France et Switzerland I

I don't know how to do our trip justice, but I will do my best with some of my favorite pics (out of many, many) and a brief description of what we did. It was super fun, and super tiring!

Starting out, we flew a nice red-eye to Paris, where we hardly got any sleep due to all the happenings on the plane (you would have thought we were back in the hospital having a baby with all the interruptions!) not to mention the fact that Erik was getting over a cough and couldn't sleep well once everything quieted down.

When we got to Paris we caught our flight down to Geneva to see my mom and Jim on their mission. It was a great reunion with them and they greeted us with a baguette, so we could feel real French-like.

Without any further ado, and hardly any time to unpack, we went to the institute in Geneva. They live in Ferney Voltaire, France, so began the constant comings and goings between the two countries.

While Jim was in a meeting, my mom took us to see some parts of Geneva near the institute. We walked over to the Reformation Wall.

Here's on our walk. And the Wall.

I loved these buildings!

After our quick, short tour of that area we went back to the institute and listened, or tried to, Mom and Jim's lesson on Paul, I think! We were so tired by that point we could barely keep our eyes open! They gave a well-prepared lesson, though.

That night, Erik was so worn out he slept 8 straight hours! That helped me get started on the right foot. Especially because the next morning we were up early to begin the fun.

Here's a nice view of the mountains behind Lake Geneva. We were on our way to Gruyere, Switzerland, a medieval town, close to where they make cheese and chocolate. At this time of year we didn't get to see many cows out yet, so no pics of those animals which are the key to all that cheese and some of the chocolate.

Erik was happy to be out of the car.



I loved this plaza!

Here's going into the cheese factory tour. The smell was interesting, but the cheese we got to taste was good. We learned how the flowers and grasses cows eat, at various times of the year, alter the flavors of cheese, making 75 different types.
Now who can go to Switzerland and not take a tour of a chocolate factory? Switzerland consumes the most chocolate in the world, so of course they have the best.

Those aren't tootsie rolls! They were delicious, but not as good as the many other kinds we were able to taste later!

Cocoa beans.

After our chocolate tour we headed toward Lake Geneva to the castle Chillon, which is right on the water. I loved the moat as I walked over the bridge.
Here's the prison in the cellar which inspired Lord Byron to write his poem The Prisoner.
This is just outside on the dock.


Isn't that gorgeous?!
Here's Erik on the way back talking to Grandma.
It was a busy first day-and-a-half, but worth it! Stay tuned for the next few days' travel!