The heaviest rainfall in several years in China is putting the new Three Gorges dam to the test. Tuesday 20 July the water flow on the Yangtze River’s upper reaches was monitored at 70,000 cubic metres per second, the highest ever. The dam can be seen sluicing water at an impressive 40,000 m3 per second in a Xinhua photo. The Chinese news agency reports that “The water level rose to 158.86 meters at 10 a.m. Friday, about 13.86 meters above the reservoir’s water-releasing level, said engineers of the reservoir, located in Yichang City, central Hubei Province. As of 2 p.m. Friday, the water level dropped to 158.83 meters and has remained largely stable since. The maximum capacity of the multibillion dollar reservoir is 175 meters.”

Thank you for joining us in 2009 to learn more about the Lake Geneva region in 2009 and we look forward to helping you stay informed in 2010.

Our New Year’s wish for you: rise above it – seek the peaks in your life, just waiting for you to find them.

Image: Ellen Wallace. Canton Valais, Switzerland, changing weather, 31 December 2009 (click on image to view larger)

Switzerland, December 2009

Best wishes for a safe and happy holiday, from the staff and contributors at GenevaLunch, to all our faithful readers.

Thanks to you, our traffic has grown fourfold in 12 months, and we are now the best-read source of news online in the Lake Geneva region in Switzerland.

Ed. note: we will be reducing our regular news coverage for the next two weeks, but running several features to keep you happy.

Basel, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Roger Federer and his family have posted a Federer Christmas card with a family photo, answering requests from fans for another look at the twin girls born in July, taken by Robbie Federer. Within a short time more than 300 comments had appeared.

Background, GenevaLunch