Romance of the Rhine and Mosel - Switzerland 1

Hi, In early April we joined friends Cathy and Jim Kleeman on a river cruise on the Rhine and Mosel Rivers with a pretrip to Lucerne, Switzerland. I'll begin these posts with coverage of the first 2 1/2 days in Lucerne.

The afternoon we arrived we took a short walk around our hotel. It was located only 1/2 block from the Reuss River which flows into Lake Lucerne out of the photo just to the right.

The next day also was on our own so during the morning we did a little more exploring of the area near our hotel.

That afternoon Cathy, Jim and I walked to the Lion Monument. This bas relief statue of a crying lion memorializes the hundreds of Swiss Guard who were massacred in 1792 during the French Revolution when and armed mob stormed the Tuileries Palace in Paris.

Along the north bank of the Reuss is a pedestrian mall featuring restaurants and hotels.

Chapel Bridge is the most famous bridge in Lucerne. Built in 1333, much of it was rebuilt following a fire on August 18, 1993.

This view shows the inside of the roof covering the bridge.

Lamps in Europe can be very interesting.

On April 10 we had a walking tour of the old town. I stopped to take photos of one of the many swans and got separated from the group.

Meanwhile Ruthe stayed with the group and took the photos above and three below.

The group toured the city hall

and then crossed the Reuss River into the Old Town.

Decoration of buildings is common.

Here is a view of the Chapel Bridge from the north bank of the Reuss River. Near the far side of the bridge is the Water Tower, a fortification from the 12th Century.

This structure is from the previous railroad station on this spot. I am standing just outside the new station. The structure serves to welcome train travelers to Lucerne.

There were many old steam launches docked along the lake being prepared for excursion service.

In the late afternoon we took a one hour ride down the lake. Above, our group is boarding a modern launch.

The scenery is, as expected, beautiful.

Upon leaving our launch we took a cable car up a mountain. Going down we would use this cog railway.

There was a hotel and restaurant at the top the cable car.

We were greeted by this man playing a local horn.

While we ate dinner we were entertained (above and below).

The gentleman on the right was our tour guide for the entire trip.

After dinner there was an opportunity to take some photos as the sun set.

I thought the cog railway track created an interesting pattern as it descended the mountain.

Thanks for looking.