February 18th, 2008
It’s amazing just how many awards there are in this world.
I never knew there was such a thing as an Alpine Town of the Year, but Brig seems to have won the big prize this year.
Probably the main attraction is the lavish Baroque palace known as Stockalper Castle, the largest private 17th Century building […]
By Geoff -- 0 comments
January 27th, 2008
The Swiss are justifiably proud of their mountain railways,
Now, you can have the chance to feel what it’s like to drive one of the Rhätische Bahn trains across the beautiful landscapes through the alps.
Tunnels through mountains, spectacular bridges across deep gorges.
And guess what? You can start in St Moritz! Actually there are quite a […]
By Geoff -- 14 comments
December 19th, 2007
When I first moved to Switzerland I lived in Konstanz (Constance), just on the German side of the Swiss border. One of the great beauties of the town is the lake there, the third largest in Europe.
The lake is surrounded by three countries, Germany, Austria and (you guessed it) Switzerland.
The Swiss part runs from […]
By Geoff -- 0 comments
November 6th, 2007
Let’s start with an easily accessible mountain. Not one of the highest mountains in Switzerland by any means, but great for visitors, with trains running up it from both sides.
Rigi is located close to Luzern, and one of the nicest ways to see it is by catching a boat from Luzern to Vitznau and catching […]
By Geoff -- 2 comments
October 24th, 2007
High up above the town of Locarno, there is a sanctuary located on a forested cliff; Madonna del Sasso. Sasso means rock, so hopefully I won’t be struck down for translating it as Madonna on the Rocks.
The church was consecrated in the 19th century when a local monk, Brother Bartholomeo, claimed that the Madonna had […]
By Geoff -- 4 comments
October 9th, 2007
About 15 years ago, the Swiss discovered Halloween. They’d always had pumpkin displays, but generally small and tasteful.
But then the idea of an extra celebration caught the corporate retail imagination and we all went Kürbis Krazy. Kürbis being the German for Pumpkin, if you hadn’t twigged.
Two brothers have caught onto this trend and turned […]
By Geoff -- 7 comments
September 29th, 2007
While the rest of Europe were busy shooting at, and dropping bombs on, each other, the neutral Swiss simply got on with life and building one of the most impressive roads in Europe.
The Susten pass was built between 1938 and 1945, linking the cantons of Uri and Bern, running from Wassen to Innertkirchen. Although […]
By Geoff -- 2 comments
September 16th, 2007
One of Switzerland’s main attractions is of course, its mountains. And one of the best, if not the best, ways of seeing them is to put on a pair of stout shoes and go for a walk.
A good map is always recommended, but like most things in the country, walking is well organised.
Wherever you […]
By Geoff -- 0 comments
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