Switzerland ~ Part One

Lucerne (Luzern), Switzerland
May 18-20, 2013

There is only one way to describe Switzerland... breathtaking!  We only saw this one city, and from what other's have told me, it's only the tip of the iceberg!  I hope to return there to explore more of it, not to mention, I would like to go and see the Matterhorn. 

The scenery was so phenomenal in Lucerne.  The first day we took a train from Lucerne to Alpnachstad and there we took the cog railway to the top of Mt. Pilatus so we could have views of Lake Lucerne, mountains and surrounding valley's.  The cog railway was built by Eduard Locher.  He created a special cograil system for the 48% gradient of the steepest cogwheel railway in the world, the Pilatus Railway, which opened in 1889.

Once you reach the top of Mt. Pilatus (by the way, you can also reach the top by hiking or by an aerial tram (which we took down), you find a hotel, restaurant, viewing platforms and various trails that snake along the top of the mountain, even through the mountain.  Since I took so many pictures from up there, I will have another post about the remainder of our trip. 

So... Part One!  Mt. Pilatus and its beautiful views of the Alps.

Arriving in Lucerne, this is the main train station.

City of Lucerne

 On the smaller train to Alpnachstad.

 

 

 

The Cog Railway 

 

 Snow!

 

 Zig Zag trail hiking up the mountain

Cog Train working its way up the mountain.

 This is the hotel at the top.  There was a cold wind blowing, so they set blankets out with the chairs.

Hikers making their way up (standing in the snow)

The aerial tram going down the other side of the mountain - this is how we got down.

 Lake Lucerne down below...

 

 

 We saw several of these Ibex climbing the steep cliff faces.

 Riding the tram down the mountain...

 Long day... our sleepy girl passed out!

Brussels, Belgium ~ Mother's Day Weekend

Mother's Day Weekend
May 11-12, 2013
Brussels, Belgium

 

We enjoyed an amazing weekend in Brussels, despite the rain!  It was a quick trip over Mother’s Day weekend, and I spent it with my dear hubby and daughter doing all the things one should do in Belgium.  We tried the waffles, the French fries, the CHOCOLATE, and of course, the beer.  The other main thing is oysters… but I passed on those. 

Here’s some photos from our weekend.

The Grand Place

Gilt statues and trade symbols adorn the square’s elegant guildhalls that were rebuilt shortly after the originals were bombarded by French forces in 1695.  One older survivor is the splendidly spired Gothic-style Hotel de Ville (city hall) – ironic, as that was the main French target.  A market was held on this site as early as the 11^th century.

The Galeries St-Hubert
This was Europe’s first covered shopping arcade.  It also makes a great place to escape the rain and let toddlers run amok!

 Here are some more shots of Grand Place and some of the delicious eats and treats!

Mannekin Pis

This fountain in the form of a little boy cheerfully taking a leak into a fountain pool.  The original statue was first placed in 1619.  After it was stolen and damaged by a former convict in 1817, a replica was made and returned to its revered site.  One interesting fun fact… visiting heads of state donate miniature versions of their national costume for the boy, and now a collection of 815 outfits, including an Elvis suit, now reside and can be seen in the Musee de la Ville.

Fontaine de Jeanneke Pis

This is Mannekin Pis’s lesser known squatting sister.  This fountain was created in 1985.  She is hard to find and it was an adventure just looking for her.  After traversing many alleyways, we finally discovered her tucked at the end of a dead end between two bars.  This fountain was built in honor of loyalty.

Atomium

This is a space-age leftover from the 1958 World Fair.  It consists of nine gigantic gleaming balls representing an iron crystal lattice enlarged 165 billion times.  The structure has a viewing platform and a restaurant at the top.  It rises 100 m (325 ft) over the Bruparck.