Switzerland and France

On October 22nd, I took a two day vacation to Switzerland and France. After an excruciating overnight drive I ended up in Chamonix, the french alpine centre, which was in full preparation for the winter season that is soon approaching. There, I took a walk through the quite deserted centre, and was informed about the first three men to climb Mont Blanc. After that I went to Geneva, where I took a guided tour around Cern. There I checked out the Universe of Particles exhibition and got a lecture on the main branches of science Cern as a scientific institute focuses on. The tour was finished off with a very kind british graduate, who took us to the Nasa building and explained us a bit about the Alpha Magnetic Spectometer (google it, I'm not down with explaining that level of science), where everyone was barely keeping themselves upright and awake.

Half of the next day was spent in the very centre of Geneva, which was my favourite part of the trip. I took a long walk all the  way from Sisi's statue, past Rousseau's island to the Opera, and then through the park which contains the largest monument in honour of the supporters and followers of the Protestant church, and up past the longest bench in the world (122m), all the way to Geneva's Hotel du Ville and Rousseau's birthplace. As the last stop on the map, I visited Annecy in France, a larger town also known as the small Alpine Venice. It is mostly known for the canals, bridges and buildings tightly fit to said canals, but what impressed me most was the large park full of people and dogs enjoying a beautiful day and absorbing the evident autumn in nature, being the sole reason as to why that part of town radiates joy.

There are many stereotypes about Switzerland, as it is a very financially stable country, and as a Slovenian citizen, the reflection of the country's current status is very evident. The architecture is magnificent and the streets are inviting. Geneva is a discreet city that makes you very aware of your foreign origin, and guilty of being disrespectful even though you haven't actually done anything. Nevertheless it is a city worth visiting, and seems to me a very pleasurable tourist spot as all tourist attractions are easily accessible and not constantly swarmed with people like monuments elswhere are.

Have you been to Geneva before? What are your experiences?

x, Valens