“It’s the most beautiful city we’ve ever seen” — celebrated German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote about Bern in a letter to his friend in 1779. Not a lot has changed since that letter was written. Switzerland’s charming capital was devastated in a fierce fire in 1405, but painstakingly rebuilt with grey sandstone and cobbled streets. While Goethe’s Bern experience might have been carefully planned and executed, I discovered Bern almost by sheer chance, thanks largely to Switzerland’s efficient rail network.
Bern on an impulse
A glimpse of the city in the evening Swiss Tourism
It’s arguably the most dense rail network in the world and the Swiss capital is at the very heart of it. I broke away from my group headed to Zurich from Luzern (or Lucerne) and jumped aboard a Bern-bound train, almost on an impulse. I did join the group for the Zurich bar crawl later that same evening. Switzerland’s biggest city is just an hour away by train from Bern. The Swiss thrive on precision and planning but my Swiss host ignored my impulsive streak given that Bern doesn’t figure very high on the travel wish lists of Indian travellers. After spending a whole day there, I believe it should be.
The charm of cobbled streets
Almost all the city’s hotspots are within a compact grid of utterly charming cobbled streets Ashwin Rajagopalan
The best way to discover Bern is to keep walking. I was comforted by the fact that almost all the city’s hotspots were within a compact grid of utterly charming cobbled streets. For almost an hour I walked aimlessly around a long grid of covered arcades (the locals call them Lauben) that actually run around the city centre for almost 6 kms. It’s an eclectic mish-mash — quaint boutiques, historic cellars (a couple of them house upscale restaurants now), tiny cafes, designer stores, fountains and towering statues of Swiss folk figures.
Swiss Roesti, a traditional Swiss dish with potatoes and cheese Ashwin Rajagopalan
I fell for a signboard with ‘traditional Swiss cuisine’ at Barenplatz and within minutes I polished off the most delish Swiss Roesti I’ve ever eaten in Switzerland.
Seat of power
Zurich, Switzerland’s biggest city, is just an hour away by train from Bern Bern Welcome
The Parliament Building, the seat of the Swiss government (Federal council) is probably the best place to begin. It’s not just one of the city’s most symbolic structures but the Parliament square is a hub of activity, especially during weekends in the summer. There’s a water display with 26 fountains just in front of the complex to represent the 26 cantons that make up Switzerland. One of the most charming summertime things here is the sight of children playing around the fountain while families relax soaking in the sun around it.
The water display outside the Parliament Building is a popular hangout for families Rumela Basu
The building is not Bern’s most famous landmark though. That honour probably belongs to the Zytglogge — the Clock Tower, which served as the first Western gate of the city (between 1191 and 1256).
The Einstein connection
Zytglogge’s famous astronomical clock was built in 1530 and is one of the oldest in the country Ashwin Rajagopalan
Blame it on the Swiss obsession with timekeeping, the Zytglogge’s famous astronomical clock was built in 1530 and is one of the oldest in the country. Almost 500 years later, visitors to Bern still crowd around the clock to watch the revolving figures turn just four minutes before the hour when the chimes commence. You can also see late-Baroque elements in the exteriors of the tower, while the large dial is framed by a fresco produced by the well-known Bernese painter Victor Surbek in the 1930s. Local legends suggest that it was this very clock that was the catalyst for Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. Einstein spent a few years at the turn of the 20th century as a patent clerk in Bern. A small museum in the heart of the old town pays tribute.
UNESCO World Heritage status
A drone shot of Bern Minster, Switzerland’s largest ecclesiastical (religious) structure Bern Welcome
It’s impossible to escape the presence of Bern’s Münster (or Bern Minster) from any corner of the old town. It’s Switzerland’s largest ecclesiastical (religious) structure, with a towering 100-meter-high spire. Construction started in 1421 and continued over a long period of time; the spire was finally completed in 1893. If you are willing to make the 344-step climb up the spire, you will enjoy unhindered, panoramic views that stretch all the way to the snow-capped mountains of the Bernese Oberland. Bern’s cathedral and famous clock tower were instrumental in the old town being conferred with ‘UNESCO World Heritage Status’ in 1983.
Pause and take in the views
While the cathedral might boast of the best views from Bern, a trek up to the Rose Garden offers spectacular vistas of the city. Not far from this large public park is another popular outdoor family attraction — the Bear Park, where visitors can watch bears enjoy a near-natural habitat. The site was once home to a historic bear pit. Bears have been part of the identity of Bern (the bear features on the canton’s flag and coat of arms) but was modified into a more bear-friendly park.
The Rose Garden boasts of 220 types of roses and 28 varieties of rhododendrons Swiss Tourism
The ascent to the Rose Garden begins near the bear park. The garden boasts of 220 types of roses and 28 varieties of rhododendrons. It’s the only spot where I made time to unwind after a frenetic day and took in the views of the Old Town and the Aare Loop, where the river hugs the old town with its charming red roofs. It’s possible to capture Bern’s Old Town with a single panorama shot from the Rose Garden but you have to saunter around the cobbled streets to come to terms with Bern’s eclectic appeal. In a nation obsessed with timekeeping, Bern’s Old Town is almost frozen in time.