Boats and Trains and Mountains - Lake Lucerne and Mount Rigi

It was a minor miracle that nobody threw up during the night and we all woke up feeling well. We all slept in a little and during the morning talked about our upcoming plans for the weekend, as we were planning to head south into the more mountainous regions of Switzerland on our way to Italy. We planned to head to Lucerne first, and while it would be possible to visit Lucerne in a day trip as it's only about an hour away by train, we decided it made more sense to spend the night and continue onward on our trip. So it was a bit unexpected that the previous night was our last night at Malorie's house, and we hastened to pack up EVERYTHING into our five backpacks and walk to the train station in Pfaffikon for the last time. We booked a last minute hotel in Lucerne and were off!

Trying to find our hotel in Lucerne, haha!

Checked into our hotel! Mary had been really wanting to try these white Twix, and today the perfect opportunity presented itself. On the train platform there was a vending machine where she found a loose one dangling, so we put in coins trying to get two-for-one, but it ended up that THREE came out so the kids were super excited. In the end though, they decided they weren't the best tasting and regular chocolate Twix were better.

After dropping off our heavy backpacks at the hotel (even though we packed pretty light on this trip, the backpacks are still quite heavy and we are already planning on bringing even LESS on our next trip!), we walked through Lucerne to the boat dock and took a boat ride on Lake Lucerne. The weather was totally perfect - we've really been lucky when it comes to weather on this vacation! Here's a bunch of photos from the boat:

We got off the boat in Vitznau and got on the cogwheel train to take us up to Mount Rigi. Apparently this is the oldest mountain railway in Europe. The views on the ride up were amazing! Here's a little video segment from the train ride.

Heading up! Earlier in the trip I mistakenly thought there was some kind of blue crop being grown on the hillsides, but here you can clearly see it is actually blue netting to protect fruit crops from the birds.

Looking out the train window as we head up the mountain.

Getting higher...

...and higher...

...and higher... 

...and even higher...

...almost there...

At the top!

Looking down on the train station at the top of Mount Rigi with snow capped mountains in the distance.

So pretty! 

Lots more pictures from the top. It was so clear you could see for miles and miles.

This is a marker used for triangulation in the area - others can spot this reflective pyramid at the top of Mount Rigi from far away and use it to determine their location.

This is a rock from Emei Shan, a mountain in China with a similar silhouette to Mount Rigi. They are "sister mountains" - and there were lots of Chinese tourists on the mountain today as well!

Instructions in the mountaintop bathroom for those not familiar with Western style toilets. We saw lots of signs similar to this one in bathrooms on our trip.

It was finally time to head down the mountain and we boarded the cogwheel train once again. Sitting across from me was a young couple, and the woman was admiring a diamond ring on her finger, and the man with her said, "Oh, are you going to always be fiddling with it now?" It was cute, and I asked her if the ring was new. "Oh yes! We just got engaged on the top of the mountain!" We chatted for a bit and learned they were from the UK. It was nice to talk with fellow English speakers. I asked if they had taken any photos from the top, and when they said no I offered to quickly take one. The train was scheduled to depart in just a few minutes, but we ran up the mountain a little ways so I could take a photo of the two of them with the incredible view in the background. Joey had found a one-cent Euro coin on the top of the mountain, and he and Lily decided to give it them as an engagement present. They loved it and said it was the perfect gift, as the year the coin was minted was the same as the year they had met. We never got their names, but it was nice that our paths crossed for a short time anyways.

Heading down the mountain, sun setting over the mountains and Lake Lucerne.

Back in Vitznau we boarded the boat to head back to Lucerne. It was a beautiful ride in the setting sun. Birds were following along with the boat which Katie absolutely loved.

Boat dock station in Vitznau

Playing a memory game with photos of Switzerland on board the boat

Lily and I played this chutes-and-ladders style game on board the boat

When we got back to Lucerne we found a nice Italian restaurant to have dinner at before heading to bed. Another day of adventures is planned for tomorrow!