2023 - April - Basel

Today I will start with a crisp introduction and my top three thoughts on Basel as a travel destination: 1. Basel is expensive. 2. Basel is also very beautiful (!) and 3. Basel is interesting in every way.

Why did I start with the cost in my list? After all, everyone who travels to Switzerland knows that the price level here is high. However, it particularly struck us here this time. Maybe because the city is located in the tri-border area. From Basel, you can take the regular tram directly to Germany and France.

The route to Weil am Rhein is often used for this purpose. Although the German city at the stop does not welcome you with beauty, it does offer numerous supermarkets. Here, the Swiss can stock up on groceries very cheaply compared to their standards. Even German dentists actively advertise for customers in the Basel trams.

But if you ignore the costs, Basel is simply beautiful and worth seeing. It is best to explore the city on foot or use the excellently developed public transportation network with a day ticket.

The Münsterhügel (Cathedral Hill) is the visual and historical center. Here, the Romans built a military support called Colonia Raurica around 44 BC. However, there was already a Celtic settlement before that.

Today, the namesake Münster stands on the hill. The Late Romanesque building dates back to the 12th century and is part of the silhouette of the city located on the Rhine bend.

You can experience this wonderfully during a walk on the Rheinpromenade (Rhine promenade). Nowadays, numerous bridges allow you to change sides of the riverbank. But you can also be ferried across for two francs. The ferryman uses only the forces of physics, by standing diagonally in the current and effortlessly crossing over without motor or muscle power. He can be easily called with a bell, just like in the olden days, except that you can now pay with a card!

If you want to try this, just look out for the Münster on the Rhine, because that's where the ferry has its landing stages.

The flag also displayed on top of the hill shows a striking Basel landmark: a curved shepherd's staff. I admit, for us, this episcopal symbol always looked more like a pointed cap. Incidentally, the sign was already mentioned in the 11th century and nowadays can be found everywhere: on houses, flags, but also on drinking fountains or dog waste bags.

But there are also modern landmarks, such as the Messeplatz (trade fair square). Here, it is worth being a daydreaming observer. The entrance to the fairground was designed by architects Herzog & de Meuron in such a way that a hole, the so-called 'window to the sky' was created.

Another equally impressive sight is a former brewery, which has now been transformed into Werkraum Warteck. There are exhibitions and cafés here, but they are closed on Sundays and Mondays. Nevertheless, you can climb the stairs and enjoy the view even on these days. Slightly disturbing in the cityscape, from here you can see, for example, the Roche Towers. They are part of the Roche company, which has its headquarters in Basel. Tower 2 was actually the tallest skyscraper in Switzerland at 178 meters when it was completed in 2022.

This shows that Basel is not just a medieval open-air museum, as do the Roche Towers. Various chimneys on the outskirts of the city testify to further industry. Especially pharmaceutical and chemical companies have settled here.

The weaving and dyeing industry was the origin of this industry. They settled in Basel during the Reformation. Previously, many scholars had already come to the city through the university, bringing with them the printing press and humanism.

Today, Basel is considered a cultural city and has many museums, as well as theaters to offer. In addition, the city has a high quality of life. According to the 2019 Mercer ranking, Basel is even one of the ten cities with the highest quality of life worldwide! It also has a pleasant size with about 190,000 inhabitants and is very well maintained.

We should probably move... or just enjoy a few days of downtime here.