Month: November 2025

Then and Now – Bern – Bundesplatz

kenritley

THEN:

NOW:

NOW (COLOR):

COMMENTS: 

(1) Very few changes!

(2) I took this snap on a Sunday, but Tuesdays and Saturdays there are markets here!

(3) The signage is much smaller today, but the Café Federal is still present on the right!

(4) Those tricky Bernese!  In the modern snap you see buildings that you THINK are old – such as the ones in the middle – but in fact, Bern had a huge renovation program all during the early 20th century, in which the truly historical facades were destroyed and replaced by modern facades that only look old.

Then and Now – Bern – Waisenhausplatz & Spitalgasse

kenritley

THEN:

NOW:

NOW (COLOR):

COMMENTS:

(1) This changed a LOT!  People think Bern is old – but in fact there were huge projects in the early 1900s that harmonized the facades and rooflines.

(2) Interestingly, that little booth with the pointy top – people look at it today and hardly give it a thought, and yet in the original snap you can see an early version of it. So booth may it be – but a historical one!

Then and Now – Bern – Rathaus

kenritley

THEN:

NOW:

COMMENTS:

(1) This really got ugly!  I have not yet done any research, but I have heard that after Bern was declared a UNESCO city, considerable money was invested to harmonize the architecture – apparently there were tremendous projects between 1900 and 1950, so much so that what you see today “looks medieval” but is not really medieval.  Really a shame – because the building in the older photograph looks much nicer than the modern version!

Then and Now – Rapperswil – Bahnhof

kenritley

THEN:

NOW:

NOW (COLOR):

COMMENTS:

(1) Those Swiss are tricky people!  If you look at the Bahnhof building today, it LOOKS old. But looks can be deceiving. If you have a look at the original picture you’ll see the the right side of the train station once looked quite awful – but TODAY it looks like a magnificent old building from the Middle Ages!  So, when you see something in Switzerland that LOOKS old – such as the entire city of Bern itself – in fact what you are looking at is probably NOT old!

 

Then and Now – Bern – Waisenhausplatzbrunnen – “Fischbrunnen”

kenritley

THEN:

NOW:

NOW (COLOR):

COMMENTS:

(1) It’s been turned!  I don’t know when that picture was taken, but you can see the fountain is in exactly the same place, but turned 90%

(2) According to what I could find, the fountain was installed in 1841. That lower bit on the right is actually a horse trough so that the horses could drink. If you think about it, the original position makes more sense, since the horses are likely to have easier access to the trough then they do today. But of course, today there are hardly any horses!

(3) It really, really causes me intense mental anguish to think about the plumbing. I would really, really like to understand how the water feed from below the street is attached to the fountain. 

To smoke or not to smoke – PERFECT SWISSNESS

kenritley

When you think you have experienced life everywhere else, you need to move to Switzerland – because only by living here can you truly appreciate the MAGNIFICENCE of Switzerland.

And by Switzerland I really mean the Swiss culture: low-key, non-offending, non-judgemental, and above all: democratic.

So it was NO SURPRISE to me to find this sign about not smoking at the train station:

If you don’t speak German, then here is a translation:

“In order to improve the cleanliness and out of respect to the non-smokers, smoking at this train station is not allowed. This also includes smoking e-cigarettes. Smoking is only allowed by the ash containers.”

So there you have it. On just one sign: Smoking is not allowed. But . . . well . . . in case you smoke, it is allowed.

I think only by living here for a while in this AMAZING country will you come to know, understand, and LOVE this sign!