Switzerland 2 (13th - 20th August 07)

We headed back into northern Switzerland from Freiburg and started riding towards Geneva. It took us 5 riding days to get to Geneva but there was plenty of nice sights and towns along the way. We spent a day in a town called Biel-Bienne which is at the frontier of the German and French speaking part, so they gave the town two names, one in each language. The town is the home of swiss watch making, with huge offices belonging to Rolex, Tissot and Swatch to name a few.

Next stop was Lausanne, where we visited the Olympic museum. This was one of the best museums we have ever been to. A great display on the history of the games and some amazing sculptures in the gardens. It was interesting to read about each games, and view it in relation to the current events of the time. For instance why countries boycotted particular games depending on political situations.

Nick practising his aero-dynamics outside the Olympic museum


A days ride to the other side of Lac Geneve, took us to Geneva, the multi-national capital of the world. Apparently only 40 percent of the city is Swiss, the rest are foreigners. A highlight was going on a guided tour of the UN headquarters, where we visited some of the conference rooms and learnt the history of the UN.

Typical tourist photo outside the UN


We also visited the Red Cross museum, which interesting did not disclose any information into its funding or expenditure, but rather more about the foundation of the Red Cross itself. One of the mian criticisms of the Red Cross is how they did nothing for Jews in concentration camps during WW2. We got the impression that they skimmed over this part quickly in the museum.

Waking up the morning we were to leave Switzerland, it was pissing with rain, with rain forecasts for the next 4 days. So we decided to catch a train to Lyon, France where we could then ride south down the Rhone valley. We will now spend the next week cycling towards Montpellier, where we will catch a train to the Basque area of France, Bayonne. From there we will cross the Spanish border and spend a few weeks exploring the region.