Swiss vineyards in Vaud

Near St. Saphorin, looking to Lake Geneva

Very little is known outside Switzerland about Swiss wines, especially about any varieties. Indeed, we have only learned about wine in Switzerland upon moving here. This site (in English) about Swiss wine gives a good overview. I posted earlier about how every Spring, "Caves Ouvertes" occur throughout the area (see "Caves Ouvertes"), providing locals and novices alike the chance to sample wine outdoors by the "caves." That is always a fun time! In the meantime, we have seen many vineyards on the northside of Lake Geneva, especially near Montreux - this is the Vaud region.

One sunny day recently, we decided to take a drive and look around. We parked near the lake, and took some photos lakeside (between Chexbres and St. Saphorin), and then made our way towards St. Saphorin, which is uphill away from the lake.

Vineyard in between Chexbres and St. Saphorin

Being on a Sunday, it was very tranquil, especially the further up we got up away from the lake. Despite the haziness, which made it hard to see the Alps across the lake, we still had fantastic views. 

Vineyard and Lake Geneva

In some cases, it seemed like the vineyard went right down to the lake.

There are many walled paths that criss-cross along the hillside. You can walk for hours and get yourself lost up there. Although, you do have to keep your wits about you, as you can quickly and unexpectedly come across a narrow road with traffic.

Walled paths, looking down at St.Saphorin. Ryan is seated on the bench

Looking towards Vevey and Montreux

Seems like land is highly valued around this area - any small piece of land was turned into a space to grow vines!

"Vineyard" and shed

Our friends Mark and Stacy visited us in the Spring, and recommended we take time to visit this area, and we are glad we took time to spend time there, after driving by many times. 

Thirsty, anyone?

Gardening on the top floor

The 1st March is St. David's Day, the celebration in Wales of its patron saint, St. David. Being out of Wales means you don't really celebrate this day at all (there are a few exceptions, e.g. in the US: http://www.wales.com/en/content/cms/English/St_Davids_Day/Events/Events.aspx) but I do get daffodils - actually, Ryan buys them for me.  Last year, he found this tiny daffodils on 1st March. When they died off, we stuck them in a window ledge and actually forgot about them. That's because this ledge has nothing on it in the autumn and winter but pigeons strutting around, and then in spring and summer, it fills up with - well - weedy looking plants. However, I was delighted to find these growing this year:

Little daffodils on our neglected window ledge

Daffodils among the weeds on our window ledge; school in background

Ryan is more of a gardener than I.  As we live on the top floor of an apartment building in the city, Ryan really misses having a proper garden. However, we figured we could grow some things in pots.

We have a balcony where, this year, we will grow tomatoes, peppers, basil, rosemary and other herbs. (Herbs here are so expensive! You really feel ripped off when you pay 2CHF or more for a tiny spring of something!) Last year we tested it out, and while the conditions were harsh at times (wind, rain, sleet, hail... you name it!), most things grew well there. As the weather has improved here now, we need to do some gardening out there.

We also grew some flowers last Spring, and here are flowers from last year, and the basil, parsley and tomatoes:

Kitchen window ledge flowers

The tomatoes and herbs section

Sadly, our cilantro ("coriandre") did not fare well. We thought we'd be safe 7 floors up, but we learned from locals that there was an aphid of some sort, possibly from the soil, that attacked the plant. We managed to use some when the plant was in its infancy, but it quickly declined. The parsley suffered too - although I did make a batch of tabbouli. The basil was fine though, and I made a few batches of pesto.
However, we will learn from last year, and enjoy our balcony and its products!

Bon match, Allez Suisse!

Last week we went to Davis Cup tennis. We watched a doubles match and a singles match between Switzerland and Czech Republic. As the event was held in a convention center, I had wondered what the atmosphere would be like. When we walked in, we were immediately impressed with the patriotic show of display exhibited by the Swiss fans. We were expecting people to wear red or some kind of Swiss gear, but people went far beyond that!

There were definitely a few memorable fans, such as the lady adorned in flags, cowbells, fringes, ribbons, flowers, pom poms, and cows, the men in their Swiss flag jackets, and the younger guys dressed up as cows:

At the front, you could choose to have a raclette plate or pasta dish, plus tarts and sandwiches. And of course wine or beer too. We tried the raclette plate, which was a great snack that actually didn't break the bank!

I could go on about the food and drink, but back to the tennis.

All of a sudden, we heard a group of people come in, singing, blowing horns and banging a drum: the Czech fans had arrived. There were not many of them, but they made up for it in noise! They really caused quite a scene coming in. When we took our seats, we found out that we were behind the Czech fans. I think the group's noise actually drove the Swiss fans to increase their noise level as well during the matches.

The Czech group

The tennis teams entered onto the court, to many cheers and much applause. The first match we sawa was the doubles match between Wawrinka and Chuidinelli of Switzerland versus Berdych and Rosol of Czech Republic.

Switzerland on the left; Czech Republic on the right

Now the fun began! I can only imagine how loud it would have been if Federer had played - as it was, the Swiss fans really showed true vocal support of their team.

It was apparent in the first set that these teams were pretty evenly matched. It was hard for each team to break each other's serve, so the match was pretty exciting from the start. The first four sets were 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-7. But that was nothing compared to the fifth set! As we later found out, this turned out to be the longest Davis cup match ever played, clocking in at just over seven hours (http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-02-02/sports/sns-rt-us-tennis-davis-recordbre9110dn-20130202_1_doubles-rubber-czechs-world-group) with Czech Republic finally winning the match with 24 games to 22 in the fifth set. 

The next day, Wawrinka and Berdych played a singles match, and they must have been pretty tired to say the least! We saw a lot of the same fans we'd seen the day before, including the Czech contingent (who were warned a lot by the umpire for drum banging, horn waving, flag waving etc. during the games).

Wawrinka in action

Berdych's toss is really high

This match was not as evenly matched as the previous day's, as Berdych was in pretty good form. But Wawrinka did a good job, and seemed to enjoy home country support that day!
The match was won by Berdych in 4 sets, to the dismay of the predominantly Swiss crowd, but they respectfully applauded at the end. And the Czech fans brought out the biggest flag I think I've ever seen!

Big Czech flag for Berdych's win!

Lake Parade

Every summer in July, the road around the lake in Geneva is blocked off for a "technoparade," or a parade where floats or Lovemobiles blast dance or techno music. Starting in the mid afternoon, the parade of Lovemobiles goes around the Geneva part of the lake very slowly, ending up on the other side about 3 to 4 hours later. At that point, they set up stages with a DJ on each stage, it's like having 20 mini parties lined up ready for sampling. The Lovemobiles have different themes, or the dancers on them have themed clothing (sometimes) and really, anything goes as far as clothing. The Lovemobiles are usually sponsored by radio stations or clubs, so the DJs are chosen to impress.
 
This started in 1997 in Geneva, and this year's theme (2012) was "Get ready for the unexpected."
Which I was!
The parade starts with a few cars to go down the blocked off road, but there was no strong enforcement of staying off the road, so most people wandered in between the Lovemobiles when they needed to. 

The Lovemobiles would have people walked around them holding a thin rope to prevent people getting too close.

What I called the flash Lovemobile, protected by men holding a thin rope

Some of the Lovemobiles had foam or "mousse" spewing out the back, which covered the dancers and the parade watchers.

MAD Lovemobile with foam or "mousse"

A trail of foam left on the street from a Lovemobile

Most people were there, like my friends and myself, to people watch. Because so many people dress up or dress oddly, it was so much fun to watch the parade of Lovemobiles and the people on the street too!

Cheeky

A stand off, or a casual encounter?

Moo

It's fun to see the Lovemobiles go by the ritzy hotels along the lake. I wonder what the hoity-toity hotel guests must think. Are they confused, outraged, or do they join in the fun? Do they get deep discounts on their hotel rooms?

After the parade moves around the lake to the other side, people either followed the Lovemobiles, or sat and relaxed, while the street sweepers quickly came out and did as much cleaning as possible. Which was vital to openin up the roads as the streets were littered as I'd never seen in Geneva.
Smashed bottles, trash, cups, confetti, take out food wrappers - you name it, it was on the street. We had to step carefully through it all.

The event goes on until the wee hours of the night, but I think I was there until 11pm. It's surprising how attending a Lake Parade (with a short break for dinner) can wear you out! I'm glad I went, and I really didn't know what to expect. The weather was absolutely beautiful, which really helped the day, and it was nice to hear so much dance music outside, without having to go to a crowded club. All in all, the ambience was pretty good, but it did get a bit rowdy towards the end of the drink, as the afternooners went home and a new crowd mixed in with the other revelers.

How most people felt at the end of the day

Flags

I just saw an episode of "The Big Bang Theory" where Sheldon and Amy made a YouTube video (apparently the first of 52!) called Fun with Flags. Perhaps this is why I am posting these pictures!

There are lots of flags on display in and around Geneva, and here are some of the places where the Geneva canton flag, Swiss flag, and UN flags are on display. I find myself taking lots of photos with flags in them, actually.

Geneva canton and Swiss flags at Lac Leman, Geneva

This one was taken when the sun was setting one nice Saturday (the kind of weather where you just delight in having an icecream):

Swiss flag and Jet d'Eau, Geneva

 All around town, especially in Old Town, or Vieille Ville, you can see flags adorning the streets. This is one of the quiet streets where the flags demonstrate the street's narrow width.

Flags in Vieille Ville, Geneva

Flags at the UN

This was taken in nearby Yvoire, France:

My sister and mother

Here are some more from the back of boats:

The Swiss one...

...and the French one

And here is the Welsh flag on our couch cushions (thanks cousin Audra!), with Fred the model:

Gruyères

The Gruyères region in Switzerland has amazing mountainous scenery, and is where the Gruyère cheese is made. We were told by many non-Swiss people that it is a town that we must visit. The central part of town is medieval, with old buildings on both sides of the main street which is cobble-stoned. Essentially, it can be described by one word: quaint.

The town is pedestrian-only, which means buses and cars all park below, and tourists have a short walk in. We visited on a warm summer day, and although it was mid-week, it was pretty packed with tourists - not too much so you couldn't walk around easily, but it definitely made it hard to take photos (at that time, most of the tourists were Spanish actually).

One of the first things we did was go to the HRGiger Museum Bar. Right by the HR Giger Museum, it is a bar that is best described as "cavernous" and "skeletal" and is said to remind one of Jason and the Whale. All I kept thinking about were the Alien movies, however. It took 2 years to complete, and there are some great photos on the website: http://www.hrgiger.com
People are constantly walking in it just to take photos, so there is a sign saying that it is for patrons only to enter. We enjoyed a drink and a snack there, and it was a cool place to sit and get away from the sun for a bit.

I later learned that H.R. Giger is a Swiss artist who did award-winning design work for the Alien movie.His work is also in the museum, and just outside it too. One of the more impressive displays is the sculpture of the alien "bullets" in the gun.

Gun with alien bullets

Door handles

It is a small town, but there are plenty of restaurants to choose from, and the dishes of choice are fondue, raclette, and rösti; and for dessert, Gruyère cream with berries, meringues, or both! If you are lactose-intolerant, this is not the place for you to eat. I enjoyed cream with raspberries. I liked that they were separate, as I could choose the amount of cream to eat, but the waitress was surprised I didn't finish my cream. I wondered if I'd offended her.

Berries with cream

 We walked around the grounds of the château, which are flanked by the château walls and the stunning scenery. The chateau is from the 13th century, and marks the top of the town.

Going around the château grounds

View from the château grounds

Around the town is the remaining part of the fortified castlewalls, and it's fun to scramble around there on the old, worn steps.

We found a lovely hotel / resort, Hotel Cailler, in nearby Charmey, a town that is enjoyed by people who enjoy fresh mountain air (who doesn't?). We chose to stay there and experience the bains, or thermal baths, and spent a lovely and relaxing afternoon.
Charmey also boasts breathtaking views of the impressive mountains. We could only imagine the scenery in the wintertime.