This past summer I ran a study-abroad program in Paris. Over a hundred US students came through Paris at different times, and I was the main logistics support person for all of them. I also had two groups that lived with me in the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris for the month of July.
After the successful completion of my summer job, I headed straight to Switzerland to rejoin my wife who was teaching in Neuchatel. Still feeling lingering stress from Paris, I decided that I needed to recharge my batteries. I hopped on the train to the Valais, and after watching Lac Léman roll by on my right for a half hour I already felt better.
At Martigny, after saluting the Roman Centurions with a cheery "Ave!" I bought supplies and boarded the local train for the climb up to Sembrancher, then Orsières. From Orsières, a comfortable bus emblazoned with Saint Bernard puppies climbed the rest of the way to Champex-Lac.
After airing out our little chalet apartment and buying some toothsome "pain valaisan" at the local bakery, I settled in for pure Swiss alpine peace for the most restorative 48 hours of my life. When my wife rejoined me two days later, rather than the haggard ex-Parisian she had seen in Yverdon-les-Bains, she found a relaxed, happy hubby glowing from the mountain air and buzzing from the wildlife sightings and awe-inspiring reflections of the mountains in the little lake in the center of the village.
Genealogy
Community
