Pretty yellow city

Friday, 8 August 2008

European Adventure Travel Day 7
Neuchâtel, Switzerland

Neuchâtel was a short train ride from Murten and Avenches. It's a town about 12km from the French border, and, like most Swiss cities, it's high on a hill overlooking a lake. Which means lots of climbing. In fact, the Swiss have an ancient battle strategy of building their cities so high in the mountains that potential attackers would march up, ponder the climb, and then surrender.

Actually, no, I made that last bit up.

...I did meet some Swiss soldiers though, and they were quite nice.

Anyway (because it's fun!), the first thing we did was climb up the biggest hill in town to see the château and cathedral. J had already been to the city before we meet up in Montreux, so she had already scoped out the sights. Most of the buildings in Neuchâtel are yellow, built from local yellow sandstone. Alexandre Dumas once described it as "like a toytown carved out of butter.”

We arrived at the wrong time for a tour of the château, but after the black-and-white avant-garde wedding was over in the cathedral, we went inside. Built in the 12th century, most of the art was removed during the protestant Reformation in the 16th century, but the beautiful rose window and pipe organ were still alive and well.

In the courtyard, we found this stone fellow.

Swiss reformer Guillaume Farel

For any of you sketchy on your Reformation history, Guillaume Farel is the man who convinced John Calvin (Jean Cauvin) to stay in Switzerland in 1536, after the French uprising against protestants.

After church, we headed off to prison.

Oh, and I wasn't kidding about the steepness of those city streets.

Acrophobic pigeon contemplating a move to Kansas

This is a typical road in the city. Unlike many Swiss towns, the old town center is NOT pedestrian only. This narrow cobblestone street is wide enough for a small European car. Not a small European car and two backpackers, if you catch my drift. Claustrophobes, take heed! That tall square tower is the old prison.


We each had to pay a franc to climb to the top (yeah, it's a new kind of torture... pay money to climb infinity stairs... oh Switzerland, how my quadriceps appreciate your quirks). The historical prison itself was a little disappointing -we climbed steep, narrow wooden stairs past two cell blocks that were labeled as prison cells- but the view at the top was particularly spectacular. One side overlooked the lake, and the other back up the hill toward the château and cathedral. The château has a pretty flowery pattern on the roof.

View from the prison: L'église Collégiale de Neuchâtel

After prison, we returned to solid ground, via the winding cobbled streets to the marketplace, where we ambled around the cafés in the square because I wanted to eat fondue. We found all sorts of fancy things, but not fondue. I think we may have been to close to France. ;)

Even gargoyles have to sneeze sometimes

We did find some fabulous pastry though. I bought something that was cone-shaped and filled with cream. It was delicious.

Some old bridge-like thingy

J and I rode the bus from the lakeshore to the top of the hill where the train station was. On the bus, there were several pretty men in uniform, and by that I mean members of the Swiss Armed Forces. At the top of the stairs in the train station, they were accosted by female volunteers of Amnesty International. It was pretty funny.

We left them there and boarded a train to Geneva/Genève/Genf.