Day three: At the Top of Europe

A day trip to Jungfrau---the "top of Europe", was the day's adventure. We reached about 11,000 feet taking a couple of cog railways along the route. Fog and clouds interfered with the view at the top, but sights along the way were classic Swiss alpine settings.

Picture taken by the most energetic tour guide in Europe.

One of hundreds of large Swiss cows snacking on lush green grasses along the tracks, each outfitted with a large bell. The purpose of the bells: To keep the cows from getting lost in the fog. While the group was grazing, it sounded like a cacaphonic bell-choir.

The Jungfraubahn train route to the top was bored through a mountain and glaciers, with a couple of stops to look out a bore-hole at the vistas.

.A view from the top.

Inside the Jungfrau Ice Palace...created for the tourists and as a promotional for a nearby Disney park. 

Day 2 : Trip to Lucerne

We headed to Lucerne (and adjacent Lake Lucerne) to escape the heat.  The heat followed us---a heatwave that was sweeping Europe.

Complete with gable paintings, the covered, medieval Chapel Bridge forms the centerpiece of Lucerne’s townscape and is considered to be one of the oldest, covered wooden bridges in Europe.

City scene along the River Reuss that feeds into Lake Lucerne with Hotel Château Gütsch on the hill in the distance. We were unable to stay at this fairytale castle hotel built in 1888, because it is closed for conversion into a luxury boutique hotel.  Had it been open., it would have been about 750 euros a night, which was way beyond Jeff's frugal standards. 

Aboard a steamer for a cruise on Lake Lucerne. Would have enjoyed some narration. Met a young woman from Hungary who spoke impeccable English. (She took the picture.) Her current boyfriend was called back to Moscow on business, leaving her alone to enjoy their vacation here.

Along the shoreline of Lake Lucerne – the redeeming factor was that our last port of call before completing the roundtrip was Kussnacht ('Night kiss'). Possible place for a return visit.

Parked next to the train station in Lucerne were 100s of bikes---a common form of transportation. Missing: Bike locks.  None of the bikes were locked--which says something about the Swiss culture.

First European Adventure

Our first European adventure does not involve the RV. Nevertheless it is a "Roadtrip" for us.
Beginning July 15 in Zurich Switzerland, we eventually cruise down the Rhine to Amsterdam, then train down to Paris where we met daughter Julie. She has already blogged her adventure during this period at the Journal of Julie.  This blog is being prepared a couple of weeks after our return to the USA, but it's a great place to store some of our pictures and memories----and not bore any of you with a 2 hour slide show.


Day one: Zurich

It was 95+ degrees when we arrived, so we headed for a cooling stroll by Lake Zurich. This city installed diving platform would never have been allowed according to US 'nanny state' rules.  Of note were the lean, physically fit people here (except for touring Americans), a product of bicycles, walking and a lean diet. Nevertheless, beers by the lakeside were in abundance with the 25-35 crowd.