A t this summer’s Saanen Brocante, I saw a photograph of St Niklaus Kapelle (the little chapel in the centre of Gstaad) taken way back in time. So long ago that the only other landmarks in the image are three barns, a single-track road bordered by a rickety wooden fence and (of course) the mountains. That’s it. No pavements, no children’s play park, no shops, no cafés, no restaurants, no art galleries, no fountain. The focus is all on the chapel.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes
I marvelled at the photograph because it’s a very special place to me. My husband and I were married in the chapel 30 years ago this New Year’s Eve. An anniversary is a time for reflection and while Gstaad is as special as ever, it is, in many ways, an entirely different place to 1993.
For a start the Promenade wasn’t pedestrianised back then. Getting a photograph of our wedding group alongside the chapel involved darting among the stream of cars splashing their way along the high street.

The red-topped piano at the Chesery nightclub on which we girls danced (yes, standing up, I have photographic proof) on my hen night while Al Copley knocked out his Blues tunes is but a distant memory.

As is the original Bergrestaurant on top of the Eggli where we ate our wedding breakfast of fondue and raclette.

Evergreen
But some things have stayed the same.

Like the conviviality of people who holiday here. Such as George. To this day I know little about him other than his first name. George got chatting to us on my hen night and apparently decided to take me up on my invitation to the wedding. All he needed to do, I had instructed, was wear a suit and bring a gift. Which he did. So our best man sorted an extra place at lunch and there is George in all our wedding photos, joining in with a bunch of strangers. Only in Gstaad.

Then there is the excellent hospitality for which the Swiss are famed. Happily this never wavers. Whether you’re lucky enough to be staying at a 5-star hotel, grabbing a bite to eat in a mountain hut or chinking glasses in a packed bar, you will be well looked after.

And of course the chapel itself maintains its role in the centre of the village. I wonder how many weddings it has celebrated over its 621 years? How many changes it has witnessed through the centuries?

If you haven’t visited the chapel yet, I definitely recommend you pop your nose in. Look carefully and you will notice the windows aren’t just any old stained-glass windows. They are decorated with the names and emblems of families from around the region, anchoring the chapel to the local community. I love this. I can imagine the local craftsmen hunched over their designs, creating a lasting legacy of the people who trod these streets centuries before us.

Diamonds are Forever
I hope and imagine the chapel will continue to stand for centuries to come. But as for us, will we still be here celebrating in 30 years? Who knows what the future holds but I’m thinking it’s a compelling goal. Why? Because I just checked and the traditional 60th wedding anniversary gift is diamond. Now that’s something worth hanging around for.

ANNA CHARLES