of all of the cities we went to on our little adventure this past spring, geneva was probably the shortest stop, which is a shame because it is an absolutely gorgeous place. we arrived at about 9 o'clock in the morning feeling like it should have been 3 am. I thought it was always just something people talked about in movies before I moved to the caribbean, but jet lag is a very real thing. so please pardon our vacant facial expressions and squinty eyes throughout this camera roll. and just another little disclaimer, we are wearing the same clothes we wore in new york. it's gross, but we didn't get to our hotel until that afternoon when we arrived in lucerne. so for this post, we are outfit repeaters. okay, let's talk geneva.
our first observation was that everyone we saw in geneva was so smartly dressed. the beautiful girls in trench coats and ballet flats and button-down shirts with impeccable topknots. the men in trench coats and loafers and well-fitting suits. it stunned us at first and then we realized that we had been living on a caribbean island for the last 16 months and there, we consider donning shorts and a tee shirt being ready for the day. there is seriously so much to be learned from the swiss. their outfit choices are just the beginning. have I mentioned how excited I am to get home and do some shopping?
^^ on the train from the airport to old town geneva. see what I mean about vacant and squinty? ^^
not that we needed it after eating for four straight hours on the plane (and then they get another quick meal in before you land), but we stopped in for some sustenance by way of macarons. I'm a sucker for a macaron and how could we not stop for some in a city so inherently french. then we stopped in at the cutest, most amazing, most entrancing, more adorable (you get the point) bookstore ever and I didn't take any pictures because I was already kind of feeling like the underdressed dirty american that only speaks english, and didn't want to draw anymore attention to myself. but they had the most charming, yet still educational, toys for children and I pretty much already furnished my far distant future nursery. looks like I'll just have to head back to geneva when the time comes to pick it all up.
we made our way through old town geneva, not really knowing where we were going but enjoying the clean morning air and the long-since-needed time together. mitch was operating the dslr for most of this little jaunt and because we were as tired as I said we were, most of the pictures turned out blue. he is, by far and away, a much better photographer than I am in all honesty and I suppose I could have changed the color cast, but I feel like the blueish hue sort of denotes how crisp and cool the air was that morning. and then, as the sun got higher in the sky, the colors sort of evened out.
during our morning meander, we happened upon this beautiful old cathedral. mitch has lived in europe before and so he (as well as all of you other euro-dwellers) has stumbled upon these as part of everyday life. but for a girl who has never been to a real honest-to-goodness european cathedral, it was one of those take-your-breath away experiences. amidst all of the hustle and bustle of people getting to work, this space was quiet. there were still people perched against the pillars of the buildings or relaxing on park benches just enjoying that dim early morning sunlight and whatever they were reading, but it was one of those moments that you sort of look around and think maybe you're doing life all wrong? maybe you need to take moments like these to sit and relax and enjoy without worrying about what may come next. we spent a fair amount of time here and then moved on to get lost in another little neighborhood.
^^ that's the dream, isn't it? ^^
admittedly, there's a lot I don't remember about geneva. I remember I loved it and I remember talking to mitch about how we wished our everyday life could be like that all the time. I remember looking out over those charming little townhouses above and picking one out that would be ours and mitch and I sort of dreamed up this alternate little life where we were swiss and had jobs and went to little cafes in the mornings before work. and I remember being sleepy despite sleeping so very comfortably on the plane ride over. and I remember boarding, and almost being late for, our train to lucerne. and then the sweet husband that I have let me pass out in his lap for almost the entire ride only waking me periodically for views and vistas of farms and cows and cottages that he knew I would not want to miss. and when I officially woke, we were in lucerne.
I hope all of you are having a wonderful week. it's fourth of july week in the states right now and that is always something I hate to miss. it's always a shame to forego a night of bonfires and hot dogs and sparklers and pie. thankfully, this is probably the last year I'll have to miss out. for a while anyway. have a wonderful day and thanks for reading!
love, arielle
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