Blogs from Lucerne, North-West, Switzerland, Europe - page 20

One of my most memorable times.... Switzerland and where better but strait to the top of one of their epic mountains. I was fortunate to stay in the best hotel around, sitting at the top of Mount Pilatus... word can't explain - hopefully pictures can help. Just getting to the top was a feat in it's self. a VERY very .... well just check out the pics and you will see.... read more

Made our way from Lichtenstein to Switzerland today. The drive to Lucerne was gorgeous. Back to seeing a lot of brown Swiss cows and their tinkering cowbells. Passed through a beautiful 10-15 miles before driving by Zurich which was full of crystal clear lakes and rivers, dazzling mountains and some waterfalls. Of course, all this was seen by the road so the pictures I am posting on them are through a moving bus window. So, not optimum photography by any means. We arrive at Lucerne and immediately go to see the wounded lion. Our tour director wanted us to see it upon arrival because at around 4 pm each day is the perfect light for it. Apparently, the Swiss have a history of supplying mercenaries to foreign governments. One such case happened in Swiss soldiers attempting ... read more

Lucerne We were up nice and early as we planned to journey up to the top of Mount Pilatus. I was really disappointed as it was grey and very foggy and I figured we wouldn't be able to see anything. How wrong I was!! The coach took us to Kriens where we hopped on a cable car that took us up to Fräkmüntegg, which is about half way up the mountain. After only a few minutes we had risen above the fog and it was a glorious sunny day. Below us were farms and forests and you could see tracks where the skiing might be in the winter. From Fräkmüntegg a Gondola carried us the rest of the way to the top of Mount Pilatus (2132m). Here we spent an hour or so doing some of ... read more

Our journey to Switzerland took us through 4 countries in one day. We left Germany bright and early and ducked back into Austria on the way to Neuswanstein castle, which sits on the border of Germany and Austria. This castle is like a fairytale castle, and is said to be the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty's castle at Disneyland. It sits in the most gorgeous setting atop a hill with views of the countryside below. The views were phenominal. The castle was built by King Ludwig II, or Ludwig the Mad as he was better known, in the late 19th century. It was not completed by the time of his death, so onlz 14 of the 65 rooms are completed. The interior is very interesting, with many murals on the walls depicting scenes from his favourite operas ... read more

The Swiss train leaves right on time - the Italian train to connect with it has 25 minutes to spare but arrives 23 minutes late - I benefit from the run. Northward its obvious when we reach Switzerland - its where the scenary becomes stunning - passed the lakes of Tessin and through the mountains of inner Schweiz. Arriving in Luzern is a blast from the past. I head straight for the lake - Stef arrives by bike and we enjoy a swim and catch up. Astrid and Bruno were so welcoming and we appreciate their hospitality and company for the next two days. After bircher meusli its off on the bikes to explore town. Next night its a send off for Stef with dinner and friends - time to play mafia, meyer and the guitars. ... read more