Geneva - again 28-29 June 2009

After a day at the airshow it was back to work. Another meeting in Geneva but this time it was an early start on Monday morning so my colleagues and I had to fly over on Sunday afternoon. So it was the usual flight with Austrian in a Fokker 70 on a very pleasant afternoon. Despite all the rain in Vienna it seemed that Switzerland was having good weather.

We were staying at the Royal Hotel near the centre of town so after checking in we were able to stroll down the edge of the lake only 3 blocks or so away. We looked at THE water jet and then commented how clear the water was before finding a restaurant for dinner.

THE water jet

The selection was french/italian place and the food was OK as we sat out in a tree lined square a little bit back from the lake.

Monday morning, after breakfast, the team assembled and headed off to the Palais des Nations for the meeting. It was a beautiful morning but the sun was shining a bit more than we thought. The walk took us past the famous old front door with all the flags of the UN Member States on display.

Fountains and flags at the old front door

The significance of the chair sculpture was lost on me - but a broken, three legged chair outside the United Nations does have some symbolism.........................

In the end it was a warm group that finally went through the security gates and found our meeting room.

In the great hall on our way to the meeting

The meeting went all day but the break for lunch allowed us a chance to walk around the gardens and get a view of the front of the grand building I had not been able to see last month when I was there.

The view from the gardens

The meeting ended more or less on time and was considered a success but sadly my colleague and I had to depart before the cultural show and reception to mark the end of the day so we could catch the evening Austrian flight home. The other members of our delegation were able to stay on and I heard later that the show was good with traditional dancers from central Asia. Of course when we were at the airport and checked in they advised of a one hour delay! So we went and sat in the lounge and had a couple of well earned G&Ts reach while we waited and watched Andy Murray lose that first set.

As the sun was setting the plane finally arrived and we purchased the obligatory swiss chcolate for distribution back in the office. The plane arrived in time for me to catch the last but one train back to Vienna City and I was home by 2330.