We caught the bus to Lugano today and decided we would try to use the expensive day pass ticket we had bought to catch a ferry and some other buses in town, in order to make the most out of investment. We were politely told that our pass did not entitle us to a ride on the ferry, and we paid CHF 2 each to get to the stop (Paridiso) where we could then visit Monte San Salvitore. I will post a separate story about that visit tomorrow.  

The weather was perfect and these first two photos showing Monte San Salvitore behind us were taken before the incident.  

We heard the announcement for Paradiso about ten minutes after we left the centre of town. By the time we made it to the exit the ferry started to move off. Panic! We had only paid for a very short trip and we were now heading on a round-the-lake tour.  

 It was amazing. As we could not get off, we decided to enjoy ourselves and make the most of it.

 
There were loads of other passengers and we felt sure they would all be going to where we were. I had decided we would just make our move when they did. Mistake. Anyway, as luck would have it, the ferry pulled back into Paradiso just before it returned to its starting point. So we disembarked then, over an hour later.
We were intrigued by the interest in this passenger. I would not be exaggerating if I said more than 20 passengers posed for photos with him. Does anyone know who he is?

  
After disembarking we made our way to the funicular. More about that tomorrow.

By the way, the fish last night was delicious.