Day 1 (Trains, planes and automobiles)

We got up at around 6 am after a night that was way too short. The plane was leaving at 8:35 so we had to take the 7:10 train to the airport. Upon arrival at the station we found out that due to an accident there were no trains going to the airport. Time for some quick improvisation. Called a cab, helped out some other stranded passengers by giving them the number for the taxi dispatch and ended up sharing a minivan cab with three other stranded travelers. Nevertheless we arrived at the airport on time for check-in and we even had enough time to score some tax free tobacco for yours truly.

The flight to Geneva was quite nice, even though we didn't have a window seat and I now know why EasyJet flights are so cheap (no leg space). Once at Geneva Airport we made our way through customs and to the EasyCar counter to pick up our faithful companion for the next twelve days.

She (Sandra had decided that the car was feminine and who am I to argue female intuition ;-) turned out to be a very nice little thing, with a lot more room inside than we'd thought (do I sound like Mercedes' Chief Marketing Officer yet? ;-).

Once in the car we found that due to some road construction it was impossible for us to find the entrance to the highway. Which lead to a (very nice as it turned out) change of plan, as we decided to take only secondary roads from Geneva to Bern. So during the first leg we were treated to incredible views of Lac Lemand (Lake Geneva) and the French Alps in the distance. A quick stop in Nyon at a COOP (Swiss supermarket chain) then provided us with some fuel (bread, cheese, meat and chocolate) for a really nice lunch on the shore of Lac Lemand. Incredible view and naturally I left the cam in the car.

After lunch we continued our journey through Lausanne, Yverdon, Payerne, Fribourg to Bern. The drive took us right through the southern most part of the Swiss Jura mountains. This mountain range is much older and less high than the Alps. A very beautiful drive with plenty of incredible views. Somewhere a long the way we made a short pit stop (read: smoke break) and I found out that Sandra really has a knack for getting acquainted with the locals.

At around 5 PM we arrived at Bern where we were greeted by my old friend Barbara (we used to be neighbors when I still lived in Switzerland and grew up together). We also found out that parking a car in Bern for a day is almost as expensive as renting one :-}

After dinner Sandra retired quite early, the poor gal must have been exhausted after all that driving. As I didn't have a license back then she had to do all the driving during our trip. Barbara and I stayed up quite late, catching up on the latest news while sitting on her balcony.

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