I am so fond of La Chaux-de-Fonds!

I didn't have to go far from Neuchatel to get to my next city-La Chaux-de-Fonds. I just took the road Rue de l'Ecluse/ Route 10. When I arrived, the city was bustling! It's the third largest city after Geneva and Laussane. Both of which I've been to! I had to remember to stop by my hotel, the Grand Hotel Les Endroits because I was just raring to get going! And I hadn't even had my coffee yet! I had to stop and admire how beautiful and green everything looked outside my hotel. I was definitely in mountain territory! I learned that it's Switzerland's highest lying city. No wonder it was hard to catch my breath as I was carrying my luggage in (actually I just had the bell boy do that). I'm staking half the blame on the pastries I've been eating. And then I grabbed a chocolate au pain from inside the cafe in the hotel along with my latte and had no more thoughts about my horrible diet for the rest of the day.

My first stop of the day was at the famous Musee International d'Horlogerie which translates to The International Museum of Watchmaking. La Chaux de Fonds was actually the watch making capital of the world for over one hundred years! And I'll tell you what, I had never seen so many watches in my life! It has over 4500 exhibits with 2700 watches and 700 wall clocks! I ended up taking a gazillion pictures and got a nice one of me next to a nice looking watch to send to my boyfriend. He loves watches and collects them, so I can't wait to tell him where I was! Here is a picture of my favorite one of the bunch. The pendulum!

My next stop was a huge tourist trap, but I didn't care! For one, it had a cafe on top which just fueled my addiction even more, and second it had an amazing view of the city. I'm talking about the Espacite Tower! It's 174ft high, and you can either take the elevator up, or walk up the glass staircase! So I definitely took the staircase and pressed my face up against the windows all the way up just staring at the city. I left my mark. When I got up to the top floor, I had another latte but this time I enjoyed a nice salad for lunch because I was feeling healthy for walking up the stairs and then admired the view from the fourteenth floor. Here is the view!

My last stop of the day was the Bois du Petit-Chateau which was possibly the prettiest park I've ever been to! It is home to over 600 animals! There's also a 30,000 sq meter wooded area, and a vivarium for other species as well. And it was free! What more could I have asked for? Here's a lovely picture! Can you tell I've been picture happy today?

I was so beat when I got back to my hotel! I had room service deliver me a glass of wine and the I went and drew myself a nice bubble bath. This is the life.

http://europeforvisitors.com/switzaustria/articles/tour-espacite.htm

http://www.myswitzerland.com/en/suggestions/citytrips/cities/la-chaux-de-fonds.html

http://www.myswitzerland.com/en/suggestions/citytrips/interests-1/city-parks/park-garden-bois-du-petit-chateau.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g652160-d1447543-Reviews-Grand_Hotel_Les_Endroits-La_Chaux_de_Fonds.html

Beautiful Neuchâtel

I took the A5 down from Lausanne to Neuchatel around 10:00am this morning for forty five minutes. The scenery was stunning! Of course I couldn't get enough of Lake Neuchatel once I saw it and I was ecstatic to see that my hotel was right on the river too. I'm staying at the gorgeous Hotel Palafitte where I have a room right on the river! This is the view from the road. I just about died!

I quickly threw my bags in my room and off I went! I wanted to try and walk off some of the donuts I have been eating on this trip, so I made my way over to Old Town to see some of the old architecture. It was like I had been transported back in time! I stumbled upon Place des Halles which is a cafe filled district. It was right around this time where my coffee addicted self went searching for a latte. And of course I had to have something to go along with my latte so I splurged on a yummy pumpkin scone. And of course just gained back all of those calories I burned by walking here. So off I went happily munching on my scone and sipping on my latte. Not too long into my walk did I begin to notice that I kept passing fountains. There was one on almost every street corner! I found out later that some were even from the sixteenth century! So did I stop and take touristy pictures? You bet I did! And I regret nothing. My favorite fountain is above. It reminded me of Harry Potter since there's a Griffin at the top. I know-I'm such a nerd.

After, my body didn't like me climbing up the very steep and windy Rue du Chateau to go and see the Collegiale Church. I need to lay off those pastries. But it was definitely worth the bodily pain I went through to get there! This church is beyond gorgeous. It was consecrated in 1276 and is a Gothic style church. There is a rose glass stained window in the entrance and fifteen life size pictures of noble men and ladies throughout the castle.

I definitely wanted lunch after that torturous walk, so I grabbed a quick sandwich au fromage from a cute looking restaurant and then headed to my next adventure-The Garden of Scents! What's so unique about this place is that there are over 2000 aromatic plants ranging from Thyme to Salvia. My nose was working on overtime! My favorite sections were devoted to sweet smelling flowers. There were over 100 different kinds of Geraniums! I was definitely in heaven. Some are available to buy but with my awful green thumb I would likely kill the plant within a few days.

I definitely walked around that garden for more than a few hours and I was definitely ready to relax and have a nice dinner. I was in the mood for Thai, and I heard from a local that on Route de la Gare 36 there was a restaurant called L'auberge du Siam. I ordered a water and the most delicious panang curry in the whole wide world! Who knew you could get amazing Thai food in Neuchatel?

When I got back to my hotel, I ordered a glass of wine from the restaurant and sat on my balcony and just sat and looked at Lake Neuchatel with Les Alps providing a backdrop for it. It was the most peaceful way to end my day.

http://www.aubergedusiam.ch/
http://www.aswitzerlandattraction.com/switzerland-attractions-ip/garden-of-scents.htm
http://www.magicswitzerland.com/neuchatel.htm