A day in Basel
Feels rather odd getting back on here after what, a year? Almost. Well I'll start small shall I...
Helloooo family, are you out there?
It's bank holiday weekend for the UK which means huzzah! 3 day weekend/mini holiday time. Keen as ever to have some things booked and to look forward to post wedding (more on >THAT< particular amazefest soon) we planned a few things, and a few more...and this long weekend got left in the 'too soon to commit' box. Not wanting to waste ONE SPECK OF ME TRAVEL TIME, I thought I'd do a solo mish to Switzerland.
Off to a cracking start with planned engineering works taking out the early trains, a grumpsville bus driver over my not having a printed ticket (which, after he explained at 3.40am, in the cold, by a park, in Vauxhall, on a 'Friday night', at 3.40AM, I do 'get'), a bus I booked FAR too late to get the times I wanted/needed/would settle for, I found myself in Wagamama, having a salmon/miso/pickles breakfast thinking, 'these early flights aren't too bad are they, definitely do-able once only ever (for the 7th time)'.
Moving right along...so the forecast was pretty rubbish, I think seeing as I was coming solo, I didn't have anyone to bounce pack-planning off, so I went for overly sensible for the whopping 11 degree forecast. I dislike to be cold, but I think my idea of 11 degrees and actual 11 degrees is way off, cos it was warrrrrm. T-shirt and shorts kinda warm. Maybe the humidity or I dunno, either way, it was great for a day of wandering, as now (8.30pm) it's raining.
First off, drop my things, an overly long supermarket stop - foreign supermarkets, it's like a treasure hunt, I loves them - and a walk up the river Rhine. Lots of parked trains and coffee spots. Mr Pringle would have been all about the trains. There was a random area, the 'Scope Art Show', that was some cool graffiti/sculptures/tree hut/garden plot type things happening also, sort of scattered about for a mile or so beside the river. I think the only photo I got near there was the industrial looking grey ones. Eh.
Then a basically straight south walk along the river, all lined with trees and more bars and coffee shops filled with people lovin life, and into the 'Old Town' part of town. Here I did a kind of loop around, including the Rathaus - a pretty cool bright red 500 year old building opposite a square with a food market set up. While I was there, a man on his piano accordion was playing some pretty cool stuff. Not just your average 'busking for 5 minutes on the underground' type stuff. It was great.
Also the Tinguely Fountains - amusing black metal machine fountains that move about...not really my cup of tea but eh, a national icon/painter/sculptor for the Swiss so interesting in that respect.
The Spalentor - 'a former city gate in the ancient city walls of Basel.' It reminded me quite a bit of some Sam and I saw in Cologne over Christmas.
From there I went through the botanical gardens. Quite small, but they have their tropical houses and cacti houses and crazy bright blue birds that fly around. A nice slow stroll, and sit by the pond before moving back out to Petersplatz where there was a flea market going on, yuss. I didn't manage to score anything (like I could fit it in my bag back anyway) but I was on the lookout for some boots and a travel adapter, the latter of which I had to scour every electronic store I came across to find. The Swiss plug is different to the rest of Europe, just FYI. I did find one, eventually, and will take its mental price tag to the grave. On a plus side, it converts THE WHOLE WORLDS plugs to Swiss. Anyone out there wanna borrow it? Holla. I just needed UK. Sigh.
So yeah. Fingers crossed for the rain to chill for tomorrow, though, I won't really be too disappointed if I have to sit in a coffee shop all day eating cakes.
Helloooo family, are you out there?
It's bank holiday weekend for the UK which means huzzah! 3 day weekend/mini holiday time. Keen as ever to have some things booked and to look forward to post wedding (more on >THAT< particular amazefest soon) we planned a few things, and a few more...and this long weekend got left in the 'too soon to commit' box. Not wanting to waste ONE SPECK OF ME TRAVEL TIME, I thought I'd do a solo mish to Switzerland.
Off to a cracking start with planned engineering works taking out the early trains, a grumpsville bus driver over my not having a printed ticket (which, after he explained at 3.40am, in the cold, by a park, in Vauxhall, on a 'Friday night', at 3.40AM, I do 'get'), a bus I booked FAR too late to get the times I wanted/needed/would settle for, I found myself in Wagamama, having a salmon/miso/pickles breakfast thinking, 'these early flights aren't too bad are they, definitely do-able once only ever (for the 7th time)'.
Moving right along...so the forecast was pretty rubbish, I think seeing as I was coming solo, I didn't have anyone to bounce pack-planning off, so I went for overly sensible for the whopping 11 degree forecast. I dislike to be cold, but I think my idea of 11 degrees and actual 11 degrees is way off, cos it was warrrrrm. T-shirt and shorts kinda warm. Maybe the humidity or I dunno, either way, it was great for a day of wandering, as now (8.30pm) it's raining.
First off, drop my things, an overly long supermarket stop - foreign supermarkets, it's like a treasure hunt, I loves them - and a walk up the river Rhine. Lots of parked trains and coffee spots. Mr Pringle would have been all about the trains. There was a random area, the 'Scope Art Show', that was some cool graffiti/sculptures/tree hut/garden plot type things happening also, sort of scattered about for a mile or so beside the river. I think the only photo I got near there was the industrial looking grey ones. Eh.
Then a basically straight south walk along the river, all lined with trees and more bars and coffee shops filled with people lovin life, and into the 'Old Town' part of town. Here I did a kind of loop around, including the Rathaus - a pretty cool bright red 500 year old building opposite a square with a food market set up. While I was there, a man on his piano accordion was playing some pretty cool stuff. Not just your average 'busking for 5 minutes on the underground' type stuff. It was great.
Also the Tinguely Fountains - amusing black metal machine fountains that move about...not really my cup of tea but eh, a national icon/painter/sculptor for the Swiss so interesting in that respect.
The Spalentor - 'a former city gate in the ancient city walls of Basel.' It reminded me quite a bit of some Sam and I saw in Cologne over Christmas.
From there I went through the botanical gardens. Quite small, but they have their tropical houses and cacti houses and crazy bright blue birds that fly around. A nice slow stroll, and sit by the pond before moving back out to Petersplatz where there was a flea market going on, yuss. I didn't manage to score anything (like I could fit it in my bag back anyway) but I was on the lookout for some boots and a travel adapter, the latter of which I had to scour every electronic store I came across to find. The Swiss plug is different to the rest of Europe, just FYI. I did find one, eventually, and will take its mental price tag to the grave. On a plus side, it converts THE WHOLE WORLDS plugs to Swiss. Anyone out there wanna borrow it? Holla. I just needed UK. Sigh.
So yeah. Fingers crossed for the rain to chill for tomorrow, though, I won't really be too disappointed if I have to sit in a coffee shop all day eating cakes.
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