Geneva-Chamonix

We arrived at the train station in Geneva bedraggled from the metro and train station in Paris.  I would not suggest renting a hotel in Montmatre.  Geneva trains are not as well marked as the other cities we've been to, we had to catch a bus to the airport, then a shuttle to rent our car.  That proved difficult because they did not have our paperwork.  Once that was finished we drove an hour to Chamonix which is actually back in a France, the home of Mont-Blanc.  It is a touristy Swiss Aspen nestled in the valley beside the Alps.  It turned out that there was a festival going on and half of the main streets were blocked, it took another hour to find our hotel.  After having a frustrating day of traveling we toured the streets, had some fondu and some genepi beer, and tried out the outdoor hot tub covered in snow.  (grandma scored us some nice places to stay)

In the morning we walked through the city to get our tickets on the cable car going the top of Mont-Blanc, the line was enormous.  We got our tickets and waited for our car to come for about an hour, trying out a hot chocolate at a café nearby, which was probably the best I've ever had.  I do not suggest the trip to Mount-Blanc if you are in anyway claustrophobic or afraid of heights.  It is basically a sardine can, roller coaster ride climbing, dropping and swinging as you go up 12,500 feet.  When you get to the top after two stops you feel tired and shaky because of acclimatization.  But when you go outside the sight is amazing.  Many skiers bring crampons, harnesses and a guide to ski down the mountain, they need a guide because there is a possibility of falling into an ice crevasse.  It's the most cold (bitterly cold and windy), stark, quiet, potentially scary place I've ever been to, but it is also breathtakingly beautiful.  James Bond music was playing in the back of my head when I was walking through the observation decks.  

After taking the cable car back down, we got into our car and drove to Geneva.  We visited CERN and hassled with returning our car, taking a train to the city.  Bref, we only had 2 hours to see the city and it was dark.  Earlier we had seen the jet d'eau and lake Geneva but since it was windy and raining we only walked around for a few hours.  We walked around the lake a little, went to the old town, saw the English gardens and the flower clock and walked back to the hotel.  On the train this morning to Avignon we talked with a young couple who live there and they said there isn't much to see in the city.  I bet summertime around lake Geneva is gorgeous though.  My grandparents are ready to stop traveling and it will be nice to unload our luggage when we get to my appartment.  

After this trip I have to say I love trains; they are hectic but fast, simple, and you can bring whatever you want as luggage.  We also haven't had the best meals and/or we've been eating food that's very heavy ( pastries, pancakes, beer, fries, fondu...) so I'm actually excited to be able to cook when we get into Avignon, and it will be nice that my grandparents are going to rent a car here so we can see some of the cities nearby especially to visit some markets.  I hope that they will enjoy the south more than they enjoyed Paris, it's frustrating for them that people don't speak English.  They'll be staying for one more week in my tiny appartment.  Overall the trip has gone well and we've had a good time, I know a little more what to see and not see in those cities, and I had a blast being able to explore them on my own, and I didn't even get into an bike accident in Amsterdam!  I'm already thinking about what cities I would like to see next.

Keep checking allthingsnederlandse.blogspot.com for posts about Amsterdam.