Tour de Suisse

Daniel won two VIP tickets to the ninth and final stage of the Tour de Suisse, the fourth largest professional stage race in the world. The last stage was a time trial around Bern and we went to the stadium in Wankdorf to enjoy the race. All the team buses were set up outside the stadium and we could watch the riders warming up and solicit free water bottles from the teams. It was cool to see how professional the riders were, and the set-up made it possible for their fans to see them up close and ask for photographs and autographs.

The VIP tent had special access to the finish line and so we enjoyed some delicious food and wine while watching the riders speed past. Tom Dumoulin won Sunday's stage and Simon Spilak won overall. It was a great experience and we're looking forward to watching more cycle races in Europe.

Enjoying the race in style in the VIP tent!

Mark Cavendish's bike. Daniel was loving all the gear!

We saw all the riders warming up before their time trial.
This is the Trek Factory Racing bus.

Mark Cavendish setting off for his 38km

Local hero, Fabian Cancellara, who led for 95%
of the final stage, but was pipped at the post
and finished third in the end.

Me and Daryl Impey, the South African champion!

Mont Tendre

Mont Tendre has the distinction of being the highest, most-isolated peak in the canton of Vaud. (We think this means that there are higher peaks which are less isolated...). It is part of the Jura Mountain Range, which stretches from Zurich into France, and it lies on one of Daniel's favourite running routes.

We drove up close to the peak on Sunday and then walked the last couple of kilometres to the highest point. The trails are grassy with rolling hills and an abundance of wild flowers and butterflies. It was a cloudy day when we were up there, but the views are spectacular. On the one side you can see across Lake Geneva to the French Alps, and on the other side you can look down the valley into a different part of France. It was well worth a visit and we'll definitely be back!

Rolling hills and grassy trails

The peak

The view north

Just beautiful!

SUNNY UPDATE (2 August 2015)

We've hiked up to Mont Tendre a few times now, but today was my first time when the peak was sunny and not shrouded in cloud! So, here are a few photos from today's hike, with blue skies and the top of Mont Blanc peaking out across the lake. We ran a gauntlet of cows to reach the summit and we saw a fox on the way down :)

Sunny summit

Rolling hills and blue skies

Mont Blanc making an appearance

There were lots of cows at the top. And lots of musical cowbells!

A fox!

Sunday Market, Divonne

On Sunday we drove 20 minutes to the border town of Divonne in France. Divonne is famous for its Sunday Market (and its big Carrefour supermarket!). All the stalls at the market have delicious meats, cheeses, breads, fruits, flowers, seafood, everything fresh galore! It's a perfect way to spend a sunny Sunday morning.