Toblerones for Easter!

We had lovely lunch this Easter Sunday in a restaurant in a little village called Cézille in the canton of Vaud in the foothills of the Jura mountains.

According to the Tribune de Genève the average swiss eats 500 grams of chocolate during easter. We decided to take a walk after lunch along the Cézille river which has lots of "Toblerones" along its river bank all the way from the French border to lake Geneva. No, they are not easter eggs hidden along the river, they are concrete triangular shaped blocks which were erected in 1939 to delay the German tanks in case they would attack Switzerland. These fortification remained in tact during the Cold War. Also extensive underground fortifications were built, disguised as barns, farms and ordinary houses. These were used until the mid 90's. One is now turned into a museum which can be visited in Gland near the end of the trail. The river Cézille is mighty after the rain and the smelting snow in the Jura. The whole walk is 10 kilometers long, needless to say that the hike we took only covered a small portion. Too much Toblerone!

The end of season

After many days of rain, it is finally a beautiful spring day, quite cold this morning with frost on the ground. I decide to say goodbye to winter by going one more time to the nearest cross country skiing area. it is called "le Vattay" and only a 30 minute drive from my home in the nearby Jura. Officially the tracks are closed since April 2, which means they are no longer maintained but are still accessible. When I get there, there are no cars parked at the entrance of the visitor center which is normally crowded with people, it has all the facilities of a ski resort; restaurant, a ski school, equipment rental places, etc. There is absolutely nobody around, it is so weird, like a ghost town! And the snow is still there, more than a meter high, with even a fresh layer of powder, it is so quiet. I suppose that everybody had enough of winter! Not so surprizing. This year they had more than four meters of snow all together and the season has lasted from late November till a few days ago. I put on my skis and choose one of my favorite tracks through the forest before reaching the plateau. The snow is great and the tracks are still very good, a bit icy at times, especially in the shade. The sun soon gets the upper hand and the snow becomes soft and smooth, what a delight, I feelThe kind of blue but happy at the same time saying goodbye to the joys of winter I do my twelve kilometer run in good time listening to Miles Davis on my iPod.....