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    • TravelerDer Weg nach Santiago
      Day 53

      Genf, Ende und Anfang

      April 22, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

      Und dann sind wir da: mitten in Genf, der letzten Station vor Frankreich. Wir haben einige Dinge zu erledigen, kaufen Briefmarken für unsere Postkarten, besorgen Jonas seinen in Lausanne bestellten Reiseführer und mir einen neuen Pilgerpass, da mir langsam der Platz für Stempel wieder Mal ausgeht. Als wir in der Kathedrale bei der Ticketkassa anstehen um uns einen Stempel zu holen, fragen uns die beiden Frauen hinter uns plötzlich, ob wir auch Pilger sind. Stehen hinter uns tatsächlich zwei Schweizerinnen, die den Schweizer Jakobsweg soeben nach drei Jahren etappenweise abgeschlossen haben! Auf unsere Frage, ob sie denn vorhaben, den Weg zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt fortzusetzen, verneinen sie jedoch. "Das ist uns dann zu weit", sagen sie.

      Wir kommen heute wieder in einem Accueil jacquaire unter, bei einer jungen Frau, die uns ihre gemütliche kleine Wohnung zur Verfügung stellt, obwohl sie heute Nacht nicht da ist. Wir treffen sie aber noch an und sie erzählt uns von ihrer sechsmonatigen Reise nach Jerusalem letztes Jahr! Im Laufe derer war sie in so vielen Medien, dass ich mich frage, ob ich nicht doch schon von ihr gehört habe.
      Noch dazu hat sie ein Jahr lang in Wien gelebt und so hängt neben ihrem Poster von Genf auch eines von Wien.

      Abends steht dann eine schwere Entscheidung an: da Jonas nach wie vor Schmerzen hat, weiß er, dass es richtig für ihn ist, noch einen Tag völlig auszusetzen und in Genf zu bleiben. Mich zieht es aber weiter und letztendlich muss jeder von uns seinen eigenen Camino gehen. Also werden wir uns morgen Früh leider fürs erste voneinander verabschieden müssen. Aber der Weg ist noch lang und da er zufällig wie ich täglich auf FindPenguins schreibt, werden wir immer wissen, wo der andere gerade ist! 😊

      Für mich endet in Genf der zweite große Abschnitt meines Weges. Hier beginnt die Via Gebennensis. Auf der geht es morgen schon nach Frankreich!

      1282km
      53 Tage
      21 Tafeln Schokolade      Read more

      See translation
    • Weekend i Genève
      Day 2

      Bonne anniversaire André!

      November 30, 2019 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 1 °C

      Vi firade ju in Anders lite redan på sena kvällen/tidiga morgonen med de glada tyskarna (vilket kändes av lite senare på morgonkvisten när det var dags att stiga upp...) - nu blev det lite mer ordnat med flagga, skönsång och paket samt utan ginochtonics!Read more

    • Carmel CarlsenVia Francigena - part 1
      2
      24222242
      Day 63

      Post walk: +1 - Col du Gd St Bernard to

      June 19, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

      Before I left the Pass this morning, I popped over to Italy, enjoyed the amazing views, was lucky enough to see a mountain goat, and met up with another two Australian pilgrims: Cathy and Geoff. They were starting out on the first stage of the Italian leg. I took a taxi down the mountain to Orsieres, then took a bus (train replacement) and train back to Martigny, where I was able to quickly transfer to the Geneva express! I am sitting in my hotel room now relaxing and reflecting on my time in Switzerland. I like pretty much everything about Switzerland; there are services all around you. I never had to worry about a place to stay or what I would be eating. Obviously, the landscape is phenomenal, and everywhere you look, you can see something beautiful. I have included some photos of Paulette, Alison, and Matt (the Californians), and I have included some of the lovely pieces I saw in the hospice (as well as the church itself). P.S. as a reflection on my entire walk: my gear was first class - thank you to all my BMC friends for your wisdom and advice (it made all the difference). I'd also like to send a shout-out to Andrew T. Not only was he a great walking companion, but he was also a source of ongoing invaluable advice as he forged ahead of me on the Path - thank you, Andrew 😊Read more

    • Interrail2022
      Day 3

      Day 3🇨🇭 part 2!

      July 23, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

      After the peak view, we went looking for a coffee and somewhere to have our sandwiches from our beloved COOP!
      Then we decided to descend back to Col du Pillon. Again the view was beautiful going down. After that we had to catch trains with our final stop being Geneva (don’t get mixed up - we were in Genova, Italy, now we’re going to Geneva, Switzerland).
      Before that though, I wanted to make a stop in Montreux to see the Freddy Mercury statue. We only had half an hour between trains so we ran to the statue and then back to the train station! Quick stop but exactly what we wanted. We’ve also started to get used to the rucksacks so it’s not much of a problem for us anymore to carry them around.
      So that was day 3! Progress in our pass statistics!      Read more

    • Interrail2022
      2
      Day 3

      Day 3🇨🇭

      July 23, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

      Woke up in Lugano at 6:00. There was a train leaving for Les Diablerets at 7:00 - for that destination we had to change 4 trains, and it took a total of 6h and 18m.
      The first train was Lugano-Zurich, and I’m mentioning it because it passes through the world’s longest railway tunnel, at 57 kilometres and takes 20 minutes to do so! Our goal today was to get to Glacier 3000 and that’s achievable only by going to Les Diablerets, getting a bus to Col du Pillon and from there the cable car to the top of the mountain. Glacier 3000 is a Swiss company that operates different cable cars in the area, and this particular one is a bridge from two different peaks at 3000 metres above sea level. The “peak walk” as it is called, is the only suspension bridge connecting two peaks!
      The weather today was cloudy and misty but at least not rainy. The altitude made it a bit hard to breathe in the beginning but after walking a few minutes we got used to it. We were the first in our group of cable car on the peak walk so we got a bit of time for ourselves for photos and enjoying the view. In the beginning I was a big scared of the bridge cause I was only looking down (first ever thing NOT to do on a nearly transparent bridge) but then I got used to it. We got to the opposite peak and the view was beautiful. The wind was rather cold though - we were dressed correctly but there were people in shorts and we felt sorry for them 😂.

      Continuing part 2!!      Read more

    • Bags are packed
      Day 37

      Last day in Geneva

      June 26, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

      Today we woke up and checked out of our hostel and went to a brunch place for amazing avocado toast! Then we walked to this smaller area in Geneva called Carouge but when we got there, because it was Sunday, the shops were all closed so there wasn’t as much for us to do. So we walked back to the main part of town and we got our books and hung out in a park until we decided to go see the new Elvis movie before our train that night. the movie was amazing and then we stopped on the way home for dinner at a burger place because it was the only thing open on Sunday ha! Then we went back to the hostel to get our bags before going to the bus station for our overnight train. It honestly was as bad because we each got our own row to spread out/ lay down in which was nice.Read more

    • skip's retirement travelSwitzerland
      Day 13

      Reformation Geneva

      April 21, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

      Geneva was an important place where the Protestant Reformation took hold, so much so that this city was sometimes known as the Protestant Rome. This is where John Calvin preached and taught. Reformed luminaries such as John Knox of Scotland came here to learn and then bring Reformed theology home.
      The 1st 2 picture are at the Reformation Memorial. This is a long wall of sculptures located at Bastion Park (see another post) on the campus of the University of Geneva that was founded by Calvin. The 4 taller figures in the center are William Farel who convinced Calvin he was needed in Geneva; John Calvin; Theodore Beza, Calvin s successor in Geneva and John Knox. The other statues are other protestant luminaries: I note for my Rhode island friends that Roger Williams is guy in the pilgrim hat to the right of the central grouping.
      The 3rd picture is the facade of St. Peters cathedral where Calvin was pastor. The 4th picture looks along the side of St. Peter's at the steeple and 1 of the towers. The 5th picture is in the nave of St. Peter's. This building dates to the 13th century and was built as a Catholic church. Upon taking over, the protestants removed all decoration and any hint of luxury, leaving the austere space you see in the picture. The 6th picture is John Calvin's chair where he sat during worship.
      An interesting side note: Geneva had been known for jewelry making. However, the austere vision of life with no luxuries meant the jewelers lost their livelihood. So the jewelers became watchmakers as time was not considered a luxury. Here began Geneva's reputation for clocks and watches.
      The last picture is the Maccabees Chapel on St. Peters, a later side chapel addition to the cathedral. Though it was stripped like the rest of the church in the 16th century, it has been restored to something like it would have been originally.
      There is much more in Geneva about the Reformation, but many places were closed. This period was pivotal in Geneva becoming the place it is and in the shaping of much protest theology, including mine.      Read more

    • skip's retirement travelSwitzerland
      Day 13

      Geneva's Old Town

      April 21, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

      As those who have followed my travels have probably realized, I have interest in the historic parts of cities. Geneva is no exception, especially given that my theology follows John Calvin who worked, preached, taught and wrote here for most of his career. The Reformation was a significant period shaping Geneva (see another post). This post looks at the historic old town.
      The 1st picture is the square with houses typical of the old town. You can see where some of the houses were extended upwards. This happened in the 15th century when Geneva was deluged with a flood of Protestant refugees seeking shelter from persecution.
      The 2nd picture is one of only 2 sections of the old bastion dating to the 15th century that witnessed the defence of the city against the Catholic Savoyards, an event still celebrated annually.
      The 3rd picture is the Tour d'Ille on an Island in the middle of the Rhone. This is where the oldest evidence of human activity in this area has been found.
      The 4th picture is the Maison Tavel, the oldest residential structure in the old town. The facade still retains it's original style. It is a museum today. One of the exhibits is a detailed scale model of Geneva as it was before "urban renewal" removed the ancient bastions. It is so detailed that even the number of bars in windows is accurate, though the 6th picture isn't detailed enough to see that.
      The 7th picture is the door into the old city hall and is a good example of the wood working skills back in the day. The 8th picture is in the city hall courtyard. Those are ramps up from the ground floor to the upper floors. I'm told it was built this way to allow the councilors access while riding a horse or mule.
      The 9th picture is what remains of an old city gate. The last picture is back in the main square. I didn't learn the story of the piece, but my reaction was the a nude girl in the square must have Calvin rolling over in his grave.      Read more

    • Weekend i Genève
      2
      Day 2

      Gammal vänskap rostar aldrig

      November 30, 2019 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 5 °C

      Vi mötte upp Johanna och Erik på La Clemence för ett par drinkar - utanför sprangs det fortfarande men vi fokuserade på gamla minnen och på att få språken att synka då Erik inte är bäst på engelska och Anders franska är något begränsad. Det gick faktiskt ganska bra!

      Vi drog vidare till Café Bourg du Four (det sprangs än, nu med nummerlappar uppe på 47000-talet). En god middag med många skratt och ännu mer nostalgi. En liten födelsedagssång fick vi till också till Anders stora glädje!      Read more

      See translation
    • 1 Planet 1 BagEurope 2019-2020
      2
      Day 20

      Geneva

      December 27, 2019 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 41 °F

      I had a great walk about this evening. Found a winter market, nice outdoor restaurants, and the shopping area called Bel-air. Only the most expensive stores there, Rolex, Tiffany, all the major clothing brands.Read more

    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Genève, Geneve, Genf, Geneva, Jenwe

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