• CH & IT Roadtrip
    Breakfast in our room at Hotel Suisse — Geneva.
    Notre Dame Basilica — Geneva.On the Rhône side of Pont du Mont-Blanc — Geneva.One of the water taxis that ply the river and the lake — Geneva.Grebes and swans a-swimmin' on the Rhône River — Geneva.Mateo generously shared pieces of his bread so Mui could feed the swans — Geneva.Le Jet d’Eau de Genève ... an iconic symbol of the city since 1891.Le Jet d’Eau de Genève and Lac Léman — Geneva.Le Jet d’Eau de Genève and Lac Léman — Geneva.Four Seasons Fountain ... Jardin Anglais — Geneva.Four Seasons Fountain ... Jardin Anglais — Geneva."The Key is in the Tree" sculpted by R. Schultz out of a 120-year-old sequoia — Jardin Anglais.The flower clock is actually operational — Geneva.National monument commemorating Geneva joining the Confederation of Switzerland — Geneva.Mausoleum at Jardin des Alpes that commemorate the life of Charles II, Duke of Brunswick — Geneva.Brunswick Monument at Jardin des Alpes — Geneva.Brunswick Monument and Le Jet D'Eau — Geneva.

    Geneva: Day 1 … Morning Stroll

    July 12 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F

    Breakfast in the room … having a kitchenette made it easy; then a stroll down to Lac Léman … known to Americans as Lake Geneva. But before we got that far, we detoured to the Notre Dame Basilica when we noticed the doors were open.

    Our stroll down to the waterfront was a pleasant one … comfy temps, a light breeze, and sunshine galore. Our route took us to Pont du Mont Blanc … the bridge that marks the transition between Lac Lêman and the Rhône River. We slowly made our way across the Rhône side of the bridge, stopping frequently to take photos of the scenery … and the swans, grebes, and mallards swimming about as they eagerly grabbed any handouts that might come their way.

    Using the path under the bridge, we crossed over to the lake side for a closer look at Le Jet d’Eau de Genève … an iconic symbol of the city since 1891 that technically is a pressure relief valve for a hydraulic plant. The jet shoots water up to a maximum height of 460 feet (140 m) … at a speed of 125 mph (200 mph) where the water exits the system.

    After a detour to Jardin Anglais to check out the Four Seasons Fountain, we walked along the lake side of the bridge and returned to our hotel … this time taking a route that found us at the Jardin des Alpes, where we stopped for a few photos of the Brunswick Monument.

    Noting that the clock was ticking down towards our lunch date with Didier, we hastened our steps to complete our morning stroll in Geneva.    Read more