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Aigle daily. We visited nearby towns through the mountain roads to Leysin, Les Mosses, Gruyeres (to visit a cheese factory) and Nestle Switzer- land’s chocolate factory.
A highlight of our trip was visiting the Glacier 3000-Les Diablerets in Gstaad Region. Only 90 minutes from Aigle and accessible via a gondola, Glacier 3000 offers impressive views of Europe’s most majestic peaks including Mont Blanc, Mat- terhorn and Jungfrau.
Zermatt, near the Italian border, offers spec- tacular and picturesque views, with Matterhorn in the background. Montreaux is famous for its September jazz carnivals, but in December, it’s buzzing with pre-Christmas festivities and Christ- mas markets. Don’t miss the majestic Chateau de Chillon (renowned to many literature readers) on the shores of Lake Geneva. On Christmas Eve, Ge- neva was bustling with last-minute shoppers. We
MSwiss Winter Wonderland RCI Member Zaitone Bt Jaafar and her family
had a holiday of a lifetime in Switzerland
My two sisters, nephew, niece and I packed our shopped for Swiss bags for a weeklong stay in snowy Switzerland chocolates that were last Christmas. We weren’t sure what was in store on sale.
for us, but the RCI office in Singapore promised Sadly, all good that Switzerland would be “a holiday of a life- things have to time” and that sounded irresistible! come to an end
Next thing we knew, we were off to Torgon, a and it was time to
quaint alpine Swiss village resort. Little did we know that the only accessible road to the resort was a meandering one with hairpin bends that we often see in those Bond movies!
Top: Picturesque town Torgon, a renowned skiing resort is situated of Les Diablerets near the town of Aigle, about two hours’ drive Right: Zaitone at from Geneva. We arrived at Geneva International Zermatt Airport on an easyJet flight from London Gatwick
Airport on a beautiful snowy Sunday afternoon. Our Avis rented car, a Renault Scenic, which we had booked via the Internet was already waiting for us. Armed with a travel guidebook cum map, we drove cautiously (left-hand drive) on the A1 heading to Lausanne and then on the A9 to Aigle. Along the way, we took in the beautiful scenery of the Lake Geneva region. The ski resort of Torgon, with its timbered chalets, were bedecked with Christmas decorations. The houses along the road up to Torgon were also decorated with Christmas lights! We were envel-
oped in a bright and warm Christmas spirit.
The vistas at Torgon were spectacular. The resort provides perfect conditions for sporting action and adventure. Winter activities were confined to skiing and hiking along the moun- tain tracks. There is a grocery store, a rental ski- ing store, a skiing school, a tourist bureau and an efficient bus service that runs from Torgon to
bid adieu to Swit-
zerland. Despite
the cold tempera-
tures, we had loads of fun and felt
so invigorated, thanks to the fresh mountain air. To this day, memories of our Swiss winter holi- day still linger and we often find ourselves long- ing for the clear starry nights of Torgon!
Congratulations, Zaitone, you have won S$100 for sharing your travel experience with us. Thank you for contributing your holiday story.
Tell us about your holiday experiences and you could be the winner next time!
Send your story to Endless Vacation Magazine, RCI Asia-Pacific Pte Ltd, #09-01/05 PWC Building, 8 Cross Street, Singapore 048424.
Or email it to us at asiamembers@rciap.com. Make sure you include your RCI Membership Number and a selection of pictures, together with details of the names of people in the photographs and where they were taken.
Closing date: 30 November 2006.
 EnDLEss VACATIon