Juan Convers

Last week, with summer weather in full swing, I took the ferry from Ouchy to Évian. Once there, I took a nice walk along the Rives of Évian-les-Bains. Maybe I had always missed it before, but this time I noticed something in the lake—a massive eagle perched on one of those metal platforms near the ferry terminal. The statue is quite realistic.

Curious, I looked it up later and found out the sculpture is called L’Atterrissage (“The Landing”), created by Vanly Tiene. The eagle and its nest together span nearly five meters and weigh around three tonnes. It was installed just after Christmas.

I also learned that this piece now stands where a swan sculpture once floated—until it was destroyed by a storm. It’s really quite a beautiful sight.

Earlier this week, on my way back to Lausanne, I took a quick walk by the port in Thonon and stumbled upon an interesting bronze sculpture of a mermaid. I was curious so I took a picture, but I wondered about its story. Soon I discovered on the internet that this piece is called La Sirène, a reproduction of a work by Marguerite Peltzer, a Belgian-born artist who made Thonon her home.

The original sculpture has been available the Town Hall patio since the 1960s, but this new bronze version now stands in the lakefront, bringing Peltzer’s art into public view. I was very lucky to stumble into it!.

During the previous weekend, I went on a nice bike ride to purchase a few items for breakfast. My journey took me across the Franco-German border, crossing "la Pasarelle des Trois" Pays bridge. As I pedaled along, the sun began to raise casting a beautiful multicolored hue on the horizon, while birds were flying from one side to the other, I couldn't resist the urge to stop and capture a photo. You can see above the results.

A few weeks back, as I was en route to Poland, I found myself on a connecting flight in Paris. During my stroll toward the Chatelet train station, I had the opportunity to encounter again the majestic Hôtel de Ville, with its amazing Renaissance architecture. However, on that particular day, another historical event came to my mind, that unfolded many years ago.

On the 6th of July in 2005 there was the announcement of the chosen host city for the 2012 Summer Olympics. As I looked at the Hôtel de Ville, memories came back about the disappointment and the "nooos" from the gathered crowd when "London" was declared as the selected city.

As I reflected on that past occasion, I couldn't help but think of the future. The people of Paris will be on the spotlight next year, since they will host the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Today the French are voting in their presidential elections and the possibility of having a far right president, who has campaigned against Europe and NATO brings dark clouds to the European horizon. I'm hoping the french people will reject those proposals. Allez le bleus!