Lausanne and Bern

Our first stop in Switzerland was Lausanne. Set on Lake Geneva, the town climbs up away from the water. We stayed at Hotel du Marche which was a nice quiet hotel and Ben went out to grab dinner so we could enjoy our dinner with our French wine. The next day was a little rainy but we were able to see much of the town anyway. It was also market day and we picked up items from various vendors to make a picnic which we enjoyed at the lakefront with a great view of the water and mountains. A highlight of this day for Ben was finding a petanque course (French version of bocce) with several games in play which we stood and watched for a while.

We took the train to Bern that afternoon and after some help from a nice man near the tram stop, found our way to Casa Silvana, our B&B for the night. While we have been enjoying beer, we have not found (or actively looked for) any breweries during this trip. But, we read about a microbrewery in Bern not far from our hotel and decided to have dinner there. We really the Altes Tramdepot. The beers were good, food was was good, place was packed and the staff was friendly.

Our day in Bern welcomed less rain and slightly warmer weather. We stowed our bags in lockers at the train station and had a very enjoyable day discovering the town on foot. Parliament was in session and we were able to attend and observe. We couldn't understand much, but it was a highlight to be able to sit in. Bern is a quiet city, with ample public transportation and great views of the river that runs through town and the Alps in the distance. Bern means bear and there is also a bear habitat with three brown bears that are the poster children for this town. The habitat is right next to the brewery and we were able to watch the bears and then grab another beer and some lunch on their patio. We really enjoyed our day in this town!

As I write, we are high in the Swiss Alps in a town called Gimmelwald that is accessible via cable car. We will be spending two nights here, I will write about our hikes and the incredible views in another post.

Some initial bullets on Switzerland:

• It is crazy expensive
• People are friendly and helpful
• Laundromats in France and Switzerland are more expensive than expected
• Swiss trains, trams and buses are ninja silent
• Swiss trains are very smooth compared to Italian trains
• Very few smokers in Bern
• Most bikes in Bern were not locked