October 11, 2007
LUCERNE, SWITZERLAND
We drove to the medieval city of Lucerne today, which is only 2 hours away from us. On the drive there, we stopped at a lake called Walensee to admire the Churfirsten mountains. They towered above the lake and reminded me of the Grand Titon mountains in Wyoming. We decided to put one of the pictures we took (of this majestic scenery) onto our family websites homepage.
Lucerne has two wooden bridges, the Spreuer Bridge and the Chapel Bridge (Kapellbrucke). They arch over the Ruess River in Lucerne. The Spreuer Bridge was completed in 1408 and is called this because chaff (Spreu) and leaves could be dumped into the Ruess here. The world famous one is the Chapel bridge, but both of them have these amazing medieval paintings under the eaves of the roof. The Chapel Bridge was built during the first half of the 14th century (the 1300's). The bridge was part of the cities fortification and is Europe's oldest preserved wooden covered bridge. It almost burnt down in 1993, but thankfully they were able to save it. They reconstructed it back to it's original state, and saved some of the centuries old paintings. Some of these works of art are now framed with black charred wood, which serves as a reminder when you walk across this landmark. The bridges handrails are lined with colorful flower boxes and on a clear day you can see the alps in the distance.
We stopped at the Museum of History, which was right beside the Spreuer Bridge. The original sculpture of the lion was there, which they used as an example when carving the famous Lion Monument into the side of the mountain in the old town. There were suits of armor, a century old dentist chair, and many other historical items from the towns yesteryears.
The first documented mention of Lucerne dates back to the 8th century, but the actual foundation of the city was laid in 1178. The old town on the right bank of the river is quite small. There are admirable facades painted with frescoes or sgraffito decorations onto the sides of some buildings. Some picturesque houses depict symbols and allegories. Lucerne ranks as one of the top ten most beautiful cities in the world. Among my pictures is one of the Jesuiten Kirche, which was completed in 1677. It's among the cities crown jewels and holds two towers with green onion shaped domes, while the building itself is white with gold trim.
The Lion Monument is 6 meters high by 10 meters long. This monument was carved into the sandstone rock face in 1820-1821. Lucas Ahorn carved it in memory of the Swiss mercenaries who were in service of King Louis the 16th (King of France). They were killed during the French Revolution in Paris when the Tuileries was invaded in 1792. There is a Latin phrase above the lion that reads, 'To the loyalty and bravery of the Swiss.'
Right beside the Lion Monument was the Gletschergarten, which is a prehistoric natural wonder. It was discovered in 1872 and holds 20 million years of history. It's covered by a large tent to protect this geological site from the elements. There is a fossilized palm leaf embedded in the rock from when Lucerne used to be subtropical before the Great Ice Age.
I finally bought a Swiss watch. I've been looking for months, but I hadn't come across one that was unique enough. While we were walking through the old city I found a quaint watch shop. My new watch is black with Roman numerals all around the edge and it has a black leather watch band. Inside there are crystals to tell the hour by and a tiny window showing the day of the month. We also bought a stein to act as our souvenir mug, postcards, and a book about Switzerland. It's already come in handy, since it gives details about Zermatt where the Matterhorn is.
Luckily we stayed until it was dark out, because the bridge looked spectacular all lit up at night. There was a fair going on across the water and the ferris wheel shone a colorful reflection into the water. We were able to take some very nice photos of the buildings that lined the bank at night. The swans were swimming around as well, so the kids had fun playing with them along the waters edge.
Well that was our day trip. We are going to Innsbruck, Austria next to see the Golden Roof. That's only about 2 hours away as well, so it makes for a nice quick drive.
Lisa Allen
Author