AS the bells rang out across the city, children screamed and cheered, signalling the Autumn fair’s official opening.
Everywhere you looked people were queued ready and eager as the fun fair rides, food and drink stalls opened to the crowds. The air was filled with the smell of sweet local treats, occasionally interspersed by the more savoury aromas from the bratwurst stall.
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My wife Louise and I had come to Switzerland’s city of culture, Basel, and were smack bang in the middle of the Basler Herbstmesser — it’s famous Autumn Fair. Imagine Edinburgh’s Xmas market spread over seven plus venues city wide, then you will get some idea as to what to expect.
And like our capital’s seasonal market, Basel’s also has a gigantic big wheel. With the sun splitting the sky and temperatures a crazy 23 degrees for October, we hopped on the iconic huge ride.
The vistas across the roof tops were fabulous, with so few tall buildings you could see all the way to The Black Forest in Germany one way and France the other.
Basel is situated right at the meeting point of France, Germany and Switzerland, making it a melting pot of those cultures, with a bit of Italian thrown in too.
The main language spoken here is German, or a Swiss take on it, but nearly all the people we encountered could also speak French and English, so getting about and asking directions is not a problem.
Our hotel, the modern and comfy Motel One, was perfectly situated in the heart of the Old Town. Walking the winding cobbled streets each day the architecture reminded us of Tobermory, with the charming buildings all painted unique pastel colours.
The Town Hall and Basler Munster cathedral stand out, with their red sandstone walls and the ornate multicoloured roofs are a must see.
Another building on the sightseeing list has to be the Spalentor city gate. One of only three remaining from the city fortifications dating back to 1400, it is easily the most impressive and pretty to look at.
The most notable feature in Basel though, must be the Rhine. The huge river winds through the city, splitting it in two. The summer months see’s it full of locals taking a dip, floating along on the current.
Crossing can be done in one of two ways — by bridge or by small ferry boat, which cost one Swiss Franc and are a fun, relaxing way to get from one side to the other.
Dotted along the river are little cafes and bars that make perfect resting points for tired sightseeing feet. Whilst chilling out with a drink you can take in another city monument, the Mittlere Brucke bridge — one of the oldest crossings of The Rhine.
The biggest surprise we found about the city centre was the lack of cars. Only delivery vehicles, trams and buses are allowed in. Walking down main and side streets all you hear are people chatting and laughing as they sit outside bars and restaurants, taking advantage of the warm nights.
With no cars, many get about on bicycle. And a word of warning when crossing the road, even though there are no cars, make sure you keep a look out for cyclists — they appear silently from nowhere.
During the two weeks of Herbstmesser, seven of the cities old market squares are taken over and transformed with fair ground rides and culinary delights.
It’s place is deep rooted in local tradition, celebrating it’s 550th birthday this year. It is always opened by the ringing of the bells of the Martinskirche, Basel’s oldest parish church, at precisely 12 noon.
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Once the ringing started the Munsterplatz square came alive with noise as the fairground rides kicked in.
The foodie within was spoilt for choice with so many local food vendors present. First up was the traditional sausage and bread – a dense brown bun served with a large pork sausage which was very tasty but a bit tricky to eat.
Other savoury offerings included flavoured risottos, roasted chestnuts, and strangely Cornish pasties?!
One night we grabbed a couple of glasses of hot Gluhwein, which is very similar to mulled wine, and wandered to the dimly lit Pfalz, a huge terrace behind the Basler Munster cathedral that offers awesome views over the Rhine and across the lower city.
All around us folk were sitting, sipping beer and wine and chatting — oh so beautifully civilised!
The big draw was the sweets and treats selection. The most popular seemed to be the Magenbrot, which was a dense sweetly spiced cake chopped into thumb sized pieces. Massmogge, little colourful boiled sweets filled with praline, were much more up our street.
But the local delicacy that must be tried is Leckery. The chewy, yet light gingerbread, made only in a handful of shops in Basel, is so very more-ish and perfect to be dunked into a cup of tea or coffee.
If all hustle and bustle of the fair sounds too much, then fear not as Basel being a city of culture it is also known as the city of museums. Here you really are spoilt for choice.
The world class Kunstmuseum has some of the finest art from the 17th century to the present day and the Foundation Beyeler is also a treat for art lovers. The working paper mill museum situated in St Albans is fascinating as is Basel’s historical museum, housed in a beautiful church.
We managed the two art museums, which are stunning, but had to dash to the St Jakobshalle sports complex for our seats at the Swiss Indoors Basel, because just like festivals and museums, Basel loves sport.
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We were very fortunate to see world number one Carlos Alcaraz play in one semi-final and the up and coming star Holger Rune in the other.
This world class tennis event is held in high regard, with many a player wanting to follow in the footsteps of hometown hero Rodger Federer who has won the event 10 times.
Afterwards we jumped on a tram and headed back to the Old Town. Using public transport to get around here really is a doddle.
Everything is clearly marked, the trams are constant and best of all, anyone staying in a local hotel gets a FREE pass to use on all trams and buses for the duration of their stay — a result!
Enjoying our last sips of Gluhwein overlooking the Rhine, we said our goodbyes to this beautiful city. Basel is a wonderful destination with so much to offer, with a different experience around every corner.
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