A Trip to Switzerland
We started our adventure in Lausanne, staying in the tower of a lakeside castle at Château d'Ouchy with spectacular views of Lake Geneva (Lac Léman) and the Alps.
We met up with our group of 16 in Lausanne to start our five-day, 234-mile journey on e-bikes. (Four were from Australia, the rest from the U.S.) Federico, one of our three multilingual European guides, was fun and helpful.
We cycled through the rolling hills of Switzerland through the Lauvaux Vineyards and miles of farms and green pastures, often with views of the Alps, sometimes following the Swiss Railway.
While we cycled for hours, there were stops for delicious snacks and long lunches, and we always had the choice to hop in the van if any part of the ride felt daunting. The “turbo” (highest) level of assist on our e-bikes was our favorite setting for going uphill; we renamed it "vacation mode."
The country is very bicycle friendly. Once in a while, we had to cross a street with cars. Thanks to an English-speaking GPS device mounted on our handlebars, we knew which way to go when there was no one else in sight.
Our luggage was waiting for us in our room at Hotel des Trois Couronnes, along with a lovely view.
In Vevey, we caught a swan reflecting on the renowned 26-foot-tall stainless-steel fork “La Fourchette,” which was plunged into the lake to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Alimentarium, a food-themed museum
We hopped off our bikes to tour the beautiful medieval Chillon Castle, which sits beside the lake and where Lord Byron (who wrote “The Prisoner of Chillon”) inscribed his name on the wall.
A symphony of clanging cow bells served as the soundtrack for our journey. We learned that farmers recognize the bells of their individual cows and can tell if something is not right with one of them by the change in tone. We think these two were discussing the country’s policy of neutrality.
It doesn't get any more "Sound of Music" than this. At a stop in Gruyères, we were greeted by local musicians for a picnic lunch in an alpine house where the famous cheese was part of every dish!
At Gstaad, we learned about the fascinating traditions, languages, and politics of Switzerland from a local historian and were entertained by a father/son duo playing alphorns. (Ricola came to mind.) We visited an underground cheese cave (chilly inside, but wine and samples warmed us up) and enjoyed the cheese on this luscious vegetarian pizza.
A simply gorgeous country.
On our final day, we road bikes (along bumpy cobblestones) into the medieval capital of Bern over the beautiful Aare river.
We got a private tour inside Bern's famous Zytglogge clock tower and learned (literally) what makes it tick. That evening we had a multi-course goodbye dinner with all our new biker friends. It was a great way to see the country, but our time in Switzerland had not yet come to an end ...
We took a train from Bern to Geneva and spent two days exploring the city, stopping at the famous Jet d’Eau fountain on the lake.
Our last stop in Switzerland was a visit to College du Leman in neighboring Versoix, where I spent my very social senior year in high school ... the pinnacle of my popularity!
Thanks for coming along on this beautiful trip. Howard