Lucerne

One of the better stops! If it weren't so darn expensive . . .

Our hotel was the expensive and pretentious Chateau Gutsch.

Overall, it is a very nice hotel. And they agree. The building is magical. The plumbing was great, including a shower John could wash himself in without contorting. The bedroom was quiet and dark at night, but the bathroom had a little light shining into it so you could see! The staff at the reception desk was very nice.

On the negative side the signage to get to reception sucked. It turned out that the writing on the sign was on the wrong side. So it's not noticeable until you pass by, get kicked out of the restaurant, and walk back. And the path was very dark at night. The staff other than reception acted like we shouldn't be there. It was a good location for touring! You got a funicular ride before and after every tour (except the park).

Here is sunrise from the hotel

Our first outing was the the line of turms (towers) along the old town wall. The view of them and from them was fantastic. We took more than the usual number of photos while catching our breath:

There's always a hill. Here's Eleni on the way up to the towers.

Once up, of course we had to climb all the towers that were allowed to be climbed

This is the view from the top of a tower.

All that climbing worked up powerful hunger and thirst that were slaked at Geissmättli very close by. They definitely got a 5-star review from us.

The next morning was our Alpine hiking experience! From the hotel, we walked right into the woods, came out in farmland on the other side, and had a little breakfast at Schwyzerhüsli. The view was impressive. The cows clanked their bells for our morning music. Sadly, John's yogurt came from a plastic container, not from the farm.