Snow in Switzerland

We flew into Zurich to start our Switzerland road trip. We stayed in Lucerne (but visited Zurich) and then made our way west to Basel. We also had a day trip to Titlis for some fun in the snow. Each city was special and we had a fantastic time in all of them!

Zurich

We were worried about the Christmas Markets in Zurich closing due to a rise in covid cases so we re arranged our days a bit and took the train up to see the famous Swarovski tree. We enjoyed hot chocolate (and gluwein) along with some delicious food.

Once we realized the Lindt chocolate factory was n Zurich it became a must-do on our list. So much chocolate and the girls loved the tasting, the scavenger hunt, and the history of chocolate. 

Lucerne

This was my second time in Lucerne, but everyone else's first so we hit up all the traditional tourist spots (the bridge, the lion, etc.) We also enjoyed the markets, ice skating together, and of course more hot chocolate. 😊

Titlis

Just a day trip away from Lucerne was Titlis. We opted not to ski, but enjoyed sledding, ice caves, and playing in the snow together. The suspension bridge was cool and everyone enjoyed the gondola ride up the mountain!

Basel

Basel ended up being one of our favorite cities! A couple days before we left for our trip someone recommended the paper museum in Basel. It was spectacular! We spent hours there and could have stayed longer. The girls made their own paper, stamped letters closed with wax, and wrote their names on metal stamps with ink like old newspapers. We also visited the toy museum, markets, and the zoo!

Next we headed in the car to Germany to visit friends on base there!

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Traveling Amidst Omicron

We planned and booked our December holiday pre-omicron. Even up until a couple days before we were supposed to leave we still weren't even sure if we would be going. All of my time was spent researching rules, restrictions, etc. as we were planning to go to Switzerland, drive to Germany, and then fly to Turkey. That's why when it came to actually going I was a bit deer-in-the-headlights on what to do as I hadn't had a chance to research that hahaha.  

We had everything sorted for the trip - the Swiss covid pass, which was then converted to the European covid pass, PCR tests for all of us even though under 12 didn't need them. In hindsight we were so so fortunate. The only hiccup we had in all of our travels was Christmas Eve checking into the airport hotel. The girls needed an antigen test. I pushed where that policy was as I had not come across anything in all of the research I did and they apologized and said it was only in German on their local commune website. 🙄 Thankfully there was a place open in the airport that we could get it done quickly and get checked in for the evening before flying out on Christmas Day to Turkey (mostly because we know everything shuts down in Europe between Christmas and New Years). 

We did PCR tests before leaving Turkey (despite it being considered a Green country for Qatar) since it was unclear if we'd have needed to be there for a minimum amount of time (and both Switzerland and Germany were considered Red countries). No one asked us for it haha. We did another PCR upon arrival in Qatar and I was thankful we'd been smart enough to pre-book that at Sidra. 

Overall, I am so thankful that we went ahead with our trip as it was absolutely amazing and unbelievable wonderful! We took some precautions regarding covid, but overall just enjoyed our time without stress or worry. We had many friends who were not as fortunate (being stuck outside of Qatar or having to separate as a family) so we do not take it for granted. 

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