Freiburg - A Day Trip to Basel, Switzerland

We caught an early train to Basel, Switzerland, on Tuesday morning.  It was a bit warmer there, but still no sun!

The Information Office is always our first stop in a new city!

A view of the River Rhine

A small taste of public art around the Martktplatz

We found the coolest brasserie in the Hotel Au Violin.  The building itself has a very interesting history - located in the historic Lohnhof district, it was the first church built around 1060/1070.  In 1133/35 the chapter of Augustinian canons established a monastery with a cloister.  In 1356, an earthquake severely damaged the monastery but it was rebuilt in 1492.  In the 1440s, the monastery had to defy war, famine and epidemic.  In 1528 the churched turned Protestant due to Reformation.  In 1821, the police were headquartered here and in 1835 the old monastery was converted into a prison which remained until 1995.  One can reserve a room in either a prison cell or police department office!

We chose to eat the daily special.  It was a lovely green salad with codfish as the starter.   The main course was kidneys in cream sauce with roasted potatoes - delicious!

After lunch, we walked to the Kunstmuseum Basel - a special Andy Warhol exhibit is on display in one of its galleries.  

inner courtyard leading the entry on Kunstmuseum

street musician

The Munster

main altar  in Munster

Munster originally built as a Roman Catholic cathedral is now Swiss Reformed since 1539

We were sorry we only had one day in Basel.  There is too much to see and do - a few hours is not enough.