Switzerland and Italy

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Howdy Folks this is Colin! We've been in Switzerland and Italy

Day 0

We went on a planet hike in Zurich but we skipped Pluto and then took a cable car back down to where we started.

Day 1

We took a mini-train up a mountain called Mt Pilatus in Lucerne. Madeleine was a coward, she was afraid we would crash. We had good viewpoints of other hills from the top of the mountain.

Day 2

We drove from Zurich to Venice and on our way we saw the Alps. They are a group of mountains that are bigger than the Rockies.

Day 3

We went to Venice and saw lots of gondolas but we couldn't take them because they were too expensive. Instead we took a water bus and a short gondola ride across the canal.

Day 4.

We drove to the Eurocamp, it's a campsite in the countryside of Italy near Florence, and went to the pool. The pools were awesome and had a lot of stuff - it was cool.

Day 5.

We went to Florence that's the town, where Leonardo da Vinci lived. We went up in Il Duomo, a big church with a domed roof. On the way up to the top Madeleine counted a hundred more steps by accident - there should have been 358.

Day 6.

We went to Pisa and saw the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Pigeons fought over our dropped Cheetos. Next we went to Lucca where we went on a bike ride around the top of a wall around the city.

Day 7.

We decided on going to Siena but instead we explored the Eurocamp and decided to go to Siena tomorrow.

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Hi Everybody this is Madeleine commenting on Colin's post.

Day 0.

The planet hike is where you hike the distance of the solar system shrunken down (the relative distances are preserved). We got to go up to a viewpoint around the middle of the hike and could see all of Zurich and the surrounding area.

Day 1

I admit I was scared on the train ride up Mt. Pilatus but you would have been too if you were riding on a 48 degree angle with a 6000 foot drop onto pointy rocks a few inches from you. On top of Pilatus you are supposed to have a great view of Switzerland but the day we came it was so foggy that you had trouble seeing people across the viewing platform. We walked around Lucerne for a while but Mom did her ankle in which limited the distances we went.

Day 2

Colin Dad and I climbed one of the foothills of the Alps. You think you have climbed really high until you look around and see the rest of the mountains towering around you.

Day 3

Venice was amazing. We got to see St. Mark's square and cathedral. The floors of the cathedral were covered with really cool mosaics and patterns. We had time scheduled where we walked down random streets to see what Venice was like. It was nice to see what an ordinary neighborhood in Venice was like but it was kind of sad because parts looked like they were falling down and empty. We got to see Marco Polo's house but it is now a seafood restaurant and it is less cool now that there are eels swimming around in his windows. We got gelatos and looked at a mask shop (Venice is famous for its festival in which people parade around in masks).

Day 4

We're staying in a trailer in the Eurocamp (somewhere in Tuscany). It's got four pools, a restaurant, a gelateria, tennis courts, soccer fields, bocce ball areas, a bazaar, a market, a playground and tons of other stuff.

Day 5.

Today we went to Florence.

We had an early start and went to the Uffizi (it's an art museum with lots of famous paintings). We saw the birth of Venus, Lacoon (a famous Greek statue that inspired both Leonardo da Vinci and Michaelangelo to reach new heights.), the really famous painting of Medusa by Carvaggio, and another painting in which Leonardo da Vinci painted an angel. Next we got to see the Duomo. It's huge and the inside of the dome is covered with paintings. Dad Colin and I did climb the stairs up to the top. But it was Colin who miscounted the stairs. We were both counting up into the 300s when Colin loudly stated that he lost track and then started counting from 240. We then left and went to the Accademia (another art museum with lots of sculptures). We got to see Michaelangelo's David. He was amazingly realistic though his hands were a bit big, and Mom found him "aesthetically pleasing".

Day 6

The Leaning Tower really does have a serious lean. Next to it there are two other leaning buildings; a cathedral and a baptistry. The baptistry amplifies your voice and makes it echo for ten seconds, so every half hour the security guard sings and harmonizes with her echoes. It's incredible to hear. Lucca is this incredibly cute and untouristy city (compared to Florence). The walls of the city are from medieval times and are easily as thick as an average road.

Day 7.

Today was our day of rest. We washed clothes (finally) got groceries and went to the pool. We also got the WiFi to work after a long time without. Tomorrow we go to Siena. Bye.

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P.S. It's me Colin. When Madeleine said that I lost track I re-remembered. It actually was Madeleine who miscounted the steps on Il Duomo not me.