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Switzerland

A 16-day adventure by skip's retirement travel Read more
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    April 9, 2022
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    Zurich

    April 10, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 7 °C

    Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland. It was founded by the Romans (aka Turicum), but human presence in the area can be traced back to at least 4 millennia earlier. Today, Zurich is a world class financial center, especially well known for banking and insurance.
    The 1st 2 pictures look over Zurich from opposite sides of the river Limmat: from the university terrace and the Lindenhof, respectively. Most noticable in Zurich's skyline are the church steeples, many of which have clocks, which for me is no surprise. The Swiss have a reputation for their timepieces.
    Zurich was one of the 2 Swiss centers of the Protestant Reformation (the other being Geneva, see posts yet to come). The reformer in Zurich was Huldrych Zwingli. He, along with John Calvin in Geneva, are considered to be the founders of Reformed theology. The 4th picture is the Grossmünster where Zwingli preached.
    Zurich is located on one of the larger of the many lakes in Switzerland: Zürichsee. That is the 6th picture.
    The 7th picture is one of Zurich's better known streets: Niederdorf where many restaurants are located.
    Zurich has hundreds of fountains that provide potable water around the city. There is a tradition each spring of filling some of them with flowers to celebrate the end of winter. One of those is the last picture.    Read more

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    Abbey of St. Gall and St. Gallen

    April 11, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    Sankt Gallen is a town in eastern Switzerland that grew up around the Abbey of St. Gall. St. Gall, formerly Gallus, was originally from Ireland. He was one of the companions of Columbanus on his 7th century mission. He is said to have left the mission to set up his hermitage here. The Abbey grew up around the hermitage, and the town grew up around the Abbey.
    Most of these pictures are in and around the abbey. The 1st picture is the facade of the cathedral built on the location of the Abbey church looking across one of the exterior courtyards. The 2nd picture is the nave of the cathedral. The 3rd picture was a bit of a surprise. They call it the Corona Bible. It seems that during the pandemic, people took to copying sections of the scriptures. This text is a complications of lots of these comprising the entire Bible all in the original handwriting.
    The next 3 pictures are taken around the abbey that is a large complex of buildings.
    The 7th picture is in the abbey cellar which is a vaulted space. It has been set up as a museum of the history of the abbey. To the left is a model of the abbey church under construction.
    The 8th picture is the famous library of St. Gall. This is one of the oldest monastic libraries in the world and was an important center of learning and collection of knowledge in the middle ages. And it is a stunningly beautiful place.
    The last picture looks at a bit of the old town of St. Gallen.    Read more

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    Lucerne

    April 13, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Lucerne is a city in central Switzerland located astride the River Reuss where it flows out of Lake Lucerne. Given its lakefront and proximity to the Alps, this place has drawn tourists for centuries.
    Like many places in Europe, the 1st recorded settlement here was a monastery in the 8th century. The town began to develop by the 10th century. The etymology of the town name is uncertain, but it has been popularly associated with the Latin word for tavern: lucerna.
    The 1st picture is the Lion Monument. The dying lion was carved in the 1820s as a memorial to Swiss Guards who were massacred during the French Revolution. It has become a symbol of Lucerne.
    The 2nd picture is of a portion of the medieval city walls, taken from the top level of one of the guard towers like the one farther along the wall. These walls are in good condition, and I'm told they are original.
    Lucerne is also known for its covered wooden bridges. The chapel bridge is pictures 3&4. This is the oldest covered bridge in Europe, dating to 1333, though much is rebuilt due to fire. The stone tower (aka Water Tower) by the bridge is a former defensive structure. The 4th picture shows the internal structure of the bridge. You can see how the bridge turns and a bit of the water tower.
    The 5th and 6th pictures are the Spreuer bridge, also dating to the 14th century. This bridge is known for the plague paintings on each structural triangle. The 6th picture is one example, this one being a dans macabre.
    The 7th picture is back atop the watchtower, looking over the city to Lake Lucerne. The 8th picture is the nave of the Jesuit church here, and the 9th picture looks up to Gutsch chateau/hotel where a castle built in the late 16th century stood. The original was lost to fire.    Read more

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    Lucerne Interlaken Express

    April 14, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Another train ride. This route from Lucerne to Interlaken climbs up and over an alpine mountain pass. Aside from cog railways like Mount Washington or Pikes Peak, this is the steepest train ride I've ever taken. And it gets to some amazing beautiful places.Read more

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    Interlaken

    April 14, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Interlaken is a small town in central Switzerland located between 2 lakes (hence the name). The lakes are Brienz to the east and Thun to the west. The village straddles the River Aare that flows between the lakes.
    Today, Interlaken is a major point from which mountain travel begins, including in the Jungfrau region that labels itself the roof of Europe.
    The 1st picture is a Japanese garden in the middle dele of town with one of the churches in the background. The 2nd picture looks at part of a large urban park. The 3rd picture is a street with a bit of Swiss architecture.
    The 4th and 5th pictures look along the River Aware. The covered bridge structures are at weirs that control water level and flow in the several river channels. In both locations were mills and even some hydropower production.
    The last 4 pictures are all taken from Harderkulm. This is the ridge directly above Interlaken. The 6th picture looks out at the Alps. The 7th picture looks over Interlaken to Lake Brienz, and the 8th looks the other way: over the village to Lake Thun. Several cute wooden sculptures are scattered around the Harderkulm. This is one of them.    Read more

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    Lauterbrunnen

    April 14, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    Lauterbrunnen is a small village squeezed into a canyon not too far from Interlaken (see another post). It is an achingly beautiful place. I counted at least 4 waterfalls flowing down the cliffs. I'm told that at least one, the one in the 3rd picture, flows all year. The tallest one is almost 300 meters with the mountain winds turning much of the flow to mist.
    The town can be reached by train. Part of the route is steep enough to need a cog railway. In addition, there are narrow gauge cog railways heading farther up. Several of the pictures have glimpses of buildings far up the mountain that are served by the narrow gauge trains.
    This is very much an adventure destination. People were trekking, skiing, rock climbing, and more. Of course there is a lot of opportunity for photography, too.
    The town itself is a mountain town geared today for tourism. To me, it looks and feels the part.    Read more

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    Cheese!

    April 16, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    Imagine that! Cheese in Switzerland. And in the town of Gruyères. Said town is in the alpine foothills of southwestern Switzerland in the French speaking part of the country. Gruyères is a hill town with the chateau at the very top. That is the 1st picture. The 2nd picture is the view from the chateau, a view that captures much of what Switzerland is known for: Alps, dairy farms, green pastures, etc. The 3rd picture is along the main street of the town with it's medieval architecture and cobblestone street.
    The 4th picture looks out from the other side of the hill over the local countryside with the farms that provide milk for the Gruyères cheese. The 5th picture is of the main gate into town, and the 6th picture looks along the town wall on the inside. On the right are the crenallations used for defensive purposes.
    The rest of the pictures are of the town's most famous product: Gruyeres cheese and its manufacture. Here is the process, from mixing and culturing to the presses and ripening. Notice the robot in the 9th picture that turns the cheese wheels and cleans the rind.
    The last picture is a 35 kilogram cheese (the standard size) stamped and ready to be shipped.    Read more

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    Chocolate!

    April 16, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    The town of Broc is within sight of the Gruyères chateau in the French speaking part of Switzerland. This is the location of the Caillers chocolate factory. The original building is in the 1st picture. Their tour is a virtual tour through the history of chocolate from the European perspective, from their learning about it in the Americas, starting with the Aztecs through it's spread through the European aristocracy and finally to the rest of the people. The history tour was too dark for pictures as you can see in the 2nd picture which is of some early chocolate processing machines.
    The 3rd picture is a room in a room on the next stage of the tour with pictures of various people involved in all stages of the production of chocolate as well as displays of additions like hazelnuts and almonds. Each individual has a story that is told through the audio guide provided.
    The 5th and 6th pictures are processing equipment. The wrapped chocolates coming out the end went directly to a table for tasting. Mmm.
    The 7th picture is a worker making chocolate Easter bunnies. The 8th picture is just to the left of that worker. You can see fountains of milk, dark and white chocolate flowing. Also visible at the left are bunny molds with the decorative bits in place waiting for the chocolate to fill the rest of the mold.
    The last picture is the final tasting room where samples of all their chocolates are set out. There is no limit to how many pieces anyone can take. I've never seen such a generous tasting offer anywhere. Chocoholics, this is your place! And not just because Swiss chocolate is among the best in the world.    Read more

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    Bern

    April 17, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 11 °C

    Bern is the capital of Switzerland and is located in the German speaking part of the country. Settlement existed here since ancient times, but medieval Bern was founded in the late 12th century CE. The city is located inside a sharp U-bend in the River Aare, downstream from Interlaken (see another post). So the city is surrounded on 3 sides by water. Also, during floods, the Aare cut channels across the peninsula, for lack of a better word. 3 of these became the moat at the city wall at each expansion of the city.
    The 1st picture looks down from the top level of the Zytglogge (see another post) into the old town. Bern was destroyed by fire in the early 15th century, and the town required that reconstruction be done with stone. Hence the sandstone architecture visible throughout the old town.
    The 2nd picture is if one of many fountains in town, each different. This one is the Child Eater fountain or Kindlifresserbrunnen. (Don't you just love German words?) This is the Swiss equivalent of the bogey man that misbehaving kids were threatened with.
    The 3rd picture is another of the fountains, most of which are intended to give positive messages, such as here with its emphasis on music.
    The 4rd picture is of the Church of the Hy Ghost, the 1st church in Bern built specifically as a protestant church. Roman ruins were found underneath, suggesting that this might have been the site of a Roman temple The 5th picture is the entrance to the Münster or cathedral in Bern. My visit here was on Easter, arriving Sunday afternoon. So many places, including churches were closed.
    The 6th picture is the guard tower at the 2nd wall that once served as a prison. The moat/ river channel is now a boulevard.
    The 7th picture looks down the street to the Swiss Parliament building. The 7th picture is a building opposite the parliament. Windows and glass were taxed back in the day. So to minimize taxes on the one hand and provide a visually harmonious building on the other, some of this window are not real. They are painted on. Can you tell which are which?    Read more

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    Bern 2

    April 18, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 12 °C

    Here are a few more looks at Bern in the spring.
    The 1st picture is taken on the hill across the river at the bottom of the U bend within which Bern was built. You can see a few sections of the Aare, with the upstream section along the treeline to the left. The section of river right of center is flowing downstream, away from you.
    The 2nd picture is in the Rosengarten, not far from where the previous picture was taken. I'm told there are hundreds of varieties of roses here,. April is too early for roses, but spring flowers and flowering trees are are here in abundance.
    The heraldic animal of Bern is the bear. It seems no one really knows how that came about. But for centuries, bears have been kept in enclosures by the river. The 4th picture is one view.
    The 5th picture is take from down at river level. Across the way is a weir that control flow and provides for water power for early mills. The houses down here by the river were the "low rent district" where the less well off lived. This was a flood zone. In fact, the lowest houses still flood each year. You can get a sense of how far above the river the main part of town is.    Read more

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    Zytglogge

    April 18, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 13 °C

    The Zytglogge or astronomical clock is probably one of the most recognizable structures in Bern. The clock dates to 1530, and all of the mechanisms you will see in the pictures are original (except the ropes). And it has been keeping accurate time without correction since it was started, including the astrolabe and glockenspiel.
    This tower was originally built as the guard tower at the gate in the 1st city wall at the end of the 12th century or beginning of the 13th. As the city expanded and outer walls were built, the guard functions became less, though it didn't end. After the great fire in 1405, the guards here were mostly fire wardens.
    The 1st picture is the Zytglogge from the east. The upper click show central European time. The astrolabe below shows astronomical time, the phases of the moon, the date and more. The glockenspiel to the right of the astrolabe has a rooster that crows, a jester who rings the hour, bears that dance around the same number of times as the hour, Chronos, the God of Time, turning his hourglass, waving his scepter and turning his head, and a wild beast who also reacts. Every hour on the hour.
    The 2nd and 3rd pictures are the views from the windows atop the tower where the guards worked. When on duty, the 4 guards and their families lived in the tower. The 4th picture is their housing.
    The rest of the pictures look at how the zytglogge is put together and how it works. The 5th picture looks at some of the structure, and the 6th picture is of some of the weights that drive the clock.
    The 7th and 8th pictures are the mechanism from the 16th century, still working as designed. In the background of the 8th picture, you can see some of the cables and rods that drive the glockenspiel, clock and astrolabe: all one amazing (and did I mention original?) mechanism.
    The last picture is the back of the glockenspiel. The bellows are for the rooster whose back you can see above the bellows. You can also see a couple bears on their turntable.
    Needless to say, I am really taken with this machine that is so well designed and built that it is still working and accurate after almost 600 years without correction and with no indication that it might change. It was fun to watch the mechanism drive the glockenspiel on one of its hourly performances.    Read more

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    Geneva

    April 19, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Geneva is located in the southwest of Switzerland where the Rhone River exits Lake Geneva (Lac Leman, in French). Geneva is a global city, hosting a lot of international activity ( see another post).
    Historically, Geneva was a border town with all the trading that goes with it. The Rhone was for many years the northern border of the Roman empire, and the city's location is likely due to an ancient bridge located here.
    The 1st picture looks out to Lake Geneva from near where the Rhone flows out. To the right is the Jet d'Eau, the water jet that shoots 120 meters high and has become a symbol of the city. The 2nd picture looks down the Rhone from under the bridge at the point where the river begins. The old town (see another post) is on the hill to the left of the the river.
    The 3rd picture is the floral clock in the English Garden along the lake shore.
    The 4th picture is the opera house, and the 5th picture is in the Bastion Park. During the Reformation (see another post), Geneva was one of the most heavily fortified towns in Europe: a staunchly Protestant town surrounded by largely Catholic regions. Most of that has been dismantled, but this park is in one of those areas, in between the inner bastion and the 2nd wall.
    The last 2 pictures are for the science geeks: Geneva's other famous resident, CERN. The particle physics lab is world renown. The 2 pictures are at the Atlas site, the only one of the 4 observation sites in Switzerland. 1 is of the outer wall. The other is the control room.    Read more

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    Geneva International

    April 20, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    It is quite likely that Geneva is best known these days for its international presence. In fact, more international organizations have their headquarters here than in any other city in the world.
    The 1st picture looks down the entrance to the Palace of Nations, the European headquarters of the United Nations., Unfortunately, it is still closed from the pandemic. The 2nd picture is part of 1 of the wall murals around the Palace of Nations property. The 3rd picture that looks like a smaller version of the UN headquarters in New York is the home of the World Intellectual Property Organization. The 4th picture is a sculpture near the UN. It is an artillery piece with the barrel twisted into a knot as a call to an end to war.
    The 5th picture is around the corner from the Palace of Nations and is a statue of Mahatma Gandhi with the Arianna Museum in the background.
    The 6th picture is the International Red Cross building, formerly the Hotel Carlton. The Red Cross was founded in Geneva. What I was surprised to learn is that the name came from the flag, not the other way around. The red cross on the white field is the reverse of the Swiss flag, white cross on red. The original Geneva convention was signed here, the original of which is in the 7th picture. Their museum is extraordinary, looking at all of what the Red Cross does, going back to the beginning of the organization. The 8th picture is an example. This room holds thank you gifts to Red Cross workers from prisoners visited, all hand made from materials at hand in the prison.
    The 9th picture is the headquarters of the World Council of Churches. The 10th picture is in the Rockefeller Chapel in the WCC building. It is a beautiful space with many expressions of Christianity from around the world.    Read more

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    Reformation Geneva

    April 21, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Geneva was an important place where the Protestant Reformation took hold, so much so that this city was sometimes known as the Protestant Rome. This is where John Calvin preached and taught. Reformed luminaries such as John Knox of Scotland came here to learn and then bring Reformed theology home.
    The 1st 2 picture are at the Reformation Memorial. This is a long wall of sculptures located at Bastion Park (see another post) on the campus of the University of Geneva that was founded by Calvin. The 4 taller figures in the center are William Farel who convinced Calvin he was needed in Geneva; John Calvin; Theodore Beza, Calvin s successor in Geneva and John Knox. The other statues are other protestant luminaries: I note for my Rhode island friends that Roger Williams is guy in the pilgrim hat to the right of the central grouping.
    The 3rd picture is the facade of St. Peters cathedral where Calvin was pastor. The 4th picture looks along the side of St. Peter's at the steeple and 1 of the towers. The 5th picture is in the nave of St. Peter's. This building dates to the 13th century and was built as a Catholic church. Upon taking over, the protestants removed all decoration and any hint of luxury, leaving the austere space you see in the picture. The 6th picture is John Calvin's chair where he sat during worship.
    An interesting side note: Geneva had been known for jewelry making. However, the austere vision of life with no luxuries meant the jewelers lost their livelihood. So the jewelers became watchmakers as time was not considered a luxury. Here began Geneva's reputation for clocks and watches.
    The last picture is the Maccabees Chapel on St. Peters, a later side chapel addition to the cathedral. Though it was stripped like the rest of the church in the 16th century, it has been restored to something like it would have been originally.
    There is much more in Geneva about the Reformation, but many places were closed. This period was pivotal in Geneva becoming the place it is and in the shaping of much protest theology, including mine.    Read more

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    Geneva's Old Town

    April 21, 2022 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    As those who have followed my travels have probably realized, I have interest in the historic parts of cities. Geneva is no exception, especially given that my theology follows John Calvin who worked, preached, taught and wrote here for most of his career. The Reformation was a significant period shaping Geneva (see another post). This post looks at the historic old town.
    The 1st picture is the square with houses typical of the old town. You can see where some of the houses were extended upwards. This happened in the 15th century when Geneva was deluged with a flood of Protestant refugees seeking shelter from persecution.
    The 2nd picture is one of only 2 sections of the old bastion dating to the 15th century that witnessed the defence of the city against the Catholic Savoyards, an event still celebrated annually.
    The 3rd picture is the Tour d'Ille on an Island in the middle of the Rhone. This is where the oldest evidence of human activity in this area has been found.
    The 4th picture is the Maison Tavel, the oldest residential structure in the old town. The facade still retains it's original style. It is a museum today. One of the exhibits is a detailed scale model of Geneva as it was before "urban renewal" removed the ancient bastions. It is so detailed that even the number of bars in windows is accurate, though the 6th picture isn't detailed enough to see that.
    The 7th picture is the door into the old city hall and is a good example of the wood working skills back in the day. The 8th picture is in the city hall courtyard. Those are ramps up from the ground floor to the upper floors. I'm told it was built this way to allow the councilors access while riding a horse or mule.
    The 9th picture is what remains of an old city gate. The last picture is back in the main square. I didn't learn the story of the piece, but my reaction was the a nude girl in the square must have Calvin rolling over in his grave.    Read more

    Trip end
    April 24, 2022
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