It was very peaceful waiting at Outcy for the ferry to Chateau Chillon. This turned out to be a nicely done up 100 year-old paddle steamer, with the engine working visible. And there was a restaurant serving decent coffee! It was hazy, but I had nice views of the famous Lavaux terraced vineyards on the north and the steep forested mountains to the south, with little villages nestled on the shoreline.
 Ouchy |
 La Suisse paddle steamer |
 paddle steamer engine |
 vineyards of Lavaux |
 south side village (note the haze) |
 ferry passengers |
Chateau Chillon was more interesting than I expected. It's a major tourist attraction and has a fair bit of stuff aimed at kids, and of course the Byron connection is played for all it's worth. but the walking route goes through almost every room in the castle and there's a lot of information in the displays.
 Chateau Chillon below the freeway |
 approaching Chateau Chillon |
 dominating the road south to the Grand Bernard |
I walked to Ville Neuve looking for somewhere for lunch, but ended up catching the bus back to Montreux and arriving at the station just in time to get the panorama train to Interlaken. So I ended up having lunch on the train, chatting to a Scottish woman who was part of a tour group.
The views from the train were pretty good, as the train goes through the mountain and then works its way through verdantly green valleys with bubbling rivers, surrounded by towering hills. I was particularly keen to see the area around Chateau d'Oex, as I'd read a history of that commune, Switzerland: A Village History. There's a train change in Zweisimmen, where the railway changes gauge.
Next: Interlaken: Faulhorn walk
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