Abenteuer Fünf: Um Bern Herum

So I'm weird, for an American. This probably doesn't come as a huge surprise for the people who know me, but it's still true. I'm weird.

One of the many things that makes me weird, for an American, is the fact that I enjoy wandering around aimlessly for hours on end. Sometimes I do this with other people. Most of the time, I just go by myself and see where my feet take me.

The day after our trip to Murten, I went on one such meander. It started out with a purpose--I wanted to check out the Bern Kunstmuseum. However, it quickly turned into a full-scale walking tour of Bern.

Anyway, the Kunstmuseum was really quite interesting. When I stepped up to the front door, I met this cheerful fellow:

(I'm sharing him because I couldn't actually get a decent shot of the front of the building. It's another palace. Whatever.)

The Kunstmuseum isn't especially large. It has three floors: one for medieval art, one for impressionists, and one for modern and post-modernists. Many, but not all, of the featured artists are from Switzerland.

You know all those famous Swiss painters you've heard about? Yeah, me neither. A lot of the art was (hate to say it) kind of stylistically generic. However, one artist did catch my attention: Adolf Wolfi.
Wolfli was an artist, poet, composer, and certified crazy person who combined all of his talents in these amazingly complex drawings. I couldn't take any pictures in the museum (no photography allowed), so here are some of the shots which Google Images had to offer. Check out the music staffs woven throughout:

 Anyway, Wolfli was a really interesting character. If you get bored, look him up.

My other favorite part of the art museum was the medieval section. It featured church art from (I think as early as) the 1400s. I'm always stunned by the ages of things here. It's amazing how long the creations of man can survive.

It's also amazing how derpy painters in the Middle Ages thought baby Jesus looked. But I digress.

One last note on the art museum in Bern--I've been in the Bern Art museum. I've been in the Chicago Art Museum. I've been in the British National Gallery. I've been in the Smithsonian. I've even toured the freakin' Louvre. And from all of that, I  have to say--
                        the Saint Louis Art Museum is my favorite museum in the world. 

After the art museum I somehow managed to maneuver myself into the Bern Botanical Garden. The entrance to the Botanical garden was a bit terrifying--a long, winding staircase shadowed by trees at the end of a bridge in a kind of scary part of town.

However, once I got down to the garden, I was glad I'd braved the journey. I found a rainforest.

Ok, so technically my rainforest was the Orchid house of the botany department of the University of Bern, but it had a river running through it complete with fish, so I think my assessment stands (and compared with the snow and ice still in patches on the outside, the bright tropical flowers were a welcome surprise).

Outside the orchid house, the garden consisted of a series of paths and terraces set in the side of a very steep hill. Many of the plants were dead or sleeping, given the fact that it was still February, but here and there little patches of purple and white mountain flowers had started to bloom. It was incredibly beautiful. I can't wait to go back later this spring.

The paths through the garden all led down to a walking trail which runs along the length of the Aare. To my surprise, the first thing I saw when I reached the riverside was a woman in a Speedo climbing into the water. I guess this proves that the Swiss, like the Americans, are kind of weird.

The rest of the view from the riverfront was beautiful, though.

After walking for about 40 minutes, I reached the path that led up to the bear pit. The Bern bear pit is one of the more famous features of the city. The first bear pit in Bern was built in 1513 as a storage facility for the live bear the ruler brought home as a spoil war. Since then, the bear pits have been renovated and moved around a bit, but I think they'll always be an important part of Bern.

A dancing bear marks the top of the tram wire at the bear pit. The Grateful Dead would be proud.

The bear pit. At the moment, the bears are hibernating behind those doors on the far right side.

From the bear pit, the walking trail continues into a nature reserve. From there, you can get some amazing views of the city.

 A forest in the heart of a city. Welcome to Europe. 

 

This was taken the banks of the Aare. The big dome in the distance is the Bundeshaus. At this point, I've literally walked around the city.

 The Münster, from the Aare.

My feet in the river Aare. Because no real Missouri girl can ever resist the urge to go wading.