Rising more than 1000 metres above the city, the cliffs of Mont Saleve are known as the Balcony of Geneva. You can hike across its woods, you can even hike up it, or you can just come for the stupendous views of the town, the lake, and the surrounding mountains. We’ll spend our last day…

Geneva has always been a proudly independent place, and a centre of the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. Despite being Francophone, it was always destined to end up in the predominantly German-speaking Swiss Confederacy. The leading figure in much of this was Jean Calvin, founder of the Republic of Geneva. In 1909, 400 years…

That’s Lake Geneva we’re rounding, on our way to Geneva and our final stop. What’s Paris’s great icon? The Eiffel Tower. London has Big Ben, New York the Statue of Liberty. Geneva? A safety valve in the water mains. Just like in Paris and that radio mast, the locals were quick to spot the appeal…

The Harder Kulm mountain is a favourite hike of the locals. It takes about two hours to reach the top. I tried but I was on my own and it’s a challenge. I gave up after fifteen minutes. The point where I turned back down. Rather than the big struggle up the mountain, I chose…

Some pictures from around town on the first day here In the distance, covered in snow and cloud – the Jungfrau. A generous portrayal of the over 60-year-old General Guisan, the leader of the Swiss forces in the Second World War. A view towards Lake Thun. (But weren’t the Swiss neutral in WW2? Well yes,…

So I wasn’t expecting to do a blog this time. But Switzerland is experiencing an exceptional period of weather this September and the glory of the lakes and mountains is being shown off at its best. So here we are. So we’re off. The train has to get down to Lucerne first… and from there…