Switzerland, Une (Français)

 Switzerland. I had a short visit here a couple of years ago (see three April 2023 blog entries for more details, starting with “Being Spoiled”) which whet my appetite for more. 

I realized today that travel is all about trade offs. As part of the cruise group everything was curated and in English. In England things were (of course) in English, but driving is on the other side of the street. In mainland Europe we’re back got driving on the right but language issues. Usually before I trip I find time to bone up on my French but this trip that didn’t happen — seems publishing a book preempted that activity, and I’m paying for it a bit as my French has definitely decayed.

I started in Geneva, or rather in Genève as it’s spelled and pronounced in this French-speaking area. After my inauspicious arrival (the knee is bruised but rarely impacts movement), things generally improved. The first full day I wandered over to the central area to see Geneva’s iconic fountain in the lake. 

I tried to do a hop on hop off bus which doesn’t exactly exist, though I didn’t figure that out early enough to avoid a less than ideal set of vehicle tours — a useless mini train tour by the lake, a mediocre bus tour that drove us past some of Geneva’s important organizations (World Health Organization, Red Cross, things like that) as well as the iconic broken chair statue, and a weak mini train tour through old town that convinced me I didn’t need to walk through the area. 

It was later than I’d planned but I ended up with some tasty shrimp fried rice for lunch at a local Chinese restaurant that had a particularly high tech toilet. 

It was nice to see lots of recognition for the UEFA Women’s European Championship (a football/soccer tournament that recently took place in Basel, Switzerland). Apparently the specific flower theme is updated quarterly, and the billboard just outside the train station says “give dreams a chance”

I’d planned for my second full day to be in the French town Annecy which is considered charming and is sometimes called the “Venice of the Alps” because it has canals. My arrival was disappointing to say the least, and I’d walked a fair distance before I saw anything resembling charming. It was pleasant, and worth the train rides (though apparently I inadvertently played “dumb tourist” and paid for tram and bus tickets rather than train tickets — oops). After accidentally skipping breakfast at had a tasty hamburger and later even better chocolate sorbet. 

Yes, the old town is worth a walk-through, and the lake (not pictured) was pleasant enough. I walked long the green river to the park next to the lake which seemed prototypical of European parks in that it was very curated with walkways, fountains and gardens. I resisted the urge to pay for a boat tour, and I didn’t see any beaches so I wasn’t able to feel the water. 

Today I left my lodging early to take the train to the other side of Lake Geneva (or Lac Lémon or Genfersee if you prefer the French or German names). I was delighted to be able to check in to my hotel before noon and to find the host very host like — like most of my conversations I started in French and quickly asked if it was possible to switch to English — first checking me in without any issues, then reminding me to ask for what I needed, and later encouraging me to go to the bar downstairs to ask for ice or other items. 

After settling in — alas, no air conditioning (none since Bristol and apparently won’t have any until Innsbruck) but a lovely room and an effective fan — I walked along the lake. Didn’t expect to see palm trees in Switzerland, but sometimes we experience what we don’t expect to see. I sat at a bench next to the lake for a bit and enjoyed the soft sounds of the water lapping against the shore in the calm breeze. Then I got lunch — dining al fresco as I watched cormorants diving in the water and spotted what I think was a lizard — and decided to take a “three hour tour” by boat. In theory I could have taken the two hour tour but it was one way and the three hour one was a round trip. It was lovely to be on the water and enjoy some of the impressive scenery. Yes, I’m actually including a picture of me. 

Midway through the boat ride a nice couple from Alberta sat down next to me and the wife and I had an interesting conversation. I hadn’t realized that I hadn’t really spoken to anyone at length since the Yorkshire family on Monday, so it was nice to chat. 

It was hot and sticky at the end of the boat ride so I treated myself to what’s currently the leading contender for best chocolate sorbet of the trip. The Swiss definitely know how to make it. And there’s a possibility I may need to continue tasting testing, just to be sure, of course. 

Tomorrow starts “part two” of Switzerland — first the iconic “Golden Pass” rail trip from Montreux to Interlachen (and then on to Luzern) with my Swiss “brother” Urs, then the weekend in Luzern before heading to Austria.