Geneva Sights

After we left Gare Cornavin, we set out for the lake, which is located in the center of Geneva. The lake isn't a far walk from the main station and we wanted to check out one of the famous sites in Geneva we had read about, the Jet d'Eau.

The Jet d'Eau is a giant water fountain on the side of the lake which is so high that it is visible from all directions.


Unfortunately the picture above is the best shot we have of the Jet d'Eau. When we started our walk toward the lake, we could see it above the buildings, but by the time we actually got to the lake, it was off. We thought they were just taking a break, but later we saw on the informational sign that they shut the fountain off when the winds are too strong. If the winds are strong enough to blow water back onto the shore, no more fountain. Sad but understandable. This was one of the tourist attractions we wanted to get a picture in front of but I guess we'll just have to go back to Geneva sometime.

One of the first sights we came across on our walk to the lake was Monument Brunswick. This monument was extremely ornate and detailed. We walked around it on all sides and were just amazed by how intricate all of the work was.


The monument is apparently a mausoleum for the Duke of Brunswick, who the Geneva tourism site calls "eccentric and paranoiac." He left a lot of money to Geneva and in return required this monument to be built in a prominent location. On the side of the lake, it's hard to find a more "worthy" site than that. It's a really striking monument and guarded by lions. The style of the monument is apparently exactly like the Scaligeri family tomb in Verona. (Side note: I love the Geneva tourism site for all of its helpful info!)

We got to the lake and encountered signs describing the lake, the surrounding area and the local wildlife. This sign amused us:


If you don't read French, the duck is basically asking you not to feed it because it can take care of itself. The rat is telling you that it is he who benefits. In other words, don't feed the animals! I don't remember if we even saw any animals.

We continued our sightseeing walk by taking the Mont Blanc bridge across the lake. The view of the lake was great. Much better than the view of the road which was a lot of stopped traffic. We would later learn the reason for all the traffic (next post).


After crossing the bridge to the other side of the lake, we visited the National Monument. The National Monument consisted of tall statues of two women on a pedestal. The women represented the Republic of Geneva and Helvetia, and the monument celebrated them coming together so that Geneva became part of Switzerland in 1814. The monument was from 1869 but is still in pretty good condition.


The National Monument was right next to the Jardin Anglais (English Garden) so we wandered around that for a bit, taking in the sights and taking photos.


We were enjoying sightseeing in Geneva throughout the morning and then we stumbled on something awesome. Next up: the Geneve Marathon!