On to Zurich!

It was hard to say goodbye to Lucerne as it was such a relaxing place to stay and we had even considered going to the opera in Zurich and returning to Lucerne by train later that night. However we did want to visit Zurich too as we were so close. So the car was brought to the front of the hotel and the luggage loaded for the short drive to Zurich.

Thanks again to the car's GPS system I found my way out of Lucerne and into Zurich to our hotel which was called the Opera. Well named as it was one block from the Opera House. It's a small boutique hotel in a modern style and it's best feature was an outdoor terrace high above the street.

Once unpacked we walked two blocks to the waterfront as again the weather was perfect.

People were lining up at a swimming platform in the lake

No lofty mountain peaks here.

From the waterfront we found shade in a nearby park which was popular with families out walking their kids and dogs. Very peaceful and relaxing but as we were only here for one day and had to be ready for the Opera at 7 pm we decided to take a walk towards the center of the city.

Every city should have a wide river running through it- this is the River Limmat

Along it's banks we passed many outdoor restaurants-my kind of town!

As you can see it was clouding over and we decided to retrace our steps to the hotel rather than risk getting caught in the rain.

We walked past the Opera House on our way back to the hotel and there was a rehearsal of a Mozart opera going on according to a sign. We had tickets for a Puccini opera called Turandot later that evening. Back in the hotel it was time to take a nap after our walk and also because of the threat of rain.

Awake and refreshed I went onto the terrace. It was an hour before the opera but the rehearsal was just ending and the staging was still in the theatre-empty trucks were waiting by the loading dock doors.

We got ready for the opera as we like to dress well for the occasion and walked over 30 minutes before the show to enjoy the anticipation of the gathering crowd.

When we got there we found out that due to the rehearsal running late the opera would be pushed back one hour-this has never happened before and we have been to over 400 operas. However the management offered free drinks while we waited so we took it in stride as did everyone else.

The sky had cleared up and it was a nice evening so once inside we found our way to an outdoor terrace and enjoyed the free drinks.

Eventually we were called to take our seats

We enjoyed a great night of Puccini opera in this small intimate theater. The standards of musicianship and production were high and the audience attentive and enthusiastic.

Afterwards we had dinner-good simple, well-cooked Germanic food in a restaurant across from our hotel. Many of the people from the opera joined us so it was a lively scene.

With the music still ringing in our ears we walked back to the Opera Hotel for a good night's sleep.

Tomorrow we would move again-this time back to Munich for two days to end our trip.