Dates – May 6th – 9th 2005
This was certainly one of the most whirlwind trips we’ve ever done. In a matter of four days, we traveled from Paris to Switzerland and visited five cities (Geneva, Bern, Zurich, Lucerne and Interlaken). We took a high-speed TGV train (picture) from Paris to Geneva on Friday afternoon and arrived in rainy Geneva in the early evening. It took a little wandering around with our bags to find our hotel (which wasn’t much fun in the rain) but we were fine once we found it. We spent the rest of the day wandering around the sights of Geneva including the Jet d’Eau (picture), the Old Town and the Flower Clock (picture). The Old Town was definitely the most interesting area of Geneva; it is the hilly center of old Geneva with windy cobblestone streets, St. Peters Cathedral and a number of shops and restaurants.
On Saturday, we had breakfast at the hotel, picked up the rental car (VW Touran van) from Europcar and headed off for Bern. Switzerland is a pretty small country so it doesn’t take very long to get from place to place; the drive from Geneva to Bern was only about 2 hours. We arrived in Bern around noon and our first stop was to get some lunch. After lunch, we walked around the outside of the Bundeshaus in the city center. We then took a tour of Einstein’s house where he developed the theory of relativity (picture). After a short walk to a nearby bridge to take some amazing pictures of the valley (picture), we then strolled by the Zeitglockenturm Clock tower (picture) and headed off to Zurich.
The drive from Bern to Zurich had some beautiful views of the Alps and the Swiss countryside. Geneva and Bern are both in the French-speaking portion of Switzerland. As we drove from Bern to Zurich, it is interesting to see all of the road signs switch from French to German as we entered the German-speaking portion of the country.
We arrived in Zurich in the early evening. Our first task was to find a hotel in the old city center of Zurich; after a couple of attempts, we found a nice hotel situated right in the center of the old city. We then headed out to explore the city and find a place for dinner. Zurich is a very pretty town; the old center is made up of quaint cobblestone streets lined with shops, monuments, and restaurants. After wandering around for a little while, we decided to have fondue at a great restaurant well-known for its fondue (picture). Dinner was great and very filling; we had sliced meats to start and then a warm, bubbly fondue for dinner. It was a very rainy evening, so we headed in quite early and got some rest.
Sunday morning, I woke up very early and explored Zurich on my own. It was a beautiful, clear, sunny and crisp morning, so I finally got the opportunity to take some good pictures of the city (picture). After having a nice breakfast at the hotel, we then headed off for Lucerne.
The city of Lucerne surprised me; I had heard how beautiful it is, but wasn’t prepared for the incredible setting along a lake nestled within the Alps. The weather was gorgeous, and the scenery absolutely breathtaking; everything seemed to work out perfectly for our visit to Lucerne. After spending some time along the waterfront to take in the beautiful scenery (picture), we decided to visit some of the sights of the city including the old pedestrian bridge (picture), and the dying lion monument of Lucerne (picture). We would have loved to spend more time in this city, especially to take some of the trips by gondola and train (cogwheel) up into the mountains, but that will have to wait until next time. For lunch, we quickly grabbed a bite at the New York deli (kind of like Subway) and headed out for Interlaken.
The drive from Lucerne to Interlaken featured some of the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen (and this is coming from someone who has regularly driven the Sea-to-Sky highway from Vancouver to Whistler). The views (picture) were breathtaking and there were cows with bells and little cottages and farms along the entire journey. We arrived in Interlaken in the late afternoon. Again, after spending some time finding a suitable hotel, we decided to head out and explore the town. This time, we wanted to make sure we did at least one excursion up into the mountains so we took the funicular (picture) up the local mountain with an amazing view of Interlaken and Jungfrau (the top of Europe/ highest peak in Europe - picture). After spending an hour up on the mountain (plus about a 15 minute ascent and descent) we then wandered around the town for a bit and found a place for dinner. For dinner, Mom had a pasta and Nadya and I have what is called a “Chinese Fondue” (picture). This is basically a hot pot with frozen meats that you dip into the hot water for cooking. Honestly, being used to real Asian hot pots in Vancouver, this Chinese Fondue wasn’t as enjoyable as I was expecting.
On Monday morning, we had breakfast in our hotel in Interlaken and then headed out towards Geneva to catch our train to Paris. We had an “unfortunate incident” leaving the parking lot in Interlaken; I bashed up the driver side mirror against a concrete column in the narrow parking space. This put a bit of a downer on an otherwise wonderful trip. We arrived in Geneva a few hours before our train’s departure. It was another clear and sunny day so we spent it in Geneva’s downtown core and old city center; we took more pictures and did a little bit of shopping before catching our train back to Paris in the evening.
May 10, 2005
April 30, 2005
Champagne
Dates – April 30th 2005
While my Mom was in town in April and early May, 2005, we made a day trip out to the Champagne region. We rented a car (another Renault Modus) and drove out to, first, Epernay to visit the Moet + Chandon and Mercier wineries and then on to Reims. We only did one formal wine tour (Moet + Chandon) which was quite nice, but felt very commercialized. The trip was great, but, hopefully next time we’ll be able to spend some more time there and visit some of the smaller, family-run wineries.
While my Mom was in town in April and early May, 2005, we made a day trip out to the Champagne region. We rented a car (another Renault Modus) and drove out to, first, Epernay to visit the Moet + Chandon and Mercier wineries and then on to Reims. We only did one formal wine tour (Moet + Chandon) which was quite nice, but felt very commercialized. The trip was great, but, hopefully next time we’ll be able to spend some more time there and visit some of the smaller, family-run wineries.
April 18, 2005
Amsterdam
Dates – April 15th – 17th 2005
We arrived in Amsterdam on Friday afternoon and immediately it felt very different from many of the other cities we’ve visited in Europe. Amsterdam has a very laid-back, almost college-dorm feeling to it. I think this has to do with its compact size, huge numbers of bicycles and a very young and energetic crowd. Our first sight was to visit the Heineken Experience (picture) which is basically a glorified television commercial. It was actually a lot of fun since you get three beers with admission and a couple of interesting rides, but there really wasn’t much “informative” about the museum. For dinner, we went to a small Indonesian restaurant recommended by one of the workers at Heineken Experience. The food was excellent, and spicy.
On Saturday, we walked around town amongst the numerous canals and quaint streets of Amsterdam (picture). We has pancakes for breakfast (picture), and took a canal cruise (picture) in the afternoon. In the evening, we went to a club in Leidsplein and had a great time.
On Sunday, our last day, we spent the morning visiting the Rijksmuseum (picture) and the Van Gogh museum. We also took a tour of a diamond jeweler and visited the flower market and bought some tulips. We then took a late flight back to Paris.
We arrived in Amsterdam on Friday afternoon and immediately it felt very different from many of the other cities we’ve visited in Europe. Amsterdam has a very laid-back, almost college-dorm feeling to it. I think this has to do with its compact size, huge numbers of bicycles and a very young and energetic crowd. Our first sight was to visit the Heineken Experience (picture) which is basically a glorified television commercial. It was actually a lot of fun since you get three beers with admission and a couple of interesting rides, but there really wasn’t much “informative” about the museum. For dinner, we went to a small Indonesian restaurant recommended by one of the workers at Heineken Experience. The food was excellent, and spicy.
On Saturday, we walked around town amongst the numerous canals and quaint streets of Amsterdam (picture). We has pancakes for breakfast (picture), and took a canal cruise (picture) in the afternoon. In the evening, we went to a club in Leidsplein and had a great time.
On Sunday, our last day, we spent the morning visiting the Rijksmuseum (picture) and the Van Gogh museum. We also took a tour of a diamond jeweler and visited the flower market and bought some tulips. We then took a late flight back to Paris.
March 29, 2005
Lisbon
Dates – March 26th – 28th 2005
March 28th was a national holiday in France. At first, we didn’t have any plans and were going to spend the weekend in Paris but, at the last minute, we decided to book a trip to Lisbon for the weekend. We flew Air France and stayed at the Le Meridian just a few minutes by taxi or metro from the old city center, Rossio.
We arrived in Lisbon on Saturday afternoon. After quickly checking into our hotel, we immediately made our way to the city center, Rossio. We walked around the Baixa area and then took tram 28 (and old, wooden tram left around mostly for nostalgic tourists; it reminded me of the wild mouse rollercoaster ride at Playland in Vancouver) up to the Alfama quarter. The Alfama quarter is high on a hill overlooking the Atlantic ocean and the city of Lisbon itself. Here, there are some wonderful, windy cobblestone streets with trams dangerously careening up and down them. We spent some time sitting at a small café with magnificent views.
On Saturday evening, we took a taxi (extremely cheap in Lisbon, by the way) down to the Docas area. This is a modern area by the waterfront with a thriving nightlife and great (although pricey) restaurants. Here, we had fish soup, bacalau (salted cod) and some very fresh mangoes from Brazil.
On Sunday, we spent the day in the Belem area (along the waterfront) and saw the Torre de Belem, Monumento dos Descobrimentos (Monument of the Discoveries) and the Jeronumos Monastery. It was a nice sunny day, so it was nice to spend some time in the fresh air of the waterfront region. On Sunday evening, we spent our time in the Oceanaria district on the south eastern edge side of Lisbon. This area was the site of Expo 98 and is made up of brand new centers and a large, modern shopping mall.
March 28th was a national holiday in France. At first, we didn’t have any plans and were going to spend the weekend in Paris but, at the last minute, we decided to book a trip to Lisbon for the weekend. We flew Air France and stayed at the Le Meridian just a few minutes by taxi or metro from the old city center, Rossio.
We arrived in Lisbon on Saturday afternoon. After quickly checking into our hotel, we immediately made our way to the city center, Rossio. We walked around the Baixa area and then took tram 28 (and old, wooden tram left around mostly for nostalgic tourists; it reminded me of the wild mouse rollercoaster ride at Playland in Vancouver) up to the Alfama quarter. The Alfama quarter is high on a hill overlooking the Atlantic ocean and the city of Lisbon itself. Here, there are some wonderful, windy cobblestone streets with trams dangerously careening up and down them. We spent some time sitting at a small café with magnificent views.
On Saturday evening, we took a taxi (extremely cheap in Lisbon, by the way) down to the Docas area. This is a modern area by the waterfront with a thriving nightlife and great (although pricey) restaurants. Here, we had fish soup, bacalau (salted cod) and some very fresh mangoes from Brazil.
On Sunday, we spent the day in the Belem area (along the waterfront) and saw the Torre de Belem, Monumento dos Descobrimentos (Monument of the Discoveries) and the Jeronumos Monastery. It was a nice sunny day, so it was nice to spend some time in the fresh air of the waterfront region. On Sunday evening, we spent our time in the Oceanaria district on the south eastern edge side of Lisbon. This area was the site of Expo 98 and is made up of brand new centers and a large, modern shopping mall.
March 20, 2005
Normandy and Brittany
Mont Saint Michel
Originally uploaded by SaurabhA.
In March 2005, while Aliya was in town, we decided to take a road trip out to Brittany and Normandy over the weekend. So we rented a little car called a Modus, by Renault, packed it up, and hit the autoroute in hopes of finding our way to Mount Saint Michel, Saint Malo and Dinan.
The french countryside was absolutely beautiful. There were little villages and farms all the way to Saint Malo and, as luck would have it, the weather was gorgeous (25 degrees Celsius - in the middle of March nonetheless).
Our first stop was Mount Saint Michel. You really have to see this site to truly grasp just how amazing it is. Basically, it is a mountain with a walled town on top; all of which sits out in the English Channel. When the tide is in, the whole mountain and town are surrounded by the Sea. When the tide is out, everything is surrounded by sandy plains.
Our second stop was Saint Malo which is also a walled city on the English Channel. We spent the night here at a quaint little hotel with very friendly and helpful owners. We spent our time in Saint Malo enjoying the beautiful coastal scenery while walking around (and sitting on) the wall that surrounds the city. This was one of the most beautiful cities I have ever visited. To sum it up in one sentence, Saint Malo is what you'd get if you mixed an old medieval town with the climate and environment of a coastal resort.
On our way home the next day, we stopped by another walled city called Dinan. Again, this quaint little town had a character of its own, with winding stone roads, a beautiful port and bridge. We had lunch here (crepes and seafood) and relaxed on a patio in the sunshine before heading back for Paris.