Luzern and Bern

Leaving Appenzell, we drove through Luzern on our way to the Bernese Oberland.  Here is the famed wooden bridge.

We spent an hour walking around the central part of Luzern.  Our drive through Switzerland was dictated by the fact that we didn't want to spend the 40 CHF to purchase a pass to drive on the Autobahn.  Therefore we had the GPS route us on roads without tolls.  We therefore drove across Switzerland and around 40 miles per hour.  The scenic route for sure.

Swans somehow became a theme of our trip.

That afternoon, we made it to the Lauterbrunnen Valley and the mountains were out.  Our plan was to take the cable car to the top of the mountains the next day.

Here's the view when we got up.

Complete whiteout at the top of the Schilthorn.

We therefore decided to practice some patience and wait until the NEXT day, so we spent this snowy day in the mountains visiting the town of Bern.  The highlight was climbing to the top of the church spire.

An original cuckcoo clock!  Still working, too.

Hello, Mr. Einstein!  He lived here in Bern at the turn of the 20th century.

As we headed back into the mountains, the skies were clearing.  Good news for our hopes for the next day.

The Bernese Oberland and Lake Thun

Driving back to our guest house in Stechelberg, the Staubbach Falls in Lauterbrunnen were lit up!