LUCERNE SWITZERLAND

I had heard so much about the amazing beauty of Switzerland, that I was secretly not wanting to see it. I did not want the imaginary picture of Switzerland that I had in my mind, destroyed.  My fears however were unfounded. As soon as we left Italy and moved into Switzerland, my eyes, my mind, my whole being was stupefied. This place was so unimaginably beautiful. It was more pristine, picturesque and pleasing to the eye than the picture that I had in my mind.

So much of beauty, calm, peace, colour, cows, in one place was simply amazing.

VIEW OF BEAUTY

The meadows, the hills, the lakes,the mountains were bewitching. I did not want to look anywhere except outside, and etch the entire place in my mind for ever.

Lucerne, our first stop, is near  a huge lake. There is a promenade around the lake. Beautiful houses on the other side of the lake are spread out all over the mountain. They are not cluttered up. There is a lot of green, lot of beautiful flowers on every window sill and the all pervading calmness of peace and serenity in the town.

One could see beautiful exclusive shops of famous watches. One was really tempted to buy the watches!However, window shopping is all that I did.

Shops are pretty, each one has a character, all its own. They are not like the usual departmental stores. There were little winding musical instruments playing old famous tunes, like Lara's Theme from Dr. Zhivago and Edelweiss from Sound of Music. There were lots of watches on display, and pleasing faces welcoming us even if one did not want to buy anything. They made one feel most welcome even to simply browse around.

Swiss chocolates, Swiss watches, Swiss dairy products, Swiss cheese, Swiss knives all were well stocked all over the place.

I could not get Dev Anand and his beautiful song "Phoolon ke rang se, dil ki kalam se, tujhko likhi roz paati,"(with the colour of the flowers, with the pen of my heart,I write a letter to you everyday) out of my mind. If I remember correctly, it was sung in a train in Switzerland, in the movie Prem Pujari. The scene from that film, of those exquisite windows, full of flowers had been  permanently etched on my mind. I was delighted to see that very scene with my own eyes, after almost forty years of that film! Nothing seemed to have changed!
I couldn't believe that any place with so many tourists could still retain its old world charm.

A boat ride on the lake enabled us to see all the lovely places around the huge lake. There was a palace which Michael Jackson wanted to buy. Also the fabulous hotels where a whole lot of important and famous people had stayed.

LION MONUMENT

 We went to see the Lion Monument, which is the statue of an injured lion. It is located a little away from the city and is inside a secluded garden. It actually commemorates the sacrifice of more than 600 Swiss guards, who died while guarding the Tuileries in Paris during the French Revolution. The statue depicts a dying lion who is hit by a spear. He rests covering a shield engraved with the 'fleur de lis' which was the symbol of the French Kings. This monument is dedicated to the loyalty and bravery of the Swiss. The expression and the entire statue carved inside a rock, are very moving and brings tears to one's eyes.The Swiss are well known for their discretion, loyalty and bravery. Interestingly, the Vatican is also guarded by Swiss guards,who have a very colourful uniform.

THE COVERED CHAPEL BRIDGE

The Chapel bridge is one of the oldest wooden bridges in the country. It is across River Reuss. It was made in 1333, but got burnt down in 1993. It has since been restored to its past glory and beauty. The bridge is covered and the interiors are full of beautiful paintings throughout. The sides of the bridge are fully covered with colour coordinated flowers. Walking on the bridge is a beautiful experience.

ALPINE HORNS

We went to a show where the various facets of Swiss culture were shown. Audience participation was invited and appreciated. The Swiss are well known for yodelling, which is very melodious and catchy. They also have very- very long musical horns, called Alphorn or Alpine Horn, which are quite akin to musical horns still played in Ladakh and some other parts of India The Alpine horn is wooden and has a cup shaped mouthpiece, which was used since time immemorial for communication in the mountains.  One boy of our group,went on stage to try and blow the horn.Then, there was very beautiful music played on the bells which are placed around the necks of cows. There was a Swiss folk dance performance where O'Maira from our group joined in. In the end a big black and white cow came into the hall and moved close to the audience. It was really a beautiful experience. Since audience participation is invited, it becomes all the more exciting. Yours truly, could not let the chance go past, and I bravely went on stage with a few others to learn yodelling. The girl would yodel a  bit and ask each one of us novices to copy that bit. It was fun to be on stage, on the huge TV screens and make a complete fool of oneself! I loved every moment of it. After the yodelling,  they brought a pitcher of their local beer and asked each one of us on stage, to gulp the beer down at one go. I simply cannot drink beer and here I was  gulping it all down at one go! Never one to fail anywhere, I succeeded here too!!!Hick!!

COWS GRAZING

The cows of Switzerland are pretty, healthy,and graze all over the hills. The music of their bells is beautiful.  Reminded me of the cow bells of India, and the sound of bells when the cows are returning home at dusk. In Switzerland one can buy beautiful souvenirs of these bells. Going to the top of Mount Titlis in a cable car with the green plain below and music of the cow bells coming through, is delightful. It is the most  splendid view, which fills one with a feeling of peace and serenity. Nature has gifted beauty to this place in abundance. 

One goes up almost 3000 metres to the top of Mount Titlis. There are three stages to go up.First one goes up in a gondola where 6 people can sit, then up a huge gondola, and finally a gondola which rotates and can take up to 80 people in it. When one reaches up there is a flood of Indians that you can see!  Right at the tip there is a big platform and lo and behold what do I find? A huuuuuge cut out of Shahrukh Khan and Kajol in the film DDLJ(Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge). I was simply amazed.What a lot Yash Chopra has done for Swiss tourism!!

I also came to know that there is a special tour operated from India which takes people to all the spots where Yash Chopra's films have been shot!! AMAZING!!

MOVIE CUT OUT

I also found to my amusement that in the restaurant there were two buffets. One had the usual European stuff and the other provided typical Indian food. Speaks volumes about the number of Indian tourists visiting Switzerland.
Instructions in the rest rooms were also provided in Hindi.
There are a lot of tunnels and trains in Switzerland.
The colours in Switzerland are breath takingly beautiful. The blue of the lakes, the green of the meadows, the red roofs of the cottages and a riot of colours of the myriad of flowers, were never better.
There was an all pervading feeling of peace, tranquillity, cleanliness, beauty and the bounties of nature, which I have never felt anywhere else. The place exudes serenity, calm and is extremely beautiful. One feels peace from within. Actually, I think that Switzerland is the most beautiful place that I have seen on earth! 

I have spent a lot of time in Kashmir too. The beauty there also is out of the world. Yet, to my mind the sheer calmness, quiet, and tranquil feeling that I felt in Switzerland made it feel like heaven on earth!