Day 1
A morning adventure on our own before meeting out tour group that evening.
"What more could we have asked for from this fairytale world?"
Our first Swiss sunrise…what a beautiful sight to behold. Bright mountain tops, gleaming reflections sprinkled over the waves, old church bells resonating along the streets, adorned with bird song. What more could we have asked for from this fairytale world? If you said 85 degree cloudless weather, you would have been correct. We weren’t sad to see the lack of clouds and rain we had anticipated.
We began our day with a classic European breakfast of croissants and espresso. Our tour group wasn’t meeting until 5 PM, so we had a few hours to ourselves to start our own mini-adventure with a 10 AM bus ride through the old city to make our way to the base of Mt. Pilatus - our first grand peak of the tour.
We took a series of gondolas up the side of the mountain. Looking out we saw the adorable Swiss cows with their extremely large bells, in addition to bikers, hikers, and families out picnicking. Behind us Lucerne withdrew into the hazy background as the miles of mountain ranges and lakes emerged. We quickly earned our first American tourist badge as we accidentally got off the first set of gondolas only to look around and see that we were supposed to have stayed seated. Luckily, the attendant, although amused, was understanding and directed us to another open space and we were able to continue onwards and upwards.
We trekked up to the highest possible point to marvel at the spectacle that was Switzerland’s natural landscape. Up there, a moment is a lifetime and a lifetime passed in a moment when mesmerized by rolling hills and vast swaths of green and blue pallets. At the very least it stirred the appetite.
It then came time for us to join up with our new tour mates in town, so we took the gondolas back down the slope with a friendly Swiss family. We said goodbye to our first alpine experience as Mt. Pilatus took its place again up in the heavens. After initial introductions, we started our first guided tour through the main points of interest and their subtle nuances. One of particular intrigue was a great lion carved into the side of a rock formation, The Lion of Lucerne. The creature was a solemn reminder of the Swiss guard massacre that took place during the French revolution. Luckily, it could still find peace in the pleasant grotto and pond that lay before it. That may have also been due to the pandemic eradicating the usual large groups of tourists that typically gather here as it is one the major tourist attractions of Lucerne. It was awe inspiring being in the presence of such a proud statue, the herald of its proud people.
We took lunch at the main landing where we indulged in some of the comforts of home - pasta, chicken nuggets, and the novel sparkling water. Interestingly enough, we learned that the public fountains contain drinkable water - quite refreshing, safe to drink and free - but for restaurant water we needed to pay. Post-lunch, we ventured into the curious mountainside tunnel with outlets at which we could stare into the vista. We happened to spot a chapel towards the midpoint of the slope. That surely demonstrated a dedication to faith to drag all those stones and wood planks up so far!
By this point in our day, we were excited for a group dinner. Our feet were feeling the cobblestone streets a little too well. We were happy to become acquainted with our traveling companions who quickly bonded while sharing travel stories and laughter. This was going to be a great group of travelers for an exciting twelve day tour. After dinner, we strolled around the town to grab some twilight city views. Then we gratefully embraced some much needed sleep, ready for the next day of adventures.
