We are at the end of 3 days staying up a high mountain in a rural alpine village. Just getting here is quite an experience of fear of danger!! The road is single lane and drops away to the lake miles beneath the road (OK, 760 metres away). I hated it, being a little scared of heights and precarious situations, thank goodness PC was here to drive or we’d have stayed in a hotel down on the lake!
The actual village was lovely and scenic. We stayed in a typical Swiss chalet, they are really all the same wherever you look! It’s like there is only one building plan, a basic box with a roof!
Our house was homely inside, quite old but well maintained with parquet floors and wooden panelled ceilings. There were three dining, lounge areas so it seemed like a spacious apartment – there was room to leave our computers out on a table all the time.
Being quite high up, we were shrouded in mist both days we were here. The first day we slept in and went for a walk late morning. It’s a beautiful area to walk around and we enjoyed ourselves.
All the headstones in the cemetary were carved out of wood.
On the way back we met a lady (Dominique) and her son (Eric) who had walked up the hill along the precarious road!
We invited them back to our apartment so they could use the internet to ring their daughter/sister as it was Dominique’s birthday. We enjoyed their company for a few hours, eating some pasta for lunch and talking about Swiss tolls, schools and overseas trips. Eric had spent a year in Argentina and he told us about his adventures chasing wild bulls on horseback! The kids had a great time talking to them, telling them all their stories and showing them their toys.
The next day we drove into Lucerne and found a carpark right near the Lion Monument and the centre of town. We ate our lunch in front of the lion which is a memorial to all the Swiss army members who were massacred during the French Revolution.
Then we walked around the lake and the old town..
having a go on the stage..
calling into a beautiful church …
…and wandering over the old bridge
The kids saw a hummingbird in the flowers over the edge of the bridge and we watched it for five minutes until it flew away. That was pretty exciting to see.
Lucerne is very pretty and the old town was amazing with so many decorated buildings and fountains.
It even had a unicorn – what more does a town need!
We drove back to our house up the horrible hill, and got ready to move on to Innsbruck the next day. Phew, things might be a bit cheaper…
(Week 33A – Saturday, 29 September 2012 – Tuesday, 2 October 2012)