Baden, Olten and Bern...

An uncle and aunt live in Baden, which is about 3 hours from Geneva, so we (me and Nam) set out to meet them one fine morning. Their house is near the Limmat river and while aunt was cooking up a tasty lunch, Nam and me decided to explore the area.

 Went walking along the riverbank... it's such a pretty place with beautiful places to settle down with a book or exercise or have a picnic or just contemplate life. 

Amazing view, the river flowing on peacefully... reminds me of this Garth Brooks song.

Fish steps, apparently fishes that get washed to the other side can find their way back through these step like formation.... 

Swings, we sat here sometime... 

So while walking we came across these blue pebbles in a trickling brook... and we were pretty fascinated with them, until we realised they were fruits that had fallen down from a tree right above this stream. 

Fine detail of a very pretty plant... 

Home decor... everybody seems particularly fond of this owl, saw an almost similar thing in somebody's garden in Germany. Many stores sell owl prints and statues too... what's the deal with the owl, people of Europe?

While strolling, we heard the pealing of church bells and decided to locate the Church... after walking around and asking a few people, in the few French & German words we picked up there: 'where can we find the Church or Eglise (French) or Kirche (German)?'... we finally chanced upon this church. 

Inside the church...

The baptismal font... 

Quaint hut structure with I think the Nativity scene inside... 

After a really good lunch (this aunt is a fantastic cook) we visited the ruins of Stein castle....

Baden as seen from the ruins of the castle...    

An arch in the castle... 

All that remains of what might have been a mighty structure once... 

So if there is a castle or a fort anywhere, a church cannot be far... this is the city church, otherwise known as the St. Sebastian's chapel with a very colourful steeple.

The opulent inside... 

The crucifix... 

Baden, old town... 

While travelling to Baden, we saw theses two spires from the train, and we decided to explore them on the way back. So the next day we got down at a stop called Olten to explore the St. Martin church... 

Inside the St. Martin church... 

Jesus surrounded by saints... 

This was a small chapel nearby... 

Apparently this wooden carved Jesus was on an ancient cross at the altar, after the ravages of time (or wars) this is what happened, His hand and feet are not there...

A fountain...

We had to change trains at Bern, the capital of Switzerland, and we decided to explore this place too before heading back home. We visited this church and the old town near the station...

Inside the Paroisse Catholique de langue Francaise (Catholic Parish of the French Language, is the literal translation)

The detailing in these arches... 

A wood sculpture of the pieta... 

 I especially liked this one, Mother Mary and child Jesus standing beneath a canopy of sparkling stars that twinkled in the painted night sky. 

The bright altar.... 

Saw this graceful lady reclining in a park nearby... (click on the picture for a larger view)

And the description on the plaque read:

Around the world by Rene'de Saint-Marceaux

The monument of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), unveiled on 4 October 1909, is the work of French sculptor, Rene de Saint-Marceaux (1845-1915). Made of granite and bronze, it commemorates the founding of the organization in Berne. Five figures - allegories of Africa. Asia, the Americas, Australia and Europe - encircle the globe and hand letters to one another, symbolizing ineternational communication by post. The city of Berne is personified as a majestic noblewoman - Berna - holding the city's coat of arms in one hand. Founded in Berne on 9 October 1874, the Universal Postal Union was the second international organization to be created. It became a specialized agency of the United Nations in 1948.

There was a fair taking place in the town square at Bern, and that's where we had a lunch of crepes... This is a spinach and cheese crepe, good food. See that black ring I am wearing, picked that up in Padua at the gift shop in the Shrine of St. Antony of Padua, the Our Father is inscribed on it in Latin. 

The Bern munster, reminded me of the Ulm Munster in Germany. 

Window boxes bursting with red flowers... 

This clock tower, called the Zytglogge, is quite a famous medieval tower in Bern. 

The fountain in front of the parliament building in Bern...