Getting to Lausanne

Wednesday 8^th September 2010 Geneva, CH to Lausanne, CH: After we dropped the Pilot’s friend off at the airport to catch his flight, we took off for the ‘Switzerland Tour’. First place Morges. There are a few things to see here, but mostly I want to go and see the ‘Paderewski Museum’. He is a Polish Pianist and I thought it was something we could both be interested in.

We drove through the beautiful countryside and stopped in a lay-by where there were some fantastic grapes hanging down. We stopped to take a look and then crossed the road to see the lake. The wind was really picking up at this point and I was glad to have brought a jacket even though it was really sunny. The Pilot had brought his D-SLR Camera with him and was taking some ‘arty’ shots whilst me with the mobile and normal camera just getting on with it. There is no doubt though that he takes better photos with it though.

We drive to Morges, park up, and get the bikes down. As we cycle through the car park to the town, we meet a lady and her two huskies. Of the course the Pilot has to stop and we find out that the lady is American and has recently moved here with her husband. We chat to her for a while and share our stories before setting off again.

We get to the Museum and find out that it is shut until 2pm. We wonder off and I look in a few shops whilst the Pilot sits on a bench until 2pm. We get there and find out it is still shut at 2.15pm. We look more closely at the sign. ‘Ouvert Jeudi 2pm’. Hmmm…jeudi…that’s Thursday…its Wednesday today…ahhhh crap! We have wasted a morning here and with nothing else to see, we cycle back to the Snail to drive to Lausanne.

We stop off to fill up with more water because it is free and get rid of the water we have. It a messy job, but it makes you think twice about the water you use and how not to waste it.

We arrive in Lausanne and explore around the marina to see what’s there. It is a beautiful place, but we cant find any WiFi connection, so we try and head into town where there could be one. We cycle through the city on the bike lanes and come to a really steep hill. I try as much as I can to cycle up it, but my lungs are just not taking it. In fact they are burning. We get to the traffic lights and ask a girl for directions for the train station as we know there will be tourist information point. She can speak English and takes us cycling to a Café where there is WiFi access. We get a map anyway from the tourist place so that we can plan our day tomorrow. As the door opens to the busy high street, I realise how much I have gotten used to the peace and quiet of the places we have been.

We go and have a coffee in the café to use the internet and the Pilot nearly loses his bag as we move from inside to outside. Its good to be back in contact with the world. I think if we did this trip again, it would be something I would have to look into. I know its cheaper, but it’s a bit hit and miss with availability.

We decide to cycle back because it will be dark soon and we go back to the marina and cycle through. The sunset is breathtaking and we gaze at it a while before we go back to the Snail. On the way, we find some free showers, and when we try them, we find the water is really hot because of the solar panels. We agree to visit this place first thing in the morning to see if its still the same hot water. I hope so!