Traveling

Well I had hoped to be able to give an extensive report on my last week of traveling in October in Switzerland, Munich and Berlin. Unfortunately, the end of my semester got really busy, and I ran out of time. I will attempt to give a quick description of my impressions of these amazing places. I have however posted many great pictures from my travels which will probably explain my trip better than anything i write.

Zurich, Switzerland:

It is safe to say that Zurich is the most beautiful city I have ever seen. I had a great day of simply walking around the city and taking it in. It is located at the north end of Lake Zurich, and provides amazing views of the Swiss Alps to the South... that is... if they aren't veiled in fog like the day i was in Zurich. For architecture, I saw the Art Museum and the Heidi Weber House which is now a museum for the architect who designed it: Le Corbusier. I also bought a legitimate Swiss Army Knife. :) You can find the pictures i took in Zurich here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/steve04/BestOfZurich#


Bellinzona, Switzerland:

Wow. If you ever have a chance to go to Switzerland... and you like castles.... you have to go to Bellinzona. It is a city near the southern border (near Italy) that guards the main pass through the Alps. It is in the southern foothills of the Alps and features not 1, not 2, but 3 amazing castles. And not just any type of castle... but 3 boyhood-dream castles made of stone blocks and probably the most "manly" castles ever. The reason I went there is the other DIS student I met up with in Switzerland has family that came from this region, and he wanted to see it. Little did I know that going to Bellinzona would end up being one of the most memorable things I have done in Europe. Check out the pictures and perhaps you will understand.

http://picasaweb.google.com/steve04/BestOfBellinzona#


Basel, Switzerland:

Basel is a city full of museums of all kinds. We were only there for a day, so we only saw a couple museums when we were there. I walked by the Tinguely Museum designed by Mario Botta and then walked to and spent a lot of time in the Beyeler Museum just outside of Basel designed by Renzo Piano. It hosts a great collection of art, included many paintings by Monet, who has become my favorite painter. Pictures can be found here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/steve04/BestOfBasel#


Right now I am in Berlin. I am beginning a 5 week trip through Europe and am very excited about all the things I will do and see. When I get the chance I will post pictures of my final project for the semester as well as finish my descriptions of Munich and Berlin from my last trip. Enjoy the Switzerland pictures.

Here is my itinerary for the 5 weeks: Berlin, Munich, Innsbruck (for Christmas), Zurich, Geneva, Paris (New Years), Spain, French Rivera, Italy, Croatia. Stay posted. :)