We Made It!

I am writing this on the train just outside of Geneva. So despite the strike, we’ve managed to make it to Switzerland, but not without a few hitches! We discovered Thursday night that indeed our train had been cancelled for the following evening, so we all skipped school on Friday to try to get seats on an earlier departure. From Avignon to Lyon, despite the train being 1/2 hour late, all went well; so far, so good! We were hoping that our transfer to a train from Lyon to Annemasse would be just as easy.

The train station at Lyon was very busy as many people were setting out on their holiday travels. When we looked to confirm the schedule for our train trip to Annemasse, we saw the unexpected: “Sortie - velette autobus”. After seeing our confused expressions, a kind young lady nearby explained that this meant we would have to exit the train station to catch a bus instead of the train. She also adviced us to get out there as early as possible as it would be very crowded; our hopes of continued smooth sailing were quickly deflated.

And, crowded it was! We walked out to the bus platform where throngs of travellers were hoping to get a place on buses that were chartered by the train station to try to move travellers left stranded by the strike. We spoke to one official holding a clipoboard, and he told us that there was a bus arriving shortly and heading in our direction, but he said it would be difficult to get on. He added that there was another bus coming, but not for another 3 hours and with no guarantee of getting on it either. Instantly, I had flashbacks to being stranded at the airport in Paris.

When the first bus pulled up there was an unorganized mass of hopeful travellers pushing forward to get their luggage on, and this is where Barry headed into with our luggage. Another crowd pushed toward the bus entrance, and the girls and I tried our best to make some headway there. Needless to say, with a 4 and 7 year old in tow, we couldn’t get too near the door and sure enough, with the bus filled we were left stranded with the other unlucky ones in the parking lot.

I should note that although eager to make it on a bus, no-one seemed angry. I heard one man as we squeezed to get near the bus door say “C’est de fou” (this is crazy), but he had a bemused look on his face. Barry overheard a man say, “C’est la conséquence de la liberté” (this is a consequence of liberty), as he shrugged his shoulders.

So, liberty left us to settle down on a nearby curb for a three hour wait to maybe get on a bus. Thoughts turned to finding a hotel room in Lyon.

But, about 20 minutes into our wait, an unexpected bus appeared. Barry caught a glimpse of a little white paper in the front window with “Annemasse” written in marker, While the driver pulled out a map of France and studied it, Barry sprang into action. He approached the clipboard man and asked if it was at all possible to get on the bus, as we had two young children. Bingo! It got us a parting of the crowd and four seats on the coach. Bravo, Barry!

We had no idea how long the trip would take, but were relieved to have made if off our post on the curb. After almost 3 hours we arrived at the train station in Annemasse. (The trip was a little longer than need be as we had a few unnecessary detours. The busdriver maybe should have studied that map a little harder, as even Grace noted several times, “Hey, haven’t we already drove past here?”).

I’ve been reminded as I’ve admired the view while writing how beautiful and scenic Switzerland is. We're happy to have arrived.