After spending an amazing few days in Italy, Gabby and I headed for Paris. We still had the weekend off before our program began so we decided to make a pit stop in Geneva, Switzerland along the way. I was excited to see Geneva because my father has done business here before and says it is beautiful. He is in the watch industry, which is huge in Geneva, so I was excited to see it for myself. We dropped off our bags and headed for the famous Lake Geneva. I was so impressed by how beautiful all the buildings were along the water. Mostly hotels, with amazing details and pretty black gates on all the windows (photo below). Lake Geneva was different than I expected only because I saw you were allowed to swim in it in a certain area and there was a diving board. Sort of funny to see in a big lake, but nice on a hot day. It was very cloudy for the two days we were there, but beautiful nonetheless. I obviously noticed the big water fountain in the center of the lake. Across the lake I could see the major name watch brands across the tops of all the buildings. This really represented Geneva to me and what they are all about it. It is very luxurious and things are more expensive than most other countries. For example, at McDonalds, a packet of ketchup costs about 50 cents. I was so surprised at this because I am not used to paying for condiments. The McDonalds was also very fancy inside and clean. If you cannot tell by now, we did eat a McDonalds. I know this is bad, but we could not find something quick and cheap in the area so McDonalds seemed like the answer. The people seem to be very relaxed and wealthy. They all wear designer clothing, watches, and sun glasses. I noticed a lot of people sitting at outdoor cafes just having a coffee or beer. This seems to be very common all over Europe, which is a big difference from the United States. In the United States, in a major city like New York, the sidewalks do not have room for tables nor would be very relaxing considering how crowded and loud it is. One of my favorite moments was when we walked in to a little pastry shop and I saw adorable little birds on top of the counter enjoying a pastry. It made me realize the people are very laid-back because they did not even mind the birds being indoor. Apparently the birds are laid-back as well because they did not fear the humans at all. We got Movenpick ice cream, highly recommended by Gabby. I had to agree with her, it was very delicious. For dinner we enjoyed cheese fondue with bread. We also ordered pesto pasta, but by the time it arrived we were too full. The cheese fondue was very good, I wondered if it was a typical thing to order there. We also saw so many fans from Brazil cheering for the world cup game. Brazil had just won and people were driving through the streets honking horns and yelling in there jerseys. I was so surprised when we were told that a lot of Brazilians live in Geneva. I would never have guessed that. Geneva was definitely beautiful, but I can honestly say two days was enough time for me. There is not much to do and it is so expensive.
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| Hotel in Geneva by the Lake front. |
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| Luxury watch advertisement. |
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| Baby birds eating cake off the counter inside a pastry shop. |
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| Enjoying cheese fondue and pesto pasta. |
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