Thanksgiving Day was just another weekday in Como. Dave went to work, there was normal activity out on the street and I had an Italian lesson scheduled. But then I made the mistake of checking Facebook and was immediately overcome by the first real bout of homesickness I have had since arriving in Italy. I looked at photo after photo of family gatherings and food preparation and read all the comments about weather, travel, football and more football. By the time we did video chats with Annie and Pat later in the day, I was coming out of my funk and looking forward to our weekend trip to Nyon, Switzerland.
Our friends Beth and Roma who also recently relocated to Europe, had invited us to spend Thanksgiving weekend with them in Switzerland. Our plan was to take a relaxing train ride there but when the first train of the itinerary was seriously delayed, we made a last minute decision to drive. Just a little over four hours and a trip through the Mt Blanc tunnel later, we arrived at their apartment in Nyon. This community which was settled by the Romans over 2000 years ago is just northeast of Geneva on the shores of Lake Geneva
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| Medieval Nyon Castle |
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| Column Iulia Equestris. |
We enjoyed walking through the town both in the evening and during the day. Our afternoon walk took us by Roman ruins, contented cows and a tranquil park. After burning enough calories, even fitness-obsessed Dave and Beth allowed themselves to indulge in the delicious Thanksgiving dinner prepared by Roma. And even though we didn't get to see any American football on television, we did get to enjoy Beth's glee when she heard that Auburn beat Alabama.
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| Expat Thanksgiving Dinner |
On the return drive, we encountered clouds and light snow as we approached the Mt. Blanc tunnel but as we emerged on the Italy side, we found bright sunshine. We made a spontaneous decision to stop and take the cable car up. It turned out to be a two part ride and then a steep climb up stairs inside a metal tunnel. When we emerged at the top, the view was spectacular and reminded us of our trip to the Vallée Blanche with the LHS ski club several years ago. We walked around in the snow until we were freezing and then headed down for the drive home. We continue to be amazed how close we currently live to these incredible places.
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| Cable car up Mt Blanc (Monte Bianco in Italy) |
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| Looking toward France |
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