Montreaux

[Photos above: Montreaux lakefront walk; Chateau Chillon; Casey, Gary, Pam & Steve at pub]

I got up early today and took the train as far as Montreaux with one of the groups leaving Zermatt. At the Montreaux station I bid the group adieu and toured this magnificent town. The lakefront path was among the most beautiful I have ever taken. I walked from the train station to the castle. My knee bothered me a bit but the views made it easy to ignore. The castle, Chateau Chillon, was spectacular - one of the largest and most restored castles I have ever seen. I spent a couple of hours going through it. Afterward, I took a city bus back to the main part of town where I ate lunch at a restaurant overlooking Lake Geneva (or Lac Léman as the Swiss call it). I had Rosti Complet - potatoes with ham and an egg. Delicious. It's such a thrill to be able to get by in French when I travel now.

Around 3:00 pm I hopped on a train to Geneva. I had trouble staying awake for the hour-long train ride. In Geneva I went to the old part of the city for the two hours I had before the shops closed and made a major dent in my Christmas shopping - finding something for every member of my family. In the evening I met up with a few members of the group that were in Geneva that night at a pub famous for its beers by the litre. I don't usuall like beer but this one was pretty good.

That's the end of my posting for this trip. I had an amazing tme. I made many new friends and enjoyed reacquainting myself with old ones. The weather and snow conditions were fantastic. I ate a ton of really good food and still managed to lose a few pounds with all the skiing and hiking. I learned a lot and dramatically improved my skiing. I achieved the ultimate goal of my Level 3 certfication. I could not ask for more.