Geneva / Montreaux

United Nations.  Lavaux.  Swiss Riviera.  

 

We drove down to Geneva for the weekend (took approx. 2.5 hours).  About half-way through the trip the signs changed from German to French -- "Ausfahrt" became "Sortie" (exit) and "Geneva" turned to "Genève".  The city is very cosmopolitan and felt really large, although it's about half the size of Zurich and only a bit bigger than Basel.  It also didn't feel "Swiss" at all, I kept thinking we were in France!  

It was another cold weekend, but at least there was no rain.  We didn't actually see much of the lake since it was so chilly, but we visited the shopping streets, Patek Philippe museum, St. Pierre cathedral as well as the Maison Tavel, which is the oldest house in Geneva (circa 14th century). 

 

 

The Patek Philippe museum had an extraordinary display of prestigious watches and clocks, many of which are from the CEO's own collection (1869-present).  There was also a vast antique collection dating back to the 16th century.  Overall, it was quite enjoyable.

The United Nations isn't open to visitors on the weekend, but we drove by on Sunday morning so I could at least take a picture of the rows of flags -- do you see the American flag (hint, it's on the left-hand side)?

We then took a scenic drive along the lake making our way around to the charming town of Montreaux.  Along the way we passed through Lausanne (and the Olympic museum) as well as the Lavaux wine region, which is known for its daringly constructed hillside terraces (protected by UNESCO since 2007).  It was a spectacular sight -- on one side of the road you have the shimmering Lake Geneva and on the other side you have rows and rows of grapevines climbing up the hill.  

Montreaux and the surrounding towns are considered the "Swiss Riviera", and live up to the name.  They're beautifully preserved resort towns with swanky 5-star hotels, beautiful 19th century architecture, chic boutiques and of course the true gem, the lake itself.  It reminded us of Monaco a bit.  

The beautiful vista of the Swiss Riviera (on a much sunnier day).

Our destination was Chateau de Chillon, a few miles past Montreaux.  It has an idyllic location, right on the lake!  The castle is very old, dating back to the 12th century.  We received a brochure in English that provided suggested routes to take through the maze of courtyards, towers, halls and it also gave descriptions of all the different rooms.  It was so interesting -- we spent a good hour and half walking through it all.