Museums, Geneva

This is one of best Natural History Museum I seen in Europe.It has a huge birds and fossils sections,and also is one of best museums that you can see in Geneva.It is located in the old town not far from the Flower Clock.
All museums in Switzerland are free and you don't have to pay,but you can take an informative panphlet at the entrance.
Opening Hours: 9,30 a.m to 5 p.m Tue-Sun.

Another very nice museum to visit in the city is:
Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art,opened in 1.994,but I didn't had the time to see it.

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Photos:
1. Voltaire library.
2. Statue of Voltaire in the house.
3. Folio edition of three of Voltaire's satirical tales.

Voltaire himself would have loved this museum, with its detailed documentation of formal garden design in the 18th century. But for those of us who have trouble working up much interest in that sort of thing, the museum is rather a bore.

I personally would have preferred to learn more about Voltaire's life and writings, as in the Espace Rousseau I had seen earlier the same day, but that isn't what this Voltaire museum is about.

As a consolation prize I went out and spent three Swiss Francs, the equivalent of two Euros, on a Folio edition of three of Voltaire's satirical tales, so I at least had something of his to read on the train.

AH, THIS IS A MAGNIFICENT PLACE .....

In exceptional surroundings you can admire the most outstanding pieces, while retracing the history of TIME measurement from the beginning until modern days.

On top of that, enjoy watching CRAFTSMEN restoring ancient pieces in the WORKSHOP, an audiovisual show, a multimedia programme and interactive CLOCKS.

I am sure that you too, will enjoy a visit here!

Open: daily, ecept Mondays.

1st June - 30th September: 10AM - 6PM
1st October - 31st May: 10AM - 12 and 2PM - 5PM

PASSION FOR TIME.....

When we think of WATCHES & CLOCKS we think of SZWITZERLAND, don't we?

This museum is located in a building constructed in the early 20th Century.
It contains several important COLLECTIONS of horology and enamelling ef GENEVESE, SWISS and EUROPEAN origin, dating from the 16th Century to the present day.

The building also houses a lovely LIBRARY for who is interested!

The museum's historic collections are essentially composed of WATCHES, MUSICAL AUTOMATA and PORTRAIT MINIATURES.

The museum is home also to the prestigious creations that PATEK PHILIPPSE, the Geneva-based firm of master-watchmakers, has been designing and developing since its foundation in 1839.

NOTE: Correspondance: Case Postale 2679 CH 1211 GENèVE 2

A fairy-tale chateau, a romantic park, a magical location above Lake Geneva...amid these wonderful surroundings, discover the history of Switzerland of the 18th and 19th centuries. The Chateau itself - built in the 1730s in French style - has had an interesting history.
Admission CHF 7.00 for adults.
Open TUE to SUN, 10 am to 2 pm

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First impressions of this museum was the temperature inside, hot - very hot, in fact it totally ruined my visit I found it incredibly uncomfortable and couldn't wait to get away.
The exhibits I did see were a little disappointing to me too, not really sure what I expected but ho - hum, put it down to experience.
No photography allowed inside.

Well there are tons of activities but i really liked going to the Museum of human biology (IT WAS NOT BORING)and I also liked going on the various boattrips on the lake!

And why don't you take the bus to Annecy.....which is at the French side of the border.....It's so nice there!!!!

Designed by the architect Samuel Vaucher, this neoclassical building was donated in 1826 to the city of Geneva by the two sisters Jeanne-Françoise and Henriette Rath in memory of their late brother, the Swiss general Simon Rath. Upon his death in 1819, he had left them with a large sum of money to be used for the construction of "something useful" to the city that eternalised his name. Due to his love of the arts, a museum was thus built to look like a Classical "Temple of the Muses" and became the city's first fine arts museum. Today it acts as a centre for temporary art exhibitions organised by le Musée d’art et d’histoire. When I visited Geneva in Oct 2008, Musée Rath was closed for renovations.

The relatively small but very interesting Musée d'Ethnographie de Genève (MEG) at Boulevard Carl-Vogt is currently (2011) closed and being rebuilt. On the other hand, its branch in most beautiful setting at the outskirts of Geneva that usualy stages interesting exhibitions is open to the public. As from May 2011, it houses a very colorful diisplay of India's music and Bollywood documentaries with audio-visual displays. The surrounding park is ideal for picnics (although fires for BBQ are not authorized).

For watch enthusiasts this is a must see (I don't care whether you are a Patek fan or not --- you have to see this place). The collection of watches, clocks and timepieces is simply magnificient --- quite extraordinary--- amazing even for a city (and region --- the Jura region stretching out from Geneva to Basel is the biggest mechanical watch-making region in the world) that is known for its mechanical marvels.

The museum is located away from the shopping (exclusive expensive boutiques and jewelerry stores) area of Geneva in a quite neighborhood --- best take a taxi. The museum is on 4 levels and features a collection ranging from antiques to the newest Patek Philippe masterpieces. For a Patek collector like me this is heaven on earth.

My favorites were: a pistol shaped clock with a mechanical jewelled green bird that chirps and sings --- a work of atristic perfection, and the two-sided tourbillon wristwatch (sells for 1 million Swiss Francs) and shows the sky above your hometown with the stars.