Being a PhD student in Europe means you get to travel to some pretty awesome places all around Europe. Not bad for all those who keep telling you 'how much more will you study?' right?. As part of my conference I travelled to Lausanne for a week and made a weekend trip to Montreux and Vevey in Switzerland. People travelling to Geneva, this is a good weekend or day break as well. Since it was winter we could not take a cruise to Montreux (runs only on Sundays), which is highly recommended in the summer. Lausanne itself is beautiful but here I will focus on our day trip to Montreux. You can take a train from Geneva or Lasussane and buying a day pass is recommended as it covers local travel. After getting off at the train station, you can walk to 'Chatue de Chillon' which is a beautiful castle on lake Geneva just outside of Montreux offering some amazing views of the alps. There is also a bus that will take you there from the train station if you are not keen on walking for 45 minutes to reach the castle. However, the Montreux riviera is beautifully decorated with some really pretty artwork so it's definitely worth it. The castle looks like its jump right out of a fairytale, you will be left spellbound by the scenic beauty so have your cameras ready. Experience a sunset there and you won't be disappointed especially if you are a photography enthusiast. Entry to the castle is about 14 francs and definitely worth a visit. If you would like to enjoy some amazing views of the city and the alps your next stop should be the towards the top of the city. Just hop on any one of the buses going uphill and walk up using narrow staircases to get views like this: 
Roche de Nayes is another popular stop which is frequently visited by tourist however, we gave it a miss due heavy snow. There is a train every hour that takes you up there and you can enjoy the famous cheese fondue while you are on it. You can visit it in summer to get nice views of lake geneva and the alps. On the way back we stopped at Vevey to enjoy one of the most beautiful sunsets I have experienced in my life. Sitting at the lakefront and just soaking the beautiful display of colours nature had to offer was truly a mesmerizing experience.
If you end up in winters in Vevey there is a skating rink near the lakefront. In all if you are going to Geneva don't miss this beautiful city experience.