Day 8. Today is the end of our south of France adventure. At least for this year. Before it started, I was afraid a week would be too long. But in the end, I was sad to say goodbye to the sparkling blue waters of the Mediterranean. I wondered when I would swim in it again…
Menton. We continue to drive right alongside the sea towards Italy this time. Thierry wanted to pass by Menton, the French city right next to Italy where his grandparents the side of his mom lived when they got old.
He had fond memories here of many summers spent with his family. We walked by the apartment building where his grandparents used to live and the beach they had frequented. He took some photos with his phone and sent them by MMS to his parents.
We stopped for coffee (in my case, tea) and croissant in a quaint café that had cushy seats under pretty yellow straw umbrellas that looked right down on the beach below. 
San Remo, Italy. Then we’re off to Italy, driving along the coast of the Italian Riviera then through the northwestern side towards the direction of Switzerland. We stopped in San Remo for some authentic Italian pizza. It’s good, but I actually prefer just the take-out pizzas you find everywhere around France. I kid you not, French pizza is very, very good.
We’re now headed northwards to Switzerland this time passing through the Alps. If I am beach person, then Thierry is a mountain creature. He couldn’t wait to show me how the mountain was even more beautiful than the sea. Here are some of the sights we passed.
The highest peak in the Alps ranges is Mont Blanc into which they have carved a road tunnel, 11.6 kilometers long. We enter on the side of Italy and emerge on the French side. They have countless tunnels in this region of Italy but this one is the longest by far. Thierry had to pay a 32euro toll to pass through the tunnel one-way and so was complaining and ranting all the way through the 12 minutes or so it took to get to the other side.
Day 9. Thonon Les Bains. We spend two nights here in what is sort of an apartment hotel. Very cozy, all the comforts of a hotel but bigger and with your own grassy backyard for sunbathing or eating outdoors. After 8 nights in a tent and shared toilets, it was pure luxury.
Thonon-Les-Bains is a picturesque town known for its spas and what they call here Thalassa thérapie. Don’t ask me what that is, I don’t know, I didn’t get one.
Anyway, Thonon is right beside Evian, where the mineral water comes from. These are two of the towns located around the shore of Lake Léhman, or otherwise known as Lake Geneva. (See below photo of me with an Evian bottle.)
We only had one full day here so we had to decide wisely how to spend it. Gosh there were so many places to see, I’m sure we’ll have to visit again another time. But for now, we decided to start the day with a visit to Yvoire and its Jardin des Cinq Sens or Garden of the Five Senses.
Here are some sunflower fields we passed by on the drive to Yvoire.
Yvoire. This medieval city is ranked as one of the International Laureates of Floral Decorations, and is a member of the Association of the Most Beautiful Villages of France.
Built in the 14th Century, Yvoire to this day possesses the essential elements of a medieval fortification: the castle, doors and ramparts. I know that while talking about my visits in France, I will often say, most beautiful this, most beautiful that. But seriously, this is the most beautiful town I’ve visited, so far. It was absolutely, absolutely beautiful! I will say no more, and let the pictures speak for themselves.
Le Labyrithe Jardin des Cinq Sens. Lying within the heart of Yvoire, this garden is classified by the French Ministry of Culture as Jardin Remarquable. What used to be the castle’s former kitchen garden was restored in the original medieval style.
Each section is dedicated to a specific theme. For example, one garden is devoted to plants and flowers growing in the Alpine region. Another, to old roses, with a fantastic view of the castle.
A cloister is planted with medicinal and aromatic plants. While lilies abound in the Garden of Fragrances where visitors are encouraged to gently rub leaves of plants to release their scent.
In the Garden of Textures, we were instructed to use the back of our hand to stroke the leaves. Some of them smooth and velvety, others rough or prickly or sticky. The Garden of Flavours had fruit and vegetables, but we were requested to taste only with our imagination.
The Garden of Sight was a flurry of blues and purples and pinks.
The sense of hearing is represented by the babble of water in the fountain and the singing of birds in the little aviary and all around.
Lake Léman / Lake Geneva. After lunch in Yvoire, we went on a boat tour of Lake Léman, which is the largest fresh water lake in Central Europe. During the tour, the guide pointed out the towns and beaches surrounding the lake and mentioned that one beach was popular among naturists.
Being the curious little person that I am, I just had to go. By the time the boat tour finished, it was late afternoon, so it was perfectly reasonable to want to just relax on the beach, right? We went back to the hotel to put on our swim suits, and we headed down to the lake.
This is one more fabulous surprise for me. I thought mountain regions were always cold. Because where we live, in Franche-Comte, even in summer I was frequently cold. But that’s another region.
This is one more fabulous surprise for me. I thought mountain regions were always cold. Because where we live, in Franche-Comte, even in summer I was frequently cold. But that’s another region.
Here, it was no less warm than the south. The weather was perfect! And I had no idea we could go to the beach. I was sure the lake would be too cold. Wrong again. (Note: Before coming to France, the beach to me was always, well, the beach. As in salty water. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I'm from the Philippines. But I realized that in fact, it can mean the shore of any body of water, including a lake.)
It was my first time to swim (wade, actually) in a proper lake. (I’m not counting the lake in Wuhan, sorry.) I loved it! Lake Léman is absolutely beautiful and the water so calm and tranquil, just the way I like it. 
Triumphantly, Thierry said, “Now you believe me? Mountains are better. They’ve got everything! Skiing resorts in winter, gardens and lakes in summer.” But more than that, he prefers this region because it isn’t crowded and overpriced like in the south.
Day 10, Geneva. Our last stop before returning back home. This is me and the swans posing in front of the giant Jet D’Eau, or water fountain, which propels 500 litres of water per second to a height of 140 metres at a speed of 200 km per hour!
We took a street train tour of the city, but didn’t take many pictures. Like Thierry says, it’s not very touristique. It was all tall buildings, banks, expensive shops. Not his type of town.
