Geneva to Lausanne

Some details from my exploring yesterday: The first museum that I went to was a tiny one called the history of the Swiss people / army. It was in this really pretty old mansion on top of a hill, kind of in the middle of nowhere. It was so pretty though!!! I was the only one there (besides the staff)! This particular place didn’t have very many paintings, but there were a lot of “relics” like old coins, old armor, official suits from the Swiss army, really (really) old letters from soldiers and their enlistment documentation...cool stuff! There was a really sweet model of a trebuchet, too. You aren’t usually allowed to take pictures at museums, so I didn’t take many... but I managed to get a few since I was the only one there  The other museum I went to (way on the other side of the town) was the museum of natural history and art. They had several different things: an archaeology section from Egypt / Greece which had reaaally sweet things like: sarcophaguses (with a mummy inside!), really cool statues (Ramses II, 1290 BC!!!), coins from various stages of the Roman empires....Mycenean swords (1400 BC!!), Etruscan ceramic vases (600 BC), and more...I am sorta writing from notes that I took which is why I actually remember the dates. I was mostly amazed by how well preserved everything was – it’s really so incredible when you see it in person. They had a bunch of statues from ancient Rome, too, oh and papyruses from these Egyptian tombs – SO EPIC!!! I can’t understate how awesome it is to see all of that so close up. I wanted to get some post cards at this museum but they were 2 francs each...about two dollars given the recent conversion rate. I decided not to get any.

At this museum I also saw more of my favorite artists such as Monet, Cezanne, Pisarro, Corot and Renoir. I also saw some paintings by Bruegel and Alfred Sisley which were pretty great. One of my most favorite paintings was by Monet, called La Cabane de St. Adresse. Google it!! There were plenty, though, that I could call my favorite. There were also rooms here dedicated to old armor and weapons, as well as old furniture from some Swiss chateaux. So beautiful! They were all in the Louis XVI style. Again, I was pretty much the only one there. I couldn’t really tell why, but I certainly didn’t mind. I wanted to spend longer on the paintings, but I started feeling a little sick so I left about half an hour before it closed (killer!). I was a little disappointed but a few minutes later after trying to navigate myself back to the lake and near my hostel I came upon old town Geneva...........oh. my. God. As you will see in the pictures, it was sooooooooooo beautiful, cute and simply amazing. I was in paradise. I went into a few of the patisseries but I didn’t buy anything, very tragically. Good thing because everything else is so expensive...Anyway, it was so beautiful and I’m so very glad I stumbled upon it! Turns out that was THE happening place...tons of people were out shopping and such. The main road was a lot like Georgetown or a main shopping street in a big city, but there were also the people shopping at Gucci and Armani and what not...

This morning I got up (relatively) early, had breakfast at my hostel, and packed up and headed to the train station. After waiting for a bit I hopped on a train that took me to Lausanne – it was a short 30 minute ride through some of the countryside. Just beautiful! I was in a cabin with a woman from New Zealand who had been visiting her son, and an older man from Venezuela who was born in Switzerland and was traveling around. They were both very friendly and we chatted most of the way to Lausanne. The older man kept telling me all the cities that I needed to visit in Switzerland! Haha.

When I arrived at the train station I was told to take a bus to my hostel. I followed my directions, but the lady at the desk had told me to take the wrong bus. This wasn’t a big deal but it just dropped me off farther from the hostel than I had intended. I had to walk through a big park and rec area, which I soon found out was hosting a very large cycling tournament...hmm. Needless to say I wasn’t really fitting in. Turns out it was the annual Lake Geneva cycling race. Oops! The hostel was only about 15 minutes away, so I just enjoyed the cyclists on the way! The weather is still beautiful here so that was nice.

I am able to borrow an adaptor here (!!) so I am actually on my own computer. New pictures will be up on facebook as soon as I can post this. I have to buy a wireless card for when I want to use the internet, and of course it’s very expensive...so I won’t be on much. I leave Tuesday to go back to Geneva, and then I will take a train to Annecy, where I will stay for the remainder of the week before my program starts. This town is only about 10 minutes by train to Chambery. I’m looking forward to seeing the town because it looks like a very cute, quaint, quintessential French town. For now, though, I will be enjoying the beautiful weather in Lausanne!
Since I didn’t head out until late this afternoon I mostly just explored the area around my hostel. Take a look at my pictures for more details – they can explain everything. Lausanne is pretty much the prettiest city ever. I walked about an hour and a half west to a town called St. Sulpice, where there is a little church from the 11th century. Sweet! The surrounding area, up a pretty big hill, was very quaint and picturesque. Unfortunately everything was closed because it is Sunday, and unfortunately everything will probably be closed tomorrow for Pentecost! I’ll at least be able to see the botanical gardens, a street market (hopefully), and the downtown area. There is a free walking tour in the old village so I hope that is going on. The lake has many more beach areas here so I hope to get down there tomorrow for a little sunbathing! Now I really feel like I’m on vacation.

As I noticed in Geneva, everything here is very well kept and clean. I believe I read that Lausanne is considered the “greenest” city, and so far I can certainly see why. I barely saw any litter anywhere, for one thing. There are also lots of parks and mature greenery everywhere which complements to the picturesque views of the mountains and lakes. I think all the buses run electrically as trams here, but I’m not positive. This makes the city even more awesome!