Sledging

We went "sledging" recently in Grindelwald. This is tobogganing with a sled using your heels to steer and as breaks. We went down a mountain behind Eiger. Yes, it was steep. Very steep. After almost flying over a steep edge at the very beginning (I couldn't dig my heels deeply enough to stop), I chose to walk down the really steep descents. Lame, I know. About 60% of the runs were good for me.

I saw one dude, a really experienced local who must have been about 60 years old - just chillin' as he sped down the mountain runs on one of these bicycle ski/sled thingies. I can just imagine me never trying that! Haha! Kudos to the locals! Give me another 30 years and maybe, just maybe!

Waggis

Waggis are the characters that march through the streets during Carnival. Their masks cover the entire head and usually they are a larger scale to fit over a person's head. The eye holes are often the nostrils of the characters and the mouth opening (to allow for playing a musical instrument) are found under the chin. The hair looks like a cheerleaders' Pom-Pom was fastened to it - and it's just as colorful!

Most masks are hand made by the owner - they have great pride in them. Together with the colourful costumes adorned in bells or what have you, and the larger than life heads can be a bit intimidating. But they look pretty cool from what I've seen.