Yara jumping around on the terrace before going out.
After having dropped off the dogs Friday evening, we came home and packed a small carry-on, reading material and some gadgets considering it was only a two day, one night trip.
Early Saturday morning, we threw our stuff in the car and headed out to the parking company at the airport. Breakfast was my usual. Every time I travel early mornings from Barcelona, I eat Breakfast (yes, I know) at McDonalds. Typically an Egg McMuffin with fresh orange juice.
The flight time was roughly an hour and a half and as almost always the #swiss crew was forthcoming and friendly. Upon arrival in Geneva, we walked out the security area only to see hundreds of people scattered speaking languages on end. French, English, German, Japanese, Spanish and so forth. This small airport is more packed than Vienna International. One thing to note is that passengers heading into Geneva receive a free train ticket, so make sure you grab yours before heading towards the train station if that’s the way your going. Its very easy and roughly takes 7 minutes of travel from Geneva Airport to Geneva city center (Gare de Cornavin).
Upon arrival we first went straight to our hotel, checked-in quickly, albeit having arrived early, and dropped our bags off in our executive suite. At the reception we received a traditional paper map with places to see and go and off we went. Initially we took the tram to Placa Neuve (we got a public transport card from the hotel) and I must say the tram system is very easy to use and convenient. We were fortunate to have good weather on Saturday to see and discover the city a bit.
We ended up moving towards Cathedrale St. Pierre walking through a park (forgot the name) with multiple large chess boards and if you know me, you know I enjoy a good game of chess.
From here, where the University is located we began walking towards the above mentioned cathedral, zig zagging a bit through the streets just to see the architecture and enjoy the view of surrounding Geneva before taking a short break.
I love history and always have and certain things still fascinate me like a 10 year old child.
We then arrived at the Cathedral and took a look inside.
Despite being pregnant my wife does not back down from a good challenge so up we went into the towers to look over the city.
Windy, but a spectacular view. Enjoyed a moment of peace and tranquility in the cool breeze before heading on towards our decent.
After leaving we begin heading towards the shopping mile of Geneva and grabbed a good traditional pretzel before arriving at the English Gardens.
Upon arriving at the lake, we began boating and walking around the inner city limits discovering what all Geneva had to offer.
Then boating around some more…
After a good day touring around we went back to the hotel to relax, freshen up and grab a quick power nap before heading out for dinner. We initially went to the restaurant based in one of the hotels of the chain we were at, only to find it packed. We then came across a locality just as traditional, packed but came across some seating for us and boy did I enjoy my steak.
Sunday was a slight sleep in day before checking out and grabbing brunch. We dropped our luggage off at the train station before heading into the city where it began raining so we took cover at Starbucks. After the rain had settled we began heading towards the Museum of Natural History.
From here we walked straight through the city for a last perception of downtown Geneva before heading to the train station to go to the airport. Once there we immediately went to security, because the queue was incredibly long for the size of the airport. Unfortunately our flight had a delay but we arrived back in Barcelona Sunday evening, picked up our car and came home to a quiet atmosphere as the dogs would be picked up the next morning.
Overall, I must say Geneva is a nice city get-a-way, but Im not 100% convinced that I would want to live and work there. I do want to return in the summer to see the difference and to visit CERN, the United Nations and a the outskirts, but for what it was, it was a nice city trip and recommendable for those wanting to get out for a day or two.