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volante:
switzerland
 Basel dazzle
Though best known as an international meeting
place for business executives, there is a fun to be had and elegance
to be savoured in this sophisticated “border town”
by Elyse Glickman
photographed by the author
WITH FRANCE ON ONE SIDE and Germany
on the other, it is not surprising that a lot of culture and sophistication
runs through Basel, from its impressively efficient trams
to its Rhine River location. Though not as obvious a destination
as Zurich or St Moritz (note the presence of classically attired
women and business-suited men), Basel is quintessential Switzerland,
from the storybook architecture of the old town, to a plentiful
array of museums to regional cuisine lovingly crafted from fresh
local ingredients.
In fact, our sharp guides and other locals advised
that with our lunches and dinners, we dig deeper than the fondue
pot. We did, and were thoroughly delighted with our glamorous dining
experiences at Brasserie Les Trois Rois, Schloss Bottmingen
and Gasthof zum Goldenen Sternen—all internationally
acclaimed and housed in historically relevant buildings as rich
in culture as the museums we visited. Schloss
Bottmingen, offering dishes with a fantastic range of flavors
and textures, is housed in a fourteenth-century castle that is just
as storied and complex. If you have the good fortune to experience
lunch and the million-dollar Rhine view from the Brasserie
Les Trois Rois, make it a point to see the rest of the hotel,
which is a feast for the eyes mixing baroque elegance and art deco.
You would be in good company, as past guests have included Bob Dylan,
the Dalai Lama, HM Queen Elizabeth
II and the Rolling Stones. Rufus Wainwright, meanwhile, is a regular
visitor to their spectacular penthouse, decorated art-déco
style with a hot tub on the roof.
Though we stayed at the far simpler, but fabulously
located Hotel Basel
(great breakfast and helpful staff, too), almost everything we could
want to see was just steps away, including the landmark buildings
in Marktplatz. If it wasn’t (as was the case for the Beyeler
Foundation and a bus that would take us into Germany for a visit
to the Frank Ghery-designed Vitra Design Museum), most of
the city’s tram lines were.
Beyond the views of the city from both sides of
the Rhine, Kunstmuseum of Fine Arts, displaying world-class
collections of painting and sculptures from Renaissance to modern,
and the Beyeler Foundation, focused on modern masters and
located in a gorgeous park-like setting in neighbouring Riehen,
are both musts. Also worth a look is the Tinguely Museum,
featuring Jean Tinguely’s trippy, whimsical automated sculptures,
the Puppenhaus Museum (for doll and toy enthusiasts) and
the Basel Historical Museum (which recently underwent a major
remodel at its main Barfüsserkirche location, a former church).
We also noticed, when walking around the St Alban-Tal district,
that the paper museum had an exhibition on the 50th anniversary
of the Helvetica typeface originating in Switzerland.
Even with subdued style predominating, the streets
swirling around the Hotel Basel and Marktplatz brimmed with adorable,
shoebox-sized boutiques as well as a surprising abundance of shoe
stores. Buckles &
Belts charms with its neat arrangements of buckles on one
end of the story and straps on the other. Boutique Gelatine’s
accessories are also eye-popping fun, while Klein Basel (Kleinbasel.net)
and Hot Lemon offer a delicious blend of Swiss and continental
designers.
However, stores that recall another era, such
as the hat shops or the landmark shop of Johann Wanner (Spalenberg
14, 4051 Basel), have a very special, local appeal. For the spirited
and smiling Wanner, Christmas is not just a year-round love affair,
but an evolving fashion statement for home and entertaining. You
could spend hours in his shop or (during the fall and early winter)
nearby café not only admiring the thousands of hand-crafted
glass ornaments but also listening to him discuss major colour trends
for the upcoming holiday season or stories about Christmases past
that keep him youthful and enthusiastic. Though he has put his stamp
on White House Christmases and celebrity Yuletide celebrations,
what is most impressive about him is his humility. He won’t drop
celebrity names so he can be as accessible to everybody else—even
school-aged kids buying special ornaments with their allowance.
Though much of Basel’s nightlife is more about
lingering after dinner with a glass of good wine, one clubby alternative
is Bar Rouge—a chic
but decidedly un-snobby place with a nice wine list, fun cocktails,
fresh electronica and an interesting international mix of patrons—attractively
dressed businessmen cutting loose after long days of meetings and
hand-shaking, and locals casually kicking back and enjoying the
scene. •
For more information on Basel and booking
a tour with Jacqueline Bloch, contact Basel Tourismus, Guided Tours
at guidedtours @basel.com,
visit www.basel.com or call
41 61 268-68-32. Also check out www.myswitzerland.com.
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Basel is quintessential Switzerland, from
the storybook architecture of the old town, to a plentiful array
of museums to regional cuisine lovingly crafted from fresh local
ingredients
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