Tulip Festival in Morges

Since the beginning of spring, the parks are covered in beautiful flowers and we all rush to the green spaces of the city. It is normal to see bankers and students during lunchtime picnicking, reading or simply relaxing on a busy weekday.

Walks at this time of the year are incredible in this country. In mid-May, I was in Morges (29 minutes by train from Geneva), a small, cute and agreeable town on the edge of Lake Geneva. After a short stroll around the town centre, I made my way to the Parc de l'Indépendance to visit the “Fête de la Tulipe”.

View of Temple de Morges from the Grand-Rue. A protestant temple from the 14th century

Grand-Rue - Morges’s charming main street with plenty of shops, restaurants and fountains and a Museum

Musée Alexis Forel - Founded in 1918, the museum is located in a historic house. You can see permanent collections and temporary exhibitions. Among the permanent collections, more than 150 dolls, Russian icons and paintings…

La Boîte à Thé - A beautiful and very nice tea-room and tea shop

Tea for the best mum, for Mother’s Day on May 14^th

Located between the Château de Morges, Lake Geneva and La Morges river, the Parc de l'Indépendance is home to 51 species of trees and plants (including chestnut trees, tulips, giant sequoias...).

Once a year (April to mid-May) “La Fête de la Tulipe” takes place. Morges becomes the capital of the tulip by exhibiting an array of tulips, narcissi and hyacinths. In an area of over 30,000 square meters, more than 120,000 bulbs allow us to discover more than 380 different varieties of tulip belonging to the various species (I give you their names in French: simple, double, triomphe, frangée, viridiflora, perroquet, hybrides et pluriflore).

I leave you with my photo album of that day, when I spent a lovely moment...

Tulipe frangée, Cummins

Séquoia géant, Sierra Nevada en Californie

Tulipe triomphe, Rosalie

Tulipe simple tardive, Café Noir

Monument des Patriotes Vaudois

Pin pleureur de l’Himalaya

Tulipe triomphe, Cheers

Kiosque à Musique

Marronnier rouge

Château de Morges - Built in 1286 by Louis de Savoie, the castle of Morges now houses several museums

Quai du Mont-Blanc - A very pleasant walk with views on the small port of sailing boats and the Morges castle…

Quai Lochmann - A magnificent walk on the shores of Lake Geneva, there are many beautiful residences…

View of the Temple de Morges from the Quai Lochmann

Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris (2016)

Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace.

He has looks and wealth, she has charm and elegance. You might not want to like them, but you do. You’d like to get to know Grace better. But it’s difficult. Because you realise Jack and Grace are never apart. Some might call this true love. Others might ask why Grace never answers the phone. Or can’t meet for lunch - without Jack - even though she doesn’t work. How she can cook such elaborate meals but remain so slim. And why there are bars on one of the bedroom windows.

Sometimes, the perfect marriage is the perfect lie.

Author:  B.A. Paris is from a Franco/Irish background and was born in 1958. She was brought up in England and moved to France when she was 21. She spent some years working as a trader in an international bank before re-training as a teacher and setting up a language school with her husband. They still live in France and have five daughters. Her first novel “Behind Closed Doors” was published in 2016 and became a tremendous bestseller.

My thoughts: After reading “The Breakdown”, which is the second book by B.A. Paris, I wanted to read this one, which is her first novel. I read it in early April and I loved it. But, to be honest, I prefer by far the first one I read. “Behind Closed Doors” is a superb psychological domestic thriller, but best suited as a summer read.

It is a surprising and suffocating story but without any spectacular twists. It is a “huis clos”, as its title evokes. It makes us think how much we know about the people we choose to marry and how much we know about the secrets of our friends and acquaintances…

It's the story of an apparently perfect couple – with the looks, career, money, a beautiful house and, as they say here, “with all the superficial things that matter”. How appearances can be deceptive!

Jack is a handsome, brilliant and dedicated lawyer and a loving husband. Grace is an elegant and gracious hostess and a devoted wife. They live in the most beautiful house in the village and they often travel to Thailand and go on getaways around the country. They are also such altruistic people; they look after Grace’s sister named Millie who has Down’s syndrome. How on earth don’t they get sympathy from us? Well, the reality is, in very subtle ways, as scary and sinister as it can be. As you know, I never give away a plot in my reviews, but put the words captive and psychopath together and you know what this domestic thriller is all about.

Panoramic Yacht Tour of Lake Lucerne

One of the most popular excursions in Lucerne is a boat trip on Lac des Quatre-Cantons (in English Lake Lucerne).

We preferred the tour of the lake on an elegant yacht of 49 meters instead of the culinary cruise on a steam boat steeped in nostalgia (this gourmet cruise along the water lasts about 4 hours).

Our 1 hour tour took us on the sparkling waters of the famous fjord-like lake, between pastures and steep slopes of the first Alpine summits.

We loved this “walk” through the beautiful bays of Lake Lucerne, surrounded by the majestic breath-taking mountain scenery, towering peaks, verdant forests and meadows and valleys.

This unique lake, which covers 114 square kilometres, is often referred to as the heart of Switzerland. It is surrounded by four wonderful cantons: Lucerne, Uri, Schwyz and Unterwald.

The price of this tour is CHF 25.00. An audio guide was at our disposal to learn everything about the landscape, the historical monuments and the sites around Lake Lucerne.

The excursion begins and ends on the jetty of Lake Lucerne’s Pier 7, opposite the Swan Place.

I hope you enjoyed this virtual tour as much as we did.

Lots of Love

Orange Cake

May 1st - Labour Day - was rainy and chilly in Geneva. Early that morning, we bumped into schoolgirls selling “muguets”, which is the flower symbol of that day. Sweetheart bought a sprig of lily-of-the-valley for me.

Later on, when I returned home, I thought we should celebrate Labour Day. As any celebration requires a cake and flowers (at least for me), I prepared this cake, which is moist, fluffy, delicious and so easy to make. If you like the taste of orange, I strongly recommend this cake.

The one I made was small but I give you the “normal size” recipe for about 10 people.

Ingredients

240 g butter, softened

240 g sugar

2 tbsp sugar

4 eggs

240 g flour

2 tsp baking powder

The juice and the zest of 4 very juicy oranges (I used organic oranges, each weighing 200g)

A little bit of grated coconut (optional)

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Prepare the zest of the 4 oranges and their juice.

In a large bowl, work the butter into a cream.

Add the sugar gradually, whisking, then incorporate the eggs, one at a time, without ceasing to stir.

Add the flour and baking powder, then the orange zest and half the juice.

Butter a mould and pour in the mixture.

Bake for 40 to 50 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare a syrup with the remaining orange juice and the 2 tbsp of sugar.

Bring to the boil for 6 minutes.

Unmould the cake and leave to cool slightly.

Sprinkle it with the orange juice syrup you have prepared.

Sprinkle with coconut (optional).

Note: The cake must be well impregnated with syrup, to have a pronounced taste of orange.