The Jura, Neuchatel, Montreux, Chamonix, Hochblauen..a weekend in the mountains

Greetings...This past weekend we went to Switzerland and France. We originally were going to go north, but the weather seemed right and we thought it may be a good time to explore some of the mountain regions we have not seen yet. So we decided to go to the Jura mountains, from there head south to see the town of Gruyere and onto Montreux and Lake Geneva. The Jura seperates France and Switzerland, running north-south for about 150 miles. It's northern end is only about an hour + from here. It really seems like an extension of France, it is totally french speaking...and they have many farms, tons of cows and, therefore, great cheeses too. We looked to see which city/town we could stay overnight in and it seemed Neuchatel would make a good point to explore from. This is the traditional center of Swiss clock making, and Neuchatel is on a lake of the same name. Read here to find out more. And here. Since it is not exactly tourist season, we were able to score a room in a hotel right on the lake, very cheaply. Photo. And there was no traffic to speak of on the roads. We checked out the Old Town, then found a place for dinner. Fondue rules!

In the morning, after exploring the town some more, and going to the weekly market, went on to drive through some of the mountains and towns nearby, with Ste. Croix as our destination before heading to Montreux. As you can see from the photo's, it is a very beautiful area indeed.
After leaving Ste. Croix, we headed south east towards Lake Geneva. As we drove on, we came to a spot where we could see the Alps clearly, it was getting near dusk and and we were getting excited to get closer. Something about really big mountains is very enticing. We knew Mont Blanc, in France, was not very far away. It is the highest mountain in Europe. I had seen it before. In 1990, I went on a ski trip with some freinds, to the Italian side of the Alps, at Breuil-Cervinia. Cervinia is the Italian name for the Matterhorn. From the top we could see many peaks including Mont Blanc, just a few kilometers away. It felt like being on top of the world. Look here.
We arrived at Lake Geneva just in time for a brilliant sunset. In the hills above Vevey, on terraced vinyards, we stopped and took in the view. Montreux was only another fifteen minutes. We arrived at the hotel, again right on the lake. We had booked a cheaper land-side room, with the hope that they may upgrade us to a lake side room, gratis. They did! Look here.

"We all came out to montreux
On the lake geneva shoreline
To make records with a mobile
We didnt have much time"

Remember that song? "Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple. One of the first riffs any guitar player learns. I must have heard it a million times, now I was standing on the spot where it happened. It's a great story. Read about it here. See a video concert version here. ( I just discovered how to do this link thing, and I love it!)

We walked around town that evening, had some dinner and made a plan for the next day. We were going to go to Gruyere, but the mountain bug got us. We figured we weren't that far away from Mont Blanc, so we thought we would drive a little further south, up a mountain pass, and we could get a good view. So the next morning we went down to the lake front for a walk, and came across a statue of Freddie Mercury. Seems he had a studio in town, and stayed there frequently..after his death, a memorial was installed. We then went to tour Castle Chillon, on the shore of the lake down the road a bit. Like 1,000 years old. Pretty awesome.

We mapped out a route to a 1500 meter high pass, figuring we would see Mont Blanc from there. Well we didn't. Too late to turn back now. We headed to Chamonix in France. Up some spectacular mountain roads, we were there shortly. But as it can be in this season, the fog had settled over all the really high peaks. So we got to see some of it, and some glaciers and a lot of lesser snow capped mountains. All very impressive and beautiful. We strolled around Chamonix, bought some super chocolates and had coffee before heading back. Needless to say, we never made it to Gruyere. Another weekend for that. Great trip, beautiful sights, a lot of history, and some really good food. I must say though, Switzerland is an expensive place, compared to some of the other countries we've been in. Except for gas. Much cheaper than Germany, go figure. See the photo album and all the pix here.


On Monday, Gisi had the day off so we went to the last of the three major peaks here in the southern Black Forest, the Hochblauen, or just Blauen. We were able to see the Swiss Alps from here too, and a 360degree panorama of the Rhine valley, south to Switzerland, west to France and north and east over the Schwarzwald. A gorgeous day, in the hi 60's, but windy on the mountain. Luftig!!! Check out the pix here. Here's the Feldberg, and the Belchen.

Wednesday now, back to the normal routine. You know, house cleaning, going to the market, preparing dinner. The weather continues to be somewhat cloudy, patches of sun...sometimes..but not too cold yet. They're starting to put up the Weihnacht (Christmas) decorations and stalls, they sell Christmas items and Glühwein and all that good stuff. Should be fun to see. Hope all is well with everyone. I read some of the news , mostly about our declining economy. Not good. Better days are on thier way, they always are. Auf Wiedersehen for now!