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Monday, May 20th – Evian and Lac Leman
Last night’s dinner and the copious amounts of alcohol we have shared in the past two days has played havoc with my delicate digestion. I race to the bathroom but don’t reach it in time to avoid filling my underwear with steaming, brown lava. Instead of going to the toilet, I hop right into the shower and spend a long time washing it away. Then the clean the shower and my underwear, which were freshly laundered yesterday. The others are still asleep when I emerge from the bathroom.
Ah, the dangers of traveling life! I am so thankful that this violent eruption
didn’t happen at a more embarrassing moment. I promise myself never to travel without Imodium again. I sit and write on the front door step until the others are up.Today Thierry and Gerard plan to take us to Lac Leman. I am hoping they will drive us around the lake, through the Swiss side too, so I bring my passport. Christian has other things to do today so he doesn’t join us. The first place they take us is
to a 700m climb up Mont Saleve, a small mountain just across the French/Swiss border south of Geneva and 20 km north-west of Roche-sur-Foron. We drive to the top, passing a lot of road and mountain bikes on the road up. A group of off-road cyclists are having a meeting in the parking lot at the top. We around the trails on top to get a view of Geneva 5km away. The view would have been magnificent if it was
not so hazy today.They don’t drive into Geneva. They stay on French territory, taking us east from to show us the village of Yvoire, which is on a point jutting out into Lac Leman. It has a small fortification and castle. Gerard points out where the boats leave from here points across the lake in Switzerland.
By afternoon we are in Evian-les-Bains, the famous source of Evian bottled water. The original building, with its classic Deco architecture, is closed except for a small part being used for a promotional exhibit. There are also mineral baths and a casino here but we don’t visit those. Then, on the way home, Gerard gives us a driving tour of Thoron-les-Bains, another spa centre and the largest town on the south side of Lac Leman.
Christian joins us again for dinner. Afterwards there is more conversation. Gerard and Thierry are visiting Canada this summer. They are planning to see Quebec and southern Ontario. I give them the names and contact information of my friends who are fluent in French, Ian and Mark in Toronto and David and Lyle in Montreal. I will write to my friends and ask if they can give Gerard and Thierry accommodation during their trip. Christian gives us his address in Migennes and invites us to stay with him there when in pass there in a week or two. After three full days together it is hard to say goodbye, but Christian must leave this evening and Thierry, although he is staying the night, must leave by dawn to make it back for work on time. I give each of them pins – a Toronto welcome pin for Gerard, and Canadian flag for Thierry and a maple leaf for Christian. Apparently, pins are popular in France now.
PHOTO 1: Mike, Christian, Thierry & Gerard
PHOTO 2: Gerard and Thierry on Mt Saleve
PHOTO 3: Yvoire
PHOTO 4: Entrance to historic Evian Headquarters
PHOTO 5: casino in Thoron
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