Brief explorations of Switzerland’s third most populous city.
Located where France, Germany and Switzerland meet, Basel is the third largest city in Switzerland. It’s also extremely close to Alsace, so I decided to stop.
Basel is the “cultural capital” of Switzerland, known for its museums. My visit was a bit abbreviated due to visiting Augusta Rautica, an Ancient Roman city in the suburbs of modern Basel. I never ended up visiting a museum in Basel proper, but I did get to wander a bit in the rain.
Wandering Jana Much of Basel is a mix of older cute buildings and modern gross ones.
Wandering Jana Barfuesserkirche, now part of the Basel Historical Museum.
Wandering Jana Neptun Brunnen (Neptune Fountain). Basel is like other Swiss cities with a ton of awesome fountains.
Wandering Jana Barfuesserplatz.
Wandering Jana I ate at that McDonald’s because I really needed a bathroom. I’ve never spent that much money at a McDonald’s ever. At least it was European McDonald’s and not the American version.
Wandering Jana Cute older building stuck between two ugly ones. Such a shame.
Wandering Jana A little Art Nouveau influence there.
Wandering Jana Now for a bit of half-timber.
Wandering Jana The Romanesque/Gothic Basler Münster, which was constructed from 1019 to 1500. It took so long because Basel had an earthquake in 1356. A lot of the church had to be rebuilt.
Wandering Jana I love the colored design on the roof.
Wandering Jana The outside of the church is pretty intricate if you look closely.
Wandering Jana Some of the Romanesque church survives in the back. Hard to see here but there are figures carved all over the place.
Wandering Jana Close but not quite there.
Wandering Jana A pretty typical Gothic church on the inside. However, it was a great place to take a break from the rain.
Wandering Jana Several tombs with effigies lined the exterior walls. Here we have the effigy of Knight Kurkart V Massmünster, died 1386.
Wandering Jana The circular apse from above is super cool on the inside.
Wandering Jana I have no idea what is going on in that carving.
Wandering Jana Tombs back here, too. Tomb of Queen Gertrude Anne of Hohenberg (died 1281), wife of King Rudolf, Holy Roman Emperor. She was entombed next to her son, Karl. Their bodies were removed in 1770 and buried elsewhere.
Wandering Jana That’s quite a pulpit.
Wandering Jana There’s a cloister still attached to the church.
Wandering Jana It’s a double cloister with this outdoor room joining them.
Wandering Jana Cloister with a view.
Wandering Jana Other buildings around Münsterplatz.
Wandering Jana I really liked this area of the city.
Wandering Jana I always do love a pedestrian only area.
Wandering Jana Another fountain on the left, Augustiner Brunnen (Augustine Fountain). It has a weird dragon on the top with some strong chicken features.
Wandering Jana Very cute.
Wandering Jana Another fountain on the right, Sevogel Brunnen. There are at least three I had already seen by this point I haven’t shared.
Wandering Jana A very posh building.
Wandering Jana I found a bit more half-timbered buildings.
Wandering Jana Views of Basel from the Mittlere Brücke.
Wandering Jana This fountain is a little more subdued than the other ones.
Wandering Jana Gorgeous.
Wandering Jana Cute!
Wandering Jana Spalentor, a 15th century city gate.
Wandering Jana Next to the Spalentor is the University of Basel Botanical Garden, which is free to explore.
Wandering Jana A view of the city side of Spalentor and another fountain.
Wandering Jana Parts of the city center sure are cute.
Wandering Jana The 16th century Rathaus (city hall).
Wandering Jana A lot going on in the courtyard decorations.
Basel was a pretty neat city. The historic center is cute and it has a ton of museums. There is plenty to see in this Swiss city.
Check out my next update where I explore the Swiss city of Lucerne!
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Start at the beginning of this European adventure!
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