Chillin' in the Alps

Hello to everyone that is following us along on our trip. This is Lisa and it is my turn to attempt writing the blog for today.  Today was our first full day in Switzerland. We got to have an extra hour of sleep this morning as it was not a regular travel day. I know that I was happy about that.  We woke up to a bit of a dreary looking day and cooler temps, but still a beautiful view.  

One spectacular view from the train!

After breakfast we set out for Lucerne Switzerland, where we traveled up Mt. Pilatus. Thankfully on our way there, the weather cleared and it turned out to be the perfect time to head straight up the mountain by way of a train. When we reached the top (7000 feet), we were able to explore and take in the views.  I cannot even begin to describe how beautiful it was to be up there. Hopefully Steve got some great pictures.

One crazy son.

There were some other peaks that Steve, Michael, Emmy, Anthony and Clayton went up to and from what I hear I am thankful I did not go. Apparently my crazy sons like to push the limits by seeing how close to the edge they can get and do handstands!!  While we were exploring the top, the clouds started rolling in quick, to the point that we could not see anything below us.  We took cable cars back down the mountain without being able to see a thing. Which may have been for the best while we were hanging on cables.

Mr. Fox Chillin' in the Alps

After our adventure on the mountain, we were wisked away to Lake Lucerne where we went on a boat ride for about an hour.  It was absolutely breathtaking. Felt as though we could stay there forever looking at the beautiful water and views of the snow capped mountains. Alas, Lucerne and maybe all of Switzerland seems to be only for the very wealthy!

Lion Monument, Lucerne Switzerland

As we returned to land, we made our way over to the Lion monument that was carved out of the mountain in remembrance of the Swiss soldiers who died in the French Revolution.  Very beautiful, but sad.  After that we made our way to a restaurant that our guide recommended for their famous Swiss cheese fondue. After having been seated for a while, we received a menu and found out how ridiculous the prices were.  But instead of getting up and leaving (which we didn't feel appropriate doing at that point) we all ended up ordering the same thing that we at least felt would be filling considering the price.   So, for about $40 per person, we got some bread and swiss cheese fondue to dunk the bread in and a bratwurst and some hashbrowns on the side. It was good, but definitely not that good.  We then walked over to a famous store that has 3 floors of mostly watches.  Again this place is for the very wealthy. I think the cheapest watch I saw was around $200 and the most expensive I saw was $380,000+.

We took in a few other sites and then headed back to Engelberg.  We did not have dinner included for tonight and we were on our own.  Well, after our most expensive lunch ever, we decided we would just get some snacks.  The boys and Emmy tried to find a place around our hotel to eat, but if it was open, it was also very expensive.  So I think we will have some very hungry boys tomorrow.

That is it for today. Hopefully I won't be asked to do this again as I am not as clever as Steve and Anthony.

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