TravelswithCharie

La Fourchette Lovers of chocolate know that Vevey is the birthplace of milk chocolate. The Nestlé world headquarters thrives in this beautiful town surrounded by mountains and the calm lake waters of Lake Leman (Lake Geneva). These seats by the shore are definitely prime seating for capturing the beauty and serenity of the alpine scenery. Alimentarium Why is there a fork in the lake? La Fourchette was originally planted there for the celebration of the 10th anniversary of Alimentarium, a food museum founded by Nestlé. Though the Fork had become part of the seascape, Alimentarium didn’t have the legal permission to keep the 8-meter high utensil in the lake. It wasn't until 2008 when the canton of Vaud approved its permanent installation in Lake Leman. Jean Pierre Zaugg designed the Fork and George Favre made the stainless steel, 450 kg (992 lbs) work of art. La Grenette La Grenette (Granary) presides over the Grande Place of Vevey where the outdoor market is he

Chateau de Chillon T here are seven pillars of Gothic mould,  In Chillon's dungeons deep and old,  There are seven columns, massy and grey,  Dim with a dull imprison'd ray,  A sunbeam which hath lost its way,  And through the crevice and the cleft  Of the thick wall is fallen and left;  Creeping o'er the floor so damp,  Like a marsh's meteor lamp:  And in each pillar there is a ring,  And in each ring there is a chain;  That iron is a cankering thing,  For in these limbs its teeth remain,  With marks that will not wear away,  Lake Leman L ake Leman lies by Chillon's walls:  A thousand feet in depth below  Its massy waters meet and flow;  Thus much the fathom-line was sent  From Chillon's snow-white battlement,  Which round about the wave inthralls:  A double dungeon wall and wave  Have made—and like a living grave  Below the surface of the lake  The dark vault lies wherein we lay:  We heard it ripple n

“I ask Christ for this one thing only, that he will enable me to endure all things courageously, and that he break me as a potter’s vessel or make me strong, as it pleases him.” Ulrich Zwingli For the 500th anniversary of Swiss reformation leader, Huldrych (Ulrich) Zwingli, fifteen plastic statues of him were cast from the model of the bronze original found on the Wasserkirche (Water Church). One of these statues was included at a festival parade in Zürich and twelve of them were installed in each of the twelve districts of the city. Both the main train station and the airport each had a statue on display as well.  Ten of these Zwingli figures were later moved to the Limmatquai to stand under the shadow of the Grossmünster Church overlooking the river. According to Christoph Sigrist, pastor of Grossmünster, the goal of the celebration is to bring Zwingli to the people, at eye level, thereby inviting dialogue and spreading the reach of the Church beyond its walls. The eco-Zwi

Marc Chagall, Self Portrait with 7 Fingers, 1912-1913. Oil on canvas.      The Stedelijk Museum is one of the leading modern and contemporary art museums in the world. Since its inception in 1874, the Stedelijk’s collection has steadily grown and evolved. A new wing completed in 2012 added another 10,000 square meters of space which the museum needed to display its vast and distinguished collection.      The museum also has an impressive number of forty Marc Chagall paintings, six of which it owns and three are on extended loan from the State. These nine paintings span a period of 35 years and provides a comprehensive look at Chagall’s works over three and a half decades. The Marc Chagall Research Project was undertaken by the museum to study the technique and materials used by the artist and the state of conservation of the paintings. The research found, among other things, that Chagall painted with tiny brushes at a fast pace, used pigments like cadmium yellow and cobalt blue wh

Sometimes when you revisit a place after many years of absence, you are disappointed because it is no longer what you remember it to be. I find this to be true of many cities in Europe where overtourism has transformed these once peaceful towns.  It doesn’t mean these places have lost their charm. It’s still there but it is a bit challenging to appreciate what you see when there are so many people around you (even in November) and the cacophony of herded tourist groups makes you want to run in the opposite direction. But that’s just my view. It’s been nearly two decades since I was in Lucerne where I had walked around the quiet city streets and ended up at the beautiful Jesuit Church. This same Church was my first stop on a recent day trip from Zürich. And it is everything I’ve imagined since that last visit. The white walls with its Baroque ornamentation are not exuberant as other Baroque churches in Europe tend to be. Rather, the decor livens up the stark white walls. I love t

No matter how often I return to Paris, I am still making new discoveries. Paris seems to have an inexhaustible number of delightful things yet to be revealed. On my recent visit, I found unique architectural gems like the McDonald's restaurant and the newly installed artwork, Bouquet of Tulips, by Jeff Koons. The Bouquet of Tulips is a monument to the victims of the terrorist attacks in Paris in 2015. It was recently installed near the Petit Palais and was immediately greeted with disapproval and negative criticisms including comparing the tulips with anuses. The monument was vandalized shortly after its installation. These colorful tulips are made of polychromed bronze, aluminum and stainless steel. Metro: Champs Elysees Clemenceau Lines 1 and 13, RER C Invalides, RER A Charles de Gaulle-Etoile This Neo-Baroque Italo-Spanish motifs of the right wing façade of École Massillon is enough to stop anyone and pay attention. Quai des Celestins and Rue du Petit Musc. Metr

In what used to be the courtyard of the University of Zurich Faculty Law Library, Spanish architect, Santiago Calatrava, created the additional space the library needed in unconventional fashion. He built a modern wing in stark contrast to the staid building designed in 1908 by H ermann Fietz. Calatrava's design consists of 6 oval rings around an elongated glazed skylight which illuminates the galleries and courtyard. The rings are lined with maple wood that add a rich tone finish to the design and define its space between the glass dome and the white stone floor of the ground floor. The glass domed copper roof floods the library with natural light. Study spaces are formed around the balustrades on each gallery, taking advantage of natural light.  A closer look at the graceful curve of the dome. The galleries float above the courtyard. Horizontal windows cut across the outer shell of the galleries. Rather than cover up the original courtyard, Sa

Rothenburg ob der Tauber A travel tale gone wrong After a thoroughly good morning of sightseeing around the fairy tale town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, I walked back to the train station to catch the 3:06 p.m. train to Würzburg which was my home base in Franconia. I was early so I took the opportunity to sit down and rest my aching feet inside the train station where it was warm and cozy. The train arrived on time and we took off for the hour ride home.  Or so I thought. Soon after we left the station, I heard an announcement in German which I didn’t understand completely but from which I inferred that something wasn’t quite right. After Steinach  where we had to change trains, there was another announcement and in Uffenheim, we were all asked to get off the train. I gathered through an English speaking passenger that we were going to be picked up by a bus as our train could not continue due to an obstruction at one of the stations up ahead.  We waited for the bus. And wait

Rothenburg ob der Tauber has been on my travel bucket list for years. And I finally got there  last November. It is an enchanting place.  With its half-timbered houses, clock towers, colorful façades, schneeballs and beer steins, Rothenburg ODT oozes with medieval charm.  It's no surprise that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I was partially filmed in Rothenburg ODT. This is a common dilemma in Rothenburg ODT. Which direction to take? It's hard to choose because every cobblestone street seems to be competing for the best dressed street award. And they are all winners in my book.  After walking half a day, an inviting table for two with colorful flowers to warm a cold November day. I love how these two half-timbered buildings anchor a street that leads to another intriguing square. The Plönlein (Little Square) is the most photographed square in Rothenburg ODT. But I found more picturesque neighborhoods than this. That's the bea