpack down from the rack.  (I was sleeping on the upper bunk that folded up against the wall.)  When I went out into the walkway, outside of our room, I saw one of the girls from the next door down get her stuff together too.  "Are you getting off here?" I asked.  "Yes, this is my home town."  I was amazed.  Here in this small town of Switzerland, the girl right next to me is getting off at the same place I am.  God, You take such good care of me.  

I told her I was going to L'Abri, a Christian house, but that I had to catch a connecting train.  She knew which one it was and told me that I could come with her. 

Wow.

We got off at the station, and she walked with me over to the large boards with all the train schedules on them.  She started pointing to different train lines and finding which one I would need to take.  "We can take the first one together, and then I'll show you what to get on next."  When I looked at the schedules, I was so thankful for my new friend, because all the writing was in French, and I didn't know how to read the schedule - it didn't make sense to me. 

We got on the next train, and didn't have to pay anything, or show anyone a ticket.  She said that in Switzerland, people can get on and off all the time, and they just buy passes during the year.  I think if I would have gotten caught without a pass, I would have shown them my Eurrail pass and hoped that covered me.  

Our train ran along a huge lake, Lake Lemon, or Lake Geneva.  There were mountains shooting up higher than I had ever seen before on the other side.  It was a picture out of Narnia or heaven or something.  It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.  My mouth was wide open.  

We crossed through about five different beautiful small villages on our way to our stop.  My friend announced when we arrived, and I got my things and got off with her.  She told me that I could get on the next train to where I was going in five minutes, or I could walk along the waterfront to the next village, and catch the train there.  

The walk sounded like something I completely wanted to do, but I was afraid.  What if I got lost, or couldn't find the village, or didn't know where the train was?  Wouldn't it just be safer to get on the train now, while I could?  It was another point of trust.  God, can I go?  Do you want to go?  Yes.  Then go! 

I told her I would like to try the walk, so she pointed out where the path began that led down the hillside towards the next village.  "Keep walking along the path until you come to the next town.  The train station will be right there."

She walked with me down to where it began, and I was scared the whole time, but trying to look like I was confident.  There's something about being in a totally new place that is really intimidating.  There is a whole chasm of unknown that stretches out in front of me, and it is scary.  What ifs fill this chasm and torment me with their bony fingers of fear.  

I started to walk.  This was beautiful.  I found the trail marker, and it was a nice paved path that ran through the local grape vineyards.  The colors were starting to turn for autumn, and I was in the midst of the most glorious scenery on the planet.  Thank you, God, for letting me take this walk.  

Along the way, I met a lady who was jogging, and it turned out that she was from America, and lived here in one of these small towns, and she was the 2nd born with 3 brothers, like me.  It was great to meet her, and I think we were both really encouraged.  She loved Jesus, too!

I made my way to the town, and found myself in the most enchanting village I had ever seen.  I thought I was in Disney World.  Swiss Chalets, flower boxes in windows, cobbled streets, arches to walk under, it was beautiful.  Oh, I would love to live in a small town like this.  

I asked a man, who spoke French, where the train station was, and he walked with me a bit to show me.  

The station looked like it was straight out of Anne of Green Gables.  A simple house with a bench outside, and two tracks, one going east, the other west.  This was great!

A nice older lady smiled at me and helped me figure out where I wanted to go.  

When the train came, she got on with me and we sat together.  I didn't know any French, but we smiled a lot.  I showed her pictures of my family from home.  She knew a little English, which was nice. 

She got off a station before me, and said goodbye, indicating that my station was the next one.  The trains had an electronic voice that announced the names of the towns we were entering and which one would be coming next.  

I started thinking, maybe I should just ride this train past my stop and get off at the next one and keep walking.  It is so pretty here, and I think I could find my way back.  Besides, the girl who helped me at first said there was a beautiful castle down by the water at one stop, and I found it on the map.  It was a little past where I needed to go. 

My station came, and I stayed on.  I was really starting to be a true Adventurer!

At the next stop, I got off, and walked down to where the water was.  I saw another paved path along the waterfront, and thought, "This is great!  I LOVE being on this adventure with Jesus!"  We walked together, Him and me, along the waterfront, and I was in awe of all the crimson, bright gold and orange that covered the hillside.  The contrasts were spectacular.  

Up ahead I saw a castle.  It sat on land that jutted right out into the water, and had turrets and high walls - I thought I was in King Arthur's time.  With the jagged mountains behind, it was a scene to behold.  

After my date with Jesus and our wonderful walk, I headed back to the station to catch the last train to the bus stop.  A nice bus driver picked me up and when I asked if I needed to pay, he waved me off, and then told me when I was to get off at the train station.  

When I got off, I was walking down the street and saw a girl, who I had a thought to ask her where the train station was.  She said, "Right over here; that's where I'm going."  God, You are beyond amazing.  Not only was she going to the train station, but she was also going in the same direction I was going.  What are the chances, especially feeling prompted to talk to her?!

We got on the next train together, and she told me when I was to get off.

I got off at my station, and walked towards the exit.  I asked someone where the bus station was, and they led me out and pointed me across the street to where other people were standing.

I walked over there and asked another girl which bus was going to Way-mo?  (Huexmou).  She said, "This one, the one we're going on."  The bus came a few minutes later and I got on, and spoke to the driver, who knew a little English.  I asked him how much the bus was and did he accept Euros (that I had from Spain).  He did not.  Hmmm.  Should I go exchange my Euros?  He stopped me and held up his finger to say wait a minute, did some calculations and then pulled out some of his Swiss Francs change and gave it to me, in exchange for some Euros.  That was really nice of him.  I paid then, in Swiss Francs.  

The bus started off, and we went out of the village and up into the countryside towards the mountains.  The highway led us through a wide open green valley, and then we started to climb up into the mountains.  I could not stop looking out the window.  I think my jaw was sore from being open, in complete awe, all the time.  We were driving through scenery I had never seen an equal to, in my whole life.  These mountains.  Our mountains in Colorado are beautiful, but the ones in Switzerland, wow.  The mountains in Colorado have a much more gradual slope, but these jutted up dramatically, towering above the valley below.  I seriously thought that this has to be what it looks like in heaven. 

I told the bus driver that I needed to go to a certain stop, and he nodded, and when we arrived, he stopped the bus and let me off.  Merci!

I had arrived at L'Abri.