The Switzerland Traveler

Sometimes I get the impression that there is a major new art exhibition starting every week in Switzerland.
OK, that’s across the whole country but there’s not that many people living here, way less than in Greater london for example.
Today we’re featuring Basel Art Museum’s retrospective about Chaim Soutine, which runs until 6 July.
Born in Russia before the revolution, he travelled to Paris where he worked alongside Chagall and Modigliani.
His work is said to have influenced the painting of Francis Bacon and Willem de Kooning. His landscapes are also said to resemble some of Van Gogh’s paintings, but I’ll leave …read more

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Montreux is renowned internationally for its Jazz Festival.
Less well-known is the Choral Festival which takes place at the Stravinsky Auditorium next week.
Frankly, I know little about it, but thought if this is the sort of thing you like, you might wish to know about it.
About 20 Choral groups from around Europe will be playing. The event runs from Tuesday, 25 March until Saturday, 29 March.
See www.choralfestival.ch for more details.
Photo: Flickr – oxmox

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Here we go, another round of interesting photos posted in the last week.
First off, not only is it officially now spring, the flowers in the mountains think so too.

Next, a view across the lake at Geneva at night.

Again in Geneva, or to be precise, underneath it. Part of the CERN nuclear accelerator project.

And just to show not everything in Switzerland is beautiful…

…but they are pulling it down! 
Photos – Flickr: christianmeichtry, david roessli, timtom.ch, mx b ch r

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It’s quite common for Swiss resorts to offer special offer packages at the start and end of the ski season.
So if you fancy a break in a car-free resort, why not try Bettmeralp for a change?
It’s in the Valais, the area to the east of Lake Geneva, so it would take a couple of hours from Geneva, or three from Zurich.
Bettmeralp is located on a sunny terrace above the Rhone Valley with a view of the four-thousand-metre-high peaks of the Valais: the Weisshorn, Dom and Matterhorn.
The resort is renowned as being very family-friendly. For example, the hiking trails have …read more

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In my last post, I forgot to mention the Hundertwasser Art and Market Hall at Altenrhein, which might be of interest if you are in the area of St Gallen.
If you don’t know Hundertwasser’s work, he can loosely be compared to Gaudí. If you Haven’t heard of Gaudí, you should probably get out more.
The hall is typical of his work, with lots of curves – he referred to straight lines as “the devil’s tools”. Typically, it uses a lot of tiles and loads of wiggles.
There is a gallery with regular exhibitions and a restaurant, so no need to …read more

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It might not be the Pompidou centre, or even the South Bank, but the citizens of St Gallen have their own feature to be proud of.
Designed by architect Carlos Martinez and Multimedia-artist Pipilotti Rist, the Stadtlounge is a novel way of making a clinical financial area (Bleicheli) seem more people-friendly.
The entire  area is covered in a red surface, a playground surface for pedestrian areas and tarmac for the car areas. Even the Porsche 911 shaped lump that’s supposed to discourage you from parking. You wouldn’t want to come back and find your car has been resurfaced, would you?
At night the …read more

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From March 20 until Monday 24th (over Easter) there’s a tango festival at the Volkshaus in Basel.
It appears to do pretty much what it says on the tin: colour, music and dancing.
Exciting orchestra, dance performances as wel as films and workshops.
So it’s your choice; participate or just watch and enjoy. 
Volkshaus, Tangoschule Basel, Clarahofweg 23, Basel
www.tangobasel.ch
Photo: Flickr: szpyreczka

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Travelling to Geneva?
Need an aesthetically designed hotel?
Well, you could certainly do worse than the Hotel Auteuil. Even if it does have more vowels than you can shake a stick at.

For a four star hotel it’s not expensive; 200-260 CHF will get you a very pleasant double room, with all fitness facilities (and, amazingly for Switzerland, WiFi) thrown in.

Key words: Style, Design, Urban, Soothing, Aesthetic.
Not much more to say, really.
Except “book early”.
Hotel Auteuil33, rue de LausanneCH-1201 Geneva Tel.+41 22/ 544 22 22Fax +4122/ 544 22 99
booking info/photos courtesy of manotel

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Calling all flower lovers!
“Camellias at Locarno” is a festival for the general public and camellia lovers alike.
Over 300 variations of the flower will be on display, the location being apt because the Ticino climate is said to be ideal for growing Camellias.
The arrangements are created by professional gardeners, and as well as local music, there are ikebana and tea ceremonies to conjure up images of far-off lands. Far-off lands full of camellias that is.
And as it all takes place on the shores of Lake Maggiore, what better place could there be to look at beautiful flowers? 
Thurs 20 March – Mon …read more

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Old photo, new thrills.
This week sees 24 of the world’s top freeriders, both skiers and snowboarders, taking part in the 12th edition of Verbier Xtreme.
It’s the final of the Freeride World Tour (www.freerideworldtour.com) which visits Mammoth USA; Sochi, Russia; the O’Neill Big Mountain Pro, which is a mobile event in the Alps; and Tignes, France.
The Nissan O’Neill Xtreme Verbier is held on the North face of the Bec des Rosses, which features an over 50° gradient in places.
It’s allegedly a dramatic sight for the spectators on the Col des Gentianes, there also various demonstrations over the week.
The Freeride …read more

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