A day in Spiez, Bernese Oberland/Lake Thun

Hello again!
Before the memory fades completely, a look back at last Saturday, June 30, which was a perfectly beautiful day. I had an interpreting gig for a Swiss-Guatemalan human rights NGO -- always highly satisfying events (I don't want to call them jobs because they're so much more)! More on that event on my Spanish-language blog at http://aventurask[dot]blogspot[dot]com...
The above shows the mountain of mountains, a perfect triangle almost from anywhere you look at it. The famous Niesen has been painted and photographed more times than probably the mountain itself cares to acknowledge -- one of the most famous and most impressive renditions must be Paul Klee's Ad Parnassum, currently on show at Zentrum Paul Klee in Berne -- details at http://www.zentrumpaulklee.ch/ww/en/pub/web_root/pro/wechselausstellungen/vorschau.cfm
Here are some impressions from Spiez, a lovely, privileged little town on the western shore of Lake Thun. The climate there allows for white wine production, not very large quantities, admittedly, and there are jokes that call Spiez wine really sour, but I think that's the voice of envy talking. :)
The church has some quirky architectural features, probably from the early 20th century, but I was deep in conversation when I came up close so don't have a better picture. And I'm sure the origins of this church, as of many others along this shore of Lake Thun, go back a long, long way.
Typical Bernese Oberland/Lakeland view on a not very good day. Switzerland is one of the most densely built-up countries in the world and it shows.
We had a fairly long run of chilly, damp weather. Nevertheless, these roses seem to be thriving:
Here's a detail from the more sophisticated rose bush -- pity this can't convey the sweet fragrance of that bloom:
... a lovely clump of little roses down by the harbour ...
... and some exotic plants, also down by the harbour, which is one of the lovelier things about Spiez. I took the next picture when it was already rather too dark. But perhaps one of you out there can enhance this photo. It does capture the almost magical atmosphere of the place.
[I am adding this bit a day later, having received someone's comment re brightening things up a bit using my trusted, crusty Mac's iPhoto tools:
... a wee bit better, perhaps -- one does live in hope.]
It was a pretty good day for a leisurely sail, as this view demonstrates -- eat your heart out, D.E., ;) ...
... but most people on this Saturday evening had already packed up and gone home to their barbecues, or not yet arrived for the weekend:
Seeing these lovelies really makes me want to do something about my decade-long yen for sailing. Pity the Aare river here isn't sailable! The lakes are all at least a half-hour train ride away...
The public pleasure boats of Lake Thun stop here for passengers. One of them is the "Bubenberg", a motor boat, on her way to Thun. She's quite elegant, but not a patch on everyone's darling, on which more after this... Everybody's darling is the "Blüemlisalp", avenerable, beautifully restored paddle steamer. She was saved from the scrapyard by a public fundraiser and hundreds of hours of voluntary restoration work. I remember her from my childhood days, when she was limping rather than chugging along before taken out of commission and all but rotting away in obscurity. Back in her former glory, here she comes floating into the harbour (I took this photo unable to see the actual frame, so it looks like she's chugging uphill; interesting concept...), with one of the numerous Niederhorns on the horizon, the slopey peak on the right.
Fantastic! ... and there she goes again:
About ten minutes later, she was crossing over to Beatenbuch, or perhaps Merligen:
Spiez harbour has other lovely spots:
Above, a better picture of the Niederhorn as seen from a quiet spot near the embarkation point. Below, some exotic-looking flowers in a parterre by the main road. No idea what these are called.