A traditional market is held in Morges every Wednesday and Saturday throughout the year, where craftspeople and traders peddle the fruits of their labour. But Morges also has modern residential districts and extensive industrial areas, so leaving the old town feels like a rapid journey through time. The route returns to the lakeshore at St-Prex and, in fine weather, evokes a wonderful morning mood: chestnut trees, fishermen in their boats and squawking seagulls. St-Prex itself is a gem with a pretty, medieval town centre. What’s more, the town gate is the only preserved structure of its kind in Vaud.

The cycle route leaves the shore of Lake Geneva again, returning at the beach of La Pêcherie for a short 100-metre stretch alongside the glittering blue waters. We then arrive in Rolle, an elongated town well worth a visit with its four-towered castle and its burgher and vintner houses. The building at Le Rosey is also very special; though you might think so, it isn’t a facility with a built-in UFO. The Institut Le Rosey is a renowned private boarding school founded in 1880. On this section of the route, the motorway also runs close to the cycle path. Agriculture was once predominant here, but today the area is home to many industrial firms as well as commercial and service companies.

The quaint town of Nyon with its mighty castle is well worth a visit. After Mies, the air is filled with aeroplanes. They take off from Geneva Cointrin Airport and leave white trails behind when the skies are clear. On the ground, castles and manor houses begin to abound as cosmopolitan Geneva draws nearer. Bikes with yellow number plates overtake you on the cycle lanes of the main roads – some at a terrific speed. The Botanical Garden just outside Switzerland’s most international city (headquarters of the UN) has a calming effect. A visit to this magical park is just the ticket before you finally take on the city «where the whole world feels at home»…