Tag: swiss

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Bern, Switzerland – Medieval Town on the Aare

Bern was originally settled by Swabians[1]The Zähringen noble family from around Freiburg im Breisgau in the twelfth century and quickly died out within a century. from the lower parts of Germany, it is the fifth largest in Switzerland and was initially surrounded by the Aare river on three sides, with fortifications protecting it’s west side.

Getting There

Bern does not have a commercial airport, so you will either have use Zürich‘s or Geneva’s and then take a train. We had already started in Geneva, so taking one of the ICE trains from Geneva to Bern was automatic. However, in typical SBB[2]Schweizerische BundesBahnen or Swiss train fashion, it was halted before leaving the Lake Léman area and we had to find another train to continue our two hour journey, which then turned into a three hour trip[3]There have been few times when traveling by train in Switzerland was a normal affair. It is getting to be more like the Deutscher Bahn.

The City

The old medieval city of Bern is rather compact, due to it being confined by the Aare river. The main train station is on the west side of the city, so it is probably best to find a hotel close to it. We stayed at the Hotel Savoy, three blocks away from the train station.

Walking from the train station to the Nydeggbrücke, via the Marktgasse of Kramgasse, should not take more than a twenty-five to thirty minutes without stopping. The main shopping avenue is the Marktgasse, which is lined with many watch stores and most other modern shops you expect to see in city that is heavily traveled. See the restaurant section below for where to go for food.

Brunnen Or Fountains

The city has a lot of brunnen, or fountains in English, especially down the middle of the Marktgasse. Most of these have figures or other mythical forms, stylized perhaps from some historical figure.

There is also the Lischetti-Brunnen, also known as the Postgassbrunnen or Upper Postgassbrunnen, which was erected in 1820 next to the Staatskanzelei (State Chancellery) and is to be used by anyone who wishes to experience being a fountain.

Hotel Savoy

A fairly good hotel on the Kramgasse, sharing an entrance with another store. We found it reasonably priced for a Swiss hotel and central for visiting the city. The breakfast is rather expensive, as it is in most Swiss hotels, at 30CHF per person. We found this unreasonable and ventured out each morning to stop at one of the many Konditoreien, or pastry shops, in the neighborhood. This option ran around 9-10CHF per person, but was only coffee and a pastry, which for use was sufficient.

Cathedrals And Churches

A few religious buildings of note in Bern are the Cathedral of Bern and the Church of Saint Peter and Paul.

Cathedral Of Bern

Church Of Saint Peter And Paul

Bridges And The Aare River

There are two central bridges that span the Aare at the tip of the city. The Untertorbrücke, the first one to be built and is shown on maps of the city from the seventeenth century, and the Nydeggbrücke, which carries the tram and modern vehicular traffic.

Bären Park

On one end of the Nydeggbrücke is the Bärenpark, or Bear Park. As early as the beginning of the sixteenth century the city has been known to have a Bärengraben, or Bear Pit, of some type or another. Ostensibly the city becoming eponymously named for the same in 1191 when the Duke of Zähringen killed a bear first on one of his many famous hunts. But seriously, this is just conjecture and there is more evidence that it was from a pre-existing toponym of Celtic origin, possibly berna, meaning cleft.

Einsteinhaus

On Marktgasse 49, visitors will find the Einsteinhaus, or the apartment that Albert Einstein lived in during his publication of his ground breaking theories of 1905, including his Special Theory of Relativity.

The Rosengarden Bern

One top of the hill on the other side of the Aare river is the park containing the Rose Garden, or Rosengarden. Unfortunately for us, the roses were not in bloom in May, so we were unable to enjoy their colors. However, there were other flowers, trees and bushes to be enjoyed in the park.

It is here, that Albert Einstein probably contemplated many of the problems around his Theory of Relativity, and a bench here so commemorates his efforts.

From this vantage point you get a very good view of the old Medieval city of Bern, with its many churches, bridges and old style houses.

Restaurants

The Bärenplatz and Waisenhausplatz are central areas for restaurants and have a good mix of local Swiss restaurants to Italian and other cuisines.

Santa Lucia Ristorante

Another Italian restaurant which has a very active lunch crowd. Here you can enjoy reasonable prices and a wide selection of Italian dishes, including pizza. Our first evening here we enjoyed the soup and spaghetti.

The second time we visited was for lunch, then I ordered a pizza, which was very good and typical of the Neapolitan style from Naples. The house wine is also very pleasant.

Ristorante Luce

On the corner of Zeughausgasse and Waghausegasse is the Italian restaurant of Ristorante Luce. If you are looking for higher end Italian food, look no further. The service here is also exceptional, though the seating was a bit cramped.

Here they serve very good Italian specialties and have an excellent wine list. Here you can find Strozzapreti, or Priest Strangler/Choker Pasta with Mozzarella. A rather large and somewhat gummy pasta with an very interesting history.

I can specifically attest to spending 150CHF for a 375ml bottle of Ornellaia 2019. A DOC wine from Italy with extremely high ratings which regularly fetches $250-$800 a bottle, a truly amazing wine. So if you are a true wine lover, your pallet might enjoy this restaurant.

References

References
↑1 The Zähringen noble family from around Freiburg im Breisgau in the twelfth century and quickly died out within a century.
↑2 Schweizerische BundesBahnen
↑3 There have been few times when traveling by train in Switzerland was a normal affair. It is getting to be more like the Deutscher Bahn
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Luzern – The Latern City

The fourth largest city in Switzerland and split by the Reuss river on the Vierwaldstättersee, or Lake Lucerne, lies Luzern. A pretty little city with ample bridges and pedestrian streets, where one can easily spend a few days relaxing and enjoying the fine Swiss hospitality of the people here, who speak a dialect of German called Alemannic. I found it impossible to understand and difficult sometimes even when they spoke High German, their dialect’s influence on their pronunciation being that profound.

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Luzern On The River Reuss

Hotel Ameron

Our hotel was rather well situated. A block or two got us to the train station one way, the other we can cross the famous Kapellbrücke, or Chapel Bridge. So, it is an excellent place to start a tour of the city.

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Hotel Ameron

The Chapel Bridge

The first, and most conspicuous point of interest to see, is the Kapellbrücke. Restored in 1993 after a major fire, some of its paintings survived and can be enjoyed with a casual walk across it to see its namesake church, Saint Peter’s Chapel, or just to get to the other side.

The above is a slideshow of the bridge and its adjacent water tower, or Wasserturm, but the tower has nothing to do with holding water. Rather, it is named so, because it is standing in water. It has had several uses in the past, but recently it now has a tourist shop located within, which is currently temporarily closed due to lack of tourism in the area.

The Spreuer Bridge

This Spreuer Bridge also spans the Reuss river and has a more interesting structure adjacent to it, a turbine house and assembly for generating electricity. It is no longer in use, and was closed in the 1970s due to high maintenance cost and difficulties finding parts.

The bridge also contains the similar paintings as can be found on the Chapel Bridge, along with a small altar celebrating the Madonna.

The water from the Reuss picks up speed rapidly after this bridge, as it is confined to a smaller space for the turbine to use. The rapids are swiftly moving and create quite a noise. Unfortunately in the video below, I thought the bridge was the Chapel bridge at the time, since it does have a small chapel or altar within it, so please ignore that comment.

The Musegg Mauer

The Musegg Mauer, or wall, is a long and imposing edifice of the city. It climbs the hill rapidly on the side of the Spreuer Bridge, starting at the Nölliturm, and ends almost at the other side of the city before Zürichstrasse, with the Dächliturm. The towers are arranged as seen below, some of which, like the Wachturm, can be visited.

Here is a short slideshow of our walk around the wall, up the Wachturm and along the top of its wall for some way.

Using the legend provided above, you should be able to identify each tower by its unique shape.

Luzern The City

The rest of the city is geared toward shopping, eating and tourism. It is clear that some shops have fallen on hard times have closed, others are temporarily closed or are opening on modified schedules. Here are some views as you walk through the city.

One thing to note, the city is full of interesting looking doors and cornices. If you keep your eyes open you may see a few things you likely not see elsewhere.

The Lion Monument

Hidden across the Zürichstrasse and in the same area as the Glacier Garden, is the Lion Monument of Luzern. A carving out of solid rock in a very quiet and tranquil place in the middle of a city.

So, if you are looking for a relaxing spot to end your day of walking the town, this park will provide the quiet you need. It is open to the public for free, however, for the Glacier Gardens, there is a fee of 12CHF per person.

Restaurants

The Rathaus Brauerei

If you are hungry and need a bite to eat while walking around, or just need some good Swiss food, the Rathaus Brauerei may fit your needs. It has customary Swiss fare at a reasonable price. They even have expresso and a good selection of wine and beer to wash it down. We had soup, water, wine a large mixed salad, an order of Wurst with Sauerkraut, expresso and Sambuca, all for the reasonable Swiss price of 63CHF. I say reasonable, because all food in Switzerland is expensive. By the way, they have great mustard here, enjoy!

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My Salad and Wurstchen Plates

Well that’s it for what we call a whirlwind tour of Luzern. Normally, we like to stay awhile in a place to get the real feel for it, but it was more of a waypoint for us on our way back to Turin. We were glad we stopped by to enjoy what it had to offer, even though it was still very quiet due to the affects of the pandemic.

Bis nächstes Mal, Tschüß!

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Grindelwald – Jungfraujoch

Departing from Grindelwald once again, we find ourselves heading through the Kleine Scheidegg to our ultimate destination – Jungfraujoch, the Top Of Europe, or so they say.

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Jungfrau Glacier

Jungfraujoch

The Jungfraujoch experience is a collection of tunnels accessed by the Jungfraujoch rack rail directly under the saddle or “Joch” of the Jungfrau. However, most of these tunnels are actually under the south side of Mönch and provide access to the glacier, the observatory, as well as other necessities for people to visit. It all starts with a train ride.

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Tickets For Two – Jungfraujoch From Grindelwald

As you can see from the price on our tickets, they are not inexpensive, so get a travel pass if traveling by family or small groups. As a couple we probably could have saved some money, but we wanted to remain flexible since we slow travel and never know what we are doing one day to the next.

With the exception of the glacier stop, which by the way you can only view going up (so get out if you want to see it), all other exhibits in the Jungfraujoch can be visited in any order.

The Eiger Glacier

The first stop, while on the train, is the Eiger glacier. Since our hiking trip from Kleine Scheidegg showed us the bottom of the glacier, we thought it only fitting to see where it begins as well. It is a five minute stop, so you must hop off and hop back on once you are done.

In the photographs above, you can just see where the glacier drops over the edge and descends rapidly. From there, you can pick up the view of it from below (see our previous post on Kleine Scheidegg).

Jungfraujoch – Glacier

While you are still inside the complex, the first glimpses of the glacier are impressive. Here are some photographs while we were still winding through the corridors trying to find our first tour.

Jungfraujoch – Museum Exhibits

There are a few museum related exhibits on the lower floor the include dioramas and other artifacts in glass enclosures. They all make for interesting reading.

Jungfraujoch – Ice Palace

The ice palace, or palast, is a corridor and rooms with ice carvings in them. It is cold, kept at a constant minus six degrees celsius, so you will need to bring something warm to supplement your apparel.

Here are also some videos of walking through the ice tunnel. The floor is actually not as slippery as one would think, probably due to intense cold temperature they keep it at.

Jungfraujoch – Alpine Sensation

The Alpine Sensation is a mixture of museum and distractions for children. It still offers enough to stop and take a look at some of the interesting exhibits and information they have on the history of the Jungfraujoch. However, if you take the moving walkway they may be more difficult to read.

Jungfraujoch – The Sphinx

Though not completely sure why it’s called The Sphinx, probably a mixture of the astronomy dome and the platforms resembling that form from a distance, it offers outside panoramic views of the glacier and the surrounding peaks. Bundle up though, it’s cold outside!

Here are some remaining still photographs in a slideshow.

This concludes our trip to Grindelwald and the surrounding areas. We really enjoyed the hotel, the town, the hiking, the air and of course the mountains! We hope to return one day with our children. But until then, on to Lucern, our next stop on our trip.

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Interlaken – Stepstool To The Alps

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Reformierte Kirche Unterseen And Square Fountain

After our stay in Offenbach, we headed to Switzerland using Germany’s ICE service. We of course experienced the customary breakdown, or what they like to call a Technische Störung, a German euphemism for someone committing suicide on the tracks, or just the Deutsche Bahn not being able to run a railroad. We have actually not ridden an ICE that did not have an issue, and from the comments we heard from the other Germans, they haven’t either.

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Tickets For Two – Offenbach To Frankfurt

We arrived in Basel SBB too late for our connecting train, so after waiting a further half an hour, we finally made it to our destination, Interlaken, our stepstool to the Alps. Interlaken is a small city, sitting between two rather large lakes, the Thunersee and the Brienzersee.

We stayed at the Hotel Interlaken, a four star hotel half way between the train station and the center of town, and handsomely situation across from the main park. Though it worked out well because of the rain, you should not worry about the location of any hotels in Interlaken, the city is not large enough to be too far away from either the Interlaken-West or Interlaken-Ost train stations.

Interlaken – The City

The actual city is what I would call confused. It appears, it does not know its identity, or what it wants to be. It appears to be conflicted between being a tourist town, a normal town for residence, or just a waypoint on someone’s map (train stop).

It has both expensive hotels, restaurants and casinos, and then less fortunate areas within a block of one another. Several areas look destitute, some historic (like around the tourist museum), others more disconsulate – where stores have actually closed.

Unfortunately, while we were there, all it did was rain for two days. But, I would rather have it rain in Interlaken, than in Grindelwald, which was our ultimate destination on this trip. To be fair, we were using it as a rest stop anyway, so no fuss, no foul. In any case, we got one day, the day we left, to get some amazing photographs of the mountains without clouds surrounding them.

As for recommending any restaurants in the area, we cannot. There are a lot of closed restaurants, an affect of the virus. The ones that are still open are fine, overpriced, like all food in Switzerland, but none remarkable. Hopefully others that travel behind us may have better luck when the city recovers a bit more. Now, on to Grindelwald, the Eiger and the Jungfrau, Tschüß!