Montreux: Castles, Mountains, and Jazz on the other end of Lac Léman

On Sunday of last weekend, my friend Paul and I hopped on the train and headed up to Montreux, a beautiful city on the other end of Lake Geneva (also called Lac Léman). We spent the morning wandering through the Chateau de Chillon, an amazing old castle that is perched right on the edge of the lake, overlooking the mountains in all their glory. The weather that day was clear and warm, which is the best way to enjoy the gorgeous lakeside scenery!

 

After seeing the Chateau, we made our way along the waterfront pathway and walked for about 45 minutes to Montreux-proper. While there, we checked out the happenings along the waterfront that are part of the world-famous annual Montreux Jazz Festival. Excellent people watching, booths selling random wares, endless bars and food stands, lots of (very talented) street musicians, tons of people with dogs, and great views were all there to be leisurely enjoyed, as any good summer event should be.

The Freddy Mercury statue in Montreux

We had a great day of walking around, enjoying some tasty beers and baguette sandwiches, and soaking up the atmosphere and scenery. Along with the nice weather, it was just about the perfect summer day in Switz. :) I'm very much looking forward to more weekend explorations around the lake this summer, and I hope to visit Montreux again to see more of the town and the hillsides surrounding it. The north end of the lake is much more scenic and stunningly, naturally beautiful than the Geneva-end of the lake. This day trip was a fantastic peek into the beauty at the other end of Lac Léman. Hooray for another 5 months of weekends! :)