Luzern
Day 1 - Monday - May 30, 2016
Luzern is a beautiful mid-size city of about 60,000 residents. Luzern sits on the Reuss River where it flows out of Lake Luzern. Luzern was a backwater fishing village that grew to become a bustling trade center in Medieval times. It was one of Europe's must-see destinations on the "Grand Tour" a century ago.
Today, we met our tour group at 5pm at the Hotel Des Alpes where we stayed for 2 nights. Our Guide Reid Coen and Assistant Guide Fabian Rueger gave us an orientation of the tour rules that were to be followed. We also picked our "Buddy". The "Buddy" is someone from the group that you don't know. Whenever going someplace, the guide will say buddy check and everyone makes eye contact to make sure their buddy is there. This is a fast check to make sure no one is left behind (or the guide will know who is left behind if your "Buddy" is not there). When the orientation was over, we got acquainted on a cruise of Lake Luzern followed by our first group dinner. Below are a few pictures taken from the cruise.
Day 2 - Tuesday - May 31, 2016
Today started with a walking tour through Luzern's restored medieval center with its famous pedestrian bridges. After the walking tour, we boarded a bus to the Swiss Transport Museum. After the museum tour, we had free time to explore more of Luzern on our own and have dinner.
The guided walking tour included the beautiful and historic Chapel Bridge. This bridge was built in the early 13th century as part of Luzern's defense system. In the 17th century, the bridge was decorated with paintings showing the development of the town. We were also told about the Reuss River Weir System which is used to control the level of Lake Luzern and to prevent flooding of downstream villages. We also crossed the river on the historic Mill Bridge which was used in milling grain. Take a look at some pictures of our walking tour below.
After the walking tour, we boarded the bus for the Swiss Transport Museum were we had a guided tour. This museum is huge and consists of virtually all modes of transportation. It seems to specialize in trains. One of the most interesting exhibits in the museum was on the Gotthard Base Tunnel for trains in the Swiss Alps. It is the longest (36 miles) and deepest tunnel in the world. This tunnel opened on June 1, 2016 while we were on tour in Switzerland. The Swiss were celebrating and are very proud of this accomplishment.
We had return tickets to Luzern from the museum but didn't use them. Instead, we had a great walk along Lake Luzern back to town. In town we wandered around visiting the Lion Monument and the Old Town Walls among other sights. In the evening, we had a great dinner at the Opus Restaurant and Wine Bar. This is the only restaurant I know where you cut and get your own bread (other than at breakfast). This was a great way to end our second day. Here are a few pictures below.
Tomorrow we travel to Engelberg.