Day 4: Lake Lucerne, Mount Pilatus, and Basel

Breakfast was great. The hotel’s waitstaff are very attentive. Bill jokes that you expect fancy waitstaff to pull your chair out for you, but they also fluffed the pillow we sat on.  Once we finished our food, they offered us a to-go coffee and then asked if we would be traveling that day. We said we were, and she offered to get us a box so we could take some food with us. Bill picked out a couple of croissants and some pastries for later. Without a doubt, the nicest hotel we’ve ever stayed at, in every sense of the word.

Bill relaxes with his fluffed pillow and a wonderful breakfast

We met Sky and headed to the dock for our cruise around Lake Lucerne to Mount Pilatus. 

Incredible how clear the water is

Near the dock is an arch built over the entrance to the old train station that burned down in 1971. On top of the arch is a sculpture called the Zeitgeist. It means the unique spirit each era has in history. This one features the zeitgeist of the late 19th century. 

The arch with the Zeitgeist sculpture on top

Our ship was a large ferry with a huge crowd waiting to board. We stood near a group of young teen boys, whose dress and general goofiness reminded us that teens are similar throughout the world. When it was time to board, Sky powered her way to the first-class section on the upper deck to make sure we got good seats. She also brought some Rivella for us to sample. It’s the national drink of Switzerland. It was very light and bubbly. Tasted a little like ginger ale.  Very good. 

On our ship tour of Lake Lucerne

Enjoying some Rivella

We enjoyed a calm, breezy boat ride around Lake Lucerne, with beautiful views. Apparently, real estate in the area is very expensive, and there are strict residency and tax laws for property owners. Lovely to look at, though.

Our Hotel as seen from the boat

Beautiful homes near Lake Lucerne

The views were just gorgeous

 We got off the boat and walked over to the train that goes up to the mountain. Pilatus features the steepest cogwheel railway in the world, climbing the mountain at 48% for a 30-minute ride up the mountain. It is also one of the oldest in the world, along with the Mount Washington cog railway, which we rode in New Hampshire in 2002! 

Train station at Mount Pilatus

Bill relaxes on the ride up the mountain

The cows graze in the alpine fields in summer and return in the fall. It takes them about 4 hours to walk up the mountain to the field. In fall, everyone celebrates "until the cows come home!"

The hotel Pilatus-Kulm (Peak of Pilatus) at the summit of the mountain was built in 1890

Sky walked us around the visitor center at the top and pointed out several walking trails. She also pointed out the nearby military installation, designed to protect the area if needed. Switzerland is neutral, she reminded us. Jeremy said, “Everyone is neutral until they get attacked.” Scary, but true.

Military installation on Pilatus

 Sky’s husband, a trauma surgeon, had the day off and had biked and hiked up the mountain to have lunch with her. From the top, we could see the trails leading up the mountain, and they were more than either of us would have attempted. 

The hiking/biking trails up the mountain. Sky said it takes 3-4 hours to complete.

The sky was clear, and we could see the Alps in one direction and the Black Forest in the other. 

It was cool and a bit windy, perfect for Jeannie. We walked up to the highest viewing station, took a selfie, and walked back down without incident. 

The walk up to the summit

We made it! It wasn't actually bad - just stairs

View from the summit facing the Alps

View toward the Black Forest in Germany

Bill bought a beer, and we enjoyed the pastries we had brought from the Mandarin Oriental Hotel breakfast.

The view from our bench at lunch

Bill enjoying a Finsterer Hubertus, a Swiss Lager made in Lucerne

Accordion players play some Alpine tunes

Ri-co-la!

Getting back down would involve riding in two gondolas. No problem, right? Yikes!

 Our first gondola was large, holding 55 people. That took us to about the halfway point. 

The larger gondola begins its descent

View on the way down

At the stop, there is a recreational area with toboggan rides, zip lines, and hiking trails. All with gorgeous views. 

A young teen prepares to zip line

Sky shows us a map of the recreation areas of Mount Pilatus

The second gondola was much smaller, a 4-person ride which we shared with Sky, our guide. We chatted about living in Lucerne versus the United States (she said they had visited the Pacific coast once and her kids were amazed at the size of Walmart). Life in Lucerne is so peaceful; Sky sometimes worries that her kids are living in a bubble. We assured her they can see enough of the real world on TV. 

Small gondola - scary, but not much choice (you can actually take the train down, but we had no idea how, so we followed our guide)

Once we regrouped, we loaded up our Mercedes-Benz minibus and headed to Basel to meet our ship. There was quite a bit of traffic and some map-checking by Sky and Georgi, our driver, but we did arrive safely. We learned we had been upgraded to a suite on the third floor. The stateroom was beautiful, and we had a bottle of champagne waiting for us. 

Our gorgeous suite on the ship

Bill is already relaxed

We settled in and rested for a bit, then reported to a 6:15 meeting with the crew to get general information. The lounge was packed; there was no room to sit. A few tables were open, but coats were draped over the chairs to reserve them.  A kind waiter (Dao) let us sit in the restaurant area, moved the jackets, and said they didn’t allow people to reserve seats. 

After the meeting, where we heard from the captain, the head chef, and James, our program director, we moved on to dinner and sat with Jerry and Julia from our excursion and Chris and Kathy from Chicago. For every meal, the menu includes regional items, a vegetarian option, and standard selections, which remain the same throughout. I had the roast chicken, one of the standard options, which was tasty. Bill had sea bream (fish), which he enjoyed. Dessert was a chocolate lava cake, which was delicious. Lots of Riesling to drink. 

The chocolate lava cake was delicious!

After dinner, we walked up to the front deck to watch as the ship passed through a lock on the Rhine.

They close the locks in front of and behind the ship

Drain out the water until we are at the same level as the next part of the river

Raise the front lock and cruise on through!

Bill enjoys the sunset from our balcony