However, I’m not going to tell you about my internship…yet. I’ve been working on a big project for ATLAS, and I’ll tell you all about it once it is complete. Instead, I’m going to give my brain a rest from thinking so much about physics, and instead tell you what I did on my day off.
Day off? On a random Thursday? In the Christian religion, there is a holiday called Ascension Day, which commemorates Jesus Christ’s ascension into heaven. Ascension Day occurs 39 days after Easter Sunday, and this year Ascension Day lands on May 10. While this day is not a federal public holiday in North America, quite a few European countries recognize Ascension Day as such, including Switzerland. That is how I came to have a Thursday off in May.
I decided to finally explore the city of Geneva a bit, which ended in me taking a 19-km (12-mile) walk. Let’s take a look at what I did on that nice, long walk.
Geneva Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
History
The Geneva Conservatory and Botanical Gardens have a long history. Back in 1791, the Society of Physics and Natural History was founded to contribute to a project of systematic description of the whole ‘natural productions and resources’ around Geneva. To do this, the Society received permission from the government to found the first public garden in 1793 along Bastion Saint-Léger, a remnant of the sixteenth-century city walls. This garden was about 1,800 m2 (19,400 ft2), and was equipped with a fountain and a small building that could be used to give botanical lessons and to store the herbarium of the Society.
In 1817, botanist Augustin Pyramus de Candolle returned from his studies in France, and brought with him a drive to expand the teaching of botany in Geneva. The State of Geneva gave him the Promenade des Bastions field, which was 4.5 times larger than the Saint-Léger garden. This botanical garden expanded on the offerings of the original public garden, by including an orangery and greenhouses. Then, in 1824, the Promenade des Bastions gardens gained a conservatory, vastly expanding the research possibilities now that the garden housed its own collection of dried plants. |
In 1904, the Geneva Conservatory and Botanical Gardens expanded onto the land near Lake Geneva, where it is today.
Visiting CJB
In French, the Geneva Conservatory and Botanical Gardens is called ‘Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève,’ hence the acronym CJB. When entering CJB, I came in by the rock gardens.
The rock gardens are the oldest part of CJB, having been there since 1904. Over the years, it has expanded to include species from all over the world, starting with the Pyrenees (1910), China and Japan (1925), and North America (1950).
After exploring the Geneva Conservatory and Gardens, I simply crossed the road and there was Lake Geneva, in all its glory.
While walking to the lake, I accidentally stumbled upon the headquarters for the United Nations.
This museum was constructed at the end of the 19th century by Genevan art collection Gustave Revilliod, and following his death, the museum was bequeathed to the City of Geneva. The Ariana Museum is the only museum in Switzerland entirely devoted to kiln craft, and houses over 22,000 ceramic pieces and 2,500 glass pieces. The museum is free to visit; only the temporary exhibition costs, which I didn’t go.
While there are many beautiful pieces at the Ariana Museum, what I most noticed were the…unique pieces scattered throughout the usual plates and cups. Here for you are a collection of some of the special pieces I found (plus some that are just plain pretty).