Lakeside in Luzern

Luzern and Lake Luzern: 4th – 5th November

An installation in the Musee Carnavelet, inspired by Louis Vuitton, gave us the urge to be water-born again; hence, today’s trip, on the MV Gotthard, which plies Lake Luzern. The day-long lake trip, especially those parts near to Fleulen, is nothing short of lacustrine heaven. Of all the ship and boat trips we’ve undertaken in the last four months, nothing rivals it for topographic drama.

With ragged ten thousand feet mountains, capped with snow and lower slopes coated with the rusted leaves of autumn, the colour and light effects were spectacular—beyond the capacity of a lens, let alone words, to convey. The commentary on MV Gotthard while brief was intelligent and even included a few stormy bars from Rossini’s William Tell overture to underscore Tell’s contribution to Swiss culture. Even the food and service on board was tasteful and beyond reproach, a million miles from the crass humour of US and UK tour boats (and better still no tips).

On our second complete day in Luzern we explored the old town, which is dominated by a line of towers punctuating the old town’s walls, affording views to the Luzern’s suburbs (which have expanded on to the lower slopes of the Alps), as well as towards the lake and city centres old and new. A highlight of our day was the visit to the Museum Sammlung Rosengart, which holds a magnificent collection of late Picassos and an even more comprehensive collection of Paul Klee’s whose miniaturist, often droll approach, provides a foil to the more visceral Picassos. Lest we forget, we reacquainted ourselves with Utrillo, the painter not the sea going vessel—of whom we have seen very little on our many visits to galleries and museums. This collection is of particular interest because it was donated to the city of Luzern by Angela Rosengart, who visits her beloved collection daily.