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Day 7: March 12, 2025
What a wonderful day we've had in Switzerland! We began with breakfast at the hotel before a drive to the picturesque city of Lucerne. On arrival we took an orientation walk beginning at the beautifully sombre Lion monument, which honours the 700+ Swiss mercenaries killed in 1792 during the French Revolution. The wounded lion was sculpted into the rock face of a sandstone quarry in 1820. We then continued to the Kapelbruke (Chapel Bridge) - a wooden roofed bridge constructed in 1333 (though largely rebuilt in the 1990s after a devastating fire). We began our free time there, with many of the group choosing to walk the length of the bridge to the Jesuitenkirche (Jesuit Church) to take a look inside at its gorgeous frescoed ceiling before looping back across the river to the historic medieval squares. We had plenty of free time for souvenir shopping and to soak up the historic ambience of the city. We then boarded our bus and took a short drive to Kriens to begin our ascent of mount Pilatus. Small cable cars seating four people each took us the first part of the ascent, before we switched to a giant gondola which accommodated all of us. On arrival at the summit we took some free time to breathe the fresh mountain air, enjoy the silence on the panoramic roof terrace, walk tunnels carved through the rock, grab some food, and marvel at the snow! We then descended and returned to our hotel for some time to rest ahead of dinner. On the menu tonight was delicious Rosti - a Swiss speciality - which made a lovely side dish to the chicken and mushroom main course, and salad starter. We then returned to the hotel for an evening of card games and relaxation, with an optional trip to the nearby supermarket for a chance to buy snacks ahead of our drive to Germany tomorrow morning. Goodnight everyone!