Are you looking for a new destination to travel to? Bern is your next place to go – a commbination of Venice and Swiss nature.
Bern was never on our list of travel destinations, and we probably wouldn’t have considered visiting if not for our work and studies bringing us here. However, once we settled in and began exploring, we discovered a vibrant and fascinating city that we had never imagined.
On contrary of a common misbelief, Bern – not Zürich – is the capital of Switzerland. In Switzerland they have 4 official languages: German, French, Italian and Romansh. In Bern, however, the primarly language is german. Bern comse from the german word Bär (Bear). Is has not only been a sybmol of the city since the 12th century but it is also one of the attractions Bern is known for.
We visited Bern again this weekend for our little date day to explore and enjoy it.
The Old Town
First we went to the old town, which is the most bautiful part of Bern as far we have seen. It is located a few minutes away from the main train station. The architecture is very well-perserved and you see how they tend to embrace the old style rather than change – making the city more charming. One attraction you cannot miss is the clock tower – Zytglogge. This iconic clocktower, once served as the city gate, is now a astonishing part of the old town. It has mechanical figures permorning a show every hour. Additionally, the old town is actually protected by UNESCO World Heritage for its well-pererved architecture and historic charm.
There is many cute shops, cafes and restaurants alongside the street of old town as well as under it. Interestingly, they still are using the hatches that you open on the ground where you can go down and order a coffee or buy jewerly. We went to a cafe for ice cream with mulberries (Maulbeeren) which suprisingy tasted very good. It reminded us a little bit of blueberries. Afterwards, we continued walking down the street towards the Bear Pit.
But watch out – there are trams going forth and back as well as cars in some places.
The Einstein House
Everyone who loved museums or history or just loved Einstein has to go to the Einstein house! It is located in the old town and you can for 7 CHF get to go inside the house he lived in. You get an insight in the life and work of the man who developed the Theory of Relativity right there. If you dont want to go to the house you can instead go to Einstein Café rght next to it for a special coffee, hot chocolate or a beer.
The link to the Einstein House is here.
The Bear Pit
The Bear Pit is one of the most unique and historic aspects of Bern. It is not solely an attraction, it is something that connect the city with its heritage and name. Originally, the bear pit was created all the way back in 1857. Since then, it has evolved by becoming bigger and additionally, incorporating restaruants and kiosks.
The Bear Pit is located on the end of old town along the river. The bears are being treated very good, they have a large space where they can roam around freely and comfortable, with a lot of nature – water, trees, personal space not seen by the public. RIght now they have if we remember it correctly 4 bears which is 2 older ones and their older babies. When you want to see the bears you will be seeing them from above from different points where you always are protected by a fence. There are always workers there that can help you with infromation or if anything would happen.
By the Bear Pit there is a restaurant with its own brewery as well as a gelateria and a kiosk outside. We ate some food and took a drink there. It is a very nice place you can get food from smaller portions to bigger and also you can order a beer tasting where you get 5 different types of beers which I assume is from their own brewery.
Across the Bear Pit you can see the church, the parlement and the river which is a very popular swimming place in summer and in winter. Additionally, you can see another small “town” across the river somewhat diagonally under the old town which we found out from a nice man, was over flooded not many years ago. You had to evacuate people from their houses and now they have rebuilt or tried to save the tows to what it is now.
The link to the Bear Pit for more information, is here.
The Parliament
We went to the Parliament for a walk and a small coffee and cake break because of the calming and relaxing aura – enjoyng the view and the people around you. The parliament is located at the Bundesplatz in the middle of the city reflecting it’s rich history and incredible architecture – gold details, bridges from one building to another and the arched doorway details. Moreover, it is a place to go to when you want to take a walk, see the amazing view from the otherside of the parlament pointing out towards the river.
What to do in Bern?
In the end, Bern is a city made for exploring and walks. When you are there we would recommend walking around the city – especially in the old town – take a coffe and enjoy the architecture. Take an ice cream and visit the Bear Pit and take a walk alongside the river to the parlament where you can sit down and enjoy a coffe and the view. If you are there on the weekend they use to have a market with food and clothes and object which you can buy and roam around. It is outside the parlament and then all the way down.
