We wanted to see more of the Swiss shoreline of Lake Geneva, so we took a ride on the Montreux, a beautiful steamship that carries passengers from Lausanne eastward to Chateau de Chillon.

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Crescent-shaped Lake Geneva covers a total area of 58 square kilometers, averages 8 kilometers in width, and is 310 meters at its deepest point. Considered the largest freshwater lake in Europe, this body of water is bordered by France on the south and Switzerland on the north, with 60% under Swiss jurisdiction. Fortunately we had fairly good visibility of both the French and Swiss Alps during our day-long adventure.

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Terraced vineyards covered much of the landscape just to the east of Lausanne.

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We didn’t stop at the popular lakeshore town of Vevey, home to 20,000 residents. Maybe during our next Switzerland visit we can tour the Nestle headquarters there. Milk chocolate was invented in Vevey by Daniel Peter in 1875 with the help of Henri Nestle. From our boat we were not able to see the lakeshore statue of Charlie Chaplin, who spent the last 25 years of his life in the Vevey hills.

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We walked along the promenade in the small city of Montreux and were passed by bicyclists and joggers on the wide lakeshore sidewalk.  A group of four or five toddlers with their daycare minders also enjoyed walking and playing with balls on the waterfront. Since 1967 Montreux has hosted a jazz festival, which now includes jazz, blues, and rock artists. Several well known 20th century musicians made this city of 25,000 their home or an extended vacation destination.  Freddie Mercury, lead  singer of Queen, and singer/songwriter David Bowie both lived in Montreux. Igor Stravinski, famous Russian composer, created The Rite of Spring in 1912 while staying in this beautiful city between Lake Geneva and the foothills of the Swiss Alps. 

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Our boat ride concluded at Chateau de Chillon, which stands about 3 kilometers east of Montreux. We enjoyed taking photos of the exterior of this 13th century fortress and did not explore the inside with its dungeons and frescoes. 

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