17 October 2012 Basel, Switzerland

17 October 2012

Basel, Switzerland


We were in Basel for twenty-four hours. Our purpose was to visit, Raul, from Maryland. He was there for a concert. We visited with him for a part of an evening which included his sound check in the theater.  He is an impressive musician. Great technique, charisma, an easy-on-the-ear voice, singing about life through his songs. He sounded as great as ever. We last saw him in Barcelona, three weeks ago, with Kathleen, his wife. We went together to Set Portes, the great Catalan restaurant. Before that, we were with them December 2011 in Paris for his wife's birthday. On that trip we took nephew Chris with us to introduce him to the joys of Paris, travel and uncles.  But back to Basel.

In Basel we stayed across the street from the train station. Often, that would be a scary location. But this is Switzerland. Their train stations are not scary and the locale was great. And the St. Gotthard Hotel was first-rate. It has been run by the same family since 1929. The current generation went to a highly regarded hotel school in Lausanne and is on site, with their parents, to keep everything as it should be.

This is our second city in Switzerland. So far, it seems a very affluent country. The prices are very high. People are generally well dressed, the streets are clean and the train stations are very well maintained, user friendly and free of artful dodgers.

We wandered through Basel on foot in the morning after breakfast in the hotel which was an impressive buffet. It is set up in a large pine-wood paneled room. With chandeliers and leaded glass windows. The furniture is wood fitted with iron. Substantial and hefty. To eat, there were eggs scrambled with cheese, cranberry compote and cut fruit for the plain yogurt. Rich smoked salmon.  Breads with flavor and texture to slather with butter and jam, particularly the kirsche--cherry--jam.

Well fed and with two hours before our train to Berlin, we walked the old town area. In the Münster Platz we visited a large and old church. One thousand years ago when a person of importance died, a life size statue of their likeness was created as a lid for their resting place. Usually with their feet against a dog and a nice tasseled pillow under their head, all done in stone. A man in full armor with his sword. A woman in a fine dress with flowing tresses or hair wrapped with strands of pearls or topped with a tiara. This church is rich with these carved lids. On display are intricately detailed ones from the thirteen-hundreds. And there are some, quite worn, from the year 900. Underneath the altar platform is a smallish chapel with stone columns and iron grill doors that open into an ancient basement. Through the iron grill you can see on-going archaeological digs that are yielding even more ancient materials.

The church is fronted by a cobble stone plaza, a platz. Part of the platz is occupied by parallel rows of poplar trees. A shady glade to sit in on a warm day. On the backside of the church is the Rhine River. To walk across the bridge takes only a few minutes. Or you can take the ferry that constantly crosses back and forth. Spanning the river is a taut metal cable. The ferry, with a rudder but without a  motor, is tethered to the overhead cable and uses the power of the Rhine's strong current to move itself from one side to the other. It is fantastic to watch this old fashioned solution. Not solar, not gas, not electric powered.  Just the harnessed power of the strong fast current.
Now, for the seven-hour train journey to Berlin. To the north and to the east.

Marlow and Wes
17 October 2012
Basel, Switzerland
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