From Basel to the Boat

On our second day in Basel we had time to take a tour around the historic area before having lunch and boarding our boat. We only had a couple of hours and so we barely scratched the surface, of what there was to see, but we learned a lot in a short period of time. Basel is a very old community. It started out as a Celtic settlement and was first mention as a Roman fortress around 374 AD.  The city straddles the Rhine River at what is the river's farthest navigable point, and both sides are connected by a series of six bridges. It is definitely a mixture of both old and new.

An interesting note is that the majority of public fountains throughout the cities in Switzerland are considered drinkable unless otherwise noted.  Even so, I decided I would pass on the opportunity to try it out.

One of the largest and best known landmarks in the historic city is Basel Minster. Built of red sandstone between 1019-1500, it was originally a Catholic Church. Part of the original construction  collapsed during the Basel Earthquake of 1356 and had to be rebuilt,  It remained a Catholic Cathedral until the Reformation  when the building was stormed, all things Catholic were purged and the building was converted into the Reform Protestant Church in 1529.

The old cloister

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Behind the church is an area known as the Pfalz, a viewing terrace that allowed us to look out over to the other side of the city.

Our boat was docked just around the bend of this bridge, and after lunch it was time for us to make our way there and check in.

There was one last place to visit before boarding. If you were to look up information on Basel you would learn that one of the things that Basel is known for is that it is the point where the corners of three countries, Germany, France and Switzerland meet. That spot was just a hundred yards from where our ship was docked. Naturally, we had to take a walk to check it out.  I guess you could say we were standing in three places at the same time!

Time to get on board!

Standing on the deck, the boat was long and flat like a barge.

Our room was spacious and full of light from the full sliding window that opened so we could enjoy the sights and sounds of the river. Best of all, we wouldn't have to pack and unpack for a whole week!

A view of the lobby, staircase to the lounge and the library.

When we weren't out seeing the sights we were being fed scrumptious four course meals in this beautiful dining room with views of the river.  

Today we settled in.  Tomorrow we will dock at our first port. Can't wait!

Adieu!

A day in Lucerne

We returned from our European cruise about two weeks ago  and have just started to get ourselves fully back into ordinary life. What a lovely time it was. I can't believe how much we were able to see and experience in such a short period of time. Our journey took us down the Rhine River from Switzerland to Amsterdam.  It has already begun to be a bit of a jumble in my head.  However, over the next few posts I hope I will be able to unpack each experience in my mind and savor the memories of each day.

 

 

Our adventure began when we flew into Basel, Switzerland where we met up with some good friends who had flown in from California the day before, We had all planned two days in country before boarding our boat. After a long flight, we arrived just in time for a quick view of the city around our hotel and dinner in one of the small shops inside the Basel International Train Station before settling down for the night.

 

After a good sleep, we headed out in the morning for the city of Lucurne. The Investigator and I had pleasant memories of having visited here in 1978, and we were looking forward to seeing it again. It was just as beautiful as we had remembered.

We took time to visit the Lion of Lucerne, a stone relief that was carved into the wall of a beautiful grotto and completed in 1821. It is one of Switzerland's most famous memorials, built to remember and commemorate the death of over seven hundred Swiss Guards who were killed while protecting King Louis XVI's Palace of Tuileries in Paris during the French Revolution.

We took a walk through the Kapellbruke (Church Bridge).  Originally built in 1408 as part of the original fortified wall of the city, it is the oldest covered bridge in Europe.  We walked the original bridge 46 years ago and remembered grieving the loss of parts of it during a terrible fire (caused by a careless cigarette!) in 1993. Thankfully, it has been restored and continues to grace the historic city.

 Only a small number of the original paintings were saved and restored to the bridge.  The rest were lost.

 

 Views from the bridge.

 

A visit inside the Baroque Style Jesuit Church which opened in 1667. 

 

 

Later in the afternoon, we found ourselves outside of Lucerne heading up the side of a mountain, first on a funiculaire railway, and then halfway up we switched to an aerial tram.

At first the views felt like a scene from Sound of Music.  Then we as we rose into the trees we could see the entire valley.
 

Soon we were heading up towards the clouds.

 A few minutes of complete blindness in the thick fog of the clouds, and then suddenly we popped through the cloud cover into bright blue skies. The clouds now below us created a billowy white carpet as the mountain peaks rose above them.  My photos couldn't begin to capture just how stunning it was.

 

We were incredibly blessed with the views that day. It was rare to have a day so sunny and clear. The ranger told us that much of the time there would be clouds, fog or rain. In fact, that was what we were expecting, so I didn't wear a hat and ended up with quite a sunburn.  It was worth it though.  God was smiling down on us and sharing his mighty handy work. I will never forget it.  All too soon it was time to come down from the peaks to the valley below,  But soon there will be new places to explore which I will save for another day.

Adieu!