Lucerne - Angelic Beauty: The wedding venue chosen by Audrey Hepburn.

The playwright and novelist Alexandre Dumas called the Swiss town of Lucerne "the most beautiful pearl in the world"; Hugo once sang: Lucerne is elegant and quiet, the clear water gently laps the river bank, and the soft water flows under my feet. However, the Chinese translation of this Swiss city is somewhat interesting: there was a place called "Lucerne" on my itinerary, but at that time I didn't know that this was the "Lucerne" I already knew. In fact, the Chinese have long translated Luzern into "Lucerne". This translation not only retains the essence of the original meaning, but also adds a dreamy beauty. The translation of Lucerne is more in line with its positioning as a small town in the central Swiss plateau, giving people a feeling of tranquility and beauty. Now the Swiss National Tourism Board has officially adopted "Lucerne" as the Chinese translation. The two-character place name is easy to pronounce. As early as the Roman period, it was just a fishing village with only a few households. Later, a lighthouse was built to guide passing ships, hence the name "Lucerne", which means "light" in Latin. It is known as the most beautiful and ideal tourist city in Switzerland. Today, Lucerne is often affectionately called "the essence of the place" by the locals, because everyone has to admit that this small place actually concentrates the most complex beauty of Switzerland. It is no wonder that the angelic Hepburn chose Lucerne as the wedding venue to witness her love. I came down from Mount Rigi in the heavy rain and arrived in Lucerne, and the rain stopped quietly. The white clouds still linger over Lake Lucerne, unwilling to leave. The swans are swimming on the lake, their wings as white as snow, showing their nobility. In the very center of Lucerne, there are seven bridges connecting the old town on the right bank of the river and the new town on the left bank. The largest of them is a wooden bridge called the "Castle Bridge"❶, which was built in 1333. It is the oldest wooden bridge in Europe❹ and there are 110 colorful paintings on the covered bridge❾. This 245-meter-long covered bridge, decorated with flowers and swans❹, has become the most frequently photographed Lucerne landscape on postcards and picture albums. Water makes this City of Light a gentle place for love and inspiration. The German composer Wagner completed his opera here, the great writer Tolstoy wrote "Travels to Lucerne", and Beethoven's inspiration for "Moonlight Sonata" came from here. There is an octagonal stone water tower 34 meters high built at the bend in the middle of the bridge. The tower is built on rocks in the water, and the wooden bridge is built attached to the water tower. The water tower once served as a lookout post and was part of the city’s defense facilities. The water tower and the flower bridge, one standing and the other lying, together form the wonderful beauty of the water tower corridor bridge, which is similar to the Liuhe Pagoda and Qiantang River Bridge in Hangzhou. I lingered on this exquisite covered bridge for a long time. I have read many other people’s travel notes, and they all complained that they did not see the flowers on the “Flower Bridge”. But I am lucky. After the summer rain, the outside of the covered bridge is full of hanging flowers. I took many photos of flowers with the water of Lake Lucerne as the background❸⓰⓴ (all in the pictures below), which looked particularly enchanting. Walking northeast of the ancient city of Lucerne, you will see the "Lion Monument" which is a must-see for every first-time visitor. It is one of the most famous statues in the world, carved by a Danish sculptor on a natural rock in the city. Mark Twain said: The Lion of Lucerne is the saddest lion in the world. This Lucerne landmark commemorates the Swiss mercenaries who died fighting for France in 1792. Today Switzerland is the richest country in the world, but it was not so in the past. Because the Swiss mountain people were tough and brave in combat, they often served as mercenaries to fight in wars. Now, as a "neutral country", Switzerland has long stopped exporting mercenaries. I have been walking alone in the streets of the old town of Lucerne, starting from the cathedral where Hepburn got married⓮, white clouds, swans, covered bridges, bright flowers and old people holding umbrellas⓳. Their footprints may be left on the covered bridges, their lip prints may be left on the coffee cups, and their prayers may echo in the church. By the shore of Lake Lucerne, I seem to have found all my thoughts on beauty. ——Mountains, rivers, lakes and seas, the world is full of love, listen to the wind singing and wait for the flowers to bloom.