 |
Album:2003:08-04 Switzerland
|
|
Then I go to Switzerland to meet the fabulous Fabienne, world traveller.
I stayed in Luzern/Lucerne for most of the time, but unfortunately had to
travel a bunch of times to Bern (a beautiful city as well) to deal with
the Russkies in an attempt to get my Russian Visa to go to the St.
Petersburg dance festival. What a disaster. I finally got tired of
dealing with the general incompetence and cancelled my trip to Russia.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Fabienne picks me up at the airport
( comments)
|
A really old bridge in Luzern.
Most of it burned down a few years ago, and the USA actually donated some money to help rebuild it. I kept telling Fabienne that meant we owned part of the bridge. She thought that was funny. At least she did the first time I said that. Then she didn't think I was so funny anymore. ;) ( comments)
|
It's a beautiful bridge.
And I love the mountain in the background (Pilatus). ( comments)
|
The Dead Lion.
It's a beautiful and sad sculpture to commerate the Swiss that died with the storm on the Bastille at the French Revolution. (here's the inscription in Latin and German) ( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Dave Lion.
( comments)
|
There was a museum
at the Dead Lion that had a hall of mirrors for some reason ( comments)
|
There were a dozen images of us
and I totally failed to capture them on the camera. ( comments)
|
Fabienne almost runs into herself.
( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
That's a bunch of Fabiennes there.
( comments)
|
Fabienne everywhere!
[Video, 223k] ( comments)
|
I get confused by the mirrors.
[Video, 223k] ( comments)
|
This forest is much smaller than it looks.
( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
It's only a few feet deep.
( comments)
|
A mirror makes my head too big.
So I have to compress it. [Video, 135k] ( comments)
|
My, we're tall.
( comments)
|
Yo, I need to pull up my pants, G.
( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
There was an old tower as well.
But I sure don't know the historical significance of it. That makes me an ignorant American. It was old, definitely. ( comments)
|
Ursula!
I get a chance to dance in Switzerland, and the super-excellent Ursula comes to dance. ( comments)
|
But that last pictur.. looking up my nose.
So this one is better. ( comments)
|
Dancing in Zurich.
( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Zila and Valerie dancing in center.
Valerie is Jen Harry's teaching partner. Jen is an American living in Luzern (red shirt). ( comments)
|
Zurich has a big party
they call Street Parade. ( comments)
|
The streets are filled with people.
( comments)
|
And it's like a big outdoor rave.
( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
There's a series of 'party trailers'
that drive along playing raver music. ( comments)
|
Did I mention all the people?
( comments)
|
And it's great to see
such a big party in such an old, old city. ( comments)
|
We decide to go up
to the top of the beautiful Mount Pilatus ( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Fabienne prepares for the climb
with some nourishing climber food. ( comments)
|
Fabienne makes a mountain appear
with magic! ( comments)
|
Halfway up Pilatus
they have this fun luge track. ( comments)
|
On which I was a racing maniac.
( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
And fortunately they haul you back up
so you don't have to actually do any work. ( comments)
|
The professional luger
always has to suffer from wind/hair issues. ( comments)
|
Mount Pilatus is frickin' beautiful.
( comments)
|
And it looks down
on the lake near Luzerne ( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Near the top
there's a cave that walks around the outside. ( comments)
|
And there's an extremely Swiss
modern chalet type building. ( comments)
|
The cave is great.
( comments)
|
Cave. Mountain. Wh..e could you ask for?
( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dave the Mountain Man.
( comments)
|
Sitting on top of th..d. Or at 7000 feet.
( comments)
|
Spot the mountain goat in this photo.
(Hint: brown and beneath the overhang above and to the left of me) ( comments)
|
We wrote our initials
on some temp wall somewhere, I don't remember anymore, but I appreciate the note at the bottom. ( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Alps are made of chocolate.
No, really. ( comments)
|
How else do you think
they have so much chocolate? It's the chocolate mines. And the infamous Swiss chocolate-mining dwarfs. Yes, it's true. ( comments)
|
Then we take a steep train
down to the bottom. I'm told this is the steepest train in the world. I have neither the wherewithall nor the interest to verify that claim. ( comments)
|
|
|
|
|
|
