Friday, April 1, 2011

Day 7: Innsbruck, Liechtenstein, and on to Switzerland

We started the day touring Innsbruck. Here is our hotel the Gray Bear.


We took a walking tour of Innsbruck in the morning. Caught Mom taking a picture of me.



Our first stop was in a quaint square with the mountains in the background.



I think this is St. Jacob church. It has a famous small painting of the Madonna and child but we could not get in to see it.






Here's the Golden Roof.









Easter is a big deal over here, lots of decorations. Innsbruck had these giant eggs all around it's shopping area.






This is supposed to be one of the most beautiful photos of Innsbruck with the column in front, the golden roof at the end of the street and the mountains in the background but unfortunately there is construction so the crane is in the way.

Rein hard, our guide, told us that the city is paying for half the renovation costs of the buildings in Old Town because it is the tourist center and the city wants to be sure that it doesn't fall into disrepair.



After our tour of Innsbruck, we headed towards Switzerland through the Alps. It was a gorgeous drive up and down mountain passes and through tunnels. I was on the wrong side of the bus to catch the really good shots but I caught a couple.

See the snow fences at the top? These hold off avalanches.



This isn't a good shot but we saw lots of skiers getting one last run in before the season is over.



We stopped in Stuben a. A., a small skiing village for lunch. Most of the group chose to sit outside in the sun. It was a bit chilly but worth it!












Here's our traveling companions...a group from Zion, Illinois. They are quite fun.






Then we were off to Liechtenstein, a small country between Austria and Switzerland. It is just 61.5 square miles and has 37,000 residents. It's ruled by a prince and is a very wealthy country.



Here's the palace where the royal family lives and rules from as well as a model od the palace in the second photo below.















As we crossed the Danube we went from Liechtenstein to Switzerland. The border is in the middle of the river.



After some more scenic views and a bit of rain, we made it to Lucerne. Friday we are touring the city and then heading for our Alpine Adventure up into the Alps.


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