Basel Stadt (BS) is one of the cantons in Switzerland – in fact it is a half-canton, the other half is called as Basel Land (BL). Switzerland has about twenty-six cantons, which are similar to counties.
I lived in Basel Stadt for some time and would like to share some of my personal experiences.
Geography
Basle (in German it is Basle, in English it is Basel and in French it is Bale with a circumflex (“hat”) on “a”) is an old town – typically European with narrow alleys, cobbled pavements etc. It is in the North West and the main language is German – verstehen Sie deutsch? (my knowledge of German is courtesy Max Mueller Bhavan). The river Rhine flows through the town and there are five bridges connecting the two sides. This is by far, the flattest area in Switzerland. (A local saying – it is only in Basle you can find a large enough flat ground to play soccer). This is a typical border town and borders with both Germany and France. Some of the workforce lives in Germany or France and works in Basel. Locals do go across the border for shopping and gas, as it is less expensive.
The “dreilanderecke” – three country point is a unique point where Germany, France and Switzerland meet. It is on the Rhine and there is a tall tower like structure with the flags of the respective countries painted on it – it is approachable only from the Swiss side.
Commercially
Basel is the pharmaceutical capital of Switzerland and has both Novartis (merger of Sandoz and Ciba Geigy) and Hoffman La Roche. Besides, all the famous Swiss banks have their presence here. Mustermesse, which is a large exhibition hall (in fact there are several halls) is a very popular site for hosting industrial exhibitions – both national and international - and it is always packed and booked. The biggest being the International Watch and Jewellery trade show held every summer.
Transportation
The local tram way is excellent – the green trams run within the city and the yellow trams are for the suburbs like Binnigen. These trams are, ably supported by the local PTT bus (which are run by the Postal Department) as drop off points between remote locations and the closest tram stop. Bottom line – travel between any point, to any other point is a hop, skip and jump. Also, it is a pretty inexpensive way to travel. Switzerland has a concept of an Abonement Pass (Discount pass) – every body has it – it used to cost about SFr 200 for one year. With that pass, every individual ticket on train, bus etc is half price. Even, the local equivalent of a senator or congressman travel by tram.
The main railway station is called as Basle HB (Hauptbahnhof – main station). From here we can get trains to all parts of Switzerland – these trains are called as IC (Intercity) – to Zurich (3 hours), Geneva (3 hours), Bern (the capital (1 hour)), to Lugana (the Italian side) about 4 hours via the beautiful Gotthard Tunnel through the Alps – might write a review of that later on.
Trains to Paris also start from here. There is small passport control point in the station itself – you cross that, you are physically in France. It takes about eight hrs to Paris – very convenient overnight journey. Similarly – close to Mustermesse is the German Railway station called as Badisher Bahnhof. Same concept of a small passport control point – only a brick wall divides both the countries. Frankfurt Am Main is about 3 hours by train from Badisher.
Shopping
Basle has got its share of the Swiss departmental stores like Migros, Coop, Globus, Rheinbrucke and Jelmoli. One quickly learns that on weekend the shops are closed – I guess in the US we are pampered with long shopping hours including stores that are open 24 hours. All shops have their discount sale called as “Sonderverkauf” – twice a year – one in Jan and one in Aug.
Culture
Culturally, Basel is very rich and the main attraction is the Kunst Museum, which is an Art museum with various medieval paintings, potteries etc. The town hall (Rathaus) has a huge clock and every hour, is struck by a small man who comes out with a hammer and hits the gong. I found this unique and that is when a crowd gathers – actually the word crowd is a misnomer – I should say a gathering of people, maybe about 15-25. In general one sees very few people on the streets.
Fasnacht
No description of Basle is complete without talking about Fasnacht, which is the carnival, which takes place in February. (Goa is the only state, which celebrates this – as a legacy from the Portuguese). The procession starts exactly at 4.00 a.m. when all the street lights are put out and there are several groups of people carrying lighted candles / lanterns and wearing those huge face masks and playing excellent music on special flute, drums etc. The procession starts at Mustermesse and winds its way across the Rhine and towards the town hall. The next day is full of celebrations in the streets joined by people from neighboring towns and cities.
Hotels and Food
I would not have much information about hotels since I had an apartment, however I have seen several of them in the town and I guess anyone of them would be good to stay. Cost of living is high compared to other European cities.
Regarding food – the vegetarians can go to McDonalds or the local Italian Pizzeria for pizzas. For the non-vegetarians, there is a wide choice of delis, Movenpicks etc.
Basle, like the rest of Switzerland is sickeningly beautiful - I never knew one could get sick of seeing natural beauty. Even a nondescript bus stop in a remote location will have a bed of beautiful flowers.
If your travel plans take you to Switzerland – plan a day trip to Basel. I know Basel’s ground, has not yet been sanctified by the stars of Bollywood, however it will be worth your time, effort and money.
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