Italy Here We Come

Day 6

GOOD MORNING SWITZERLAND 🇨🇭

Well not long enough in Switzerland but we can always come back and visit again and we will. Well up again this morning img for a 6:30am start for breakfast and then off at 8:30am to head for Italy 🇮🇹. Still very dark out side so we are expecting another overcast and wet day today, but hopefully we will be able to see the alps as we cross over into Italy 🇮🇹. We will be going through some of the longest tunnels in Europe today. Rell and I are both well we will have to see how the other two pull up today. Off to the Italian lakes, bye for now.

We set off from Lucerne at 8:30am just as it was starting to become light. As usual he countryside, the villages, the alps and the waterfalls were brilliant and beautiful 🤩. Hundreds of tunnels in Switzerland 🇨🇭 and we were passing through many of them, we did pass through the longest one being near 17km… near had time for a sleep 💤 on this one.

The Gotthard Road Tunnel in Switzerland runs from Göschenen in the canton of Uri at its northern portal, to Airolo in Ticino to the south, and is 16.9 kilometres (10.5 mi) in length below the St Gotthard Pass, a major pass of the Alps. At time of construction, in 1980, it was the longest road tunnel in the world; it is currently the fifth-longest.[2] Although it is a motorway tunnel, part of the A2 from Basel to Chiasso, it consists of only one bidirectional tube with two lanes. With a maximum elevation of 1,175 metres (3,855 ft)[3] at the tunnel's highest point, the A2 motorway has the lowest maximum elevation of any direct north-south road through the Alps.[4]

Mostly just the drive today although we did stop at Lugano, beautiful lake with a little passenger train running around with beautiful old buildings.
Lugano is a city in southern Switzerland’s Italian-speaking Ticino region. Its Swiss-Mediterranean mix of cultures is closely related to that of Italy’s northern Lombardy region. This mix is reflected in its architecture and cuisine. The city stands on the northern shore of glacial Lake Lugano, surrounded by mountains. Its main square, Piazza della Riforma, is ringed with pastel-colored, neoclassical palazzi.

We had morning tea/brunch before continuing on our journey to Como and Italy 🇮🇹.

Como is a city at the southern tip of Lake Como in northern Italy. It's known for the Gothic Como Cathedral, a scenic funicular railway and a waterfront promenade. The Museo Didattico della Seta traces the history of Como's silk industry, while the Tempio Voltiano museum is dedicated to Italian physicist Alessandro Volta. Just north are the lakeside gardens of the palatial Villa Olmo, as well as other stately villas.

On arrival at Como we had a look at the basilica, had some lunch then took the funicular to the top of the mountain to get a better look around. Trouble was all this was a bit rushed and we didn’t get enough time, so this wasn’t enjoyable. From there a race back to the bus 🚌 to head to our motel 🏨 we are definitely giving mum and Vicki a psychical work out. At the motel and the room is great 👍 missing something’s but mostly great. We went to the supermarket and after that headed to the bar for a few drinks before dinner at the restaurant. Caught up with a few of the team and talked about our day. After the meal… not the best for some and a few more drinks of course, it was off to bed after a hard day. Welcome to Italy 🇮🇹.

GOOD NIGHT ITALY 🇮🇹Read more