- Kelly Chong
If anyone had asked me in May about my stay in Lausanne so far, I would have said, “Oh yes, Lausanne is a really nice place – clean, safe, quiet and beautiful surroundings, but I do miss home somewhat and Lausanne can be quiet to the point of exasperation at times…
Ask me again after summer vacation and now, I have to admit – Switzerland is starting to feel like home! After a whirlwind summer vacation – 1 week in Singapore, 2 weeks in Spain, 1 week in the UK – one starts to feel the weariness of fast-paced city life and long for the endless green vastness of the Swiss landscape, the serenity of Lac Leman and the calming sight of people walking their dogs …
But more than the idea of Switzerland being a slow, peaceful environment to take a break from a break is the feeling that Lausanne with its friendly residents, tranquil air, and our cosy apartment has now become a most successful formula to make us so comfortable, that we can now hardly imagine leaving Switzerland!
Make no mistake though; my above description does not therefore mean Switzerland is a slow place for people with a slow pace. Indeed, the Lausanne I return to is a Lausanne full of life revelling in the glory of the summer sun. There is always something happening at the lakefront, be it a music event or a festival, and this is the same for neighbouring towns. Gstaad has a series of concerts with visiting orchestras from overseas; Montreux had its world-famous Jazz Festival, and Vevey just had its beach volleyball competitions and Street Artistes’ Festival. In beaches from Lausanne to Lutry, sun-lovers stretch out languidly side by side, while water-lovers luxuriate in the sparkling, cool water. Many also fight for space on the platforms bobbing in the lake, while more others wait for their turn to dive off the boards into the cool water. Mixing with the coconut-ty scent of sun-tanning oil are the delicious smells of grilled sausages and other meats wafting up from the numerous barbecue grills dotting the beach. And pedal-boats are popular with both young and old.
Besides picnics, barbecues and a splashing good time, summer is also a time for sports-enthusiasts – hiking, rock-climbing, biking, water-skiing, canoeing, parasailing, white-water rafting … you name it, Switzerland probably has it. Indeed, this coming week sees a triathlon in action. Many of us also take the time now to make short weekend trips to explore the region – neighbouring France and Italy offer choices galore. And if you are into wine-tasting and do not want to venture too far, do not despair, for the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Lavaux Wine Terraces are just a matter of minutes away from Lausanne.
Indeed, summer is such a blissful season, that you find it within yourself to forgive Lausanne for its harsh winters. And you are again easily convinced that Switzerland is the place to be in. Now, as I look back at our first months here, and compare with the Lausanne I know now, laundry days and being in a foreign-language environment (i.e. French for me) are hardly the terrifying monsters we once thought them to be. And instead now, I try to contain my creeping panic that sometimes clutch at me, at the thought of how time is fast slipping by as we move inevitably towards the end of our Swiss sojourn here. You remind yourself to treasure every day, every hour, every minute, every second of being in the centre of Europe, in this beautiful country, especially when you have made strong friendships with classmates and other partners, who have walked this journey with you this year. More importantly, this one year has given me and my husband more time together to talk about our plans and life journey ahead. For at least, this is the one thing one can take away besides the numerous photographs of this breath-taking place – the irreplaceable experience of being in Lausanne together, of growing as a couple throughout this new experience, of making friends with classmates of other countries and cultures in Lausanne together, and of falling in love with Lausanne together. For this, I thank my husband, Henry, for bringing us to IMD, to Switzerland.
Some pictures from the summer - http://picasaweb.google.com/
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