Our first full day in Switzerland
was spent walking in circles. It started in Taillens, a local bakery that has
been around for generations. We had stumbled across it the night before while
we were in search of somewhere to sit down and consume some alcohol after
discovering we couldn't get into the apartment.
The charming gentlemen who waited on us spoke some English and had an
amazing mustache that would put many an Austin hipster to shame.
Fortunately, for us he was there
again in the morning and served us some exceedingly tasty bread and jelly along
with a fried egg cooked on top of some local bacon. Well-fortified, we struck out to investigate
our new town. In front of the Parc
Hotel, we encountered a hilltop bench that afforded us sweeping views over Lac Grenon.
Later in the day, we walked up behind that triangle-shaped hotel in search of a cafe recommended by the guide book that I bought. Only to discover that there nothing on the street but the large, new, and closed for the low season hotel. Turns out the "cafe" is a wine bar located in a completely different part of town.
I took some pictures with my phone until I realized that the
resolution on Sam’s phone was infinitely better so I put my phone down next to
me on the bench. And there it stayed
while we went down to walk around the lake.
In effort to liven up the lake
stroll for small children, the town has posted a story along with various
artifacts from the tale around the water.
The general gist is that there were some dwarfs – or little people as they
liked to be called – who had a magical golden key that unlocked the secret of
happiness. As the hordes of people came
in search of the key, a shepherdess helped the little people protect the
key. As you can see, the artifacts aren't just fun for kids!
Sometimes when you kiss a frog, you get very lucky and it turns into....
A very handsome prince!
Being on vacation is very hard work!
Sam then became convinced that we
needed to explore Lac de la Moubra, a bit farther down the mountain. After several wrong turns (why was I trusting
Sam to navigate?!?) Ahem, this is Sam interjecting... It was Andrea who told us to take the "wrong way." Anyway, resume: We made it to the second lake – where I decided to pull
out my phone to see what time it was. Only to discover that my phone was gone.
And thus began our first circle. Back to the hilltop bench and back around the
first lake.
We eventually gave up and snuck
into a restaurant as their last table before they closed for the afternoon. This region of Switzerland, Valais, is
particularly known for their wines (most of which cannot be purchased outside
of Switzerland) so of course we split a bottle of pinot noir.
Since we never actually made it
all the way to de la Moubra, we headed back down there. This lake was notable because in the shade
the ground and the lake was almost totally frozen. That and it had some more great views.
I start falling off a bench. Instead of helping me up, the husband decides he needs to take a picture first.
Winter is coming.
Sam is thinking about turning this shot into a puzzle
The water was some of the clearest that I've ever seen.
Sam on some sort of exercise equipment/cross country skiing training device.
We later tried the tourist
information office and even went to the police station to see if we could track
my phone down but to no avail. Looks
like Apple is going to be getting another chunk of my money once we get back
stateside.
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