In 1932, while most of Geneva was building in stone, Le Corbusier put up an apartment block made almost entirely of steel and glass. The Immeuble Clarté, in the Eaux-Vives district on the east side of the city, was revolutionary for its time: a prefabricated steel frame, huge windows that flood the apartments with light, duplex flats with double-height living rooms and a structure that allowed flexible layouts. The name means clarity, and the building lives up to it. Since 2016 it has been part of the UNESCO listing of the architectural work of Le Corbusier, alongside the Villa Savoye, the Unité d'Habitation and other buildings on several continents.
The building is still lived in, so admire it from the street. Look at the rhythm of the windows, the balconies and the stairwells with their glass block floors, designed to bring light down through the building. It was restored in recent years, and its clean, modern look still surprises in a neighbourhood of nineteenth-century houses.
Riding in Geneva is city riding: busy traffic, trams, many traffic lights, cyclists and strict speed limits enforced by cameras. Parking for motorcycles is generally available in designated areas. Once you leave the city, the riding gets much better. The Salève, just across the French border, has a winding road to the top with views over the city and the lake, and the Jura and the Alps are within easy reach, with the roads around the Col de la Faucille and the Chablais offering superb curves.
Fuel, food and coffee are everywhere, though prices in Geneva are high, and fuel is often cheaper just across the border in France. The lakefront, with the Jet d'eau shooting water high into the air, is a short walk from the Clarté building, and the old town, with its cathedral and narrow lanes, is close by.
Local food includes perch fillets from the lake, cheese fondue, longeole, a Geneva pork sausage flavoured with fennel, and chocolate in every form. Spring and early autumn bring mild days and clear light. Summer can be hot, winter grey and cold, with the bise, a cold north-east wind, sweeping across the lake. Nearly a century on, it still looks like the future that Geneva politely declined to build around it.