Switzerland- English

The arrival to Chamonix was not as I had imagined in my dreams, it was rainning heavily and the mountains were hidden among the thick fog. However, once again luck was on my side as Yohann had accepted my last minute request to stay in his house.

Yohann has been travelling around Europe for 11months with his wife and son on a very tight budget, I enjoyed hearing his stories from the road, he talked about the harsh conditions they encountered in Iceland and how whenever he saw a rainbow or a shooting star he took it as a good omen. The weather didn't help while I stayed at Yohann's so after a short visit to Chamonix we said our goodbyes and I set off towards Geneva. On that night, after pitching my tent, as I was getting in the sleeping bag a shooting star crossed the sky, then I remembered my conversation with Yohann... within minutes rain started pouring down.

Next morning things didn't get any better, the rain didn't stop and the contact I had in Geneva sent me a text saying he could no longer host me. Feeling a bit down and after buying some food provisions I crossed the border into Switzerland. What happened next was simply amazing, Pierre took me to his house to help me planning the Swiss route, later I met Sebastien who has a pedicab business in the city and he immediately invited me to stay in his house, things were looking great already and yet on the way to Sabastien’s house, another cyclist, Juan, approached me and after a short conversation he invited me for lunch lunch with his Colombian family!

I spent three beautiful days in Geneva, I enjoyed spending time with Seabastien and his housemates, had a chance to try some Colombian Sancocho soup and also had a great laugh with Juan's family. 

After saying goodbye to my new friends in the city, I continued north around the Lake Leman, visiting Lausanne and Neuchatel on the way. The Swiss countryside is really pretty and it's got excellent bike lines. I'm currently in Erlach, I have been invited to stay at Ines's and Vincent's house, both seasoned travellers with lots of interesting stories from their trips.   Now I plant to continue towards Germany, passing through Zurich and Lake Kostanz. While I continue my way north, I’ll keep an eye for rainbows and shooting stars! 

Alvertville-Erlach-English from lander on Vimeo.