Basel is on the Swiss side of the Rhine River, and Saint-Louis ('Sahn-wee') where Katrina and Stéphane live, is on the French side.
We were excited to be met at the station by Katrina and Stéphane, to see Alistair (almost 2 years old) and to meet, for the very first time, the brand new grand-daughter, Laure (nearly 3 months).
Now, for our Aussie friends, you need to know that 'Laure' is a beautiful French name which is almost impossible for English-speaking people to say properly. Just say 'Lore' and you will be close enough!
So here's Laure with her parents, Stéphane and Katrina, and her very proud Pa.
It was the day after my 71st birthday and at dinner that night I was surprised by a birthday cake and presents. It's always a good idea to extend a birthday for as long as possible, so I still have another birthday dinner with friends after I get back home at the end of October!
Our apartment is in the "Adagio" block you can see on the left of this photo. Just down the road, you can see a red frame-like structure on the middle of the road -- it's the border of France and Switzerland. We walk from France to Switzerland every day!
On Monday, Daryl and I took Alistair to the park right next to where they live. Not sure who had the most fun!!!
The coolest kid at the park.
On Tuesday, we took the bus back to Basel or as the French would say, Bâle (Bahl). We spent time wandering around the main centre and surrounding streets.
This impressive red building is the 'Rathaus'. It sounds strange/unpleasant in English, but it's German for Council House, or Town Hall. It's a 500 year old building dominating the Marktplaz.
Inside the Basel Cathedral, we were fascinated by the 246 different designs representing snowflakes on the backs of the chairs.
Had a fantastic lunch in Basel.
The mighty Rhine River.
On Wednesday, we walked to Germany -- as you do! Saint-Louis (Sahn-wee) is right where France, Switzerland and Germany meet. The three frontiers!
The pedestrian bridge from the French side of the Rhine to the German side:
On Wednesday night, we had a "specialty" from this region of France: melted Mont D'Or cheese (Mountain of Gold cheese) liberally applied over roast vegetables. It's a fondu-style meal. YUM!!!
Thanks, Katrina and Stéphane, for your wonderful hospitality!
Today (Thursday 28 Sept) we walked to Switzerland again (!) and took the kids to a park just over the border and next door to Novatis, the big Swiss pharmaceutical company. Of course, Daryl was keen to give Alistair a good time on the swing. In the end, we all had a great laugh at his expense .....
All started well:
but then – down he went !
Fortunately, neither he nor Alistair were hurt -- and others at the park had a good laugh too!
The park is actually shared by the public and by the kids from the school on the same grounds. It's fantastic for the school kids, but the bell rang and they all ran back inside before I took photos of them playing.
And now .....
I don't think you're really interested in management of rubbish, but you might be interested in Swiss ingenuity.
The rubbish bins around the park do not get full of rubbish that ends up all over the place. The rubbish falls into a large pit under ground level. A council worker comes along with this big "vacuum cleaner truck", lifts the grate from the top of the underground pit, and vacuums all the rubbish out! Amazing. Could certainly use this system in Australian schools and parks.
And that is the end of our blog from the part of the planet where France, Germany and Switzerland come together -- a wonderful part of the world.
Our next blog post will be from Barcelona! Yeah!
Well, before signing off today, I think you need another laugh:
PS
Don't forget that you can see other blog posts by clicking on the links
in the right-hand panel. :-)
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