Bern, Bears and Statues on Buildings

It's Sunday in Switzerland and the whole place is closed except for the fast food outlets and the railway station. We have one day left on our Swiss travel pass, and all the good advice said "Go to Bern"...so we did.

Bern is famous for bears. These animals feature in the history of the town, and in fact there are bears featured on much of the statuary around the city, and of course the city fathers still think it's a good idea to keep several real live bears locked up in a "sanctuary" so all the visitors to the town can come and stare at them as they walk around in their concrete enclosure.

The other thing most notable about the city of Bern is the vast array of statues that adorn the buildings in the old town. Most of them have historical significance, some are associated with ancient guilds and trade crafts, and some aren't easily appreciated because of what they depict.

Then there are the very beautiful wrought iron signs that are mostly associated with hotels and guesthouses...

...and finally there are more of the beautiful paintings on the façades of the buildings, just like we have seen in Lucerne.

So, the advice turned out to be worthwhile, with the only down side being that all the shops were also closed in Bern.

Tomorrow we begin the journey home.

Over and out.

D2