Geneva, Annecy and Aigle

We travelled to Geneva via Hythe in Kent where we had an overnight stop and caught up with Les and Carol for a pub meal. Always great company. After an uneventful ferry ride we drove to Fontainebleau a site half an hour South of Paris on the Seine where we stayed in 2009. A quite evening sipping wine and watching the occasional barge go by is hard to take.

After an overnight stop we left for Geneva. We had a great site close to the edge of Lake Geneva and were entertained by a small troupe of 5 teenagers juggling, undertaking some dancing/acrobats and then playing with diabolos.

Lake Geneva was stunning (as always) with its iconic “l’eau jet” which travels some 140 metres up. Not that the swans gave a dam, their focus was on eating. The water was too deep for the youngster and quite a challenge for Mum.

We had the benefit of Phil’s unit (nephew) who is based in Geneva. The main challenge was keeping food up to him so he did not waste away. Not too hard when the markets around the corner had such great produce.

Although the pastrami was more of Phil’s liking than the checkered blackberries and raspberries. A team of three continually carved thin slices and laid them carefully on paper for sale (having the occasional piece themselves!). The knives are very thin flexible blades which were regularly sharpened.

Phil was keen we tasted a couple of local meals including Raclette. This is where you have cheese which you melt using a brazier and then eat with bread, cold meats sausage and new potatoes. The cheese on the right can be slid close to the brazier as required and the one on the left has a small frying pan where a flat camembert may be heated. The molten cheese is then scraped off and handed around. Brilliant for a cold day – and not bad on a hot one – but very filling (even Phil could not finish the last of the wedge). We had this at Chamonix which is the start point for the gondolas up to Mont Blanc.
Chamonix is a typical alpine village with spectacular backdrops on clear days. Mont Blanc is just off to the left of this range.

The gondolas are in two sections and quickly took us to the Aigulle du Midi at 3842 metres (which is only just below Mont Blanc at 4810 metres). You don’t appear to be getting much higher than this when flying.

The lift goes along the side of a glacier which becomes increasingly more fragmented with stalagmite type structure towards the bottom.

Some of the lift passengers were not travelling just for the views and came loaded with ruck sacks, crampons, ropes and the like. They then took off across some particularly wonderful topography.

At the end of the walk some to the mountaineers looked remarkably fresh

Whereas others really struggled with the pace….

In reality the height was more than most of us had experienced before and we all felt the altitude particularly after we had walked up the 50 or so steps to the viewing platform. Phil was not the only one to sleep (but he was the youngest). Others were quite distressed – which was remarkably reversed as soon as we got down to the lower lift station.

Fortunately Phil had to take off for work and Jo, Helen and I had a lay day to catch up and stroll around Geneva and in my case replace the gas regulator for the ‘van which had played up.

Our next trip was to Annecy. This is just beautiful with pretty lively fast flowing streams dividing the town (both ancient and more modern areas).

The girls loved it…

We decided to do a trip around the lake and as there was a dinner trip opted for this. The food was excellent and as for the ambience .. well only last years QM2 trip really surpassed this.

The views from the vessel were numerous and culling to obtain one for the blog was quite a challenge but this wasn’t bad..

A memorable evening.

Overnight Sue and Martin flew into Geneva and joined us on a somewhat circuitous route to the airport (ie around the lake) so that we could drop Jo off for her trip back to Brum. Jo’s eye had been caught by a museum chateau which was a unique combination. It was called Aigle and is at the Eastern end of lake Geneva where the Rhone enters the lake.

The food was simple but wonderfully presented and lunch quickly took on a couple of hours once we had discovered the Pinot Gamay. A great lunchtime wine.

The view from the patio was awesome

The chateau dates back to the end of the 12th century and was slowly built upon over the years and between 1804 and as late as 1972 served as both court and prison.

The ramparts give great views over the countryside.

Here the view is toward lake Geneva through the valley carved by the Rhone.

Some of the museum pieces are interesting. A couple of inn signs caught my eye – who needs words when this was presumably called the crown and was open day and night (24 hours).

However the amount of wine grown in the area was a revelation to all of us.