You may be wondering what a boxing gym is doing on a list of recommendations in this peaceful city of Geneva. Allow me to explain.

Traveling to another place means departing from the usual lifestyle you have set up for yourself and this implies little or no fitness regimen. My intention of recommending this place is two-fold: 1. to give you a workout option that’s efficient and burns a lot of calories in a short time (also known as high-intensity interval training) and 2. help you get to meet some of the locals who frequent gyms.

Geneva is notorious for the lack of local population since more than 60% of the inhabitants are foreigners who have come from various countries to work for the UN offices, permanent missions and multilateral organisations. As a long-time resident, I have had the chance to meet several locals who were born and brought up in Geneva or nearby places and who seemed equally interested in meeting expats.

The gym is run by 2 brothers, Emmanuel and Lawrence who are of Ghanan origin, and the boxing coach is a Tunisian ex-national boxer, Waleed Rahman. I recommend Tuesday and Thursday evenings at 18:30, the English boxing classes, where you get to learn techniques of boxing as well as light sparring, should you wish, with other folks. And should a friendship develop here, it makes me chuckle when someone asks us how we know each other – “we know each other from punching each other in the face.”

Happy training!