The Neighborhood

After 11 hours of sleep last night I got up around 8am for a stroll through the neighborhood.  Here are some of the highlights...

It seems like every time we visit Ahriel and Nicole they are living in a different house - and we've enjoyed the variety!  The first two were mountain chalets near Gryon at the far end of Lake Geneva.  The current apartment is much less mountainous and is located in a small village with farms and vineyards all around.  The countryside is much more open and rolling with mountains in the distance.

This morning I decided to get out and see the neighborhood.

Switzerland is filled with walking trails - they're everywhere.  They go along small farmer's roads in the countryside, through vineyards, along streams in the woods, through towns and villages.  The trails get marked with yellow signs that give a destination and the approximate time it takes to reach that destination. Here's a sample signpost.  The times are rumored to be determined by associations of senior hikers to be sure that the times are realistic for everyone.  In my experience, I might not be up to the activity level of an average senior Swiss hiker - the times always seem a bit optimistic compared to my pace...


So this morning I headed over to the chateau that's across the ravine from Nicole's apartment.  It's only 15 minutes away (according to your average retired Swiss hiker) but does include a long stairway down to the stream and then an equally long one up to the chateau (see the photo at the left).  There were birds chirping everywhere, the morning was sunny and warm (I was walking in a short sleeved shirt and very comfortable - unlike the current weather in Seattle...).  A beautiful morning for a walk.

As I got closer to the chateau I was able to see details a bit clearer - the walls are massive, the outbuildings numerous and the place looks in good shape but totally deserted.  There was a no trespassing sign.  I didn't trespass.

There's a small village around the chateau that was nice, but not really interesting.  One very fancy restaurant and that was apparently the only going business in town.  That's similar to Monnaz where we have a winery that also sells bread on Friday's from 4-7pm.  That's it for commerce.  The closest real cafe or restaurant or grocery store is about five minutes away in Morges (on Lake Geneva - we'll be going there tomorrow for the Saturday farmer's market).

I circled through the village around the chateau and then headed back to the same long stairways to return home.  Here are some photos from the trip: