Note: I took 22,000 steps today, and went up 54 floors according to my pedometer.
Morning
We woke to a clear sky, so by 9:25 we were on a boat down at the harbor heading to France. By 10:04 we were walking across the gang plank into Evian - the source of Evian water!
The walk down to the boat at Lausanne's harbor was about 30 minutes walking down hill. Not just a little bit down hill, but really sloped down. Half way we stopped at a grocery store for bananas, sliced ham, and bread. Then we continued down, down, down 'till we saw the lake.
With only 3 minutes left to catch our boat we picked up our pace. We could see 3 boats in the harbor, which was ours? We made a guess and chose well. After walking across the gang plank to get on our boat, they pulled up the gang plank and the boat let out a HONK and we were off. Dan bought tickets (got 1/2 off) while the girls chose us seats. They are very good at that. No matter where we go, they always look around, decide where to sit, then they set up shop. Julia always takes off her shoes (no matter if she is on a train, a boat, or the stroller) and Sara takes off her hat and coat. They land where ever gravity takes them.
The seat they chose was on the upper deck of the boat. It was enclosed so we sat looking out at the rippling Lake Geneva. Though the lake is pretty, the mountains steal the show. They rise up in their snow capped stateliness, just demanding you to be entranced by them.
The crossing to France (on the other side of Lake Geneva) was only 30 minutes, so we enjoyed every minute. That is to say, SAra and Julia ate cereal, strawberries, and an orange. Dan and I picked cereal and orange pieces up off the floor, but they were good girls.
Our white boat made a white wake as it plowed across the lake. We moved steadily, not fast, but not pokey. France came into view, we all went to the bathroom, then we stepped out into a town named "Evian" where Evian water comes from.
We drink Evian. Not all the time, but we buy it occasionally at home in VA. Here on this trip, we just drink tap water or sometimes buy water - but we jump around from brand to brand just to try things while we are here. But in Evian, people drink Evian.
The lake side promenade in France beaconed us to walk along the water. We did. To our right was the water, to our left was green parks, play areas, even a small elegant mini-golf (empty, it is off season). After a stop at the tourist information booth where we got a historical walking tour map, we began our walk to get to know Evian.
It is a nice place. A real place. Though I guess there are tourists here in the summer, there were not any tourists today. Locals were walking down the streets (pedestrian streets, no cars) with their shopping bags and knit hats. People were walking their dogs. We tried to fit in, and Sara and Julia made people smile. (People of all ages smile at them.)
Evian Water -- the source!
The walking tour brought us past the "pump room" (an ornate building with huge iron gates) and up a hill. That's when we saw it. A tiled structure with a simple spout - of running water. Evian! We walked over, emptied out our water bottles (that we always carry for when we are thisty) and filled our water bottles with Evian -- from the source - - for free -- with no one else around. It was special. Spring water that is shipped all over the world, and here it was at our finger tips.
As we stood there enjoying the water, a lady walked up with a water carrier and 6 empty bottles. She filled them then walked away. Then a man came with a paper bag and 10 empty bottles. He filled them and then walked away. Then a young lady came with glass bottles, filled then, then walked away. The locals were getting their water! We loved seeing it. And they were of all ages, of all states of fanciness, and each of them was friendly to us, but went about their task of getting their water and walking away.
Some how Sara and Julia knew the water was special. They each had a water bottle and drank more water than I've ever seen them drink. They just drank, sipped, glugged, and then drank more! We had to fill our bottles again (which was fun of course). And I even put my hand in the source just to feel it - why not? It was free flowing spring water, pure and cold, so I even leaned in and used it as a drinking fountain. All fun.
Our bellies were full (and sloshing) when we left. We continued our tour of Evian's water front area (town hall, casino, etc) and then found the MOST delightful cafe for a lunch.
I don't know how we got so lucky, but this cafe was friendly, had great food, had a high chair, and every thing about it was just great. There were probably 15 tables in the whole place (cafes are usually small like that) and only 3 other groups were there (a set of men, a set of women, and a lone man working on a lap top).
Dan had the "menu" which is a set meal with appetiser, meal, and dessert (for 15 Euro). I had lasagna, which came with a salad. Sara and Julia had the children meal of chicken and french fries. It was all good quality, served nicely, and it felt good to have such a nice lunch together. They even gave Sara a scoop of Strawberry icecream (about the size of an ice cube).
After that we walked, played, and enjoyed the water front promenade - in the other direction from before. The promenade lead past gardens (with arched trellises), play grounds (with slides, climbing towers) and we enjoyed everything about it. When Julia fell asleep at nap time, Dan walked with her in the stroller while Sara and I pretended a playground was a pirate ship. Captian Hook didn't stand a chance to our defences of sticks, one stone, and 2 imaginations. At one point Sara picked up a worm and said, "what's this?" and when I made a surprised face she dropped it. Then we looked at it - and I told her worms are used for fishing at the lake. She didn't touch it again - I think she thought it was a neat looking stick or something. It was funny.
Back to Switzerland - a great boat ride.
Our boat left at 3:15 or something like that. We had a good time in Evian but we were ready to go. The boat ride back was utterly fun. We sat in the way back deck - although we never actually sat, we were all at the boat's railing feeling the wind in our faces. Sara looked out with interest and Julia said "waaaa-weeeeeeee!" with a smile on her face and the wind blowing her hair. You could see both daughters were loving the feeling of gliding above the water as we zipped along back to Switzerland. Since we were on the back deck and there was only a small railing, it was like we were standing on the water as it zoomed along below us. It was impossibly pretty. The lake was calm with a ripple of wind, the mountains were white and it was 30 minutes of bliss. It was an adventure we were all having, the thrill of the speed, the beauty of nature, and the fun of doing it together.
To see some of the area, you can see Evian's video about it. When they show the "source" with people getting water - that is where we were! And you can see some of the mountians in their video also.
http://pure.evian.com/en/UK/#/home
Back in Lausanne
The first thing we did after the girls rocketed off the boat was go on the carousal down at the water. They each took 2 rides (10 SF) and Julia loved it so much she didn't want to get off! She chose a third thing to ride and it broke my heart to have to take her off it to leave the ride. The first thing they rode was a two seater car, so they looked impossibly cute together in their little car going around and around. Then they each chose a carousal horse that went up and down in the traditional way. For those few minutes all that existed was that carousel on the harbor - we just lost ourselves in the fun of the ride.
Then we did a playground (that really did look like a pirate ship) then we came back to the apartment for a meat ball/pasta dinner.
After dinner walk
Though we didn't like to leave the dinner mess, we knew we had to if we wanted to go for a walk after dinner but before bedtime. "Get your socks and shoes on!" we said, then moments later we were on the elevator to go for an evening walk here in Lausanne.
Our walk took us up into the awesome pedestrian area - with a vibe that is difficult to describe. There is a mix of everything, focusing on the high-end of things. Dan used an ATM and got a 200 bill. I commented that is because we were near a Rolex store. But forgetting about the high end stuff, there are just so many people strolling around that it is fun to be part of the evening scene with them. Just like usual, even the streets with the stores go straight up or straight down. That is why my fit bit thinks I went up 54 flights of stairs today! It was just a fun walk. We mentioned ice cream and there were no scoop shops so we went to Manor department store (very fancy) and got a pint. I opened it, gave the girls 2 spoons, and we kept walking. It could have been a bad idea, but they shared nicely and they sure were quiet as they ate ice cream and we strolled around enjoying the shops, fountains, and regal buildings! What a neat place this is.
Time for sleep
I got Julia in her PJs, gave her "cheese" at her request (she goes to the refrigerator, reaches up and says "cheese!!!" and she has been asleep since about 7PM. Sara has been asleep since 7:30 and soon me too!
Quotes of the day: (All from Papa!)
(on the boat) Papa: "Let's go to France!" (it was just funny to hear him say that, since crossing a lake and going to France isn't something you do every day.)
(at lunch) Papa: "I have no idea what I'm eating." (his appetizer was some sort of tri-colored goo but he ate it - he is more adventurous than I am.)
(at the Evian source) Me: "let's dump out our water (from the tap in our apartment) and fill our bottles with Evian!"
Papa: "Yeah, because water from France is so much better than water from Switzerland." (he is such a man)
(at lunch) Papa: "Oh sure, use me as a napkin" (to Julia, who was sitting next to him and appeared to remove some of her lunch off her face and onto his shirt)
---
A great day. Boat trip to France. Evian source. Carousel ride. And many smiles, hugs, and "I love you" - I heard Sara say that to me, Dan, and Julia. Makes it all worth while.
END.
No comments:
Post a Comment