Let it be known that Swiss chocolate is good. And let it be known that Swiss Dark chocolate is phenomenal.
Though, I don't understand why people like milk chocolate so much. It is good, but Dark Chocolate is so much better. Thats why it deserves capital letters. milk chocolate...sorry, but I don't know that I can give you that honor.
Today, we went to the Callier chocolate factory in Broc, Switzerland. This particular factory is now owned by Nestle; however, they pretty much have kept things the same as they have for nearly 100 years. And needless to say, this chocolate is pretty darn good. (It even gives See's Candies a run for its money).
The soft velvety texture just melts in your mouth. Oh man. Yum.
We got to go on a tour of the factory, and I seriously felt like I was touring with Willy Wonka and his Chocolate Factory. We went into this elevator and then after a little thing from the speaker, the floor started sinking down...and a door randomly appeared. We went through 6 or more rooms with each room looking like there was no escape, yet each time, a door magically appeared and let us into the next room. Willy Wonka lives in Switzerland, and I had no idea.
The chocolate rocked. I liked it so much I had to buy some. HOpefully, it will make it through the heat in China (reports put temps over 100 degrees). I hope we have A/C in the hotels!
Our driver got us to the tour late so we had to run to the bus to go to Vorey for our Nestle headquarters tour. Yup...that Nestle. And yup... we're talking WORLD headquarters. Their building is right on Lake Leman (Geneva), and is seriously one of the most gorgeous places I've ever been in my life. They give you unlimited coffee (I had grapefruit juice). Haha.
They were so incredibly kind to our group...they gave us a tour of their facility and everything. Little do you probably know that Nestle pretty much owns the world. They own more than 10,000 individual brands including San Pellegrino, Kit Kat, tonsof different brands of water, and even stouffers. They estimate that roughly 1 BILLION nestle products are bought every day. Its pretty stinking awesome if you ask me. Great company and a great visit. As a random note, they manufacture ketchup, mayo, and other condiments in Europe. In Europe,...specifically Switzerland, they prefer a metal tube to the plastic containers that we have in the US. Random.
Before we left the city that Nestle is in, we grabbed lunch. I got a Kebab. Holy crap. It was so big I couldn't finish it.
To finish up the day, we drove around the lake towards the Chateau de Chillon. It was a castle used to protect the people for a while, and then turned into a jail. We got there later than expected but to our surprise, they were still open. I've thrown in a picture of their latrines (open holes that drop about 40 feet to a small hole into the water below), and one of the doorways that I had to walk through. I'm a little too big...
THe scenery was unbelievable. I love Switzerland. If I had to choose a place out of the USA to live...right now, it would be Switzerland. But who knows...I still have 3 more countries that could change my mind :-).
We got back around 9 pm...and after a quick run to the local market (where I mixed up regular water with mineral carbonated water), we ran down to the water front. There was supposed to be a huge festival going on, but I think we got the location wrong. But what they did have was this huge world cup party. There was a sea of people watching the game on a huge TV. seriously... a HUGE TV...at least 10 or 20 feet wide. We walked around for a while, got some ice cream (more sugar...) and then watched some of the game. IT was really fun watching the crowd celebrate as the Netherlands won. They really like their futbol.
Now I sit in the lobby doing homework. Obviously, I'm avoiding it. Oh well :-)
Life is so good.
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