LAUSANNE

LAUSANNE

On to a very French Lausanne to another nice/not cheap campsite on the lake where we wandered along the shore past the awesome rowing shed and skate bowl as well as a bit of the Olympic display - looking forward to exploring tomorrow, after an early bed a long read.

LAUSANNE ROWING CLUB

13/5 Mother’s Day in Lausanne 

woke when ready and rung our Mummies for newsy chats, Getabout Grumma as usual too hard to track down - chased her from Gladstone to Chillingham. My boyfriend & I ran around the lake in an easterly direction discovering small sandy ‘beaches’, shady willowy -lined skinny paths carpeted with blossoms that frequently burst through the green thickets onto vast breath-taking panoramas of the lake beaded with rowers & yachts, enormous expanses of grass,garden and flower beds and of course, the monster mountains that put it all into perspective. Pretty.

Back to farewell our dear Belgians as they make for Italy hand in hand. Jeff and I fondly remember those times but celebrate the richness of exploration that money brings over what they can afford to experience. Ignorance is bliss however.

Kids have done their writing for the day so we breakfast in the warm sun, jump on the bikes and make for the Port (Ouchy).

I can’t help but beam as we wiggle through crowds of skaters, runners, cyclists, babes on scooters, vigorous volleyballers, rowers, sailors, kayakers…. one barely spies an overweight person despite the food!

ROOF!

We’re getting quick at chaining up the bikes, buying fresh bread and cheese from the ever-present market and making for the metro to see the old city UP the hill.

In Switzerland visitors paying to stay locally travel on ALL transport for free. The only money break in this enormously expensive destination.

With our mouths hanging open in awe of further majestic plazas, cathedrals and palaces, we zig zag our way to the Art Brut Gallery. French painter Jean Dubuffet in 1945 began collecting pieces from rebels, drop-outs, psychiatric patients and prisoners so starting the international movement of art brut. Not really our scene but amazing nonetheless with, for example, oversized 3D boxed frames intricately jammed with shells in a reef scene. The Algerian French artist eats shell fish exclusively to provide the materials that he then spray paints, coats with glitter and nail polish creating glorious reef fish & creatures which is then taken to another level as he inserts tiny lights deep within the shells to provide the sparkle. Utterly captivating.

After 3 levels of intrigue, we made for the courtyard outside and tore into the fresh olive bread, smoked bocincini (!!?!) & figs before a final tour of the neat, medieval city centre characterized by whiffs of chocolate,spires of all shapes (Kel reckons one looks like a spring onion with a wee fat bulby part before the needley bit) and colours ,whose heights are only topped by the surrounding jaggered amphitheater of snow capped Alps, on our way back to the bikes. 

Interesting that Neutral Swiss cities rarely have the European littering of great hero statues on horses with weapons but rather have pleasing abstract shapes, or at the water front, naked women with bare perfect breasts and flowing hair. Oh, and the omnipresent forest of flag poles always with the swiss flag alternating with the flag of the canton.Gives a more fresh uplifting uncluttered feel I think. Detour via the skate park.

Read in the sun……..zzzzz

Jen’s whinge: Bloody invisalign braces number 16 today - nearly there - on the way to 23! They change every 2 weeks and have to be worn 22 out of 24 hours. Every time I drink or eat they come in and out together with a trail of stinky saliva.  Kel has to look away - I wish I could too.  Good thing I’ve already hooked Jeff.  Can’t remember how many times I’ve thrown the bloody things out with the serviettes & had to scratch through the rubbish. Lotte is bringing the permanent night splints (as well as a much anticipated jar of promite) for when my mouth can be free of plastic during the day. Whinge, moan, complain over!

14/5 A perfect day in Lausanne: cloudless sky, not a breath of wind, lazy wakeup, slow breakfast and away, kids on skateboard/scooter, parents on foot to walk the Olympic circuit track, 22 station stroll, each station with a photo plaque with interesting Olympic history, studded along the foreshore, a little inland to the offices of the IOC, 

IOC HQ

canoe slalom?

broke ½ way to visit a very cleverly and tastefully presented Roman ruins about 100m inland from lakeside (viewing boxes present what’s there now and show waht was there 2000 yrs ago superimposed), then to the now deserted skate park for a crack at the bowls unfettered by the skate punks.  We only had to share it with a few dads+kids, some still in nappies scootering about the place.

Back home for maths and lunch and a read, then out again this time on the bikes to visit the IOC museum (new one being built so best bits housed on a boat, visit for free).  Twisted and turned our way along the waterfront, through the marina developments and restaurants, 

dodging the walkers (mostly mums with kids in prams on this Monday am) and past the huge sideshow alley fair, around the picturesque headland with the mountains to the SW across the lake becoming clearer by the minute, 

the deep blue sky crisscrossed with dead straight white streaks as the Euro aviation industry churns above, past numerous sculptures of naked women (rest of Europe sculptures seem to mainly be warlord men) and then we found the grand old ship.

Wandered in to learn about the Olympics, it’s ideals (which now firmly include environmental considerations), the impact each event has had on the host city/nation in the last 5 Olympiads, some great trivia with lots of warming anecdotes, (some not so warming, like the US guy who was  disqualified from the Marathon for completing most of it in a car!), great showcases of different sporting paraphenalia/equipment (including Chris Boardman’s bike, Wil wondered what it was worth, I don’t think anyone would know!) displays of all the torches and medals from each Games, and a great video of the highlights of the last 5 or so Opening Ceremonies.  Much more then just a sporting event!

Back on the bikes, a stop at the playground for a slide and a swing and a coffee, 

now the Ouchy area is filling up (with school and the working day over), bongo drummers, people riding bikes backwards, ice-cream lickers, lovers smooching, skatepunks flinging themselves along the edge of concrete blocks/benches (what for?!), the mountains becoming even more clear as the sun drops and the colours warm up - it’s a glorious ride home.  

Wil revisits the skatepark only to be overwhelmed by the plethora of skilled hell-men (and women) on bikes, boards, scooters and skates pulling breathtaking stunts everywhere you look - he finds a brief window to timidly cut a few moves in the deep bowl then scarpas home. 

Jen goes for a run, Svenja (German lady with 2 little kids Luca and Maya visiting our motorhome neighbours who are her aunt/uncle) came over to give us much needed and valued info re good things in Germany, including to Jen’s delight where the best fish markets are, what the best types of breads are, what are the best supermarkets, where is the best fairytale castle……..awesome!

After Jen’s run we pack a bag of goodies and head back down to the lake for dinner in the sunset, sitting on a jetty, watching the rowers cruise by, 

nice 8!

some very fresh signets (1 day old?) with their ma and pa paddle right up beside us and nest on that rough mound of sticks next to us (we thought it was a semi-prepared campfire, not a swan’s nest), the 4 babes snuggle in under mum’s wing as dad stands guard - left the camera memory stick in the computer!!

Jen and the kids back for a shower, I got the camera+stick and returned to the lake + scotch to soak in a little more of this fantastic day.

15/5 business day - run by the lake + 10BX for the olds (youngs not interested after the 1st session in Strasbourg), maths, washing clothes and dishes, net/email/blog, skate and scoot with the kids next door and away south westward to ?, somewhere in them thar mountains.