Part 3: Contrasts: Germany and Switzerland

The next part of our trip meant that we had to travel the whole way through Germany, spending the night in a town called Heidelberg. We rolled out of Maastricht smoothly but soon found ourselves going the wrong way. We eventually made it to our lunch stop, before going the wrong way again. Then we made it to our next stop, after going the wrong way again, and then going the wrong way one more time meant we were 5 hours behind schedule. I'm not going to lie but I didn't have the highest of expectations for Germany, and sitting in a car for 9 hours driving up shit creek (real name: rhine river) didn't help.
The one positive of the day is that a fast food combo in Germany consists of a sausage, chips and a beer. It went down well in front of Dad. 
The town of Heidelberg itself was quite nice, but I started to notice that Germany is, well, trying to be a little too 'hip' for its own good. As in, there is construction going on everywhere, they are trying to make everything more modern and I suppose 'western', not that they aren't a western country, but it's almost as if they are trying to Americanise the country. The natural beauty (as you will see below) is absolutely stunning but then there's the odd building that makes you feel like you're in a greener version of West Epping.
There was a minor scare this morning when Dad nearly collapsed and looked like he needed to go to hospital. An hour of sleep later he was perfectly fine though and we kept going. We visited a castle in Germany in the driving snow, but unfortunately it cleared up as we headed towards Switzerland.
Not going to lie again, I had amazingly high expectations for Switzerland, and as we were driving along the highway in Germany the trees began to be lined with snow, green fields were turning white and the hills were starting to form. I had a feeling that as soon as we got over the Swiss border, we would be surrounded by fields of snow in the foreground and the stunning Swiss alps in the background. I was right.
Not even beer could save Germany now, Switzerland was so many levels higher than Germany and I couldn't wait to keep exploring the country.
We got into the town of Lucerne, at night (unfortunately), as the town is on a lake completely surrounded by the Alps. All we saw was a couple of lights and a river, but it does mean tomorrow is going to be incredible. On the street outside a hotel there were two guys dressed up - one  as santa and one as the easter bunny. They were getting people to sign a petition to abolish the other person - probably the biggest war Switzerland has ever been a part of. Oh, and here's a new one: on one of the bike lanes, there was what I can only describe as a "bicycle booze bus" operating, where policeman and the Swiss army would flag down cyclists, check their gear and see if they were riding under the influence. Seeming as you can buy beer in the vending machines here, I guess if they were caught they would have to drive home?
I'm sure I'll find out soon enough.

Germany's natural beauty

Rhinefalls - Schaffhausen, Switzerland