Spa Weekend

At the beginning of April we went to Switzerland for a long weekend of rest and relaxation. We stayed at the Beau Rivage Hotel in Lausanne which I absolutely loved, http://www.brp.ch/uk/navigation.htm .

Our hotel had a few bars and cafe's but my favorite was the English Bar. It was our favorite spot to have a drink in the afternoon before dinner. I loved the wood paneling, the whiskey and their chopped steak burger was to die for! It was the next best thing to Texas Beef. The bar was also very comfortable and relaxing.

Sammy and Judith in the English Bar

Our hotel was right on Lake Geneva and the weather couldn't have been better. It was sunny and warm everyday we were in Lausanne, a nice change from the cold and rain in London. The hotel had an excellent Spa which I took full advantage of, I had massages (yes plural!), a facial, body scrub, a mani, pedi and a Japanese bath. I was so relaxed I could barely stay awake.

Sammy also enjoyed the spa facilities he came down to the Spa had a pedicure and enjoyed the pool.

Sammy waiting for his Pedicure

When we weren't enjoying the Spa or pool facilities we were exploring Lausanne. One day We took a paddle boat out on the lake and it was incredible. The water was very smooth and inviting looking but when you dipped your hand in it the water was freezing cold.

Sammy and Judith paddling on Lake Geneva

The Alps around the lake were so majestic they didn't look real. Some days you could hardly see them from the haze but on the day we were paddle boating we had a good view. We could see the Alps from our hotel room, but even when it was hazy the view was so beautiful you just wanted to sit, drink coffee, and quietly enjoy it.

The view from our hotel room

We also wandered around the old part of Lausanne visited a flea market and walked around a cathedral they were restoring. We stopped in a small sandwich shop while we were walking around and we had the best sandwiches I'd ever had. I don't know if it was because we were so hungry or if it was the homemade bread, but they were good.

Judith and Sammy at the Cathedral

Sammy and I also went to the Olympic park and museum, it's only a short walk from the hotel and it was very interesting. They have old tickets and programs as well as sporting equipment from the 1800's. They also had a collection of all of the Olympic torches which had been used and they displayed Olympic inspired art. My favorite was this statue of a man and his umbrella was a fountain.

Judith with Man Fountain

We walk through the parks (there were a few interconnected parks around our hotel) to the lake and one of my favorite Self Portraits Sammy snapped in the park right next to the lake. You can just see our hotel in the background.

On our last day in Lausanne we took a walk along the waterfront before we caught the train to Geneva. In the picture below I think we look like what we feel, very relaxed and happy.

Our last walk on Lake Geneva before going back to London

We didn't see as much as we could have while we were in Switzerland - we didn't even explore Geneva. But we didn't care because we had such a good time relaxing and strolling around Lausanne. I would highly recommend it to anyone who needed to unwind and anyone who enjoys having a Spa vacation.