June 21st - Luzern

After the hikes of the past two days, we decided to take it easy and take a cruise on Lake Luzern. So we took a trainride on Saturday morning. The Brünig Railway from Meiringen to Luzern is part of the only narrow-gauge line of the Swiss Federal Railways. As the train climbed over Brünig Pass and down, I tried to take photos of the picturesque countryside.



We arrived at the Luzern train station and immediately boarded one of the William Tell Express paddle steamers. It was a very popular cruise since it was a hot day in Luzern.


We had thought about taking the cog railway to the top of the Rigi, a mountain which overlooks the lake. But, as you can see, the top was in clouds and we decided to do other things.


Instead, we cruised to Vitznau where we got off the ship and rushed up into town to find some lunch. We found a little bakery where we bought a sandwich and two pastries and then ate them as we sat near the quai and watched a bridal party. We wished them as much happiness as we have had for 52 years.

We caught the next ship back to Luzern where we got off at the Lido which was crowded with people sunning and swimming. We visited the Transportation Museum, one of the many museums that are free with the Swiss Pass. One of the cars there was this solar powered vehicle which didn't look too comfortable to me. There were lots of other exhibits and interactive mechanics for children.

After leaving our admission stickers on the VW, we took a bus to the center of town where we visited the Rosengart Collection of works by Picasso, Klee, Miro and others. Then we went into the Jesuitenkirche, a beautiful baroque church.


There we found the Utah Baroque Choir from Provo practicing for a concert to be given that evening. We listened for a while and then decided to come back after finding something to eat at a cafe along the river.

We walked a bit in the old town where we had stayed on our first trip to Europe in 1971. It hadn't changed much!! Then we had drinks and the butcher plate (thin slices of meat and cheese with bread) at La Bonne Cave near the famous Chapel Bridge. After listening to the Utah choir for a short time, we headed home arriving at 8:30pm and deciding that scrambled eggs would make enough supper.