A day time shot of Zurich. That is St. Peter Kirche you can see.
Well today, was a very busy day. I got up relatively early and headed to the train station. Today I traveled from one end of Switzerland to the other. I started in Zurich by hopping on a train at around 1035. I grabbed myself a seat by a window on the second level so that I could see as much as possible. My first stop was Bern. It was about 50 minutes down the tracks. There I dumped my stuff in the left luggage lockers (once I found some change) and then headed out to check out a few things.
Heading to the Zurich train station. My pack and I are good friends.
Bern is the capital of Switzerland and is a neat little city.
You will find this out front of the House of Parliament. The snow is a nice touch.
This is looking down Kramgasse, a main street in Bern. It really did look neat. I am sure it looks even better in the summer when all the fountains are on.
I really did not have any plans as to what I would see but I did want to check out the Einstein Haus…..but it was closed so I simply saw it from the outside. There actaully was a bit of a crowd out front so I was obviously not the only one who thought they were still running on extended hours.
It was on the second floor of this small house that Einstein and his family lived from late 1903 to May 1905 and it was here where he came up with that little theory of relativity thing.
By the way, a couple other things that happened in Switzerland: The birth of the world wide web and the first acid trip (back in 1943.…totally by accident I might add). Just thought you might want to know that.
Hanging out in Bern. Yes, it was a little cold but it is Switzerland in December so I can't really be surprised.
Anyway, back to Bern, since the Einstein House was closed I headed to the giant 15th century gothic cathedral (St. Stephen’s I think).
A look up at the tower of St. Stephens.
A couple of shots inside the cathedral.
I just love those stainglass windows.
There was a small fee to climb the tower but hey I think we have established that if I have the opportunity to climb a few hundred spiralling steps that at some point will make me dizzy and possibly nauseated….I am going to climb them.
These steps did not disappoint. The were steep and spiralling and at one point outside so were cold and lead to a very nice location where I could get a complete view of the city of Bern. It was totally worth it.
Looking out over Bern. So Swiss.
In Salzburg they play chess. In Bern....it's ping-pong......in the snow.
After I got back down the steps (which was much harder than going up due to my proneness for vertigo) I headed back to the train station to hop back on the train and head to my next stop. My rail pass really came in handy today as I could get on and off whenever I wanted and did not need tickets.
The view from my window of the train. Not sure what little Swiss town this was.
My next stop, about another 70 minutes down the road......or tracks, was Lausanne, which they call the Olympic Capital because it is home to the IOC (International Olympic committee). I know you are all thinking that I headed to the IOC museum and all that kind of thing but I have been to the ultimate Olympic spot already on this trip (Ancient Olympia….the birthplace of the Olympics) so it did not seem necessary.
This is at the train station.
I instead headed to an art museum and what a great place it was. The museum was the Musee de l’Art Brut, which contained art by self-taught or not taught artists, most of whom were officially diagnosed with some sort of mental illness or disability or had some sort of psychotic break after long hospitalizations, or spending time at war or the death of someone or whatever. In some cases the artists were living in institutes when they developed their art as part of program or just during their spare time. In other cases their art was not found until after they died. In many cases their involvement with art helped them heal their obsessions or curb violent behaviour and many are now living normal, healthy, productive lives.
An example was Clement Fraisse (1901-1980) who was confined to a psychiatric hospital when he was 24 years old because he tried to burn down his parents’ farm. He had to be confined to a narrow wood lined cell because of violent behaviour. He used a broken spoon handle and then a handle he broke off his chamber pot to carve into the wooden wall. That wall is now on display in the museum.
A shot of the tower of the Cathedrale de Lausanne.
Currently at the museum is a exhibit from Japanese artists living in institutes throughout Japan. Here I saw paintings and drawings and charcoal works and clay sculptures. One artist, Satoshi Nishikawa, use to make clay sculptures as a child while living in the Omni Institute for mentally disabled children . He was obsessed with water but once in the institute began working the with clay and forgot his obsession. He now lives in his own home and holds a job and only performs his artwork…..when he returns to the institute for follow-up visits.
I was also able to watch a few documentaries about these Japanese artists. All the sound was in Japanese with French subtitles. I have realized that I really can still read French and while I may not know what every word means I can certainly understand the context. My verbal and auditory French is extremely rusty though. The next week and a bit (as I head to France) will be interesting I think. Of course you can guess that I could not take pictures but if you ever make it to Lausanne I totally recommend this musuem.
A look at the Cathedrale de Lausanne at night. Really did look nice all lit up.
Once I left the museum it was time to head to the train....well first I ate and then to the train. I did walk past the cathedral in town and it was all lit up for the holidays. It is just so fun how festive everything is around here.
My final stop of the day was Geneva. It once again was a very short train trip from Lausanne. Once there I found my way out of the train station and wandered accross the street to a hotel. I will be exploring the city in the morning but right now all I really want to do is sleep.
So my trip through Switzerland by train is complete. What a great country..…seriously postcard perfect. I wish I had more time here but will have to hit it again on the next trip.
Julie
It was on the second floor of this small house that Einstein and his family lived from late 1903 to May 1905 and it was here where he came up with that little theory of relativity thing. 
These steps did not disappoint. The were steep and spiralling and at one point outside so were cold and lead to a very nice location where I could get a complete view of the city of Bern. It was totally worth it.
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