Travelsmartplanet

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The riverside promenade on the Chapel Bridge in Lucerne has pretty views. You can see St.Peterskapelle (St. Peter’s Chapel) in the background.

Tags: bridge, chapel, Chapel Bridge, city, CostSaver, Europe, landscape, Lucerne, luzern, promenade, riverside, scenery, sights, sightseeing, St. Peter's Chapel, St.Peterskapelle, Swiss, Switzerland, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, travel, travelblogger, view, water

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Just minutes apart, the clouds roll in and change the scene significantly in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Tags: Air, breathe, city, clouds, CostSaver, Europe, fresh, fresh air, Lucerne, luzern, mountain, Nature, scenery, scenic, sights, sightseeing, Suisse, Swiss, swiss Alps, swiss mountain view, Switzerland, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, travel, travelblogger, view, what a view

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Gletschergarten Lowendenkmal is massive heartrending stone relief which was carved to remember the Swiss Guards who were massacred in 1792 during the French Revolution when defending Louis XVI. Swiss Guards were and are famous as brave sentries. Today, they still surround the Pope. When the revolutionaries stormed the Tuileries Palace in Paris, more than 800 were killed during the fighting, after surrender, or died in prison of their wounds. 300 lucky survived because they were with the detachment which King Louis XVI had sent to Normandy to escort grain convoys. Two surviving Swiss officers went on to become senior ranked guards for Napoleon.

In 1880, Mark Twain had this to say about it ” His size is colossal, his attitude is noble. His head is bowed, the broken spear is sticking in his shoulder, his protecting paw rests upon the lilies of France. Vines hang down the cliff and wave in the wind, and a clear stream trickles from above and empties into a pond at the base, and in the smooth surface of the pond the lion is mirrored, among the water-lilies.

Around about are green trees and grass. The place is a sheltered, reposeful woodland nook, remote from noise and stir and confusion ­and all this is fitting, for lions do die in such places, and not on granite pedestals in public squares fenced with fancy iron railings. The Lion of Lucerne would be impressive anywhere, but nowhere so impressive as where he is.”

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There’s a pretty riverside promenade in Lucerne. Chapel Bridge is one of the oldest wooden bridges in Switzerland as it was mentioned in writing around 1367. As you walk it, look up underneath the roof and you will be surprised to see paintings there. A prominent Water Tower here had been used as a dungeon, an archive, and a treasury vault. These were parts of the oldest medieval city ramparts of Lucerne. You can also take a peek into St. Peter’s Chapel.

Tags: archive, bridge, chapel, Chapel Bridge, city, CostSaver, dungeon, Europe, Lucerne, luzern, medieval, painting, promenade, prominent, rampart, riverside, roof, sights, sightseeing, St. Peter's, St. Peter's Chapel, Swiss, Switzerland, tour, tourist, tower, Trafalgar, travel, travelblogger, treasury, treasury vault, underneath, vault, walk, water, Water Tower, wooden

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A stop in Lucerne gave us endless hours of browsing through watch shops. The incredible amount of creativity of what can be designed on a watch was amazing.

Tags: browsing, city, CostSaver, craftsmanship, creativity, cronograph, designed, Europe, horology, Lucerne, luzern, shop, sights, sightseeing, Swiss, swiss made, swiss watch, Switzerland, timepiece, tour, tourist, Trafalgar, travel, travelblogger, watch, watch shop, window shopping, wristwatch

Zurich is world famous as a global financial center, and internationally companies such as Credit Suisse and UBS are situated there. How did Zurich develop into a city of finance? Who were the first money-lenders and who actually invented the credit card?

This and other questions about the history of money in Zurich are the theme of a guided city tour, “Money, Money, Money – Following the Money Trail”, held in German or English every evening at 6pm between August and October. Participants go on a walk through the city and learn a host of surprising facts and entertaining stories.

http://www.myswitzerland.com/en-ca/following-the-money-trail.html

An international idea celebrated in 50 countries, Restaurant Day is a food carnival created by food-loving people setting up one-day restaurants. The idea of the day is to have fun, share new food experiences and meet others in our community. People offer their family cuisine, favorite recipes, desserts or whatever in their backyard or a park.  Prices are very inexpensive.

Check the maps to see if there is one in your city.

Date: Sunday, August 17
http://www.restaurantday.org/

Tags: carnival, city, countries, cuisine, dessert, family, food, map, people, recipe, Restaurant

You have to admire their moxie. Contortionists are being placed inside suitcases which are then placed inside the cargo hold of buses in Spain. They then have the opportunity to go through any and all of your luggage and help themselves to whatever they want, while you are enjoying the scenic rides between popular tourist destinations. By the time you have reached the end of your journey, they (and their booty) are back inside their suitcase, ready to be plucked off the bus by an accomplice.

Tags: booty, bus, cargo, contortionist, destination, journey, luggage, scenic, Spain, suitcase, Switzerland, tourist

Next door to the oldest vegetarian restaurant, Haus Hiltl, Switzerland’s very first vegetarian butcher’s shop, the Hiltl shop has opened.

On sale are vegetarian and vegan delicatessen products, wines and cooking accessories. At the “butcher’s counter”, customers can purchase meat substitutes such as tofu, seitan, paneer or soy sausages, as well as Hiltl tartare, the traditional local specialty, Züri-Geschnetzeltes, and home-made cordon bleus.

Even the wines are vegetarian or vegan, so do not contain fish bladders or bone gelatin.

Location: Sihlstrasse 28, 8001 Zürich
Neighborhood: Kreis 1
Tel: 044 227 70 00
www.hiltl.ch

Tags: bladder, bone, butcher, cooking, cordon bleu, delicatessan, Europe, fish, gelatin, Hans Hiltl, meat, Restaurant, sausage, seitan, soy, substitute, Switzerland, tartare, tofu, vegan, vegetarian, wine

Federal Wrestling and Alpine Festival

Schwingen – the Swiss form of wrestling – is very popular in Switzerland. In fact, it developed from herdsman’s pastime to elite sport. Schwingen is fought as a duel between two physically powerful competitors and has its own rules, grips and throws.

The champion wrestler is chosen at the Federal Wrestling and Alpine Festival held every 3 years. Over 250,000 visitors are expected this year in the Emmental arena. The spectacle will be accompanied by other Swiss traditions like yodeling and alphorn blowing.

Around 50,000 individuals will follow the events of the traditional Swiss sports of Schwingen (Swiss wrestling), Hornussen (a traditional team sport, which involves throwing and catching a type of puck called Hornuss) and Steinstossen (stone throw).

Location: Bern
Dates: Aug 30 -Sept 1
www.bern.com/en/region/emmental/events/schwingfest-2013

Tags: alphorn, emmenthal, grip, herdsman, hornussen, puck, schwingen, steinstossen, stone, Swiss, Switzerland, team, throw, wrestling, yodel