A Genève

Right after my last class of the week last Thursday afternoon, I rushed to the train station to catch my train to GENEVA where I would be reunited with my best friend from Wellesley! She was working in Kampala, Uganda and traveling all summer, so I only got to see her for a half-day the entire summer, and that was 3 months ago. So, this was a much-needed reunion. The train ride was very very pleasant, and it was refreshing to pass through areas where autumn seemed to have an effect because here in Provence, it still feels like summer. As much as I love the warm weather, I must say that I miss autumn as it's one of my favorite seasons. The changing colors, the chill in the air, that slightly smoky smell that reminds me of the holiday season...it was all there in Geneva :)
Bisno picked me up from the train station and we took the tram back to her apartment where I eventually got to meet all of her WONDERFUL flatmates and see where she's been living. Over the course of the weekend I got to meet a bunch of lovely young women from Smith and Bryn Mawr and I can tell that I would definitely have been friends with them had I been put in a situation in which I would be with them for a long time. You know, there's just something about women that go to all women's colleges. They are generally quite awesome if I must say so myself.
We kicked off the weekend on my first full day in Geneva with a little tour of La Vieille Ville (old Geneva) led by Bisno. We walked around this beautiful beautiful area with cobblestone streets and architecture that seemed to blend French and German architecture to create its own wonderfully quaint style full of bright colors and wood accents. Finally, we ended up at Saint-Pierre Cathedral, an interesting cathedral from the outside because it is composed of two starkly different architectural styles that resulted from a change in religious leadership. We went inside and then after admiring the interior we decided to o up to the top of the cathedral tower! From the top, we had the most AMAZING views of all of Geneva and we could see out to the Alps and across Lac Leman (Leman Lake). It was breathtaking:

Bisno also took me to Lac Leman to see the famous "Jet d'eau" that is featured in any postcard EVER with images of Geneva.

We used it as a photo opportunity and in the process met a very kind old British man in a wheelchair.
Then, afterwards we walked around some more, did a little bit of shopping, ate lunch at a lovely pizzeria, and then returned back to the apartment. We got to go to a fun birthday dinner and party for one of Bisno's friends who turned 20 on Saturday. For the first time in FOREVER, Bisno and I got to dress up and dance together.
Then, the next day, I got to see the lovely neighboring town of Carouge (which is accessible VERY easily by tram) and we had a really nice brunch with two of Bisno's other friends from her study abroad program. Then, Bisno and I spent a very long time in a Genevan flea market where she bought a silver ring and I bought a nice bag. We each stopped each other from anything more. It was a good system. Throughout the two full days I had in Geneva, I got to see a beautiful park called Le Bastion where old men play chess with HUGE plastic chess pieces on the ground, I got to see where Bisno takes her classes, and I wrote a song with help from Bisno called "A Genève" and it's all in French.

On Sunday, my last partial day in Geneva, Bisno took me to see the United Nations area which is like a separate town of its own, accessible by, again, Geneva's marvelous tram system. It wasn't particularly aesthetically pleasing but it was amazing just to be in that area surrounding by big shiny buildings where important decisions are made.
Then came the hard part. I said "bye" to Bisno and teared up as I was walking through the customs checkpoint and then proceeded to cry silently for the entire first hour of my train ride back to Aix-en-Provence. When I got in touch with Bisno after finally making it back to my house, it turned out that she had been crying for an hour or two, as well. *sigh* It's strange how we suddenly found ourselves in another country in another continent, meeting up in Geneva because it's where one of us lives. Very strange. It was one of those "wow, I'm growing up" or "wow, this is life" moments. Amazing and quite bittersweet.

But the loveliness of this weekend was so worth the inevitable tears and slightly melancholy day after.