After a few days in Geneva, my parents and I decided we wanted a day trip that would be less of a beaten path than Zurich and Zermatt. We wandered through a hilly street market and the consensus among the locals was the Nyon was just the ticket. An inexpensive twenty minute train ride outside of town brought us to our excellent, authentic destination.
I can’t say that I had an epiphany in Nyon, or that it changed my life in any noticeable way, but it was a perfect, tranquil afternoon. The town is about 2.6 miles total, so you can easily inspect it from stem to stern in a few hours. Within this small area are a Swiss castle, Roman ruins, and views of Lake Geneva. Of course, there’s an impressive church at the edge of town, but that’s not why you come to Nyon.
We ate in a pub across from the castle, not the gooey, gorgeous fondue of the bigger cities, but just simple sandwiches since most of the town seemed to have gone home for an afternoon siesta. No one spoke English, and the locals seemed momentarily curious about what we were doing in their midst. Only in a truly small town can the arrival of myself and my parents be considered the drama of the day.
The row of knotted trees along the lake lead you straight to the Roman ruins, and much like in Italy it is the striking contrast between ancient and modern life that lends Nyon its unique vibrancy. Medieval streets filled with a large fresh market bring up another dramatic juxtaposition of movie-perfect scenery in an undeniably genuine world.
Maybe I’ve spent too much time in New York, but when I travel I always try to work in at least one day of soothing nothing, and Nyon is just another unremarkably memorable day.