Today, a drive from our rest stop at Rottachtal-Ost to Zürich to catch up with the Ghazoul clan — Gnome, Jab, Zeki, Antar, Alligin and Sanna. (Kay's daughter and her family).
A good day for driving and not much else, being showery and cool. Nevertheless, as it was on the way, we decided we would drop into Vaduz in Liechtenstein.
Our route took us through some of the most picturesque countryside in Southern Bavaria. We stopped off in a little town, Isny, to shop and to post our German (and German-stamped) postcards before we got out of the country!
Then we had to cross into Austria — for about an hour, but we had to buy a vignette for 10 days! Oh well, let's say the Hams have done their bit in maintaining Europe's roads. We found the signs at the border stop where you buy the vignettes were all decorated with their stick-on stubs — you've got to do something with them, At the same time we were able to buy the annual vignette for Switzerland - once again, we're only going to be there for a few days — but what the heck!
Then, through a part of Austria, a swing into Switzerland, and then a slight deviation into Vaduz. The car park we remembered from last time was still there, in spite of a rush of building that has been going on around the place. But the little restaurant from 2008 is now a part of history!
We just missed, by about two hours, an annual event in Städle, the main street of Vaduz — the cows are brought down from their winter pasture and paraded through the town wearing their cowbells and festooned with flowers. There was a lot of evidence of their passing, and road crews were in the process of cleaning it up!
But we didn't miss an art festival here, which has been running for some months — Bad Ragartz. This triennial sculpture festival has statues scattered all through the town — and we already knew Vaduz as being the home of quite a few rather interesting modern sculptures, but until 1 November you can hardly take a few steps without running into one. The problem is that, when you run into something interesting in the street, is it a sculpture, or just the furniture of a restaurant?!
While in Vaduz we went into the Cathedral, where we lit a candle for Nick Jones, a close friend, who died suddenly and unexpectedly a few days ago — vale Nick!
The neo-Gothic cathedral was built in 1868-1873 as the Parish Church of St Florian Vaduz, but when Vaduz was elevated as an independent archbishopric in 1997, it became an official cathedral. The paired Nativity and Pietà statues, by the same sculptor, are particularly effective, the one with Mary and her newborn son, the other cradling his dead body.
We spent a pleasant few hours in Vaduz, and then continued on towards Zürich and Gnome's brood!
On the way out, we passed the old covered wooden bridge, now the only wooden bridge remaining across the Rhine. Motor vehicles are now excluded, so it is very popular now with cyclists! The Swiss border is mid-river, shown only be a simple sign in the middle of the bridge we crossed on the way out of Liechtenstein.
The scenery in Switzerland is spectacular to say the least! We passed by lakes, through tunnels, passing small mountainside villages. The weather was patchy, and at times we were driving through fairly heavy rain.
We finally got to Zürich, meeting up with our first local tram, driving round the end of Lake Zürich (where we intended to walk in the next few days, as the last time we were here was in a driving (and freezing) rainstorm! There's a lot of roadworks going on around here, and at one point we found ourselves driving on the pedestrians only square in front of the Opera House!
We got to Stüssistraße, meaning to simply call in before going out to a camping site, but Gnome found room for us to park in front of their twin garages, off the footpath (which otherwise would have drawn the wrath of parking officers) — they weren't planning to use anything but bicycles for the next few days! The children are a delight — but we'll leave that for tomorrow's posting!
Distance driven — today, 156 miles ( 251 km ); to date, 27,802 miles ( 44,743 km )
Lovely of you to light the candle. We all appreciated that thanks Suzie and I said a special prayer for you too. You are right about the scenery-how very beautiful it is. Loved the Statues. Was the opulent red chair at the restaurant one of them? Glad you will be with people you know for a little bit. that cathedral looked like the plain church you went into a couple of countries ago a bit. They have extended my PhD by 3 months to 3rd March '19. Hope to have finished it befeore then. I think I have about another two weeks' of Nick's and Jay's mess in the shed to clean out somehow and will ring the Pool man and the CFS to see if one wants the green water for something and the other wants to clean the pool and start us off again in November then do regular maintenance for which Jay has offered to pay. Oh well, life goes along aa slapping pacce. lots of love,Ccathy
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