Our last day as "broads abroad"!

Lucerne's medieval wooden bridge



Denna and our first
Swiss geocache!

On the last day of our glorious trip, we are in Lucerne shopping, geocaching, eating and just enjoying the views.  As some of you know, we love geocaching, but the last time in Switzerland we came away with none.  We were determined not to repeat that, but the closest caches were still on the covered wooden bridges and the last time we tried, we came away empty-handed.  Not so this time!  Denna was determined and, as you can probably see, was a happy camper.



...and another cache in
the city's wall





We went on to find 4 more caches  and go 5 for 5, even though 3 of the descriptions were in German and we had no maps and no hints (that's a geocacher's excuse for how hard it was!).  It made for another walking tour of the city and we ended up with 6.2 miles for the few hours in Lucerne.  Of course, we had to finish our souvenir and chocolate hunting and we're happy to report that we were successful there too!  Even though nearly everyone had agreed that we just couldn't possibly buy or carry anything more, everyone came away with chocolate and much more.




Our friends Todd and
Lori join us for the ride

 

After returning to our hotel, several of us decided to take the gondola ride to the top of the Emmetten peak, something we'd missed during our last trip.  Thankfully the weather had cleared enough so that we were able to see for miles.  Our guide, Uwe, and his wife (who joined us here in Switzerland!) accompanied a group of about 15 of us and we were able to get a birds-eye view of Lake Lucerne.

Heading up for the view

This evening is our farewell dinner, which means wurst, potatoes, wine/beer and LOTS of cheese fondue, as well as several goodbyes.  Although we all have missed being in our own beds and having our own (much larger!) showers, it will be hard to finally leave these beautiful and historic countries.



Lake Lucerne and Emmetten (see our hotel?!)

Thanks to all of you who have checked into our blog and have emailed or commented on it.  It's actually a form of our diary and it helps sort through just exactly what we've been doing the last couple of weeks.

On top of the world!!

Arrivederci and Auf Wiedersehen to alles!

It rains in the Alps and snows in Placerville...go figure!

In honor of 100 years
of snow sports

The Eiger mountain

This was our day to strike out on our own and we left our group at the train station in Lucerne to board the train to Interlaken and ultimately, Grindelwald.  Picturesque Grindelwald is at the heart of a sensational skiing region and it's surrounded by impressive 4000 meter (13,125 foot) peaks, which include the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau.  We walked through the town (although we wish we had been able to have the time to ski!) and had lunch at a little bistro.  As it was Sunday, not many of the touristy resort places were open, but the views of the peaks made up for it.



Kathy learns to play
the alpenhorn



As we caught the train to head back down to Interlaken, the rain that had been threatening finally began.  Interlaken is the tourist capital of the Bernese region - and we actually saw several Bernese dogs in the area.  This is the kind of weather that they seem to really enjoy!  Interlaken is named because of its location between the two lakes of Thun and Brienz and is most popular because of its reputation as an summer adventure sports destination.  Unfortunately, after walking through town, we eventually returned to hop on the train because the rain had really increased.



Scenes from a train



The train trip to and from these beautiful Alpen towns  was worth the price of admission.  However, the most difficult part of our day was figuring out how to get from Lucerne back to our hotel in tiny Emmetten.  After several frustrating attempts purchase our tickets and then to find the correct bus to take us back (all done in the pouring rain), we found that we also needed to start our trip on the train, then transfer to the 2 buses that would eventually land us at the good Hotel Engel.  Needless to say, we are back and have stories to tell.  Also when we returned, we heard via email and from others in our group that it had snowed in Placerville today...what a surprise for the middle of May.

We also will probably not be making our much anticipated trip down to Frasco, where my original Swiss relatives lived.  After today we realize that the trip will take us much longer than we have time to spend there and return a rental car, so we will sadly have to postpone it until we return to Switzerland - but we know we will return!

Guten nacht, alles!

Hey! Was that George Clooney?



Lake Como





Walking the streets of
Bellagio



The REAL Hotel Bellagio

Today we said "Arrivederci" to Italy, but not before taking a scenic tour of Lake Como, which is in the mountains about an hour from Milan.  After the bus picked its way through the narrow and twisting streets of the towns surrounding the lake, we boarded a boat for our private trip across to the town of Bellagio. 

Is it him?

We were able to spend a couple of hours walking, shopping and eating - something we've become pretty experienced at doing.  Lunch was a delicious homemade bowl of minestrone and a cappuccino for Denna and a glass of wine for me - ah, delicioso!  And, of course, before boarding the boat we celebrated with our last Italian cup of gelato and as we sat and ate, was that really George getting on his motorcycle......!

 

A beautiful day on Lake Como!




Just another villa....

 

The boat took us on a leisurely trip around the lake and we were able to see how the rich and famous live on Lake Como.  The water was calm and the weather absolutely wonderful.  After our boat ride we headed into Switzerland, where the weather turned to rain.  It has continued to rain as we checked into our hotel in Emmetten, but as we head for our comfy beds, we look forward to tomorrow hopefully being dryer.

From the Italian mountains to fashionable Milan





The Cuccaro (cuckoo) Club



This morning we left the Cuccaro Club chalet in the mountains, our wonderful mountain home for the last two days, and traveled north to Milan. It was a big change from listening to the cuckoo bird quietly “cuckooing” (is that even a word?) this morning from our window to the very big, noisy and fashion-conscious city of Milan.

Milan's Duomo





McDonald's in the center of
the world's first
shopping "galleria"

 

The bus parked as close as possible to the center of town and we were free for a couple of hours to wander around the central piazza. What we saw was that Milan is a major player in the economic success for Italy. Although the Duomo (the city’s central church which is also nicknamed “the wedding cake“) is at the center of the city, it’s the shops selling the very high ticket items that really bring the people out. Names like Gucci, Ferrari, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Armani and McDonalds (yep - the American export) occupy the very expensive storefronts.



La Scala - the world's most famous

opera house









Tomorrow we’re off on a city tour and then given the afternoon to stroll and shop. However, most of us have reached our weight limits for the flight home, so we’ll probably be strolling more than shopping.





Castello Sforzesco



Lori and us at the fountain in
front of the castle

Day 2 - Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to post our first day in Milan because the entire Google blog site was having technical difficulties, so I’m hoping it will be fixed this evening. (Deb H. - I wish I had had you design a quick website after all!) Today we toured the Duomo, which is the third largest cathedral in Europe (St. Peter’s Basilica is the first, so we’ve done 2 out of 3 this trip J ). We also spent a good part of the day at Castello Sforzesco, a 15^th century castle housing several museums as well as Michelangelo’s last and unfinished sculpture, the Pieta Rondanini done in 1564.

Denna taking a picture of
the castle's prisons - the large
rounded structures at either end

Tonight is our last night in Italy and we are all sorry to go. But tomorrow is a boat ride on Lake Como before entering Switzerland. Most folks are hoping that George Clooney, who has a home on the lake, may make an appearance…..

Hiking the trail in Cinque Terra



This is the path we followed



We start at the beach in Monterossa



Well, we thought we could hike to all of the 5 villages of Cinque Terra, but we didn't quite have the time or energy to reach more than 3 of them.  Actually, the path beyond the last village we reached was washed out by winter storms, so we'll use that as our excuse for not making it further......

There really is no better description for what we saw and experienced today than through pictures....and we had plenty of them.  So many that it was hard to pick the ones we wanted to share with you, but maybe you'll also get to see what the villagers have been walking for hundreds of years.  This was a very special day on the coast of the Mediterranean.  Tomorrow we head to Milan.

Little farms with grape vines,
lemon trees, and vegetables



Seems like it only goes up!

Vernazzo - the halfway point




Meeting tour friends going the other way



The Italian flag flying proudly

Our final destination - Corniglia

Ahhhh.....gelato!

If it's Tuesday...we must be in the Cinque Terra (Five Lands)



Atlas holding back the mountainside so the village will not fall into the sea

We left Firenze for Cinque Terra, which is named for the five fishing villages clinging to the steep cliffs that descend to the Mediterranean on the Northwest edge of Italy.  Today was our practice with getting to the train station, getting on the train and knowing where we were when we got off so we could do it on our own tomorrow.  We all climbed aboard the train that links the five villages and rode it to the furthest northern village, Monterosso, which has a port filled with beach-goers, cayaks (that's the Italian spelling!), and fishing boats.  After eating a panini (what else?) and spending a couple of hours walking the village streets and beach, we took the train to Riomaggiore and walked Via dell'Amore (Lovers Lane), which is a path skirting the cliffs.  And I had the requisite gelato and Denna had her cappuccino to complete our food groups for the day.

Our hotel is very far from the Mediterranean and we traveled over an hour to an inland chateau at an elevation of about 2900', which was a real surprise to our group.  But it sure is nice to have no Vespas, cars or trains under our windows - just a lot of fresh, cool air.  We had a 5 course homemade Italian meal that was so good that we asked to eat here again tomorrow night.  And we're actually able to access the free internet (who woulda thunk it!) and drink wine while we sit in the bar.

 Tomorrow we go back to Cinque Terra and we plan on hiking to all 5 villages - wish us luck!

Arrivederci Florence

Florence, Kathy and Denna (kinda like we're BFFs!)





A little villa along the way

This was our free day in Florence, so between sleeping in and doing some laundry, we decided to explore a bit beyond Florence. It had been suggested by my cousin Fran that we travel up to a small town overlooking Florence called Feisole. It was originally an Etruscan village established in 600 BC and it had done battle with the Florencians until it was crushed by them in medieval times. Now it’s a quaint village with a knock-your-socks-off view of Florence and the Tuscan countryside that you’ve only seen in magazines.

Of course, we also had to locate the only 2 geocaches on the hill, so we set off on our hike for the day through the town and regional park known for a monument to Leonardo da Vinci. The park encompasses a quarry which was responsible for some of the vast quantities of marble needed for the numerous statues and buildings throughout Italy. We’re thinking we may even have glimpsed the section that just might have been used for Michaelangelo’s David.....J.  After several wrong turns and a lot of hiking, we finally made it to the monument which celebrates the testing of da Vinci’s flying machine by one of his assistants who suffered 2 broken legs throwing himself off the mountain.




The Ponte Vecchio bridge (the one
Hitler didn't blow up) dates back to 1345

Our day’s total for walking was another 13 mile day (whew!). Tomorrow we head to Cinque Terra where we’ve heard that walking from one town to another is the best way to see them, so I guess we‘ve just been practicing.



Denna's afternoon cappucino - good
to the last drop!



Arrivederci!

The birthplace of the Renaissance



Tuscan countryside





St. Francis of Assisi Basilica

 It's been a long couple of days since we last had a chance to post to our blog.  We left Rome on Saturday for the Tuscan countryside - filled with the rolling hills, farms and villas, grapevines, olive groves and cypresses that we have often associated with the Italian landscape.  Our bus ride took us to Assisi, a 13th century village which is the the burial place of St. Francis, the patron saint of animals and the founder of the Franciscan order.  We toured the Basilica di San Francesco and Basilica di Santa Chiara, both names we in California know well as San Francisco and Santa Clara, ate gelato (what else!) and took in the views.











 

Giotto's Tower and
the Duomo




The Duomo

 We arrived in Firenza (Florence) later in the day and left for our upgraded (!) and authentic Tuscan meal at the restaurant San Giovanni on the edge of the Piazza di S. Giovanni which sat next to the grand Duomo Basilica.  Five courses of delightful wine and wonderfully rich, flavorful food later, we walked/waddled back to our hotel.  But of course, our "toilette", which had been repaired earlier, was again not working.  The only room available at midnight (yes, we have been awake that late and later!) was the "Superior" room on the 5th floor, but we were informed we wouldn't be allowed to remain there after morning.  So we packed, moved and finally collapsed into our bed at 12:30 -this morning we set out on our tour of Florence.



Mona Kathy is soooo
happy with her new purse!



Our guide took us through the Piazza del Duomo, Piazza della Republica, Piazza della Signoria (so many piazzas, so little time), the Ponte Vecchio (the only bridge in Florence that Hitler didn't bomb when the Allies were approaching because he cared so much for it) and we ended in front of the Uffizi Gallery.  Our last stop was at the Leonardo Leather shop where we learned how to tell real leather goods from the fake ones.  Needless to say, the leather was too buttery soft and beautiful to not buy something, so I now have a new purse! 







We visited the Accademia gallery this afternoon (after we moved again to a room more appropriate to our economic stratus) to view Michaelangelo's David - magnifico!  Denna took an illegal picture with her phone while I thought I was successfully blocking the view of the "watchers" - they must have cameras on every corner of the room! 

And then we were off to dinner - what else but pasta and beer.  Our new favorite bierri, Nastro Azzurro!!



Dinner!



It's nice to have a little time for wandering on our own and we have all day tomorrow to do so.  Buono sera!





 

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

Rome from the top of St. Peter's Basilica

Which means we walked everywhere!! Between climbing the steps to the top of St. Peter’s Basilica, touring the city, and (of course!) geocaching, we logged 13.5 miles on Denna’s pedometer today. That means we really earned our scoops of gelato, glasses of wine, and slices of cheese and salami J

Mailing postcards from
the top of Vatican City

Michaelanglo's Pieta

We began the day with a short bus ride to St. Peter’s, which was early enough that we had to stand in line for only 15 minutes - much less than the quarter mile line that was waiting to get in when we left. We ended up in the line to climb to the cupola at the top of the Basilica (which we didn’t know we could do!) and climbed the 551 steps to the top - and we‘re really glad we did. We also saw Michaelangelo’s Pieta, which is the best known statue in the Basilica, but only part of the large collection of altars and statues of popes and martyrs.

The Pantheon

From the Piazza we walked to Piazza Navona (where we found our first gelato of the day) and then to the Pantheon, built between AD 118 and 125. We left our group at that point, since it was our free day, and set out to see the sights on our own. After making our way to Trevi Fountain, into which we each threw our requisite coin so that we could return to Rome, we ran into a bit of a police action (we and about 400 of our new closest friends) and were all unceremoniously sent away from the fountain’s steps - ask us about it some time.



Oceanus and his Fontana de Trevi



The Spanish Steps and
a few of Rome's visitors

The last site on our have-to-do list was the Piazza di Spagna and Scalinata de Trinita dei Monti, know more informally as the Spanish Steps and piazza. We found a shady spot on the steps and proceeded to eat our lunch of bread and cheese. As we read about the steps, a popular meeting place for Rome’s visitors, we found that eating there was forbidden and people could be fined. We quickly shoved our food and wrappers into our bags and headed to the bottom, where we began our climb back up to see Rome from a new angle.





 The rest of our day was spent geocaching, where we discovered the birthplace of Enrico Fermi, the famous physicist, and the pre-war and war-time home of Benito Mussolini. Once we found our way back to the hotel, we spent our last evening in Rome resting up for our next adventure to Florence via Assisi. Arrivederci!

Kathy and Denna (and St. Peter's) at the Tiber River