A day trip to Annecy, France

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I didn’t plan my trip to Annecy. It was the excitement of not knowing what to expect that thrilled me. I took a bus from Geneva and the journey lasted for one and the half hour. Annecy is a city in the Rhône-Alpes (Rôno-Arpes) region of east central France; it is on the shores of Lake Annecy and 22 miles south of Geneva. You know that you are about to cross the border when an uniformed officer boarded the bus and demanded every passenger to present their passport.


When I arrived, it was noon with sun fiercely shining above my head. With only 5 hours to spend, I wasted no time. I grabbed a map from the travel agent by the bus station, quickly identified the few places i wanted to visit and started to find my bearing. Walking towards the direction of entering the town, it was typical of me to get distracted by the abundance of shops along the route. Boutique selling French style fashion and the shops offering a variety shoes from different designers were on display on Carnot Royale and Republique streets. It is virtually impossible to walk pass the street without popping in for a look.


Having fought off the temptation to shop, i entered the old town. Notre Dame church was the first building i came up upon once i was in the town. Two canals branch off River Thiou before running down to Lake of Annecy. Cafe serving French coffee and crepes concentrates in this part of the town. Worth mentioning is a chocolate shop that sells chocolates with creative combination of flavour such as jasmine and cactus. There are also shops that offer a variety of healthy lunch options, such as freshly cooked and served hot salad box with homemade yogurt in clay pot. Along with the healthy option, you also get to choose the ever famous French pastries and flan to satisfy those with a sweet tooth. Although i wasn’t feeling hungry, i found myself wanting to try everything.

I then arrived at Palais de L'lle, the very much photographed site in Annecy. It was used as a Administrative Hotel when court Geneva settled in Annecy. Having saved from being demolished in the 19th century, it is now classified as an historical monument and used as a museum. The commotion of tourist dining in restaurants that dotted alongside the canals brought the town alive, but not enough to ruin the tranquility of the town. The bridges and canal railings was draped in colourful flowers which gave a false impression that spring was in the air. Somehow, in this part of the town, I felt that it looks very much like Amsterdam then Venice of the Alps as it is claimed to be.

Leaving the crowd behind, i took a stroll along Quai Napoleon III which provides view of turquoise Lake Annecy with snow capped mountain background. With my stomach hammering for food, i headed back to the canal. I had salad (9 euro), 6 escargots (7 euro) and a glass of Rose to accompany the meal.


It was a rather relaxing day trip, having seen what i wanted to see, I took an earlier bus back to Geneva to meet up with sy.

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Photos

Old town with mountain backdrop
Swans in pair on the canal....

By the lake
Bird that is not camera shy