We left Lauterbrunnen Wednesday morning, hiking with our backpacks in the cold morning down to the train station. We caught a train to Interlaken and another to Geneva, about a three-hour journey. The scenery was lovely; we passed through many quaint Swiss towns and beautiful lakes, all with the snow-capped Alps peeking through the background. When we arrived in Geneva however, it was overcast and dreary. Still, even just on our short walk from the train station to our hostel, we could see that it was an interesting city. The home of the United Nations in Europe as well as the Red Cross, it has been called home by many foreigners, and this was reflected in both the people we passed on the street and the buildings lining it. For one thing, on a single block we passed Indian, Greek, Thai, Vietnamese, Egyptian, Chinese, Moroccan, and Japanese restaurants, an assortment of ethnic food that we haven’t seen in any other city on the trip thus far. We were eager to do some more exploring. Unfortunately, the dreary day persisted and it even began to rain a little, so we spent most of the rest of the day catching up in an internet cafe and making fondue in the hostel kitchen. We briefly went out in the late evening and thought about getting some drinks, but the sight of $25 cocktails persuaded us otherwise. Switzerland may be beautiful, but as we’ve mentioned before, it isn’t cheap.
Thursday we set out to see the town. We walked down to the banks of the Rhone and Lake Geneva, watching as people fed the swans and seagulls. We treated ourselves to some excellent coffee in one of the many little cafes, and then caught a tram to International Hill, where the United Nations and Red Cross buildings are situated. There is a nice museum in the Red Cross building, and I really enjoyed learning about its history. It was originally conceived by a Swiss man named Henry Dunant who witnessed the neglect experienced by wounded soldiers at the Battle of Solferino. He concieved of a society that would indiscriminantly give aid to anyone in need, and which could be considered neutral by both sides of any conflict, ensuring protection of the wounded and those providing help. It is perhaps fitting that the humanitarian society that was born is centered in Switzerland, famous for its neutrality in international conflicts. It was an enlightening visit.
Following the museum we took another stroll around the lake to see the Floral Clock and the Jet d’Eau, supposedly Europe’s highest fountain. After a lunch of crepes, we had to pick up our luggage and head to the airport. Geneva was a lovely city, and probably a place that deserved more than 24 hours of our time, but it was time to head to Prague.