Bern, Easter Weekend

We finally went to Bern. I originally wanted to go on Friday, but we realized it was Good Friday, which is a bank holiday, meaning a lot would be closed. We stayed in Lausanne and it was worse than a Sunday. We tried to go out to lunch and it seems the only restaurants open were the ones in hotels. Grocery stores, shops, businesses are all closed on Good Friday. It was a beautiful day, and even then the streets were not very crowded. We did hear the church bells all day which made Mom feel a little guilty, but we enjoyed the afternoon.

We decided Saturday would be a better day to see Bern. We weren't sure if a lot would be closed, since it is still Easter Weekend. Everything being closed on Friday and on Sunday I figured Saturday wouldn't be so bad. I was right, it was business as usual today. The weather was again wonderful. I don't know how anybody cannot absolutely love Switzerland when the weather is like this. It is getting green, the flowers are blooming, it's warm outside, the sun is shining, the cows are grazing (really). It is positively gorgeous outside. The contrast between the winter gloom and the spring sunshine is huge, and I am very disappointed I will be missing much of it. However, I am trying to make the most of it. (Two days left...)

Bern is a very cool city, old and modern all at once. It is the capital of Switzerland, and outdoes the other Swiss cities in all the important ways. That is, clocks and fountains. I like to joke that every self-respecting Swiss town has a big clock, although I have not mentioned they all also have colorful fountains throughout. Bern is home to over 100 fountains, including Samson taming a lion, Moses with the Ten commandments, and an ogre eating a meal of babies, to name a few. They also have more clocks than any of the other towns, especially the Zytglogge, which has an astronomical clock as well as a regular clock with a bell tower on top complete with bear puppets which dance around every hour as the clock chimes.

Bern means bear, and bears are everywhere. The coat of arms of the canton is a bear, the clock has dancing bears, many fountains are topped with bears, and the city has bear pits which have been a city landmark since the 16th century. However, they are very small and not too suitable, and due to pressure from activists there is now a modern bear park under construction.

Einstein also lied in Bern, and developed his Theory of Relativity there. His apartment, now known as the Einstein Haus, has been preserved as a museum. There is still some original furniture inside. The Munster Cathedral is also very famous. and we peeked inside for a moment, but chose not to pay the fee. By now we have seen so many Cathedrals that the thought of paying to see one is a bit absurd, even if it is beautiful.

Mom loved the shopping, and already wants to go back. Our favorite Swiss cities so far have been Lucerne and Berne. However, we went to Zurich mainly for a museum and didn't see much of the city, so I think it deserves another shot. We have noticed that in German speaking Switzerland, English is much more widely spoken, a point Mom doesn't let go of easily. It's not too bad in Lausanne though. Many people know at least a little.

Tomorrow is Easter Sunday, and Mom and I are here by ourselves. I'm sure the whole town will be closed up. On Monday I have to make the rounds and buy more chocolate to bring home with me, and on Tuesday we are off to the States. Pictures from Bern are up at the top of the Photos links.

Evian-les-Bains

Today was another nice day and Mom and I decided to take the ferry to Evian-les-Bains for lunch. For a visual, I added a map of the Lake. The North of the Lake as well as both of the end regions are within Switzerland, to the South is France. Geneva is on the far western point of the Lake, the area is virtually surrounded by France. Montreaux and Chillon are at the Eastern edge. Lausanne is just about halfway in between, toward the most Northern point of the Lake. Although it is called Lake Geneva in English, it is not generally called the Lac du Geneve in French but Lac Leman. I'm told Leman is the name of the region. Our apartment is no more than a mile from the Lake and we have a view from the balcony. At night you can see the lights across the water. The town directly across from Lausanne, as you can see on the map, is Evian-les-Bains. You know it for the bottled water which comes from the Alps just outside the village. From Lausanne to Evian is about a 30 minute ferry ride. It didn't seem right that France was so close and I'm nearly leaving without even going into the country. (Don't worry, I've been to Paris before). The part of Lausanne near the waterfront used to be an old fishing village called Ouchy. Ouchy is now part of the city of Lausanne, and on Sundays and sunny days there are plenty of people walking, rollerblading, riding bikes, etc. Ouchy was bustling today, but Evian was very quiet. I had heard there was not a whole lot to do there besides going for lunch, but it seemed unusual. Maybe everyone was at the casino, the only real attraction in town. We walked along the water and ate lunch at a Creperie (when in Rome...). After lunch we walked around a little bit, but perhaps since it was a Monday not a ton of shops were open. We took the ferry back and when we pulled in at Ouchy there were people on paddle boats out on the water, people out fishing, the cafes were still crowded. It's funny how a short little ferry ride takes you into another country, you can have lunch and then go back. It was nice to see that city we always look at across the water, and got to see Lausanne as they see it from the other side.



For those not familiar with my debacle, my original plans in Switzerland have changed. Originally I had planned to stay here for 6 months. I have had a bit of a hassle from the Swiss authorities because they have thought I was here to live, which of course I have no visa for. The rules are that you are not to stay in Switzerland longer than 3 months as a tourist. We did not think this would be a problem given the amount of travelling we would be doing. In any case, the rules also stated that two stays of 3 months only need to be interrupted by a one month period. I had planned to go to Phoenix for a month and then return. However, last year Switzerland joined the Schengen Zone. This is a 25 country borderless zone within Europe. Essentially when you enter any Schengen country you have free movement in the entire zone as if you were in one country. However, you may not exceed 90 days in 6 months, or 6 months in a year, beginning on the date of entry. So the rules are a bit different. Switzerland used to be outside this zone, so my travels to Spain, Italy, Czech Republic, etc. would all be outside of my three month limit. However, now they all count for the same thing and after 90 days in, I have to spend 90 days out before I may return. Unfortunately the information I had previously read was outdated. Mom jumped on the opportunity to go home for awhile. so we will both be going to the US in just over a week. I will be staying, and she will be returning after about 5 weeks or so. I will be coming back to visit for a few weeks in July, but other than that my time is cut short. All this Schengen stuff really is difficult and confusing. The rules are vague and every country enforces things differently. Of course, you can always count on the Swiss to be as strict as ever. The main difficulty for travellers is that essentially all of Europe is part of the zone, even Iceland. The only notable exceptions are the UK and Ireland and some southeastern countries, which are all trying to join the EU as well as Schengen. (Switzerland is not an EU country, but most of the EU countries are part of the Schengen Zone). This is very difficult for travellers who want to spend 6 months or so travelling, because although they may be in 25 different countries, they are all counted as one, so you have to plan and count your days very carefully to avoid being fined or possibly having your passport stamped as "persona non grata" and banned from returning for a certain period. The zone and rules began as a ten country zone, but as the area has expanded, the rules have stayed the same. But enough on that, it is time for me to return to the real world of working, and school, and responsibilities. I will no longer be a "lady of leisure."

In the next week we are planning on cramming in as much as we can. We still want to go to Bern and a museum or two, some chocolatiers, etc. So I will continue to update this blog with photos and stories. However, once we return home, it will be a month before Mom returns. She will be travelling with Cat and having several visitors over the summer, and I know she would like to continue sharing her photos. However, in this blog I have my photos set up on a separate site, and I post links to each individual album. I know this is all much too complicated for Mom. My plan is to perhaps set up one link for her to upload all her photos on to. This link would take you to one main photo page, which you could then sort through each individual album on your own. This would avoid her trying to copy and past the links, which I know is complicated. I will still have to teach her to upload photos. Blogging itself is very easy, so I will most likely giver her the access to this blog and she can update from here. My other option is to try to find her another site where she can easily blog and directly upload her photos to that site. In any case, that will be awhile, and if I set her up on a different site I will post the link here so anyone can access it.

It was about 65 F today and that felt so warm. It's 90 in Phoenix. I think I'm in for a bit of a shock.

Zweisimmen

On Saturday the three of us took the Golden Pass Line up to Zweisimmen. The line is a scenic route with panoramic windows in the train cars. The weather has been very nice the past week and it was a clear and warm day. I was a bit worried I might be a little cold as we were heading up in the mountains and there is still snow on the ground, but I refuse to wear any more coats! Dad went to Phoenix yesterday and as I sent him with a suitcase full of my coats, winter boots, and other things I don't plan on wearing anymore. I did keep my lightest coat just in case, but so far I've been lucky and not needed it except at night. Despite the remaining snow it was quite warm, in the 60s, and as we sat outside for lunch I even took off my sweater and was comfortable in short sleeves.
Even Lausanne has a different character to it now that the weather has changed. For the first time the restaurants have started setting up tables outside, and everyone has taken advantage. The trees are just beginning to show spurts of leaves, and some yellow and pink flowers are just beginning to bloom. Seeing the city in the spring feels like the reward for making it through the winter. You don't realize until the sun comes out just how drab it has been. I am sad that I will be leaving just as it is getting beautiful here.
Zweisimmen is a chalet town, mainly a skiiing destination. The houses in chalet villages are required to have a certain amount of wood, so the result is a town full of stereotypical (but cute) chalet homes and buildings. There were still a few people skiing, but it is obvious the season will be over soon, the snow is definitely melting. We have been warned there is usually one last snow in April, but right now no one is thinking about that. Hopefully it comes after we are back in Phoenix. If our usual pattern holds, it will snow the day we are leaving town.
We only stayed in the village for a few hours and had lunch. There is not much to do there otherwise, besides ski, although in the summer there are apparently nice biking and hiking trails. The train ride was the real point of the trip, and the views were wonderful. I particularly like the initial gain in elevation from Lausane, with wide views of Lac Leman, the Chateau de Chillon, and the Alps towering up from the French shoreline. I have added the photo link on the right.

Zurich

On the 31st we went with a group of ladies to Zurich to visit an art museum. It was about a two hour train ride and we spent several hours in the museum and at lunch, so we didn't get to see a whole lot of the city. However, the museum was very nice, lunch was nice, and Zurich is definitely a place to return to another time. Only took a few photos but I put them up at the top link.