What We Had
Rain...Rain...& more Rain
High: 68ºF Lo: 55ºF
Averages
High: 70ºF Lo: 52ºF
Currently
CHF
Conversion rate on our visit: CHF1.00 = $.9644
Luzern
Overview
Daily Itinerary Days 1-3
Each day Fabian (our tour guide) posted an itinerary for the days activities. In Luzern this meant three postings. Starting with the first day of the trip when we all met for the first time. Next was our first full day of activity followed by the third day of the tour when we packed up and moved on to the next city.
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Day 1
Days 2-3
Days 3-4
WOW Moment
Food...Glorious Food
Most WOW moments involved something we saw that really made an impression. In this case what we saw wasn't a thing but the prices for FOOD. Restaurant meals started at CHF 22! We stopped to get Jan a small cup of coffee that cost CHF 5. A Burger King combo (burger, fries and a drink) was CHF 15.
BTW if you haven't guessed CHF is Swiss Franc...about $.97
The flight out of Windsor left an hour later then we expected. We didn't have to leave home until a little before noon...just in time to drop Dex off at the doggy hotel.
On the way down we were worried that we would run into a closed expressway. I noticed the night before we left that I94 was closed between the Lodge and I69...directly on our route, So we took a rather round about way. I96 to M52 to I94 to Southfield to I75 to the Lodge to the tunnel. Good thing Don had told us all about the problems with I275 so we didn't have to be bothered with that situation.
Windsor to Toronto went without a hitch. A smaller plane filled to the brim. Economy plus got us on first and seated in the front so we got off right up front. We had to move from concourse D to E. We thought we had a bunch of time...but not so. When we arrived at our gate...we were boarding!At least we had a potty stop.
Since we were in economy plus we boarded right away...love EP. Our seats are at the front of EP right behind the bulkhead...lots of room.
As you can see from the menu we had a choice between chicken and ravioli. Linda had the chicken and I had the ravioli. Yum! And the wine was tasty as well.
Wine with dinner
Menu for dinner
Our plane from Winsor to Toronto
What We Saw
Around Zurick on Day 0
We checked in to our hotel (and before the room was ready) so we decided to walk back toward the train station to find some food. Speaking of food I have a separate section for that. A WOW moment. After grabbing food and eating it in the ferry boat terminal (to get out of the rain), we walked along the river to the covered Chapel Bridge. The area was from a travel brochure. Very cool.
Arriving at the station
Crossing to the our hotel`s side of the river
Looking out from the auto bridge to the Alps
The picture you always see
Looking west down the Reuss River
High up on hill over looking Lucern
Just one of the many picture perfect buildings
Typical Buildings along the Reuss River
From our Balcony at Night
From Our Balcony at Night
And a River runs through it
What We Saw
Lion Monument
Taken from the Swiss Lion Monument website:The Lion Monument (German: Löwendenkmal), or the Lion of Lucerne, is a sculpture in Lucerne, Switzerland, designed by Bertel Thorvaldsen. It commemorates the Swiss Guards who were massacred in 1792 during the French Revolution, when revolutionaries stormed the Tuileries Palace in Paris, France. The American writer Mark Twain (1835 1910) praised the sculpture of a mortally-wounded lion as "the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world."Â Â Want to know more?
Near the entrance
Getting closer
Some proof that we were in Lucern
And this is Jan and Jack
And finally the Lion & we fully agree with Mark Twain
We decided to take a tour of the lake aboard one of the many sightseeing boats. As Rick says it cost us CHF 25 per person and lasted about an hour. Certainly not a must see but if you have the time, we recommend it. There was a narration along the way (in 10 different languages) to give you a history of the lake and the area around it. They cover the two major mountain peaks (with stories and legends) and the formation of the governing bodies that ring the lake. If you can spend the time and the CHF 50, it's an enjoyable trip.
From the bow
Setting sail
Looking back west (toward our hotel)
Alps off in the distance and an interesting cloud formation on the left
One of the paddle -wheel boats
Mount Pilatus
Just a beautiful picture
Church and chapel
The lake doesn`t end here it goes anoth 20+K
Just another scenic picture
Panorama Rundfart Saphir Panorama Yacht
What We Saw
The first day of the tour
We started out with our tour group just before 5:00. Instead of meeting in the hotel restaurant (which we've done on most of the Rick Steve's tours) we boarded the tour boat (pictured below) for the second cruise of the day. It wasn't as long as the first cruise, but still fun.
We then followed up the cruise with a visit (you guessed it) the Lion Monument! Looked just like it did in the morning but I took one picture since it was at a different height and angle. That picture is shown below.
After a BRIEF timeout at the hotel we headed out for dinner at the Wirtahaus Taube (check out Where We Ate). A ten minute walk from the hotel and the food was great.
So ended our first day. We're still beat from the jet lag so early to bed.
Our Group Tour Boat
Standing high up on the side with our group
What We Saw
City Tour
Our City Tour with Claudia (our local guide) proved that having a knowledgeable person talk about their city is always better then just getting info from a book (sorry Rick).
She started with a description of the annual Carnival (February just before Ash Wednesday). The town turns out at 5:00 am to start the festivities. They all dress in costume and wear extremely elaborate masks (no face painting here). Starting at the fountain (just out our front door and to the right) they parade with Fritschi and his wife leading the way and generally have a great time raising hell before Lent begins. The Carnival Painting above (and the close up shots) give sort of a summary of the activities to welcome nature back from winter.
We continued our walk with Claudia describing and explaining the artwork we saw on a many of the buildings. The are a couple of pictures these buildings below. There are many more.
The final picture shows how heavy the water in the Reus river was flowing (click the Map button below for the location). There are a series of weirs in the river used to regulate its flow. In the spring the water is high since the spring rain and snow melt raises the level of Lake Luzern. The weirs in the river are open during this time to let the extra water run out. In the summer, the weirs are closed to slow/stop the flow through the river to keep the lake at an optimal level. We were told that the environment of the lake would be dramatically diminished without the ability to regulate the river using the weirs.
Hello from our local guide CLAUDIA
Claudia starts with an overview
Carnival Painting
Close up Carnival Painting
Fritschi sleeps (MUST be at the parade by 5:00 am)
Nature Reborn
`Oldest` Foutain
One of the various decorated buildings
One of the various decorated buildings
One of the various decorated buildings
Wood Carving Building
Queen Victoria`s Residence
Dance of Death Chapel Bridge
Dance of Death Chapel Bridge
City Wall
Just a cool building
One of the oldest residences from the 15th century
Hearing from Claudia (our local guide)
HEAVY FLOW through the Reuss
What We Saw
Transportation Museum
Our visit to the transportation museum was interesting but not the high point of the tour (I know it's still early). There were some highlights however.
The model of the Gotthard cantons (counties) of Graugunden. It was carved (2500 man hours) from 24 tons of solid granite. The scale is 1:25,000.
Then there is the model of the newest Gotthard tunnel (35 miles long) showing the path, depth, the temperature at the various locations, etc. The tunnel JUST opened after 20 years of work.
The steam powered snow thrower. It shot snow 300 feet sideways at a height of 55 feet.
The automated display was really interesting. All the cars on display can be moved to the performance stage after being selected BY A GUEST. A audio/visual presentation about the item selected is provided in the language selected.
Finally the 1910 Dufaux was designed, developed and flown by Henri and Armand Defaux. It is the actual aircraft they flew over Lake Geneva in 1910 setting a new distance record.
Example of tunnel construction
Tour Guide Allen tells about the Gotthard Cantons scale model
Electric Engine Crocodile from 1920
1st half of the scale model of newest 35 mile long Gotthard Tunnel
2nd half of the scale model of newest 35 mile long Gotthard Tunnel
The Elephant #2965 Largest in 1913
Steam Snow Thrower/Plow
Fully Electric Engine 1913
`Grand Tour` Carriage
Live picture of Grand Tour Carriage in operatiion 1881
A place that has decent food for a "reasonable" price (for Switzerland that is). We bought a couple of sandwiches and a small treat. Wasn't cheap but wasn't outrageous. As I said before we took the food to the ferry dock and chowed down out of the rain.
We were looking for a place where we could get a sit-down dinner at a reasonable price Rossini's met the bill. Great pizza (shared), some buffalo mozzarella and a home brewed beer. Good choice.
We had breakfast at the hotel all three days. A good European style breakfast at a reasonable (by European standards) price. Cold cereal, rolls, toast, cold meats, hard boiled eggs, fresh fruit, juice and coffee/tea. My wife enjoys these however, I prefer an American breakfast.
Dinning room
More dinning room (smaller in the back)
The main room again from the other direction
Breakfast at the hotel Furrengrasse 3 ch-6004 Luzern
Where We Ate
Manora Restaurant
Just a few short minutes from the hotel. This recommendation comes straight from Rick's book. The top floor of the Manor has a cafeteria style restaurant that is a great value. Now by our standards it would be considered expensive, but by Luzern standards it's reasonable. There was a good choice of both hot and cold foods prepared fresh. From sandwiches to pasta with fresh salads and cooked veggies. You can even take your tray up to the roof top to eat outside with a okay view (nice toward the water but just roof tops everywhere else). Great for lunch.
BTW if you need to visit a store this one has much of what you could need.
Our first group dinner was great. The choices were limited to fish (with LOTS of mashed potatoes) or a rolled ground beef (tied together with bacon), mashed potatoes and veggies. All were pleased except the excessive mashed potatoes with the fish. Service was very good. We paid for the wine which (like so much at Swiss restaurants) wasn't cheap.
We decided we'd give one of Fabian's recommendations a try. So we went back over to the Coop for lunch and a few minutes in the store. There wasn't as much of a selection as Manor but there was plenty. I had a fried pork cutlet, potatoes and spaetzle. Linda had quiche, a role and soup. Good stuff. It is definitely cheaper than a full restaurant and just as good. It's located just down the street from the Lion statue. Recommended.
Inside
Near the front of the serving line
Coop Restaurant Lowencenter LU 6003 Luzern
Where We Stayed
Des Alpes Hotel
The hotel we stayed at was great. You can't beat the location and our room was very nice (we went the extra mile and paid for a balcony). The wifi is strong with a couple of devices connected. Rick's description of how to get here was good with one clarification. When you leave the train station and reach the arc, turn left to the main road and then go over to the automobile bridge. On the far side of the bridge cross the street at the crosswalk and walk behind the first row of buildings location directly on the river. This will lead you to the hotel entrance (it's off a small street on the non-river side of the building). It's a 10 minute walk from the train station.
BTW, the picture with the sunshine was taken from just outside the hotel restaurant at the river level. That's Jack in the picture.
Also part of the hotel
From the Chapel Bridge
Coming in from the back way
Inside our room.
Inside looking toward the balcony
A shot from our balcony
Another shot from our balcony
Flowers on our balcony
Later in the day (actually see some sun)
One Final Shot
Des Alpes Hotel Furrengasse 3 CH-6004 Luzern Tel: 011 41 041 417 20
