Switzerland: Vevey
Didier stayed home to tend to his garden - he's got a LOT of stuff growing such as carrots, lettuce, rhubarb, raspberries, potatoes, and even fennel! Since he had been recently busy at work, he had neglected his garden so now it was time for some weeding.
We took the kids by boat to Rivaz, a small train stop right next to the water. Boat rides on Lake Geneva are amazing because they keep close to the shore so you can see all the vineyards and trains winding around the mountains. Switzerland is just beautiful, beautiful in its simplicity of landscape. Nothing spectacular, just a certain calmness about the surroundings.
At Rivaz, the kids waded in the lake - freezing cold by the way - while we skipped stones. After they had enough of the cold water, DH and I headed out to Vevey while they went home. We spent most of the time in Vevey along the water because of its gorgeous view of Lake Geneva. Along the walkway, there were sculptures surrounded by a bit of garden that had environmental messages. For example, they had cubes made of crushed aluminum cans with a placard of facts about the impact of recycling soda cans. We also came across fountains that were used as public pools. Funny, huh? You never see anyone splashing around a fountain in the US, only coin tossing and wish making.
After Vevey, we took a boat back to Lausanne where I looked forward to doing some street shopping. The streets there were very steep, like San Francisco. NOT what I was expecting at all. We were pretty thirsty so we stopped by a cafe for Coke. Unfortunately, I didn't know at the time that all shops closed at 5pm or 6pm on Saturdays. So by the time we were finished at the cafe, all the stores were very close to closing. I went into one and was told that I couldn't even browse because they were closing. I was pretty annoyed about this whole closing early thing but alas, what can you do? We ate dinner and headed home.
Back at home, Viv had served dinner outdoors. We were there in time for dessert - lemon and peach/apricot sorbets and vanilla ice cream. Yum! We also got to meet their neighbors who spoke British English - "blokes"!
Unfortunately we were pooped so we couldn't stay up and chat long. Turned in early for the night. (It's been the trend so far on our stay.) :p
We took the kids by boat to Rivaz, a small train stop right next to the water. Boat rides on Lake Geneva are amazing because they keep close to the shore so you can see all the vineyards and trains winding around the mountains. Switzerland is just beautiful, beautiful in its simplicity of landscape. Nothing spectacular, just a certain calmness about the surroundings.
At Rivaz, the kids waded in the lake - freezing cold by the way - while we skipped stones. After they had enough of the cold water, DH and I headed out to Vevey while they went home. We spent most of the time in Vevey along the water because of its gorgeous view of Lake Geneva. Along the walkway, there were sculptures surrounded by a bit of garden that had environmental messages. For example, they had cubes made of crushed aluminum cans with a placard of facts about the impact of recycling soda cans. We also came across fountains that were used as public pools. Funny, huh? You never see anyone splashing around a fountain in the US, only coin tossing and wish making.
After Vevey, we took a boat back to Lausanne where I looked forward to doing some street shopping. The streets there were very steep, like San Francisco. NOT what I was expecting at all. We were pretty thirsty so we stopped by a cafe for Coke. Unfortunately, I didn't know at the time that all shops closed at 5pm or 6pm on Saturdays. So by the time we were finished at the cafe, all the stores were very close to closing. I went into one and was told that I couldn't even browse because they were closing. I was pretty annoyed about this whole closing early thing but alas, what can you do? We ate dinner and headed home.
Back at home, Viv had served dinner outdoors. We were there in time for dessert - lemon and peach/apricot sorbets and vanilla ice cream. Yum! We also got to meet their neighbors who spoke British English - "blokes"!
Unfortunately we were pooped so we couldn't stay up and chat long. Turned in early for the night. (It's been the trend so far on our stay.) :p
posted by pc at
12:18 AM
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