Think banks, watches, the Alps and alphorns, cheese with big holes and chocolate. People obsessed with efficiency, correctness, punctuality, and cleanliness. A land that practices direct democracy (Every vote counts, really!). Folks, that don't have their own language and hence, speak four different tongues. Rings a bell? We have arrived in Switzerland.
We found a parkade right in downtown Geneva (which was very reasonably priced compared to parking in Calgary or Vancouver), and went straight to the tourist information, where we obtained a self-guided walking tour through the old town.
Public transit is complete electric (buses and trams), so besides enjoying the fabulous weather we got to enjoy the clean air.
The lanes in the historic districts are small, and obviously not designed for motorized vehicles (the four wheeled kind that is).
An old book store.
This area seems to be dominated by scooters and bicycles. Also, we have never seen more BMW C1 than here in Geneva.
Town Hall
Armoury
Flags everywhere.
Saint Pierre Cathedral
Across the church we found a little creperie, where we had delicious... buckwheat crepes.
Swiss outdoor life.
And we said hi to Alonzo's Swiss cousin, which was already pretty dinged after 3,000 km, living the hard life of a commuter scooter.
You DID take the Route to Crepes! And they look delicious.
ReplyDeleteWe are having very PNW/Vancouver weather still, so it's nice to see the pretty summery day in your photos. I do think the best places, the most human places to live are scooter/bike centric.
Martha, it was you instilling a craving for crepes. Cities filled with scoots, bicycles and E-buses are so much nicer ;-)
DeleteI'm having trouble keeping up with you guys!!
ReplyDeleteSwitzerland looks amazing, but then all of the countries look amazing to me as they are so old. I love that stuff.
Those laneways are just begging for a two wheeled adventure aren't they!
Thanks, Brenda. We have difficulties ourselves to digest all the old and new things we see.
DeleteSo pretty and clean. Thank you for more architecture pictures.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you found some sunshine. Sitting outside at the cafes looks fabulous!!
Our pleasure. We love the atmosphere. It's nice to watch people strolling by and finally enjoy some sun.
DeleteThanks Sonja, those photos bring back fond memories of Susan and I traipsing around Geneva more years ago than I care to remember. Those BMW C1's are interesting. In Paris there were quite a few. The demographic for them seemed to be well-heeled, silver-haired white guys in suits. I wonder why BMW gave up on them? Four-point seat belts and windshield wipers too, if memory serves. I only saw a handful in Italy.
ReplyDeleteDavid, the riders are still very much older guys in suits. I guess they are well liked for not having to wear a helmet (seat belts!).
DeleteAnother set of beautiful photos. Wonderful old buildings and clean air. Electric busses and trains, what a concept. I have yet to see one of the new BMW scooters. Maybe in July at the BMW rally in OR.
ReplyDeleteBuckwheat crepes! How was it?
The buckwheat crepes were delicious but different in texture. A 'normal' crepe is softer, and the taste of the buckwheat is much richer.
ReplyDeleteHallo Sonja
ReplyDeleteDa habt ihr aber wirklich viel gesehen und bei mir schoene Erinnerungen geweckt. Ich habe ueber zwei Jahre in Genf gearbeitet und spaeter war das Elsass unser bevorzugtes Wochenend-Reiseziel. Und in der Naehe vom Bodensee bin ich aufgewachsen.
Danke fuer die schoenen Bilder
Anita, Ontario