Geneva, Switzerland

I only recently figured out how easy it is to take a day trip by train from Paris to an array of beautiful cities around Europe. I guess it's like anything - it seems scary and intimidating at first, but once you give it a try you realize that there's really nothing too difficult about it at all.
I booked the SCNF (Paris's main train system that runs both domestically, as well as internationally) to Geneva for the day. I woke up early to meet Aliya at Gare de Lyon at 6:30AM to catch our 7AM train. It started out a little bumpy as we planned to meet at the ticketing terminals, but we didn't realize that there are ticketing terminals all over the train station. There are also two levels that caused a little confusion. I waited for half an hour near the departures board and by the time seven rolled around, it was time to board the train with or without my friend. Luckily two hours into our three hour ride, she found me sitting in a different cart and I quickly had my traveling buddy back :)
We arrived in Geneva at 10AM, took out a few Swiss Francs from the ATM and, thanks to my trusted traveling guide "Europe on a Budget", we were able to navigate our way way up North towards the League of Nations (or the UN). The morning started out a little hazy, but the sun soon broke through and burnt the clouds away. It turned out to be a gorgeous Tuesday afternoon. We decided we best take part in one of the hour long guided tours to get the best experience of the UN since the land is now closed to the public. A little background information: the United Nations was founded in 1945 to stop wars between countries, and to provide a platform for dialogue. Its aims are to facilitate cooperation in international law, economic development, social progress, human rights and achievement of world peace.
After our visit to the UN, we made our way to the Red Cross Museum. I was excited for this thought-provoking museum and its quietly dramatic exhibits, including the 34 footprints in a tiny cell-space where a delegate found seventeen people crammed together. Unfortunately as we went to pay our admission, the lady informed us that the museum is closed on Tuesdays :( Darn!

So we made our way down to the water to Geneva's most famous landmark, the Jet d'Eau - a large water fountain in the middle of Lake Geneva. After taking a few pictures, we were on the hunt for our first meal of the day. We were starving! We found a cute little restaurant on the cobblestones in the Old Town serving fondus and Italian dishes. We took a seat on the patio and enjoyed a delicious pasta meal. Our waiter was an interesting Swiss man who had a very sarcastic sense of humor. I couldn't tell if he hated us for being the annoying tourists polluting his city, loved us for being funny girls who were trying their best to replicate a french accent or indifferent towards us and just hated his job. I was amused by it, though, and tried my best to be as friendly as I could.
We had about two hours left before our six o'clock train back to Paris. We heard amazing things about the view from the top of the Saint Pierre Cathedral so we knew we had to go check it out. We paid the four Franc toll then began our climb to the top. It was a breathtaking view up there to say the least. The best part was we were able to catch the beginning of the sunset that lit up the sky with beautiful pinks, blues and yellows, all the while looking over the entire city of Geneva and the sparking lake.
Time was almost up so we grabbed a coffee (I still can't believe we lasted all day without one!), and then headed back up to the train station. We were back in Paris by 9PM, exhausted from the day and ready to curl up into our warm beds.
Next week I'm doing another day trip so stay tuned! :)

xoxo
Alexis