Lucerne Day 1

Today we struck off on our own to the mountain town of Lucerne. Located in the center of Switzerland on Lake Lucerne and bracketed by imposing mountain ranges, Lucerne looks like a postcard anywhere you look. Old town is divided by the Reuss River with medieval buildings everywhere.

We took our city tour of Lucerne, and headed off to the Chapel Bridge and admired all the paintings that we still intact from hundreds of years ago. We crossed the river to admire the Hof Church, (which is the Papal liaison to central Switzerland) and viewed the monument to slain Swiss soldiers, appearing as a giant stone lion who is mortally wounded. We took in the Glacier Gardens after that, which is a geological sight with intact erosion from the ice age, and wandered through the attached house of mirrors. Then we climbed the city walls and took in a dramatic view of the city. It was a clear day with summer weather, all in all a perfect day for exploring.

For dinner we grabbed sandwiches and had a picnic on the river, and ended our day with a late night stroll. Tomorrow we will take a boat cruise across Lake Lucerne and will take the cogwheel train up Mt. Rigi. Another day in Lucerne sounds good to us!