Saturday 1 August was the Swiss National Day. I was invited to a brunch at a farm. It was a beautiful sunny day and our hosts provided the typical Swiss fare of rosti, cold cuts, cheeses and breads, coffee, tea and juices. A band played typical Swiss music and a horse cart was on hand to take us around the beautiful farm. 
In the early evening, while the sun was at it's blazing peak I drove to Payerne and joined my friend Stephane at his beautiful golf club which used to be his family farm. We drove to Cheyres, one of the many scenic towns on Lake Neuchatel. There were so many people enjoying the lake and the exceptional warm weather and waiting for the evening's festivities. Stephane had his personal boat anchored at the marina there, supposedly one of the biggest lake marinas in Europe.
From there we sailed to Neuchatel. And I had never seen so many people in that lovely small town, enjoying outdoor meals. We managed to get a table too and had our dinner. By the time our dinner was over the crowd had really swelled especially all along the lakefront and we had some difficulty getting to the boat. We then joined the many boats floating on the lake to wait for the big moment when the fireworks would start. In the meanwhile we could see other fireworks from the other lakeside towns like Estavayer-le-Luc, Yverdon and Cheyres. And when the Nuechatel fireworks went off it was really something! Stephane said it was the biggest fireworks in the region.
Back in Cheyres, the party was still on with food and music under tents and under open sky! Stephane decided to sleep in his boat and I made my one hour's drive back home through the villages before joining the highway.
It was probably the warmest, sunniest day we have had for a long time and just as well as the following two days it was grey, rainy and cold all over again....
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