Lausanne

I do believe that I have reached the end of my travel desire, at least in Europe. Although, perhaps it's just a combination of the dreary weather and my ever approaching departure date. My last two trips have both been epic failures compared to most of my adventures. Lausanne was unfortunately another travel that had the motivation akin to a 6 year old to clean his room.

My friend Annie and I had planned to go to Lausanne, see the sights and then meet up with some other friends for dinner and karaoke. We ended up delaying our arrival in Lausanne until 4pm due to a late night before and a general lack of sleep.

Once we finally got through Geneva, Starbucks, and took the train to Lausanne we really didn't know what to do. We began walking in the general direction of the shops to see if anything was going on. Nothing was so we decided to take the metro to the lake and see the view. We weren't sure how you bought a ticket for the metro so we just hopped on and hoped for the best. At the next stop we saw two guys who may have been ticket checkers so we quickly bailed the train and waited until the next one. Perhaps we were a bit paranoid, but we didn't know what the deal was with tickets and decided we didn't want to know. Once the next metro came we again hoped on and made it to our destination.

Once we were outside we could see what could have been a beautiful scene, the lake, mountains and trees but unfortunately it was really cloudy / foggy / hazzy / winter so we couldn't even see the water and only a small glimpse of the snow on top of the mountains. Eh, oh well. We walked around a bit more and after deciding that there wasn't anything to do hoped back on the metro (this time with tickets) and went back to the Starbucks area.

Once we reached the Starbucks we got into the absurdly long line and Annie went to see if there were any open tables. There were none so we decided to go search for a different place to get a coffee and relax until my friend Jenna was going to come and meet us.

So now, if you'll allow me I'd like to rant a bit. Switzerland has the most obnoxious store hours I've ever had the unfortunate pleasure of knowing. During the week it isn't all that bad because stores are open until 7pm however on Saturday they all close at 5pm. Yes, that is correct, on a Saturday when people are out with time to spend to do things like grocery shop or shop in general everything closes at 5pm. So in a city like Lausanne or Geneva, after 5pm where do you go before dinner (around 7:30pm) but after all the stores have closed? That's correct, you can go to a bar, Starbucks or McDonalds. Hence why every Starbucks after 5pm in any city in Switzerland is packed! Especially in the winter when it's cold and you can't just go sit in a park somewhere. (End of Rant)

So, after our failed attempt at a table at Starbucks we went up the road a bit more and found La Durée, a fancy macaroon boutique. Yes, us Americans have our cupcake boutiques, but the French (or Swiss French) have their Macaroon boutiques where people will spend around $2 for one tiny macaroon. I bought 3 (Vanilla, Chocolate and Salted Caramel) and they were absolutely delicious.

After purchasing macaroons, we went a bit farther down the road to the only other open option, McDonald's. Why Annie and I have ended up at McDonald's on both of our trips we don't understand but it is unfortunately where we decided to get a coffee and hang out for the next 2 hours. Once Jenna was finally on her way we walked back down to the train station to meet her.

Next we headed towards Les Brassieres for dinner. We each got meals that you wouldn't find in the U.S and after finishing our Mushroom Omelette, Thin Crust Pizza type meal that I can't remember the name and Spinach stuffed Eggplant we headed back out into the cold to find a karaoke place.

Jenna had been to this place before, but what is a trip without at least an hour or 2 of wandering trying to find somewhere right? Eventually we were able to find the place after a kind person lead us in the right direction. Once we were there we waisted no time finding a bottle of wine to share and get some liquid courage in us. Then we signed up to sing 3 songs, "I will survive", "Ain't no mountain high enough" and "Don't stop believing". Once that was done we waited until our turn to proudly belt out some American tunes! An hour later it was our turn! This was my first karaoke experience so I was pretty nervous. I didn't stop shaking the whole time, but I put on a smile and danced with the music while holding the mic hoping that I didn't sound too terrible.

It was actually quite exhilarating and I really wished that we could have gone again. Unfortunately, we had to leave to catch our train back to Geneva in time to take the night bus. 2 hours later I was back home. Perhaps we'll go again but if I'd guess I'd say that the next time I'll be partaking in karaoke will be back in the US where my American accent won't give me an advantage.

Well, in terms of trips I don't have much planned, but that won't stop me from leaving thrilling blogs about leaving after a year in a new country and perhaps a one month back post. I am also thinking of starting a new blog once I get home but more on that later!

Cheers!