Entertainment

Every good city has a rival. London vs. Manchester; Montreal vs. Toronto, Tokyo vs. Osaka; its universal. In Switzerland, the main rivalry is between Geneva—French-speaking, open-minded, worldly-and Zurich, German-speaking, orderly, conservative. But even within these rivalries, there are mini-battles going on, as cities, often located very near each other, battle one another for the lucrative tourist dollar, superiority on the football pitch or hockey rink, the staging of high-profile concerts, exhibitions, and so on. Lausanne is no exception. In order to reach here, you have to land at Geneva airport as there is none in Lausanne, making big, rich Geneva rival number one. And if you want to ski in the Swiss Alps, you have to pass through Lausanne to get to famous resorts like Gstaad, Zermatt or Villars, but you sure don't have to stop here. This makes the skiing industry rival number two.

Performing Arts

So, in order for Lausanne to establish itself as a first-class city to visit, it has turned to the arts. For a small city of 125,000 people, it has a world-class opera (Opera de Lausanne), ballet, chamber orchestra (Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne) and more theaters per capita than just about anywhere else on earth. Popular theaters include the Theâtre Sevelin 36 specializing in contemporary dance, the Theâtre du Vide-Poche, an intimate venues featuring comedy and musical performances, and the Theâtr'Onze, often hosting jazz and French folk performances.

Museums

Some of Lausanne's most popular museums are the Musee Olympique, the Musee de Design et d'Arts Appliques Contemporains, the Musee cantonal des Beaux-Arts and the Fondation Claude Verdan).

Festivals

This is a city that insists on constant entertainment: Summer festivals, (Le Festival de la Cite, Montreux Jazz Festival and Ouchy Jazz); cool outdoor cinemas (Orange Cinema) and impressive indoor cinemas (Cine Qua Non); street performances; twice-weekly markets (Marche du centre and the Marche aux puces—flea market); free concerts in ancient churches (Cathedrale de Lausanne, St-François Church), choirs, jazz clubs (L'Arlov Jazz or VO), free-for-all concerts in tiny cafes (Le Cafe de Montelly or Le Cafe de l'Hôtel de Ville). In short, name it and you can find it in Lausanne.

Nightlife

Added to this mix are awfully funky cafes, some of which showcase trendy bands (Bleu Lezard), others are in prime people-watching locations (Nyffenegger, Le Cafe Romand; high-quality restaurants (Ma Jong); and a surprisingly hip youth culture with very plugged in clubs such as MAD.

Lausanne really is a city of the arts. You actually find harp players serenading you in Place de la Palud and if that is not a city of class, what is? Not Geneva, say the Lausannoise, and certainly not Villars!