Colourful

Luzern is a beautiful city. The architecture is good enough, but the parks and gardens around the area add just a bit more colour.

Lakeside walkways are lined with red flowered Horse Chestnuts.

Close by, Rhododendrons were in full flower.

There were planted beds of blue Pansies...

A couple of bronze sculptures added a certain something too.

More Rhododendrons...

And even more colour from beds of Californian Poppies.

Wild flower beds were also in bloom with various grasses, Ragged Robin and many other flowers, planted for the bees and butterflies.

Down Again!

Having spent some time on the top of Mount Pilatus, the second leg of our round trip took us back down via the world's steepest cogwheel railway. With gradients of up to 48%, it takes about 40 minutes to descend to the lakeside village of Alpnachstad, where we caught the third mode of transport, a boat back to Luzern. The shower of rain, sleet and hail which blew through while we were on the railway, was gone by the time we got on the boat, leaving some smashing views as we cruised the lake.

We passed the small village of Hergiswil, where the lake frontage was dominated by the glass blowing business Glasi Hergiswil.

Behind, the views of Pilatus were once again, quite wonderful.

Some rather nice lakeside properties also caught the eye.

But the day was dominated by our visit to the summit of Pilatus.

The mountain gets its name from a legend which says that one of the mountain's lakes, was the last resting place of none other than Pontius Pilate himself. For a long time, it was forbidden to ascend the mountain because of this. It was thought 'Cursed be anyone who disturbs the Pilatus.'

In the middle ages, it was believed that a dragon with healing powers lived in the rocky crevices on the mountain.

Whatever the truth, we were certainly not cursed on our trip.

Summit

At the top of Mount Pilatus, you can find two hotels, a panorama gallery, a couple of restaurants, a sunny terrace and various walkways. Not bad for 7,000ft!  One of the walkways is called the Dragon Path and is carved out of and through the rock, offering views out across the countryside.  Here, you can see one of the large, red cable car gondolas which brings tourists the last 1,500ft or so and a wonderful view of Lake Luzern below.

Beyond the lake and the nearer mountains, the snow-capped higher Alps can be seen.

From this lofty point along the Dragon Path, you look down on the small Klimsenhorn Chapel which we passed on the way up.

Zooming in a bit, it looks as if it were made of Lego!

Various viewpoints have been carved out of the rock face, giving 'windows' onto the scenery way below.

It's a good job there are barriers and hand rails!

Inside the visitor centre, you are greeted by a stuffed Alpine Ibex - sadly the only Ibex we saw, although they do live wild on Pilatus.

Outside again and the snow was till clinging to the higher parts of the mountain. At this point, a sudden, sharp shower of sleet and hail came at us, visible in this shot.

One of the birds I was hoping to see while we were in Switzerland was the Alpine Chough. Said to be quite common in the mountains, they are well known for their habit of congregating around tourist attractions, on the look-out for tasty tit-bits. We weren't disappointed!

So, that was another new 'tick'.

Pilatus

Last Friday saw us taking a trip on various modes of transport, to the summit (Nearly) of Mount Pilatus.

At almost 7,000ft, Pilatus is, as our guide pointed out, not actually part of the Alps, but stands alone, away from the main range of mountains. Our first mode of transport was a bus to the town of Kriens to catch the cable car. Then it was onward and upward.

With such good weather, we were lucky enough to have some wonderful views as we got higher.

Looking back, Lake Luzern and the city itself started to come into view.

And some stunning scenery...

And it just got better...

And better. The meadows below were filled with Marsh Marigolds and the occasional sound of cow bells just made it so 'Swiss' that you couldn't have wanted anything better.

Up to the snow level and the small Klimsenhorn Chapel sitting at 6,257ft above sea level came into view. There was once a hotel here too, but that burned down in 1967.  The chapel was renovated in 2003.

At the top, the views were just breathtaking.

Enough for today.  More on our trip up (and down) Pilatus tomorrow...

Löwendenkmal

A little way from our hotel we found the small garden area which contains the famous Löwendenkmal or Lion Monument.

Designed by Bertel Thorvaldsen and sculpted by Lukas Ahorn in 1820, this beautiful work of art commemorates the Swiss Guard, massacred in 1792 during the French Revolution.

Never one to mince words, Mark Twain described the sculpture as "the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world."  Looking closely at the painful expression on the face of the mortally wounded lion, you can see why.

The garden setting for this sculpture is both peaceful (despite all the tourists) and extremely beautiful.

Back to the Chapel Bridge and more artworks are to be found.  These triangular paintings were completed in the 17th century.

Painted by Hans Heinrich Wägmann, they depict scenes of life and events in Luzern's history. Sadly, many of the original pictures were destroyed in a catastrophic fire in 1993.  Only about 30 of the original 147 paintings were fully restored.

Also close to where we were staying, the Church of St. Leodegar is one of the most important landmarks in the city.

Construction began in 1633 on the site of a former Roman basilica and later monastery.  Those twin, spiky spires can be seen all over the city.

There is an impressive entrance porch...

and an elegantly carved door...

leading to an extremely ornately decorated interior.

Still more to come...