Heidi hi Switzerland.. and admit it, who here didn’t first learn about the Alps through litle orphan girll Heidi?
Whisper it though, author Johanna Spyri’s fresh-faced Angel of the Alps is 140 years old this year.
But like all heroes and heroines from literature they get to keep their youth for ever.
Heidi’s enduring appeal, and that of her grandfather and goatherd Peter has, of course, been passed down the generations.
Heidi has been translated into more than 50 languages and several movies had been produced.
You’re probably most familiar with the BBC version with Emma Blake in 1974, which is where I first stumbled across her.
A childhood secret
I daren’t have told my big brothers or my schoolpals then.
But I was enchanted by little Heidi’s life and her idyllic country.
And I remain just as enamoured by Switzerland to this day.
Of course all those sweeping Alpine valleys just makes you want to breathe in the healthy mountain air.
Fandom
And that’s why it just makes sense that Switzerland should be one of the first places we should be allowed back to visit.
Our friends in Tobleroneland have, of course, made a virtue of their most famous daughter.
And they have given us a tour of her Eastern Switzerland homeland especially designed for fans of Heidi.
So, without further ado… hooray, hooray, it’s a Heidi holiday, such a world of fun for everyone, it’s a Heidi holiday.
A Heidi holiday
The Alp (yes, that is the singular) above Maienfeld is where young Heidi felt truly alive in what is today known as the Heidiland holiday region.
And the hamlet of Maienfeld is where the golden-haired lass lived and where you can visit the ‘Original Heidi House’ – a home with furnishings as they were in Heidi’s time.
Then if you want to delve deeper into the author’s life, there’s also the ‘Johanna Spyri Museum Heididorf’ in Hirzel.
And a gift shop full of Heidi souvenirs.
And Switzerland’s smallest post office with its special Heididorf postmark.
Heidi fans also come from around the world to explore the different Heidi trails and paths.
Now we bring you timely news from Heidiland that some restaurants in the area reopened terraces this week.
Only an hour by train from Zurich you’ll soon be able to turn the clock back 140 years to a time when we could all just roam around the valleys for our fun.
Swiss Air, naturally, is the national airline and one of the best, and most efficient (naturally) airline I’ve flown with. And needless to say the food is as healthy as an Alpine meadow.