Halfway up

On Tuesday morning we woke up and found the entire country covered in clouds and drizzle. Sadly, the forecast also said it would be the best day of the week. So we headed to Luzern. If the weather worsened we could take a ferry ride and go to the transport museum again. If it got better we could go to one of the nearby mountains. 

We started out by going to old town via the bridge, with a short stop to feed the swans. Usually I don't let the kids feed the birds, but it seemed okay this once. They were with their Grandpa, who is an expert in swan feeding. He has trained many over the years to eat out of his hand. 

T throwing bread as hard as he can

T runs ahead with Grandpa and L not far behind.

Checking out the view.

Oh, no! What happened to T and L? Were they run down by tourists? Or did they collapse of exhaustion? Is L pulling one of her strikes where she refuses to move?

No, L found this little hole in the bridge for a view she could reach.

We crossed the bridge and then walked along the water where the farmer's market was and then went to see some of the pretty squares and painted buildings in old town.

L would much rather hold hands with Grandma than ride in the stroller.

No one thought to wish for better weather when they were throwing coins into the fountain, so the weather just stayed the same. We decided to go to Mt Pilatus anyway, since it might be our only chance of the week. (We stopped at Ladurach for some chocolate on the way. It's no different than the other branches, but I really like the one in Luzern and hoped Grandma and Grandpa would, too.) When we got to the cable car station there was a tv screen showing the feed from the webcam at the top. The screen was nothing but white - absolutely no visibility. A friendly hiker suggested we go to the first stop, so that is what we did.

It worked out as well as possible. We couldn't see any mountains, but we got an excellent view of Luzern and the lake. L enjoyed the ride. She sang very loudly all the way up - a song she made up and then a very long mash-up of Baa Baa Black Sheep, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and the alphabet.

The snails were enjoying the weather.

Running down to the playground at the first cable car station.

R chose to ride the steep covered slide down.

We're always glad to see a zipline.

We stayed at the playground for quite a while, but the rain was starting up again, so we headed home for dinner. After a lot of discussion about where we could go out to eat in Zurich we decided nothing would be better than getting some take out and eating it together in Grandma and Grandpa's hotel room. We had a great visit and it was a lot more fun than trying keep the kids happily fed, entertained, and well-behaved in a restaurant.

You can't do this in a restaurant!

p.s. Grandma found the Boogg cupcakes in the hotel room!