Europe 2016 Sept 14th Day17 Milan to Stein am Rhein

Woke up a 4.57am this morning, worrying about driving the hire car on the wrong (right hand) side of the road from Milan to Stein am Rhein in Switzerland. Spent the next couple of hours checking the route, road rules, highway tolls etc in each country before the alarm finally went off at 7am. It's been 25 years since I had to drive on the right!!!!
Had our healthy breakfast before leaving the hotel ( excellent would recommend the Hotel Garda) and heading to the central station to catch the bus to Malpensa airport to pick up the hire car.
Took an hour to get there and easily found the Hertz office and took my number. A bloody hour before we got served, you have to be kidding me, email to Hertz on the way! Chose the airport as it is north of the city and meant I wouldn't have to learn in the middle of Milan. Good idea and we were soon under way in our diesel Volvo V60 station wagon; upgrade because I wanted a GPS. Got onto a highway and everything seemed to go well. Got to Swiss border and bought our €40 vignette sticker for the windscreen and kept going towards Stein am Rhein. Stopped for a quick bite at one of the many food/petrol stops on the way . From there kept going north and at one stage went through the almost 20km long Gotthard-Stressentunnel which came out the other end to one of the most beautiful Vista's of Lake Lucerne near Brunnen. Just beautiful and one I would put in the league with Yosemite. The whole drive through the Alps was amazing and I would recommend to anyone; just sheer cliffs, mountain sides and bright blue, emerald and turquoise lakes and rivers, just amazing.
We finally got to Stein am Rhein about 4pm and what a beautiful step back in time. A whole 15th century village on the Rhine that was not cluttered with tourists and crap. We booked into the Hotel Chlosterhof, and another win. Stepping up each move, gotta come to an end soon. So out and walked for a few hours before Jane went back for a swim and a nap while I took some more photos in the beautiful twilight. Kids jumping off the bridge into the river, others floating with the flow and numerous boats being rowed up and down; pretty.
It was then after 8 before we headed out or some dinner and ended up at a restaurant on the river and a nice meal ( fish for Jane with a swallowed bone) with some local vino. Then ambled back to the hotel and decided on a night cap and dessert before retiring for the night. Another long, adventurous day.