I’m not the most punctual person, but I wouldn’t say I’m tardy either. It’s really situation dependant. 

If I’m meeting up with friends/family or on my way to work, I’ll probably be a little late. On the other hand, if it’s a time sensitive event that I don’t want to miss, then I’m pretty attentive to where I need to be and when. 

For example, if I’m going to the cinema, I’ll be in my seat before the projector fires up and the first trailer rolls. Or, if Miss Adventure has a music class, I’ll make sure that we arrive in plenty of time to get a good position up front so that we are ready to sing and dance our hearts out. Or, if I’m catching an international flight, I’ll be at the airport check-in counter as soon as it opens to make sure I clear security and board without worrying.

In these situations I’m always anxiously double checking the clock and know exactly what time I’m aiming to be at the designated event.

All it took was 24 hours in Switzerland for me to completely let my guard down and totally lose track of time.

After Jess came down with a horrible illness, at the end of the first week of our first international trip with 9 month old baby, Miss Adventure, our meticulous plans were derailed.

Originally our itinerary had us visiting family for one week in Frankfurt, then moving onto Stuttgart for another week before crossing the border into Switzerland and doing a week exploring the Swiss Alps. 

With Jess becoming incredibly sick we had to extend our stay in Stuttgart to help her recover.  We were really disappointed as we were very much looking forward to exploring Switzerland. But recovery was the priority considering Miss Adventure was still breastfeeding and wouldn’t settle at night for dad, so Jess was crucial for the whole operation.

However, we weren’t going to let a viral infection, or German train strike, stop us from experiencing Switzerland for at least a day, so we were able to pick up the trip in our final pre-planned spot, Lucerne.

Just a quick piece of advice before we go any further: 

STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND BOOK A TRIP TO SWITZERLAND RIGHT NOW!

From the moment our train rolled across the German border and we caught a glimpse of the flowing beauty of Rhine Falls, we knew we were in a magical place. 

And worse yet, we knew we were missing out massively by not getting to stop in this amazing country for longer. 

As we journeyed on through the countryside we were met with a breathtaking landscape of snowcap mountains, vast blue lakes and greenery that seemed to blend seamlessly into the neat little villages and farmhouses around it.

Just the train travel through Switzerland alone was a highlight of the trip, as we saw landscapes that were so different to what we see in Australia. Unfortunately for Miss Adventure, she had to have a nap and completely missed out on the epic scenery. But, fortunately, for me, I got to experience the whole thing whilst cradling a sleeping baby in my arms as the train rocked us gently along through the countryside. This is all we can ask for as parents travelling with kids – serenity.

Eventually we made it to our one and only Swiss destination, Lucerne. We were immediately blown away by the stunning presentation of this nation. Everything was clean and manicured, historic yet modern, and with that touch of class always present.

We took a short walk to our hotel for our single night stay which was in a a charming, but also the cheapest, place down by the river.

Before we go any further I should address this point; whilst we knew that we loved Switzerland from the first moment we arrived, we didn’t want to alter the trip and spend more time here for two reasons:

1. Our itinerary was precisely planned out for the remainder of our time in Europe – something that we had never really done whilst travelling before Miss Adventure came along. Planning and being prepared was something we really wanted to emphasise on our first trip with our baby.

and,

2. Switzerland is expensive.

We knew that it was more expensive travelling to Switzerland before we got there and when we were planning out the trip, but it was totally different once you got there and started doing the currency conversions in your head, and then did it again when you realised you were paying THAT MUCH for a coffee or cake.

Once we had arrived, checked into our hotel room, and already had a preview of this amazing place, we made an agreement – no currency conversion calculations, let’s just enjoy the short time we had in Switzerland.

To make the most of our time, we shot out of the hotel as quick as we could and headed off for a stroll along the Ruess River. The crystal clear water running through the town underneath the Chapel Bridge was a breathtaking sight.

That evening, we had no choice but to try some traditional Swiss-fare, and headed to a nearby restaurant that was offering just that.

The following day, our walk continued around the centre of the city, taking in the architecture of the buildings that lined the banks of the river. The 17th century Jesuit Church was positioned as a centre point for crowds as they enjoyed a local market set along the river walk, whilst the Château Gütsch sat on the hilltop to the west, keeping a watchful eye over the city.

Before departing, we wanted to have one last local culinary fix, and what better option was there than enjoying a piping hot fondue, riverside, overlooking this glorious city?

For a guy like me, it was hard to walk away from an all-you-can-eat bread buffet, but with full bellies and our scheduled train departure approaching, we started to head back to our hotel to collect our bags.

We slowly made our way across Chapel Bridge one last time, trying to elongate our stay in Switzerland. We wandered along the river bank, weaving our way through the market stalls, and browsing the local produce the vendors had on offer.

At this point, a check of the clock made us quicken our pace as I thought the train was departing in 30 minutes. It was ok, by my calculation, we could get back to the hotel, pick up our bags, walk back to the train station and arrive with time to spare.

We did arrive at the train station, but we had no time to spare. Sure that our train was leaving at 1:40pm, I checked the departure board, but the schedule displayed no trains leaving at that time.

I pulled out our printed tickets from the bag and looked at the departure time – the train had left 40 minutes ago.

Frustrated, I couldn’t believe I had let myself be so caught up in the wonderland of Lucerne, that I hadn’t double-checked the train ticket earlier in the day. Was this Switzerland’s way of trying to hold us “captive” in its beautiful presence? Was the real life fairytale land we had experienced just like a storybook fairytale where the main characters are well-fed and beguiled into an enchanted daze?

The only thing we could do now was head up to the ticket office to see if we could buy new tickets for a later departure. After waiting in line, we made it to the front and explained our situation to the ticketing agent. “Not a worry” she said, “I can just exchange your old tickets for new ones on this train that leaves from platform 15 in 2 minutes”.

“Will we make it?” I said.

With a big smile on her face, the lady replied “Yes… But you must hurry”.

That’s when our audition for The Amazing Race started.

We strapped Miss Adventure into her stroller, threw our bags over our shoulders and ran to the lift as if we were in contention for the grand prize, so long as we made it onto this train.

We comically waited for what felt like forever, as the slowest lift in history, travelled up one floor. Keep in mind, we weren’t travelling light, so we had no choice but to wait for the elevator.

Finally we got downstairs, and rushed along, trying to figure out where platform 15 was.

This was the point when we realised; we shouldn’t have eaten so much cheese.

It was also the point we realised that platform 15 was the furthest platform away. So, of course we missed another train.

We went back to the ticketing office, waited in line again, explained our situation to another ticketing agent, and booked a train that would allow for a more reasonable time to get down to the platform. The bonus here was that we actually got a cash refund as these later tickets were cheaper than the original purchased fare that we had missed, which was entirely our fault.

Our short time in Switzerland had come to an end. Over a span of 24-hours, I had learned to stop worrying about train timetables and love Lucerne.

See you on the road!