Lucerne, Switzerland - beautiful landscapes and a charming town (where something was just a little off)

First the good - the nature there is mind blowingly stunning. The mountains, the lake, I even saw a small herd of goats racing up and down the cliffs of mt. Bürgenstock.

The town is also beautiful - the old town is perfectly up-kept and manicured. The old buildings show little sign of age, there is no trash on the ground, no graffiti, no homeless people. Everyone is well dressed, tourists and locals, everyone seems to be in an agreeable mood. There are luxury shopping stores at the base of nearly every old building.

But, this is where things got a bit odd for me - it was a little too perfectly maintained. I had just come from Bordeaux, which is a larger functioning city that has its beauty and its signs of decay you might find in any big functioning city. Lucerne by contrast was almost like if the movie Pleasantville took place in Europe. It was very charming and nice in a carefully choreographed way, but it lacked soul or true character. The town felt almost surreally staged.

Or, alternatively, like if the Disney corporation decided to open a massive luxury shopping mall for the super rich based thematically on one of its fairy tale film settings.

I don’t regret going at all, Switzerland had been on my list of places to visit for years, but hot take: its not on the top of my list of places to see again solo. I would however, take a gf there for a romantic weekend or go hiking with friends if I was to go again.

The pictures include mt Bürgenstock, Lake Lucern, the bridge across the lake, the clocktower outside and its interior, and Old Town.