Note: This is leg one of a six-part journey. Leg two (Jungfrau) will be posted next Monday.

It had only been a few days since I was wiping down white boards and packing up books to wrap up another school year, but now I was on a train from Zurich airport to Lucerne. My Switzerland adventure had begun. The airport is situated outside of the city of Zurich and I had decided to bypass Switzerland’s largest city and instead spend my first day in the old lakeside city of Lucerne. located smack dab in the middle of Switzerland. With charming covered bridges and a well-preserved historic district featuring medieval architecture set against the backdrop of Lake Lucerne and in the shadow of numerous beautiful mountains, it’s with good reason that this place is a popular destination for visitors. It doesn’t get much more Swiss than Lucerne and its surrounding countryside, especially considering that it was very close to here, on the shores of Lake Lucerne that tradition says the leaders of three cantons pledged themselves to an eternal “oath alliance” with each other that brought about the birth of the first Swiss Confederacy around the turn of the 14th century. Today Lucerne is a thriving small city of 82,000 people that serves as both a popular destination in its own right as well as being the gateway to the rest of Central Switzerland.

The most well-known sight in Lucerne is probably the Chapel Bridge, a covered wooden bridge that is decorated on the inside with Renaissance paintings depicting the history of Lucerne. The original bridge dates back to 1360 but most of it was destroyed in a fire in 1993 and it has been reconstructed in keeping with its original design. There are also two other similar wooden bridges in Lucerne that are still preserved in their original form.

Other notable landmarks in Lucerne include the 17th century Jesuit church (considered to be the first Baroque style building to be built north of the Alps), the twin-spired Church of St. Leodegar (which was right next to my hotel and also dates back to the 1600s), and the Old Town Hall and clock tower, along with all the other colorful medieval buildings of the Altstadt (Old Town). There is also a famous lion monument dedicated to the Swiss Guard soldiers who died defending French King Louis XVI during the French Revolution, but that is located a little further away from the city center and I didn’t get the time to go see it. Not in the city limits of Lucerne but clearly visible in the distance is an ostentatious white castle high up on a hill. This is the 17th century Château Gütsch, which is now used as a hotel and is reachable by funicular.

My flight had been an overnight affair, with a brief layover in Lisbon, Portugal, and although I hadn’t gotten much sleep, I still had most of the day left, so after checking in to my hotel, I proceeded to walk around and explore the city.

THE QUEEN OF THE MOUNTAINS

The next morning I walked a short distance to the pier and boarded a boat that would take me across the lake to the village of Vitznau, from where I could then take Europe’s oldest mountain railway (over 150 years old) to visit the Queen of the Mountains: Mt. Rigi. The boat ride was spectacular. One of the reasons I had chosen Switzerland as the place to spend my summer vacation is that I thought the weather would be relatively cool. But upon arrival I was dismayed to discover that there was a heat wave going on and that at that moment it was actually hotter in Lucerne than in Baltimore where I had come from. So it felt great to climb the stairs to the top deck of the boat and let the cool morning breeze of Lake Lucerne embrace me. The water of Lake Lucerne was clean and clear as the rising sun sparkled off the gentle ripples created by the boat. As the landmarks of the city began to recede into the distance, I was able to see more and more of the incredible mountains that surrounded me in all directions, from gentle green hills dotted with cows to the distant snowcapped peaks of the High Alps. Eventually the boat docked at Vitznau and I stepped on board the train that would take me to the top of Mt. Rigi.

Mt. Rigi is not the highest mountain to flank Lake Lucerne, but it has held a special place in the hearts of locals and visitors alike from time immemorial. “This is the charmingest place we have ever lived in for repose and restfulness”, asserted Mark Twain, who visited Rigi in 1878 while gathering material for his upcoming book, A Tramp Abroad. Mt. Rigi has been referred to as the Queen of the Mountains since at least the 1400s. The name Rigi may have originally come from an old German word for the distinctive horizontal bands of rock that adorn the mountain but in 1479 it was interpreted by Swiss humanist Albrecht von Bonstetten to mean Regina montium or Queen of the Mountains. Regardless of the nickname’s origin, people continue to refer to Mt. Rigi as the Queen of the Mountains because it is a special place of beauty from which you can enjoy an outstanding view of the surrounding region and beyond.

Mt. Rigi is a great place for hiking, with numerous scenic trails available. However, there was a risk of thunderstorms later in the day and although it was noticeably cooler on the mountaintop than in Lucerne, it was still a hot day. So I only walked the short paths around the kulm (rounded peak) and climbed the observation tower at the top, saving the serious hiking for another day. After spending some time on the mountain, I took the train back down to Vitznau and boarded another boat that would return me to Lucerne, I spent the early evening exploring the Altstadt and then tucked in for an early night.

RIDING THE DRAGON

The following day, I visited another iconic mountain close to Lucerne, Mt. Pilatus. Pilatus is a very distinctive looking mountain that you can very easily spot from Lucerne. Hundreds of years ago, residents may have looked upon the daily sight of the mountain with some trepidation. This was partly on account of the ghost of Pontius Pilate that was rumored to haunt the mountain and from which the mountain most likely gained its name. Pilate was supposedly buried in the area (Switzerland having been part of the Roman Empire at the time) and he was said to emerge from the waters every Good Friday to wash the blood of Jesus from his hands. But there was another reason to fear this particular mountain. In fact, it was forbidden to climb Mt. Pilatus on account of the dragons that purportedly lived there. Numerous legends tell of these dragons, although some of these tales actually portray the dragons in a positive light, rescuing wayward wanderers who were trapped on the mountain and healing their injuries before allowing them to safely return to their homes. Today no-one fears the dragons of Mt. Pilatus but they are celebrated as mascots of a sort. There is even a Dragon World exhibit geared towards children on Mt. Pilatus, along with several other dragon-themed attractions that I will mention in a little bit.

There are several ways to get to Mt. Pilatus from Lucerne, but the most popular one is something called the Golden Round Trip. This usually involves taking a boat across Lake Lucerne to the village of Alpnachstad. From there you can board the world’s steepest mountain cogwheel railway, with a maximum gradient of 48%, to reach the ascent. Instead of returning the same way you came, you can take a cable car called the Dragon Ride to Fräkmüntegg, halfway down the other side of the mountain. There is an adventure park there featuring a rope course, treetop walk, paragliding activities, a barbeque area, and a 1,350 meter summer toboggan ride that can take you the rest of the way down the mountain. The more traditional way to proceed from Fräkmüntegg though is by gondola, which will take you to the town of Kriens, where a bus will quickly whisk you back to Lucerne. However, some other travel blogs I read before my trip recommended doing the Golden Round Trip in the opposite order in order to get an early start and beat the crowds, since the first boat to Alpnachstad doesn’t depart Lucerne until around 10:00 AM. I followed this advice, setting out early in the morning, taking the bus to Kriens, the gondola to Fräkmüntegg, and the Dragon Ride to the top of the mountain, then returning by the cogwheel train to Alpnachstad (and since I was going down instead of up I could really appreciate the steep angle of the the track) and a boat back to Lucerne. This method worked out well for me with one exception: Because most people do it in the opposite order, they time the uphill trains to depart a few minutes after the boat arrives. This meant that as I was waiting at the top for the train, the boat I wanted to board was leaving. In the morning, the boats run every half hour, but in the afternoon (which is when I was leaving the mountain) there is a two hour gap where there are no boats to be had. So because of the route and the timing, I wound up waiting at the dock for over an hour and a half before I could catch a boat back to Lucerne.

As for the mountain itself, it was incredible. While still nowhere near as tall as some of the mountains that I would ascend later in my trip such as Jungfraujoch and the Matterhorn, Pilatus is still significantly taller than Mt. Rigi, and the multiple observation platforms at the top provide a breathtaking view of the High Alps. Getting to those observation perches did take some work, though. Both the cable car and the train take you to a modern complex of buildings and outdoor platforms that feature restaurants, shopping, outdoor seating areas, and even a hotel. From this structure you can already see a pretty good view of the high mountains on one side and the valley below on the other side. However, to get the best views, you need to go up one of several paths that are part staircase, part rock scramble. The first and highest one that I climbed was the most difficult, although I felt somewhat prepared by having climbed a similar path on Whiteface Mountain in the Adirondacks. From the top, not only could I see the towering Mt. Titlis and other relatively close mountains, but when the clouds and fog dissipated I could also see the Jungfrau range and even the distant blip of Mont Blanc, which straddles the borders between France, Italy, and Switzerland. While I’m sure my photos would be a lot more spectacular if I had visited on a perfectly clear day, it was nonetheless an awe-inspiring sight in person.

Later, after chowing down on some “Alpine Noodles” (served with cheese sauce, crispy onions, and little apple chunks), I walked up the stairs to the other platforms, which were a lot more tame, if still hard on the knees. From here I could see a gorgeous view of the valley, including Lake Lucerne and the town of Lucerne itself (although it was too tiny to make out many details). As I was walking, I was a little surprised to hear the deep sound of Alpine horns rising up from the main platform below. I looked down and saw a group of people playing these massive instruments, the sound echoing all over the mountain. After a few minutes of this, the band switched to yodeling, which was also quite impressive to witness from above. Eventually, one of these paths led me to a spot where a vertical tunnel was chiseled into the rock face, and I climbed down a ladder to see what was on the other end. The tunnel spit me out onto a sheer cliff overlooking a steep mountain trail. Not knowing where exactly it led or how far it stretched but being all too aware that in this context what goes down must come up–meaning me, if I were to descend down this trail–I decided that I had gone far enough and I climbed back up the ladder the way I had come. (I will note in my defense that a couple guys who looked much more physically fit than me had just made the same call.) After wandering around some more, I stumbled across the Dragon Walk, which I had read about but hadn’t known exactly how to get to. The Dragon Walk is a passageway through a series of caves in the side of the mountain with natural openings looking out onto the expanse below. I really enjoyed this experience. Then, in no particular hurry, I gradually made my way back to the main mountaintop complex and waited for the cogwheel train to plunge me down the mountain like a roller coaster. As I mentioned before, I had to wait longer than I expected to catch a boat back to Lucerne. It wasn’t that big of a deal though, as I was able to sit on a comfortable bench with a beautiful view of the lake. I used that time to start sorting through the photos on my phone and make plans for the next few days.

FEELING THE BERN

In the morning, I checked out from my hotel and boarded a train to the Swiss capital, Bern. Technically, Switzerland doesn’t have an official capital, but since the national government is operated out of Bern, it is the de facto capital of the country. Bern is centrally located and easy to get to from almost anywhere in Switzerland. Nonetheless, the city isn’t really on a lot of tourists’ radar compared to other destinations like Lucerne, Jungfrau, and Zermatt. Yet Bern has a lot to offer visitors. It is one of the few capital cities of Europe to have escaped being bombed during World War 2, and as such it has an extremely well-preserved medieval “Old Town” that is protected as a UNESCO World Heritage site. After taking a tram from the train station to my hotel, I went out to explore the city.

My first stop was the bear pit. Yes, you read that right. You see, there was an old prophecy that Bern would never perish as long as bears roamed within its boundaries. Sadly, bears were long ago hunted to extinction in the wild in this part of Switzerland, just as all large predators have been largely driven out of Central Europe. But because of the prophecy, the city leaders built a bear pit and a pack of bears have lived there ever since. Now the term “bear pit” sounds pretty barbaric and cruel, and I’m sure it was when it was first instituted. But the Bernese love their bears, and although they feed them in the pit to encourage them to come within view of their adoring fans, there are tunnels they can walk through that will take them from the pit to a large and secluded forested area and even a fenced off area of the Aare River, in which they can swim. Since releasing them into the wild without a full-fledged international bear reintroduction program would be a death sentence for them, this habitat is the next best thing for these bears. I can’t overestimate the historical and continuing obsession with bears that permeates not only the city but the entire canton of Bern, which includes the Jungfrau region and the lakeside towns of Spiez and Thun which I visited later in my trip. The cantonal flag is a bear with its tongue sticking out and it can be seen flying everywhere. At a castle I visited in Thun there is even a throne with arms carved into bear heads. I just hope that one day in the future, bears will be able to roam freely across Switzerland again, like wolves have begun to be reintroduced to the western United States.

Close to the bear pit is a free funicular that takes you down to the Aare River, where a footpath extends into a wooded area leading away from the city center. There is also a sizable section of stone benches where you can sit next to the river and relax. This was a godsend for me as it was the hottest day of my entire trip. The Aare is a beautiful turquoise river with a fast current running through it. Everywhere in Switzerland I was impressed by how clean and pretty the water is and this was no exception. From the riverfront, I could look up to a bridge that is held in place by a stately stone archway. Beyond the bridge are a number of beautiful homes and apartment buildings. After chilling by the river for some time, I took the funicular back up to the bear pit and walked back across the bridge to the Altstadt (Old City).

Every part of the Altstadt was beautiful, with ornate fountains, stone-block streets and covered arcades. I passed some interesting shops selling rare coins, handmade crafts, watches, knives, clothing, and books, including to my surprise, a German language biography of Black Chicana anarchist, IWW union organizer, and widow of a Haymarket martyr, Lucy Parsons. Parsons is something of a hero of mine but I find that she is not very well-known in America where she lived, so I was pleasantly surprised to see this German translation of Jaqueline Jones’ book “Goddess of Anarchy” on display in the middle of Old Bern.

Eventually I made my way to the Bundeplatz, Switzerland’s equivalent of the National Mall, where the main federal government buildings are located. My understanding is that the Bundehaus (the Parliament building or “Federal Palace” where the Federal Council of Switzerland makes laws) is free and open to the public, but I didn’t see anyone entering and there wasn’t any clear signage indicating which of the multiple entrances visitors should use, so I contented myself to enjoy it from the outside. You can walk through a covered arcade that takes you from the front of the building to the back. The expansive plazas and walkways behind the Bundehaus are dotted with fountains, statues, and seating areas and overlook an expansive view of the city and the surrounding countryside.

My next stop was the Bern Münster, a Romanesque cathedral that was first constructed in 1421 and underwent many additions and renovations over the next 200 years. With its soaring bell tower, the Münster is actually the tallest church in all of Switzerland. Originally a Catholic Church, during the Reformation it was converted to a Protestant one as part of the new Swiss Reformed Church. The Swiss theologian Zwingli, who had briefly lived in Bern, had been advancing the banner of the Reformation all over Switzerland, and a succession of priests with close connections to Zwingli presided over the Bern Münster in the early 1500s. While the reformers pushed for separation from Rome and were met with resistance by some of the city leaders, the Bubonic Plague devastated Bern in 1527. With many residents convinced that the plague was a punishment from God for the sins of the Catholic Church leaders, the Protestants gained the upper hand and Bern joined the new Swiss Reformed Church. As part of the process of separating from the Catholic Church, statues of the saints and other Catholic imagery in the church were destroyed as false idols. However, the colorful and impressive relief sculpture of the Last Judgment that adorns the main door of the church was preserved, and is today considered to be one of the most complete gothic sculpture collections in all of Europe.

After leaving the church, I visited Bern’s most famous landmark, the Zytglogge. The Zytglogge is an astronomical clock tower that was built between 1218 and 1220 and has served a variety of roles over the years. It was originally the main gate to the defensive wall that surrounded the medieval city. For some time it was used as a guard tower and a women’s prison. The clock was added in the early 1400s and by the end of the 15th century both the clock and the tower had been enlarged and decorated. Over the next few centuries the tower and its clock were renovated and redecorated multiple times until it took on the iconic form it has today. When the clock bell rings every hour, a statue of a man covered in golden armor emerges from the tower to strike the bell with a hammer.

By this time, I was getting pretty hungry but all the restaurants were so expensive. I finally found a cheaper fast-food style Latin American restaurant called “Papa Burrito”. The quesadilla I got there was edible but not great, but the bite-sized breaded western fries that for some reason came with it were actually amazing. I’m always curious to see how food from other cultures is interpreted in countries that are neither that culture nor my own. If the proprietors of the restaurant are immigrants from the culture of the cuisine being offered, it is often amazing. But when it’s run by people who are not connected to that culture, the results can be pretty weird, like the vegetable fried rice I regretted ordering from a non-Chinese staffed “Chinese” restaurant in Honduras a long time ago. I don’t know if the owners of Papa Burrito are Latino or not, but judging from their menu selection and the strange combination of Mexican, Cuban, and southern Californian imagery in the restaurant, I have my doubts. Still, it was better than Taco Bell and it was one of the few places in downtown Bern where I could get a meal for under 20 CHF, so I had no cause for complaint.

After lunch, I continued to explore the Altstadt and I wandered over to the Einsteinhaus, where a not-yet-famous Albert Einstein developed his revolutionary Theory of Relativity. As a museum, the Einsteinhaus didn’t really impress me much, as the main “exhibit” was just three walls of text and dates from Einstein’s life that I could easily look up on Wikipedia, and a very amateurish “video” (more of a slideshow with a voiceover) in a room that was far too hot and stuffy to endure on this sizzling summer day. But it was cool just to stand inside Einstein’s home in the exact spot where he quietly labored to turn physics on its head.

Upon leaving the Einsteinhaus, I visited another church, the Church of St. Peter and Paul. Constructed in 1858, it was the first Catholic Church to be built since the Reformation. Although it’s not nearly as old as the Bern Cathedral, it’s still designated as a Cultural Property of National Significance by Switzerland’s national historic registry. It’s a beautiful church and it borders a plaza called the Bärenplatz (Bear Plaza) that is home to the Rathaus (Town Hall) and other historically significant buildings.

At this point, I had been to all the places on my itinerary except for the Rosengarten (Rose Garden) which I had decided early on to skip because it was just too hot for the steep uphill walk that was required to reach it. So I grabbed a falafel sandwich from a little one-man restaurant near my hotel (this was not a Papa Burrito type of place) and called it a night. I had only been in Bern for less than a day, and the next morning I was leaving for the mountain paradise of the Jungfrau region, but in my short time in Bern I got to see quite a lot and it was a very memorable and enjoyable experience. To anyone wondering whether or not to include Bern on your Switzerland itenerary, I would definitely encourage you to go for it. It’s centrally located and very easy to get to and it’s well worth your time to spend a day or two there. Would I spend an entire week in Bern? Probably not. You can really see everything worth seeing in one or two days. But it’s definitely a special and underrated place. May bears continue to roam in Bern for many years to come, so this beautiful capital city may endure for future generations to enjoy it!

Stay tuned for the next chapter of my trip to Switzerland, and in the mean time, check out more photos of Lucerne, Mt. Rigi, Pilatus, and Bern in my photo collection on Flickr.