Switzerland: Detour Back To Geneva
Jun 17, 2021 18:18:46 #
I'll briefly interrupt my Lake Como posts to show several images of Geneva given that it's been all over the news in the last few days days because of the G7, NATO and Summit meetings. The most exciting thing was seeing the familiar backdrops on TV so I thought it would be timely to post these now. It was over 100 degrees when we visited in early July and the shores of the lake and the many swim clubs were overflowing with people.
Geneva (/dʒɪˈniːvə/ jin-EE-və; French: Genève; German: Genf is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situated where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic and Canton of Geneva.
The municipality (ville de Genève) has a population (as of December 2019) of 203,951, and the canton (essentially the city and its inner-ring suburbs) has 504,128 residents. In 2014, the compact agglomération du Grand Genève had 946,000 inhabitants in 212 communities in both Switzerland and France. Within Swiss territory, the commuter area named "Métropole lémanique" contains a population of 1.26 million. This area is essentially spread east from Geneva towards the Riviera area (Vevey, Montreux) and north-east towards Yverdon-les-Bains, in the neighbouring canton of Vaud.
Geneva is a global city, a financial centre, and a worldwide centre for diplomacy due to the presence of numerous international organizations, including the headquarters of many agencies of the United Nations and the Red Cross. Geneva hosts the highest number of international organizations in the world. It is also where the Geneva Conventions were signed, which chiefly concern the treatment of wartime non-combatants and prisoners of war. Together with, for instance, New York City (global headquarters of the UN), Basel (Bank for International Settlements), and Strasbourg (Council of Europe), Geneva is a city serving as the headquarters of one of the most important international organizations, without being the capital of a country.
In 2021, Geneva was ranked as the world's ninth most important financial centre for competitiveness by the Global Financial Centres Index, fifth in Europe behind London, Zürich, Frankfurt and Luxembourg. In 2019, Geneva was ranked among the ten most liveable cities in the world by Mercer together with Zürich and Basel. The city has been referred to as the world's most compact metropolis and the "Peace Capital". In 2019, Mercer ranked Geneva as the thirteenth most expensive city in the world. In a UBS ranking of global cities in 2018, Geneva was ranked first for gross earnings, second most expensive, and fourth in purchasing power.
Geneva was an Allobrogian border town, fortified against the Helvetii tribe, when the Romans took it in 121 BC. It became Christian under the Late Roman Empire, and acquired its first bishop in the 5th century, having been connected to the Bishopric of Vienne in the 4th.
In the Middle Ages, Geneva was ruled by a count under the Holy Roman Empire until the late 14th century, when it was granted a charter giving it a high degree of self-governance. Around this time, the House of Savoy came to at least nominally dominate the city. In the 15th century, an oligarchic republican government emerged with the creation of the Grand Council. In the first half of the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation reached the city, causing religious strife, during which Savoy rule was thrown off and Geneva allied itself with the Swiss Confederacy. In 1541, with Protestantism on the rise, John Calvin, the Protestant Reformer and proponent of Calvinism, became the spiritual leader of the city and established the Republic of Geneva. By the 18th century, Geneva had come under the influence of Catholic France, which cultivated the city as its own. France tended to be at odds with the ordinary townsfolk, which inspired the failed Geneva Revolution of 1782, an attempt to win representation in the government for men of modest means. In 1798, revolutionary France under the Directory annexed Geneva. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, on 1 June 1814, Geneva was admitted to the Swiss Confederation. In 1907, the separation of Church and State was adopted. Geneva flourished in the 19th and 20th centuries, becoming the seat of many international organizations.
Geneva is the European headquarters of the United Nations, in the Palace of Nations building, which was also the headquarters of the former League of Nations. Several agencies are headquartered at Geneva, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the World Health Organization, the International Labour Organization, International Telecommunication Union, the International Baccalaureate Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization.
Apart from the UN agencies, Geneva hosts many inter-governmental organizations, such as the World Trade Organization, the South Centre, the World Meteorological Organization, the World Economic Forum, the International Organization for Migration, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The Maison de la Paix building hosts the three Geneva centres supported by the Swiss Confederation: the International Centre for Humanitarian Demining, the Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, as well as other organisations active in the field of peace, international affairs and sustainable development.
Organizations on the European level include the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research) which is the world's largest particle physics laboratory.
The Geneva Environment Network (GEN) publishes the Geneva Green Guide, an extensive listing of Geneva-based global organisations working on environment protection and sustainable development. A website, jointly run by the Swiss Government, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the United Nations Environment Programme and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, includes accounts of how NGOs, business, government and the UN cooperate. By doing so, it attempts to explain why Geneva has been picked by so many NGOs and UN bodies as their headquarters' location.
The World Organization of the Scout Movement and the World Scout Bureau Central Office are headquartered in Geneva.
For a more extensive narrative, please see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva
I hope you enjoy these.
Mark
Geneva (/dʒɪˈniːvə/ jin-EE-və; French: Genève; German: Genf is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situated where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic and Canton of Geneva.
The municipality (ville de Genève) has a population (as of December 2019) of 203,951, and the canton (essentially the city and its inner-ring suburbs) has 504,128 residents. In 2014, the compact agglomération du Grand Genève had 946,000 inhabitants in 212 communities in both Switzerland and France. Within Swiss territory, the commuter area named "Métropole lémanique" contains a population of 1.26 million. This area is essentially spread east from Geneva towards the Riviera area (Vevey, Montreux) and north-east towards Yverdon-les-Bains, in the neighbouring canton of Vaud.
Geneva is a global city, a financial centre, and a worldwide centre for diplomacy due to the presence of numerous international organizations, including the headquarters of many agencies of the United Nations and the Red Cross. Geneva hosts the highest number of international organizations in the world. It is also where the Geneva Conventions were signed, which chiefly concern the treatment of wartime non-combatants and prisoners of war. Together with, for instance, New York City (global headquarters of the UN), Basel (Bank for International Settlements), and Strasbourg (Council of Europe), Geneva is a city serving as the headquarters of one of the most important international organizations, without being the capital of a country.
In 2021, Geneva was ranked as the world's ninth most important financial centre for competitiveness by the Global Financial Centres Index, fifth in Europe behind London, Zürich, Frankfurt and Luxembourg. In 2019, Geneva was ranked among the ten most liveable cities in the world by Mercer together with Zürich and Basel. The city has been referred to as the world's most compact metropolis and the "Peace Capital". In 2019, Mercer ranked Geneva as the thirteenth most expensive city in the world. In a UBS ranking of global cities in 2018, Geneva was ranked first for gross earnings, second most expensive, and fourth in purchasing power.
Geneva was an Allobrogian border town, fortified against the Helvetii tribe, when the Romans took it in 121 BC. It became Christian under the Late Roman Empire, and acquired its first bishop in the 5th century, having been connected to the Bishopric of Vienne in the 4th.
In the Middle Ages, Geneva was ruled by a count under the Holy Roman Empire until the late 14th century, when it was granted a charter giving it a high degree of self-governance. Around this time, the House of Savoy came to at least nominally dominate the city. In the 15th century, an oligarchic republican government emerged with the creation of the Grand Council. In the first half of the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation reached the city, causing religious strife, during which Savoy rule was thrown off and Geneva allied itself with the Swiss Confederacy. In 1541, with Protestantism on the rise, John Calvin, the Protestant Reformer and proponent of Calvinism, became the spiritual leader of the city and established the Republic of Geneva. By the 18th century, Geneva had come under the influence of Catholic France, which cultivated the city as its own. France tended to be at odds with the ordinary townsfolk, which inspired the failed Geneva Revolution of 1782, an attempt to win representation in the government for men of modest means. In 1798, revolutionary France under the Directory annexed Geneva. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, on 1 June 1814, Geneva was admitted to the Swiss Confederation. In 1907, the separation of Church and State was adopted. Geneva flourished in the 19th and 20th centuries, becoming the seat of many international organizations.
Geneva is the European headquarters of the United Nations, in the Palace of Nations building, which was also the headquarters of the former League of Nations. Several agencies are headquartered at Geneva, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the World Health Organization, the International Labour Organization, International Telecommunication Union, the International Baccalaureate Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization.
Apart from the UN agencies, Geneva hosts many inter-governmental organizations, such as the World Trade Organization, the South Centre, the World Meteorological Organization, the World Economic Forum, the International Organization for Migration, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The Maison de la Paix building hosts the three Geneva centres supported by the Swiss Confederation: the International Centre for Humanitarian Demining, the Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, as well as other organisations active in the field of peace, international affairs and sustainable development.
Organizations on the European level include the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research) which is the world's largest particle physics laboratory.
The Geneva Environment Network (GEN) publishes the Geneva Green Guide, an extensive listing of Geneva-based global organisations working on environment protection and sustainable development. A website, jointly run by the Swiss Government, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the United Nations Environment Programme and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, includes accounts of how NGOs, business, government and the UN cooperate. By doing so, it attempts to explain why Geneva has been picked by so many NGOs and UN bodies as their headquarters' location.
The World Organization of the Scout Movement and the World Scout Bureau Central Office are headquartered in Geneva.
For a more extensive narrative, please see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva
I hope you enjoy these.
Mark
The rear of the Palace of Nations building
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The spot where world leaders posed for their official photo
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The Assembly Hall
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The famous Jet D'Eau and one of the many swim clubs
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One of the many water taxis
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Jun 17, 2021 18:34:19 #
Jun 17, 2021 18:44:54 #
Blair Shaw Jr wrote:
Impressive city and well kept. Wow. Thank you for the tour. 
Thank you so much for looking Blair.
Jun 17, 2021 19:01:36 #
Jun 17, 2021 19:04:39 #
I always love photos of Switzerland. If it was within my budget, I'd consider retiring there.
Jun 17, 2021 19:11:19 #
Jun 17, 2021 19:12:09 #
Just Fred wrote:
I always love photos of Switzerland. If it was within my budget, I'd consider retiring there.
Thanks so much Fred. I wouldn't mind that either!
Jun 17, 2021 19:17:26 #
Jun 17, 2021 19:27:20 #
kpmac wrote:
A fine narrative and a great set, Mark.
Thanks so much Ken. I appreciate!
Jun 17, 2021 19:47:14 #
Jun 17, 2021 19:48:58 #
UTMike wrote:
An interesting overview, Mark!
Thanks Mike. Since I'm on the subject, I'll post more from there.
Jun 17, 2021 21:34:36 #
Jun 17, 2021 21:48:32 #
Jun 18, 2021 01:50:53 #
srfmhg wrote:
I'll briefly interrupt my Lake Como posts to show ... (show quote)
Excellent set and narrative Mark. We spent 5 days there in August 1973 and enjoyed it very much; it is a beautiful city. I've attached 3 photos from our trip that are unprocessed slide scans; I'm sure you'll recognize the first one.
Jun 18, 2021 02:09:03 #
Beautiful images Mark, and a great narrative too. Thanks for the tour.
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