Our morning began at 8, so we could get ready and eat breakfast before 10. We thought the host might be home while we ate breakfast so we wanted to give ourselves enough time to chat and make up for our previous awkwardness. We went out to the dining room to eat, but no one was home. However, there was some chill tunes playing on a speaker and an adorable breakfast bar set out. He had hot water and choices of teas, coffees, fruit, cereals, juices, milk, yogurts, bread, pastries, and spreads. It was quite the breakfast. It was so kind of him to provide breakfast for us. We tried to clean up the best we could, and then we left for the lake. We wanted to get on a two hour boat ride that left at 10:30. When we got to the window booth, it was closed. We looked at the sign and found out it would open at 10. We had about 7 minutes to spare, so we just sat on a cute bench by the lake. We bought our tickets and then waited on the bench again until we could board the boat. There was a huge tour group also getting on the boat and they took all of the seats in the front so we tried to grab some good seats in the back. The boat tour would take us all along the lakes border and stop at all of the little towns that were around it so other people could get on and off if they wanted. The tour was also guided so he spoke in French and then English! Yay! We got to understand what we were hearing and looking at. Good day. I went picture crazy as you can see on Facebook. I think I took over 1,000 pictures in Annecy alone. I just couldn't believe my eyes. The mountains and the trees and the little cities and the color of the water and the sky and the lake life were just astounding. I moved around that little boat like it was my job. The people probably thought I was crazy for taking so many pictures, but I didn't care. As the boat moved around the lake, we were able to see so many angles of the landscape. It looked like you were seeing something new every few seconds. I was constantly turning my head and taking it all in at the beginning. At each stop, we picked up more passengers. The boat is also like a little bus for those lake towns to transfer from town to town. There were some paragliders coming out of the tops of mountains near the back end of the lake. That was neat to watch as they did tricks and just fluttered down to the ground. There were probably 20 or so of them. I really don't have words to describe those two hours. There was just so much beauty surrounding me, my mind was filled with wonderment and awe. The water was colors I've never experienced before and the mountains were strong yet elegant. Green and rocky. They sat against the crystal blue sky and the spattered crisp white clouds. The lake sparkled and waved. I was at total ease and peace towards the end. I stopped taking pictures and just sat and stared at the scene before me. I was at peace. I was happy. I could have stayed on that boat all day. It was really warm and the sun coming down on me made me sleepy. A nap on a boat on the lake sounded perfect. We came back to Annecy too soon though. After that boat ride, we were so chill. We didn't have an agenda or care in the world. We just wanted to get in the lake. We first walked around town looking for some lunch. We walked in some stores on the way and ran into some markets. We finally found a sandwich place with a meal deal. I bought a chicken sandwich on a grainy baguette with a chocolate croissant and a coke. It was a good deal! We took it to go and walked back to the lake to sit on the grass and have a picnic. There is a large open grass area near the lake. A lot of people, dogs, and birds congregate there. We found a spot near some shade and sun and on the lakes edge. We just casually ate lunch while taking in the best scenery in the world. We then walked along the lake towards little Annecy (or old Annecy, another smaller town nearby). There are lots of little boats docked along the edge and docks without boats. We took some more pictures on the docks and sat on them with our toes in the water. It is the clearest water I have ever seen. I didn't even know lakes could be that clear. You can see to the bottom all the time. There is no dumped water in the lake, it's all natural spring water and melted snow water. They pump used water through pipes under the lake where it is cleaned and then piped to another location. They like to keep their lake clean. (Although I saw a duck and a swan poop in the lake today so there is no way it's waste free ha) We continued along the lake and found a lounging and swimming area. It was a dead end though so we had to find an alternate route to continue. We just wanted to find a beach to sit and wade in the water. We finally found one. It had some flat rocks like steps that went down into the clear green water and then further down was an all sand beach. We had on clothes so we didn't want to get too wet so we sat on the rocks and dipped our feet in. We sat there just taking in the view and relaxing. The cold water was refreshing on my tired feet. I laid down on the rocks at one point with one foot and hand dangling in the water. I could've taken a nap. It has been warm here in Annecy. High 70s and the sun just envelops the town. We relaxed there for some time and chatted and then we continued on the lake trying to find a kayak rental place for tomorrow. We found a few options and then turned around and walked the distance back to the town. It's a hearty walk but enjoyable. It probably takes about 20 minutes or so. We continued to walk along the lake past the boat tour dock (which is probably the middle of our walking distance) and along the lake towards the other villages. We didn't see many buildings with rental options, just sailboats, so we turned around. We met a couple swans on the way and became friends with them. They posed for our photo shoots and put on a show for us. Our next stop was the Annecy castle. It sits on top of a hill and we had to walk up a steep curving road to reach it. You couldn't enter without paying and we didn't think it was worth it so we just took a break outside of it and then walked back down. We tried to find some dinner after that. We decided we would just find some crepes and/or gelato for dinner. We found a small creperie and I ordered a Nutella and coconut crepe. Definitely didn't realize it had coconut on it. The sign said coco which I thought meant like chocolate. But it was a good surprise. I had my share of sweet, so I didn't want any gelato, but I was kind of craving some real food. First, we decided to go sit by the lake some more. There were some wooden swings by the lake that we like to sit on so we aimed for those. They are just wooden planks that make a square seat and they are low to the ground and suspended by the four corners to wooden structures above them. They can fit 3 people comfortably. They were full so we waited for one to open up and then we pounced. It took awhile after our swing getting stolen twice before we scored one. We then moved from the swing to a bench that sat closer to the lake. We stayed on the bench for at least an hour. The lake and mountains bring us great joy and peace if you can't tell already. Annah took a short nap. I people watched. Lizzy looked at her pictures from the day. From there, we walked back past the Palais de Ille for one last look at it in the evening. The Palais de Ille is a deserted prison which sits in the middle of a canal and is lit up every night. We walked towards this large building about a 15 minute walk from the Palais de Ille to check it out. We had gone past it before and we knew it was a library and tourist center but we wanted to see what else was in it. We found some free clean bathrooms in it so that was a plus. It also had a quick burger. We got some burgers and fries and then took advantage of their free wifi to catch up with the rest of the world after our dream day. We didn't want to go back to the airbnb too early because we didn't want him to think we were lame but we also were running out of things to see. At about 9, we left there and went back to the apartment. When we got back, he still wasn't there. We kind of wanted to thank him for making us breakfast, apologize for being weird the night before, and ask him about kayak rentals. We decided we would try in the morning. We got ready for bed, went through our perfect pictures, and then went to sleep.

Fun facts: I used pink and purple toilet paper here. They still don't have shower curtains. We see a ton of dogs in Europe. They are mostly all super cute. The excess of smoke is a bummer. We wish there was less smoke because it ruins the ambiance of nature and the scenery.

Shoutout: Benjamin from Annecy, our host. He makes us breakfast and trusted us with his apartment which is pretty crazy. He provided us with everything we needed during our stay! Even though we barely talked or spent time together, you da bomb.