SWITZERLAND

Switzerland is in central Europe; it is the land of the Alps.  It is surrounded by France, Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, and Italy.  Languages include German, French, and Italian, but many people also speak some English.  Religions are equally split between Roman Catholic and Protestant.  We visited the town of Basel. 

BASEL

Basel is Switzerland’s largest city and a major commercial center, particularly for the banking and chemical/pharmaceutical industries.  The city had its origins as a Roman settlement in 44 B.C., and has been occupied by host of conquerors until it joined the Swiss Confederation in 1501.  Today Basel retains much of its old town charm, with cobbled streets, colorful fountains, and 16^th-century buildings. 

Our ship docked some distance from the Old Town, so we all rode the tram into the city center for a walking tour with our program director.  First stop was the Marktplatz (or Market Square), where – as you might guess – the market was in full swing with lots of goodies to admire.

The Rathous (or Town Hall) dominates the Marktplatz – it’s hard to miss.    It was built in the 16^th century and has been restored to its full glory, with a vivid red façade, embellished with shields, painted figures and a golden spire.  Its frescoed courtyard has a statue of Munatius Plancus, the founder of Strasbourg.

 

The 12^th-century Munster (Cathedral) is an unmistakable landmark with its two slender Gothic spires built in red sandstone, colorful tile roof, sundial, and stained glass window decorated with the Star of David. 

 

The building was originally a Catholic Cathedral, but now is a Swiss Reformed Protestant Church.  Many religious images were removed when the Protestants took over, but they left the image of St. Martin on the exterior wall.  According to legend, St. Martin cut off his cloak with his sword to give it to a beggar; this didn't sit well with the Protestants so they changed the beggar into a tree stump.

We enjoyed walking through the cloister, where all sorts of important people are buried and which overlooks the Rhine River.  From here there is a good view of the old (very old) ferry – it is manually operated, using the swift current for power and a rope to guide the boat across the river.

 

After a bit more touring, we headed back to the ship for lunch.  Pictured here are Scott and Terrence, two new travel buddies from Kansas City. 

 

Before heading back to town to see what we missed, we walked from the ship to visit the monument that marks the ‘Three Corners’ of Germany, France and Switzerland.  It’s a tall, three-sided swirl marked by symbols of the flags of the three countries. 

We rode the tram back into town and set off to see the Tinguely Fountain, a curious work of the Swiss sculptor, Jean Tinguely.  It is a piece of madcap machinery playing water games with hoses – art with a juvenile heart, entertaining young and old.  

From there we set off on a hike to see the Spalentor, the old town gate/tower which is 700 years old, a remnant from the time when the city was encircled by a protective wall.  After 14 wrong turns, we finally found it – only to learn that it was undergoing restoration and thus surrounded by scaffolding.  Kindly, the city had sketched a diagram over the scaffolding to show us what the tower should look like. 

We were about to decide that we should have stayed on the ship for the afternoon, but then we unexpectedly found Jo jumping off the tram near the tower.  We walked through some lovely old parts of town while Jo texted Carol (who had gone to check out museums) trying to get everyone in the same place at the same time.   Somehow it worked and we found the square and then the tram and finally the ship.

 

 

 

 By then it was time for one last visit to the ship’s lounge.  This was a nightly ritual – charming waiters, tempting brews, and a port talk before dinner.  Tomorrow’s ‘port’ is the airport, so we said our final goodbyes to crew and passengers and tried to get excited about packing for the trip home.