Started the day with a leisurely breakfast in our jim jams, except Bev who always showers and dresses before breakfast. I'm sure she thinks we are a bunch of slovenly heathens. Hey, we're on holidays!

Saw another tantalising glimpse of the elusive Matterhorn this morning and it seems pretty fine weather wise so off to town to buy tickets for the Gornergrat - the highest altitude cogwheel railway in Europe to run completely in the open air .

Bought some rolls and pastries for our lunch to avoid exorbitant cafe prices at the summit. The bakery we went to was called (and I kid you not), "Fuchs". No wonder Gletcherschluts Gorge is so popular!

Had a poke around the souvenir shops while waiting for the next train. Found a very nice glass Matterhorn globe that I might get and that can be my total Switzerland keepsake. Jeff also found his usual souvenirs - some t-shirts. We might come back tomorrow and make some purchases before we leave.

Back for our trip on the Gornergrat bahn. Quite a few inconsiderate people taking up seats with backpacks and skis, but Jill soon sorted them out. Yes, they do understand English.

Great views from the train on the way up to Gornergrat (3,089m). The Matterhorn was even making an appearance during the journey - much to the delight of all in the carriage. Stupidly we decided to go all the way to the top and then stop here on the way back. Of course by then the Matterhorn was back in hiding. Drat.

So Gornergrat ... what a great view from the top and surprisingly not too cold. Didn't even need our beanies and gloves, and for once Jeff remained buff free so we could see more of his face than just his eyes!

At the top there were lots of black birds riding the updrafts and taking food from tourists . A couple came and shared our lunch with us - they like apricot croissants for future reference!

At the top of Gornergrat there is an external paved viewing area with tables and chairs plus an inside restaurant and the ever ubiquitous kak shops. There's also another viewing area outside which you get to by walking up the slippery snow covered path, so of course you know which one we went for. Just like cats, we always want to be "that little bit higher".

Really great view of the glaciers from the top, and the weather was beautiful with lots of blue sky showing. So incredibly bright up there! Jeff managed to get a little bit higher again by climbing some rocks that were up the top. Lovely views everywhere and he even spotted a couple of Marmot the varmits.

As there was some fresh snowfall up there we decided to have a little snowball fight. An Indian kid who was up there joined in, throwing snow mainly at Jill . When we threw snow back at him he was puzzled and said "why are you throwing snow at me?" Funny kid.

Saw some more marmots on the ride down towards Zermatt. I was getting quite good at spotting them in the end (and no, they weren't mailboxes).

Down in the green forest again and with the lure of seeing deer we decided to hop off the train and walk back to town from the closest stop. Bev did really well on the walk down, which was a bit steep in parts. The forest was really lovely here, lots of conifers with bright green new growth, patches of snow now and again and plenty of wildflowers along the path.

Closer to town we walked through a grassy meadow full of knee high wildflowers. So pretty and different to Australia! One thing was the same as Australia though - no deer. Doh!

While were were having a little rest with the tired feet up at our apartment, the owner came by for payment and told us no rush to leave tomorrow. Awesome. None of us were looking forward to the 9am checkout time with only one bathroom for 4 people so this was really kind of him to offer.

A little later we went back into town for another look around and to molest the marmot water fountain. After this was the usual palaver trying to find somewhere to eat . Lots of restaurants are closed until June and the ones that are open are packed to the gills and we can't get in.

Finally decided on a place called Gees (many, many puns from Jeff along the lines of "Geeze, lucky we found this place) which had a tapas style menu, comfy seats and a welcoming atmosphere. Really yum food here. Jill had a vegan green lentil salad that included green beans, avocado, walnut pieces and pomegranate seeds with toast and proclaimed it delicious. Jeff & I had the Massaman curry of the day and Bev had falafel tacos. All really pleased with our meals and it was a lot lighter than a lot of gooey, smelly cheese! Good prices too which we appreciated as holy cow it's expensive to eat out here! I think we might even (gasp) cook a couple of meals during this trip! I can hear the shrieks of shock and horror from here!

After dinner we walked through the old town section "Hinterdorf" in Zermatt. Buildings here date from as early as the 15th century, and even though they're made almost entirely from wood they're not just standing, but standing solidly! That's impressive in this day and age, where houses are only really expected to last 40-50 years even with modern building techniques!

A lot of the buildings in Hinterdorf have large flat stones between the support poles and the floor. We assume this was to keep rats and mice out as a lot of time livestock and their feed were stored in the bottom level. The heat from the animals would help to keep the people above them warm too. Clever, but very smelly central heating!

Home to our cute chalet in Zermatt for the last time.