August 1st is Swiss National Day. It is the equivalent of the Fourth of July or Bastille Day. It is a huge holiday. All stores are closed. Everyone who isn't already on summer holidays has the day off from work. There are barbecues and picnics and fireworks displays. We were lucky enough to have snagged an invitation to an evening party.
Jed & Helga had a full day hike planned with the boys. Since we had to be home by early evening we passed on that hike. Instead we decided to do our own shorter, easier hike. We took a train to the Lac de Joux. This area is famous for fine Swiss watch manufacturing. We walked passed the Jaeger LeCoultre factory and several other trim, clean, precise looking small factory buildings. This valley became THE watch making area because of its isolation and the long, snowy, frigid winters. It gives the residents something to during their many months indoors.
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| Lac de Joux |
Our hike was to be halfway around the lake from one village to the next. The lake is long and narrow cutting a broad, flat valley. The hills rise sharply on the north and south. We took the train to Sentier and planned to walk to the town of LePont. The first part of the hike was on boardwalk. We saw swans and flowers. It was idyllic. We passed houses with big uncultivated fields nestled against the hills. Then we were on a foot path through the woods, passing sandy beaches and clusters of vacation homes. We walked briskly for 7.25 miles in less than 3 hours. We wore ourselves out to catch the return train that runs hourly.
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| Homes Along the Lac |
We made the tiny rural train station with barely 5 minutes to spare. We slumped on the bench on the platform next to a waiting bicyclist. Not sure of the direction from which our train would arrive, we asked the French speaking cyclist. What he told us was incorrect and when our train arrived we nearly missed it. We ran to the other side of the track and pressed the button frantically to open the train door. The door would not open. Suddenly someone whistled loudly to us. The conductor had jumped off the train to tell us we were on the wrong side of the right train. We ran the length of the train and this time the button opened the door. I cannot imagine a conductor in the US being this helpful.
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| Alphorn Concert |
In the late afternoon there was a Swiss Alphorn concert at the church across the street. There were three older men and one young man who set up their 8 foot instruments in the courtyard of the church. (For the Jews reading this, you can see from the photo that the horns resemble a shofar on steroids.) The concert was well attended by young and old. Children sat on the ground waving Swiss flags. It is hard to imagine songs being played by these one note horns, but somehow with their cheeks puffed out and faces turned red the four managed to play a medley of songs that can only loved by the Swiss.
Our evening started out very relaxed. It was only a few steps to our neighbors house. They invited us and a dozen other neighbors to a backyard party. The "yard" was a decked area on a slope under a huge tree with a wonderful view of the Lake and a brick pizza oven. We met many of the neighbors, including a couple of retired teachers, she Swiss, he from North Carolina. Three tables were set for our dining pleasure, the homemade pizza dough was rolled into shape and we each made our own individual pizzas with the variety of toppings provided. As we finished eating the thunder began. Literally, real thunder just when the fireworks were to start. Then it began to pour. We huddled under the tree and sun umbrellas until it was obvious it was not going to stop raining soon. Then we headed for the house.
From our perch above Lake Geneva we face the Alps and France. On the Swiss side the Lake is continuous cities and towns. Montreux is the eastern most city before the Lake turns out of our sight. Then going west there is Vevey, Cully, Pully, Lausanne, Morges and Geneva. All of these places have fireworks and they are set off consecutively. It must be a grand sight from France, but even from the neighbor's windows we were able to see the fireworks from Pully and Lausanne. It was a fabulous light show, especially exciting because the fireworks would explode simultaneously with the lightening. It was as if Mother Nature had coordinated the program, holding the rain until after dinner, and sending a bolt into the mountains in perfect timing with the man-made show. It was a stunning end to a lovely day. Happy Birthday Switzerland and Reva.
