I had one day in Lugano but I was sort of tired so I decided to take it easy. I saw a couple of churches, including a very old one with beautiful biblical paintings on the walls. Walking along the lake was gorgeous, especially going through a park they had there. It was quite hot, as Lugano is south, close to Italy. There was also an outdoor public pool nearby and I so wished I had brought my swimming gear with me. I had a plan- I was going to the funicular that...

Luzern is known for it's lake and the nearby mountains, it's easy to see why- it is gorgeous! The other thing it's known for is the lion monument, carved into natural rock. Mark Twain once said it is "the saddest and most moving piece of rock in the world." I tend to agree- it is called "the dying Lion of Lucerne" after all. It was made in memory of Swiss mercenaries who were killed at the Tuileries in 1792. It sort of reminds me of Aslan dying in the Lion, the w...

The symbol of Bern is the bear, which is why they have 4 of them in captivity on the side of a hill in bearpark. I have never seen bears swim, play and run before so it was cool, but I can't be supportive of bears in captivity. Although they used to be in this dark, circular indoor space, so at least it has improved. Oh and they do run fast! The small bears anyway. Way faster than humans. I was really charmed by Bern's old town. It is immaculate- the buildings a...

There were no reservations necessary for my train ride to Switzerland so I locked up my luggage and toured Geneva for a couple of hours. First stop- United Nations. It's the 2nd largest UN building, biggest UN conference centre. They specialize in Human Rights, while the offices in NYC are geared towards security and defense. I took the hour tour of my future workplace (still dreaming). It was really cool. Of course there was security, then they took my picture ...