London Calling

So we went to Switzerland...

...and it was closed.

Skipping a few updates (I know, I know), I'm going to catch-up by starting with our most recent trip and working backwards. Think of it as your own personal time machine.

So the K-dawg really wanted to check out Switzerland to see what it was all about. We set about booking our trip and couldn't understand why there weren't any available hotel rooms in Geneva on Saturday. It was only after we came to terms with our UK-centric view of Europe that the answer hit us - Euro 2008. This is the quadrennial football (soccer) tournament held in Europe. The reason this major tournament (behind only the World Cup and possibly the Olympics) slipped our mind is that none of the island countries made this year's tourney; no England, no Wales, no Scotland and sadly no Republic of Ireland.

In the end we managed to find a room a few kilometers outside of the city - in France. We rented a car anyway and spent our time cruising all over the southwest of Switzerland, the French speaking bit. It's a good thing the scenery, food and company were good because there was limited interaction with the locals since we couldn't find them.

On Saturday when we got in we popped over the border to our hotel to drop our stuff off and immediately set out for the other side of Lake Geneva to see what we could see. So back over the border we went and drove along the lake, destination - Lausanne, for some eats. Unfortunately by the time we got there the lunch hour had passed so most places were closed; not to mention most stores shut for the day and most people apparently MIA. Lucky for us we found a pizza joint, just across from the train station, hey desperate times call for desperate measures. After lunch and carefully avoiding the horde of Turkish football fans (See Galatasaray "Hell) we made our way to the spa town of Yverdon-les-Bains. We figured we might as well drop into the baths and soak away what ailed us (still not sure what that is). Rolling up to the Central-Spa centre (without bathing suits or towels), I got my first chance to put my extensive French speaking capabilities to the test. After waiting in line I managed to get out something along the lines of do you sell bathing suits. Now you all know I am a physical specimen, but even I have my limits. Maybe it's because I'm an American or maybe it's just because I never miss an opportunity to mock those that are fond of wearing the ultimate in Euro men's beachwear - the banana hammock; but there was no way I was spending 40 euros to parade around in the man thong. So instead we had a coke and a coffee and plotted our next move. We popped around the lake to Neuchatel, had a quick tour around, watched some of the Switzerland match and then back in the car to find a dinner spot in Yverdon. Dinner was another adventure, why is it that in every French speaking country (except France) no one seems to speak any English, thanks god for pointing and elementary knowledge of "French words that might appear on a menu". We ended up having a lovely meal of steak frites with only a few miscommunications - Yes we would like whatever you just said (Bread). What a first day.

We knew Sunday was going to be a quiet day in Switzerland, I mean after Saturday what more could we expect from the quietest day in the known world? We checked out Divonne which was the nearest town to our hotel in France. Surprise, surprise, we found a Sunday market with all manner of wonderful foods - cheese, breads, oysters, fruits, veg and on and on; it was a bit like Borough Market (as those that have been to visit us would know - ahem Hennigans). On from Divonne we crossed the border back into Switzerland, went through Geneva and then along the southside of the lake into ... wait for it ... France, destination Evian. Sadly, Evian was closed and the only place we could find for lunch was a ... wait for it ... pizza joint. Lunch was alright but in a shout out to Publius I had some foie gras. On our way out of town we sampled some of the namesake wares of the town, a couple bottles of the finest water money can buy. Funny thing, it tasted just like the stuff you get in the states. Hmmmm. Having enough of France we shot back over the border to Switzerland and what would be our fondest stop - Gruyeres - as in the cheese. Our first stop was the cheese making factory where we had a lovely audio tour (of a closed factory) hosted by an English speaking cow named Cherry, riiiight. At least we got a sample of 3 different aged cheeses on our way out, I recommend the 10 month, c'est magnifique. Next on our list was dinner and the finest fondue that Gruyere had to offer. The town is actually quite small but very quaint. It is clearly built on the tourist trade but was charming nonetheless. We hunkered down at a patio restaurant and caught a few rays (did I forget to mention this was the first sign of sun we'd seen?). With French skills honed to perfection by this point we ordered up some Gruyere fondue with potatoes, bread, dried beef, cornichons and cocktail onions (?) and stuffed our faces until all the cheese was gone; damn it was good. Apres paying l'addition it was back in the car, over the border, a night cap at the hotel bar while catching the last few minutes of Germany v. Poland. What a day. Only a half day more to enjoy our little trip to Suisse.

Monday, Monday. We only had a half day left before our flight back to sunny London (it was actually 80+ and sunny). We did a whirlwind tour of some of the cities hot spots. The Ile de Rousseau, St. Peter's Cathedral, the flower clock of the Jardin Anglais and the tallest water fountain in the world. We had a nice little lunch at the Hotel de Ville Cafe, which came off a recommendation from K's cousin Lindsay, and it was good. On our way back to the airport we had the coup de grace, a chocolate and banana crepe on the lakeside. What a wonderful way to end the trip.

posted by Brian and Kirsten Hennigan @ Thursday, June 12, 2008