European Adventure Part 1: Montreux

European Adventure Part 1: Montreux

Hello Friends!

How did a trip to Bangkok land us in Budapest? The World Traveler had an speaking engagement/hosting responsibilities at an industry conference that was relocated for political unrest (safety of the guests and their travel companions).

So... with just a few weeks notice, I started researching Budapest.  This is three country trip is a business trip for the World Traveler and a working vacation for me (working lightly to keep up with projects since I'm traveling for three weeks). Before Budapest comes a week in Switzerland. While I adore Vevey, we stayed in Montreux this visit. I was determined to explore Montreux... the markets, shoppes, and winding roads. 

Did you know the locals live up the hillside and travel by foot via Escalier's?  These are hidden stairs, woven through neighborhoods (see photo below) and must their secret to staying healthy.

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Travel: Switzerland {observations}

Travel: Switzerland {observations}

{feeding the birds}

I cherish a morning walk when traveling.

While staying in Vevey we had bread, jam, and fresh fruit delivered to our room daily.  I would save the uneaten bread and every few days walk to the pier to feed the birds.

The pier is home to a hundred year old carousel, and right behind me is a castle that's being renovated. Rumor says the castle was purchased for one Swiss Franc, and the owner is funding the renovation.

I can't wait to see the transformation.

Below are a few observations I would love to share, to give you a feel for life here.

Water: Showering with glacier water makes your hair baby soft.  When dining, water is not served unless requested.  Fizzy water costs the same as soda, it's cheap to buy at the grocery store.  A liter of San Pellegrino will cost one Swiss Franc (less than half the price in America).

Christmas: There is nothing commercial about Christmas in Switzerland.  Look around and you will see old world Santa's and natural decorations made of natural materials and ribbons.  A good reminder that Christmas is not about gifts or blow up lawn decorations.

- Santa is a rope climber! Did you know the Elf is mostly an American fascination?
- Christmas trees are real, standing from one to five feet in height.
- Igloo's are everywhere.  They are pop up businesses, a place to warm up with a drink or shop.

- Noel Villages: gatherings for the locals and travelers, with outdoor shops to buy gifts, sample food, drink. We attended at least four of them, each unique.  Vevey is a small corner shop with trees, Montreux host the main Noel Village for the area (this year's theme was wintergreen smurf's), Evian's village was made from driftwood, Zermatt's has more a winter feel to it.

Yarn: I wasn't able to find a yarn shop in any of the towns we visited.  I was hoping to buy some for a friend who enjoy's knitting.  Strange, right?

Language: I'm learning French but most of Switzerland speaks German.

Grocery Shopping: Keeping waste to a minimum, there isn't much outer packaging for items (ie: toothpaste in America can come in a box, you will not see this here),  you either bring bags or pay for them.  I shopped at two different stores (Manor and COOP) - the cashiers do not weight your produce.  A mistake I made, causing the line to be delayed at dinner time.  I felt like Meg Ryan's character in 'You've got Mail', the grocery store scene (her apologizing over and over).  I'm used to filling my market basket as I shop, unloading it and the cashier weighing it for me before packing up my basket.

I also wonder why the large food markets are in the basement...

NO one eats or drinks 'to-go' - there is no litter - it's very, very quiet other than church bells - most travel via ferries, metro, buses, trains, or on foot.

Quality!  You will not find Target or Walmart here, in fact I believe most buy a few high quality items that will last a long time vs a summer trend.  I don't know this, just a gut feel.

I have one last post to share with you, our time in Zermatt!

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Travel: Switzerland {Montreux Noel}

Travel: Switzerland {Montreux Noel}

{Source: google images}

Lovely friends of mine,

Imagine this, my first run in Switzerland landed me in Noel Village! I thought it was high in the mountain side but it's a boardwalk festival.

This winter gal bundled up for a run along the shoreline in Vevey, running to the end, up to the main road and around the corner I saw a Ferris wheel in the distance.

Once I saw the Ferris Wheel, I had to see if this was 'the' Noel Village.

Stopping to explore the booths, grab lunch (pretzel and hot cocoa) and walk home while listening to an audio book and taking it in... I was in heaven.

I remember thinking that I'm standing in Switzerland, looking across the lake to France, I just ran from Vevey to Montreux, to the Noel Village, and then I spotted the Chateau and decided to walk there too!  I crossed off several of my must see items in one morning.

Montreux Noel

Montreux:  Known as the Swiss Riviera, is known for their Jazz Festival but also draws people by the thousands daily for the Noel Village.

A day on spontaneity: Saturday we took the train to Lausanne and the ferry across the lake, to Evian.  Having crepes for lunch and walking through Evian's Christmas Village, with driftwood characters for the kids to climb on and explore. In the evening we went to the Noel Village in Montreux for traditional Swiss fondue with a friend.

It was such a fun evening - drinking glug (hot wine) to stay warm, fondue, shopping the booths (craft fair), sampling edibles, and riding the Ferris Wheel. We even tried Absinthe - which tastes horrible.

Smurfed! As you walk the boardwalk of Montreux you can't help but see a lovely exhibit of wintergreen Smurfs, some standing alone, others creating a scene.  Some people are so creative!

I hope you are enjoying experiencing my Switzerland experience, next we are going on a three country road trip via St Bernard's Pass.

Enjoy!

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Travel: Exploring Switzerland

Travel: Exploring Switzerland

{Lake Geneva}

Hello friends,

If you were following us on track my tour, you have seen some of these photos. Now it's time to share the story.

The World Traveler is in Switzerland all the time, but never long enough for me to have a proper visit. When he mentioned having to attend a conference for a week, I jumped on the chance to explore life in Vevey.

We flew into Geneva and took a train for a hour to Vevey, a small village sitting on Lake Geneva.

Our plan: As is our custom, we had a list of options but didn't make plans until we arrived. This approach takes pressure off us to check off a list of ten things we have to do/see. Once we settle in and meet with friends/colleagues, they tend to suggest must see's not listed online or in a travel log.

Vevey is a tiny french speaking village, you will not find much online to help plan.

I hope you enjoy traveling with me, via the written word. Let's get started with an overview the region we explored. ~ enjoy!

{old town Vevey}

Vevey: Trios Couronnes was home base for our visit. Part of the old village, the location was perfect. I was able to explore the delightful streets, shops while looking at these shop windows.  Every morning I was out walking the streets within fifteen minutes of waking up.

There is a paved path to walk/bike along the shore, playgrounds everywhere.  Vevey has a train station, and a bus loop to Montreux but mostly is a walking town.

The village center is located on the lake, but look to the south and you are surrounded by vineyards, and a cable car leading to the International Hotel School. Charlie Chaplin lived in Vevey, click here to learn more about the Charlie experience.

{Chateau de Chillon}

Montreux Riveria: This is a lovely town, with a castle at the end of town.  It's home to the famous Jazz Festival, Freddie Mercury tribute, and the Noel Village.  On foot, the journey from Vevey to Montreux is 4.2 miles.

During our stay, the Noel Village was in full swing which gave me the perfect destination for a daily run. I could run there, walk the shops lining the lake, grab a nibble and work my way back to Vevey in under two hours.

Lausanne: Lausanne is a large city with an old world feel.  Located between Geneva and Vevey.  We didn't spend much time there but it's a lovely place to visit, you can walk everywhere AND you can take the twenty minute ferry to France, for lunch, or a run!

{Evian, France}

Evian, France: Another town we didn't spend much time in but it's just a twenty minute ferry ride away (from Lausanne). Home to Evian water, museums, cheese(!), and it's own old town feel.  I will be back to explore, and need to learn more about the towns display of driftwood.

We happened to visit opening weekend for la fabuleux village (Evian's noel celebration) so we spent our time enjoying this rather than visiting a museum.

The Language: I was thrilled to discover I can read French pretty well. Sadly, the locals speak so fast I couldn't understand much.  After mentioning this to a few colleagues I learned they speak in a different dialect from what I'm learning with Rosetta Stone (and my foreign movie consumption).

A few things you should know before visiting the area:
- Vevey, Montreux, and Lausanne speak french but most of Switzerland speaks German.
- Residents speak one or the other, not both.
- Shops are open from ten to noon, and 1:30 - 7PM
- It's hard to eat out midweek, most restaurants are not open past 8PM

- 99% of Switzerland is closed on Sunday's

More posts to come, from cultural observations, our travel adventures, and more! Have you been to Switzerland?  There's SO much we didn't see.  Let me know if you have any suggestions for my next visit.  I would love to hear from you.

Next travel post: Montreux Noel (Christmas Village)

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