Day 2 in the land of Arnold Schwarzenegger

To our great fortune, we had a whole extra day to spend in Lucerne Switzerland. The day began, as should have been expected, with a call from a Swiss yodeller and a rooster to boot. After filling our bellies with cheese for breakfast the gang headed into town and onto a boat that would take us around lake Vierwaldstattersee, known as lake Lucerne to us. Mom and I then headed into town to see the old wooden bridge which was built in the 14th century and of course to check out the shopping scene. Later in the day a large group of us jumped onto the 'Cabrio' - a cable car - that took us way up into the Swiss Alps. Unfortunately, the weather didn't co-operate however it was still and incredible experience. Plus its incredibly cool that we can now say 'Yeah, I've been up into the Swiss Alps before.' 

Photo's from around the lake.

Where to buy a $125, 000 Rolex watch in Switzerland!

 The Kapellbrucke bridge. It burnt down and was rebuilt but the water tower is still the original from the 14th century.

 Swans are everywhere and they are mean!!!

 Our little Swiss Miss

 Headed up into the Alps! 

 We went from this....

 To this! In seconds.

 If you want to see what we wish we had seen in the Alps, check out this link! - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9yopZapOYc

 Cassie the Marmot. 

 Met Heidi and her grandfather in the Swiss Alps today. 

 Ranger the Marmot

These are actually photo's going back to our hotel today. Just wanted to show you guys more. 

View from our balcony.

View from our room!!!

Guten Tag miteinander - Good Evening Everyone!

A day of inspiration as we travelled the south of Germany through the black forest (home of the black forest cake) and the cuckoo clock.  It has also been a time to get to know new friends on our bus.  So many interesting stories.  We have met folks from Ohio, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, California, Vancouver and P.E.I.  A wonderful group!

 A big bear hug for Cas as she says good-bye to Germany.

 Stopped in a tiny town in the Black forest to see thousands of hand carved cuckoo clocks.  As well, there was an artisan blowing glass and making beautiful decorations, glasses, etc.

 Prost!  Thus ends our travels through Germany...on to Switzerland.

 Schaffhausen Falls in Switzerland...

 The mountains in Switzerland are absolutely spectacular.  We could not capture the breathtaking views through our bus window but tomorrow we hope to take some pictures as we cruise down the Seine.  We will be two days in Switzerland so there will be many more photos coming.  Below is the Lion Monument in Lucerne.  It was built in memory of Louis XVI's courageous Swiss Guards who lost their lives defending the Palace of the Tuilieries in Paris during the French Revolution.  They were all murdered but one.  You can't even imagine how moving this statue is...the pain on the lion's face - agonizing.

 Meet Conrad...our new friend from Winnipeg.  We don't know how his wife Ruth puts up with him. The man has a photo bombing addiction.  He is in at least one photo on every persons' camera. Can't believe he is actually taking a picture and not RUINING someone else's.  Hahaha.  A great person!

 On our way up the mountain to our hotel.  Unbelievable.  We thought we were in a fairytale.

 Our balcony doors into our room.

 Our view.  We thought Heidelberg was quaint but nothing can be "sweeter" than the chocolatey Swiss mountains of this mountain village called Flueli-Ranft.

 Chillin before dinner!

 The walkway leading to our hotel.  We are in a tiny village in the mountains called Flueli-Ranft.

 Yep...our hotel!!!

So stay tuned as tomorrow we head out on the Seine and then up one of the mountains on their new cabriolet - the first of its kind in the world...it holds 30 people on top of the cabriolet outdoors!!!!  aaahhhhh!!!!  Weather is changing so wish us luck!!!

Day Two - The Rhineland Experience

Today we travelled through the Netherlands past Arnhem (where we will re-visit) on to the rolling hills and spectacular village clad valleys of the Rhineland.  Aside from enjoying the beautiful scenery, we were treated to a Rhine Cruise beginning in Boppard Germany and ending at St. Goar.

 Wonder where German Reisling comes from?  Here are the grapes...millions of them!

 The town of Boppart.

 Villages along the Rhine.

 Two of five castles we saw along the coast.  Many have been converted into hotels.

Lorelei the Siren of the Great Rhine River!!!  This rock where the flags are at the top is where the legend of Lorelei began.   Apparently she was a beautiful Siren who used to sit upon the rock - her long hair flowing over her shoulders...She would lure in unsuspecting sailors and when their boats crashed against the rocks - she would take all of their possessions.

More grapes! Can you imagine trying to pick them off those seriously steep hills!

After the Rhine cruise we headed South to the oldest university city in Germany - Heidelburg! We loved it here but unfortunately had very little time to explore. It's filled with such character, cobble stone streets, little cafes, flowers under most of the windows. It was a pretty laid back atmosphere, calm, quaint, and simply beautiful. One of its biggest attractions is the old sandstone castle. 

 The old sandstone castle!

 Mom was stunned to see that this building turns out to be one of her famous Haliburton jigsaw puzzles!

 "AUSFAHRT" Town of the Robinsons

Goodnight everyone, before you all wake up we will be saying goodbye to Neustadt Germany and hello to the Black Forest in Switzerland. 

First Day on the Bus Tour!

Ok so we were up and at it at 3:45 am this morning (as Cas says the "freakin" morning) and on our way to the Great Cliffs of Dover and the English Chanel by 4:45 am.  We met some great folks on our bus - a couple from Winnipeg who used to live in Kanata and one from PEI who used to work six months at a time in Ottawa for CRA and who has good friends in Stittsville!  The world is soooo small.  Anyway here are some shots from our day...

It took about 1.5 hours to reach Calais on the other side of the channel.  From there another 1.5 hours to Amsterdam.  We spent our free time (3 hours) in Amsterdam just becoming familiar with some of the most popular spots so that when we return we can find our way around. Honestly, we were so pooped, we headed out of the city centre to find a quite canal bench where we enjoyed a hot Chai Latte! 

 Aunt Win, here is the train station!

St. Nicholas Church at Night - Cas is rocking out that new camera Andrew!

And now for some trivia...no googling!  4 Heineken coasters to the one who replies correctly...

Many buildings have planks protruding from the top with a large hook hanging down.  The homes are actually on an angle leaning toward the street.  What is the hook for and why are the homes tilting forward?  Here is an example.  Look way up on the houses on the right.  You may spot the hooks.