It was great to have a good night’s sleep. And the best way to start the day is with a hearty breakfast. I can say that Acasa Suites does a really good breakfast. It was a very good combination between a North American and European breakfasts. After getting filled up, we went back upstairs and packed up for a day of road tripping.
Many people that we talked to said that you should visit Lucerne and that was our first stop for the day. It was about an hour drive from Zurich and we purposely told Google Maps not to take the major highways. This way we would see more of the Swiss countryside.
We got to Lucerne just after 11:00am and spent the next couple of hours exploring the town. We saw the Lion Monument which is a rock relief that commemorates the Swiss Guards who were killed during the French Revolution. From there it was about a fifteen minute walk to one of Lucerne’s famous landmarks, Chapel Bridge. It is a 14th century wooden bridge that crosses the Reuss River. While walking through Lucerne, we did manage to find the few stores that were open on a Sunday.
It was another one hour drive to our next stop Trauffer Switzerland just outside of Brienz. It is a Swiss brand known for its handcrafted wood toys, especially its iconic woods cows. All of their products are made from sustainably sourced Swiss wood. Besides the toy store, there is a hotel, a couple of restaurants and you can also take a tour to see how the toys are made. We did not have time for the tour, but we made sure to come away with a few souvenirs.
We left Trauffer Switzerland and five minutes later, we were in the picturesque village of Brienz which is surrounded by the Bernese Alps. We were lucky to find a spot next to Lake Brienz. We then proceeded to walk up and down Brunngasse. It is known as one of the prettiest streets in Europe. The street gives you a glimpse of traditional Swiss architecture because of its centuries-old wooden houses.
It was now getting close to 4:00pm and we knew that in a couple of hours we would be running out of daylight. So we made the decision that our final stop would be in Lauterbrunnen about forty-five minutes away. Once we arrived, we found the parking lot and started walking around the village. Lauterbrunnen is surrounded by sheer cliffs and over seventy waterfalls including Staubbach Falls which plunges 980 feet from a cliff above. All of the places we visited today were beautiful. But to me, Lauterbrunnen is what I was expecting when visiting a Swiss village.
Nana really wanted schnitzel for supper so when we got back to the car, we tried to figure out where we should go. We found Husi Bierhaus in Interlaken which according to the menu would satisfy Nana’s craving and it was only twenty minutes away. After a fabulous meal, we went next door for dessert. Funky Chocolate Club is a cafe where you can enjoy all things chocolate. From desserts to craft beers to snacks, anything chocolate can be found here. Since Karen and Marie split a schnitzel dinner, they decided to go with the chocolate fondue. I did not split a dinner and therefore I ordered the cup of strawberries with warm chocolate. Nana just sampled everyone’s dessert.
By now it was 7:30pm and it was dark. We decided to take the quickest way back to the hotel and we arrived at 9:45pm. I am so glad that we decided to rent a car because it allowed us to be flexible. And I think we were able to see more of Switzerland than if we had travelled by train or bus.
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