The Big Tall Wall

It was an ambitious and big, cold, late night. It was shying 11pm and I needed to get to my friends place quickly as being an International New England Patriots fan demands starting the game at midnight! I wanted to watch the pre-game reports...but also there were Buffalo Wings that were calling and the minus -15 weather consuming my phone's battery life...so yeah, I was kind of huffin' it.

After stopping at the store and my failed attempt at bribing the woman (in my super German) to sell me beer for my friend after 10pm for the Superbowl, I thought not to worry you insensible little woman, I know this great little bar not too far from their place that might. Sometimes they do that here and I L-O-V-E that about Switzerland. Strike two. Sorry, Mark, I tried.

So after two bummer detours I am on my way up the hill. Now, if you don't live in Luzern you wouldn't necessarily know that the city is actually divided by a Medieval City Ramparts and Wall. It is also is filled with hundreds of stairs in every which way to get you from A-D and hills for extra fun. "Tight buns, tight buns, tight buns," sometimes helps at times in need. The Old Town is obviously within the city wall, and my friends place is just on the other side. Literally.

I have walked home from their place through the O.T. and gotten there from a different way, but never walked through the Old Town and up to it. So I'm walking, walking, walking, hit some stairs, go left, left, left, this should be right, getting close. Yeah...no. I just THE WALL with no doors to the other side. Interesting, "I don't remember meeting you here before..."

So I walk down the face for a bit.....there's gotta be a passage somewhere. Nope. Just wall and snow and paths to nowhere. Then I hit a rampart, and yes, I actually considered walking UP the tower to walk along the wall (which you can do in the safety of the daylight) but of course, it was locked.

So here I am, 11pm, freeeeezing and staring at this big old damn wall thinking, I need to get 20 yards on the other side of you. Seriously?! The idea of walking back down and ALL the way around did not seem very exciting. I didn't have the beer so I could just as easily have walked home to my cozy bed at that point and read all about the brutal 4th quarter and missed catches on espn.com just like everyone else. But then, I saw a light. It was one unlike any other that I had seen on this road block of a Sunday stroll. It was in an underpass.

SUCCESS and RELIEF!!! I made it, but not before I knocked on the downstairs neighbor's apartment first. I thawed out with some tea and wings and made it up until 4am to watch the game. On my way home I took the way I knew to avoid any snags, but had a nice little chuckle at the wall who didn't defeat me.

Here, by the way is the photo. I was just to the right of the middle Rampart. I needed to be far left. Good thing I went right otherwise I would have been back where I started but colder and beerless.


** This photo was clearly taken in the summer which would have been helpful last night but still, you get the idea.**