Geneva blew us away. Literally. The wind today was crazy and didn’t let up all day. We took the train to the old sector and wandered for several hours. The Geneva fountain wasn’t operating due to the wind and walking along the lake wasn’t very peaceful either. But the weather was better than what we had at Interlaken. We did our best to explore, spending time in a cathedral (out of the wind) and at a botanical garden. We headed back to our Airbnb around 3, bought supplies for dinner, finalized our packing (a big task), and relaxed for the rest of the evening.
I’m realizing I failed to learn a lesson last year with respect to timing our outbound flight. For the second year in a row, I scheduled our outbound flight for first thing in the morning. I think I do this because Natalie and I both wake up early and like to get started on things early. However, with a 7 AM flight, and international airport recommendation to be there three hours early, we end up fighting against things like taxi service not operating in full swing and possibly showing up at the airport and not having all the services operating that we need to get checked in with our big boxes. If I could go back in time, I would try to look for a flight closer to noon.
I did learn one thing from last year, and I was able to upgrade us to business class for the first part of our trip. It is only an hour and a half from Geneva to Charles de Gaulle Airport (Paris), but by upgrading, we should make it a little bit easier to get our bike through the check-in process. We may not get to take advantage of the business class lounge very much, as it only opens a few minutes before we start boarding.
We are so grateful we’ve had this opportunity to explore France, Germany, and Switzerland. Our favorite parts of the trip were in France along EuroVelo 6. Having a dedicated bike path, away from traffic, is the most relaxing way to ride.
The theme of this trip has been feeling the kindness of others. Our Airbnb hosts have been outstanding, with Lisa giving us a ride to the airport at 3:45 AM seeing some sort of kindness world record, and many others allowing us to check in early. We’ve benefited from so many acts of kindness, including a neighbor providing food, a worker allowing us to wash our super-muddy bike, two gentlemen helping us fix our bike, a friend welding our bike frame (immediately before the trip), and a million small acts of courtesy by drivers who would slow down and give us room or stop and let us pass. Even the simple act of someone smiling or cheering us on seems to make a difference in our mood. This is all a reminder that we have the opportunity to be this positive force in the lives of all those around us. We just need to be aware, compassionate, and human.
