1. One of the most expensive/memorable trips since we’ve been in Europe was a night’s stay at the Hotel Therme Vals. It’s not typically filled with a group of 16 students, so we could sense we were a bit out of place. Mainly honeymooners and anniversary couples come to the baths at Vals for a romantic and relaxing getaway, so hopefully we didn’t disturb anybody too much. You read correctly: baths… like the Romans used to have. There are thirteen different types of baths where you can accidentally walk in on couples. It makes for a suspenseful entrance when you don’t know how you’ll feel or what you’ll see around the corner at each individual pool. My favorite was the outdoor winter pool. It’s surreal to stand in the warm water as you watch steam evaporate to fog images of the tall snow-covered mountains around you. I would have taken a bunch of pictures, but after the scare at Interlaken and the amount of face-sucking that was going on around me, not a chance. Zumthor is a genius with light, and what I didn’t know before visiting his building here, was that it makes for a pretty sweet acoustic venue. The night we stayed, there was a concert by the architect’s son, and we’re almost certain he was there to watch the performance. Woulda been sweet to shake his hand and say “nice building, dude” but at the time we weren’t sure. Check the site for a full gallery of images to drool over.

    One of the most expensive/memorable trips since we’ve been in Europe was a night’s stay at the Hotel Therme Vals. It’s not typically filled with a group of 16 students, so we could sense we were a bit out of place. Mainly honeymooners and anniversary couples come to the baths at Vals for a romantic and relaxing getaway, so hopefully we didn’t disturb anybody too much. You read correctly: baths… like the Romans used to have. There are thirteen different types of baths where you can accidentally walk in on couples. It makes for a suspenseful entrance when you don’t know how you’ll feel or what you’ll see around the corner at each individual pool. My favorite was the outdoor winter pool. It’s surreal to stand in the warm water as you watch steam evaporate to fog images of the tall snow-covered mountains around you. I would have taken a bunch of pictures, but after the scare at Interlaken and the amount of face-sucking that was going on around me, not a chance.

    Zumthor is a genius with light, and what I didn’t know before visiting his building here, was that it makes for a pretty sweet acoustic venue. The night we stayed, there was a concert by the architect’s son, and we’re almost certain he was there to watch the performance. Woulda been sweet to shake his hand and say “nice building, dude” but at the time we weren’t sure. Check the site for a full gallery of images to drool over.

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