Travelling Worm

This is the blog of Mark Wordsworm, the travelling worm. I’m a 36-year-old bookmark (give or take a few years) and I proudly boast my own Hallmark serial number, 95 HBM 80-1. You’ll probably want to read all about me and my Travelling Companion (the TC).

Today’s travel notes

Me and the TC spent a rainy day in lovely Lucerne. We strolled across the city’s two covered bridges, the Spreuer Bridge and the Chapel Bridge. We dodged raindrops to admire the city streets with their painted buildings and cobblestones.

The book I’m in

Bleed for Me, by Michael Robotham. A good who-dunnit investigated by a flawed psychologist, a cop, and an ex-cop. This worm is eating through the book with great enjoyment.

Travel tips

If you hire a car, make it a small one. Especially if it has proximity-warning beepers. The roads are narrow, and the spiralling paths into and out of parking garages are a nightmare.

The photos

Me on the Reuss river, looking towards the Spreuer Bridge. You can’t see the bridge yet, dear reader, as it’s in front of me. The TC, bless her cotton socks, was taken with the view behind me. I photo-bombed the shot:

Here’s the same scene, without yours truly. It’s near the Kleinwasserkraftwerk Mühlenplatz:

The Spreuer Bridge is one of two covered bridges in Lucerne. The first half of the bridge was built in the 13th century, to connect the right bank of the river with the flour mills in the middle of the river. The rest the bridge, connecting to the left bank, was completed early in the 15th century. In 1566, the bridge was destroyed by a flood and then rebuilt: 

A few minutes’ walk up the river is the Chapel Bridge – the oldest covered bridge in Europe, built in 1333. Yes folks, that’s 690 years ago!

Here’s a view down the length of the bridge:

Me again, with a view of the Reuss river from Chapel Bridge:

Paintings hang in the triangular frames on both the Spreuer Bridge and the Chapel Bridge. Before 1993, the Chapel Bridge had a total of 147 paintings. Then in 1993, disaster struck. A fire broke out and destroyed two thirds of the paintings. Thirty of the paintings were restored, and many others were replaced with paintings that had been in storage since 1834:

The city of Lucerne combines old and new in pleasing architectural contours:

Many of the buildings are painted with scenes that recall the city’s history:

That’s all for today, folks.