Cully Day 9 - Sightseeing in Lausanne

Wow, there are those mountains again. When I walk out the door, there they are.

How tall are those French Alps, anyway? Not as tall as Mount Rainier. That is the Chablais Alps mountain range which Mother Google tells me is 8,000 feet high. The tallest mountain in the French Alps is taller than Mount Rainier, towering at 15,000 feet (to Rainier's 14,000). Quiz time. What is the tallest mountain in the French Alps? I'll give you a hint. They named a fountain pen after it. 

Right. Mont Blanc. Ding, ding, ding! You win. And your prize is a chance to read about my trip to Lausanne.

I arrived in Lausanne a little early for my farewell lunch with Martine and JC. Don't know when I'll see them again. I hope it's soon! After lunch I wandered off to take in Lausanne. As this is Europe, touring a city usually means seeing the cathedral. And Lausanne is no exception. Of course they built it on the highest part of the city, so I had to hike up hill a bit. Ah, now how do I get into this place? Just a little more hiking around to the front.

Beautiful. And of course no cathedral would be complete without...

...it's own app on the App Store! If only I had data service on my phone. Sigh. 

And what have we here? We're in a 900 year-old cathedral, consecrated by Pope Gregory X, and what do they use to repair the stone?

The universal restoration material, duct tape!

Next I'm off to find Le Barbare which Martine said has the best hot chocolate. Just go through a tunnel from the cathedral towards the water.  Wow. I actually found it. And yes, the hot chocolate is divine.

It's like drinking the middle a molten lava cake. Yowzer! And the view from the cafe isn't bad either.

That couple in the corner was more interested in each other than in the chocolate. Ah, young love. And I'm not even in Paris yet.

I have a pressing date with a laundry machine. It'll take me 20 minutes just to figure out which buttons to press to start it, so I better get back on the train to Cully. Quite a lovely view of the lake from the train.

I found out the locals call this Lake Leman, but outsiders call it Lake Geneva. I don't know why. I'm just going to call it "the lake" and avoid the politics.