Europe Hotel Basel

... that this was our second time in three years visiting Christmas markets on the Rhine. (Two years ago Tamara's first visit to Europe included a long weekend to Cologne and the many markets there, plus a boat ride down the river.) We spent the afternoon ...

As canny city break addicts are quickly discovering, the cheapest way to explore Europe's finest cities is to check into a self-catering apartment. Whether you're escaping for a romantic weekend , or looking forward to a cultural tour , cooking up your ...

... good pictures from the train this time.    At 4:30, we arrived in Zurich and ran to catch a connecting train to Basel. Thankfully, we didn't need reservations on this one so we just marched on and grabbed a few empty seats. The train only took ...

... Swiss have $$$$$$$. Pastries are not what they were in Austria, cappicinos OK. The second night we stayed in a wonderful hotel in a residential neighborhood near the zoo recommended by the local travel bureau. Very modern and 'smart'. Still had the ...

... cities of Switzerland, and clearly benefits a lot from its strategic location. We stayed two nights at the Mercure hotel in the city center. I had business in Basel, so my wife and son had extra time to explore the city. At the time, there was talk of ...

...     After Muster, we walked to Botanisher Garten - the oldest botanical garden in northern Europe. It was next to the University of Basel and is famous for its collections of cacti and orchids.  My favorite greenhouse was Victoria - ...

... difficulty in understanding the instructions of a policeman who patiently tried to direct us to the tourist office. Finding a cheap hotel was a lot easier than actually getting to it. A second policeman directed us with some difficulty to Rocca Street on ...

... summer now, because Autumn is terrible. I saw some Swiss banks. That was exciting. I went back to my hotel in disgust, at my friend, at the city of Basel. Im sure the rest of Switzerland has something to offer. Not Basel. I am sitting in an internet pub ...

... at me. And now im updating my travel pod from Basel University next to the train station. Apparently this is one of the most famous and old universities in all of Europe. Nietzsche used to be a professor here. It is really cool and they have free ...

... largely dependent on Novartis and Roche---two global pharmaceutical companies.   It seems that the lingua franca of Europe is English.  When we asked some less highly educated people where they had learned their excellent English, they ...

... than we had been with the exterior. Poor lighting tended to hide the beauty of most of the cathedrals we saw in Europe though I imagine that they were no less illuminated than they had been back in the dark ages. After so many weeks exploring ...

... and I'll say it again (and likely again & again)-  I wish we had a train system in the US like they have in Europe.  It is fantastique.  I LOVE it.  I'm not so crazy about their barely cool drinks and pay toilets, but I'll take ...

...   Sadly we bid farewell to Murren, Switzerland and so far our favorite stop along our journey. After one last yummy Hotel Alpenruh breakfast gazing over the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau one last time, we dragged our extra heavy baggage up main street ...

... not tell you where I would go in Melbourne to purchase such weapons. For the ladies, the colour for next Australian winter if Europe does go first, is Brown and maybe mid grey. Lovely dark chocolate browns and a really nice coffee colour. It will suit ...

... a walk along the Rhine and just basically relaxed after the madness that was Prague. We also found the underage drinking spots in Basel- the preppy kids apparently hang out in a church courtyard, while the punks drink under a bridge. Good times! From ...

The weather in Europe has been awful since we left Oktoberfest, but not as bad as it was today. Before I had put up with the drizzle, or cloudy days, but today it was actually raining. I am a stubborn man, some would say stupid, but I still refuse to ...

... dot to St Peter's church set on a hill above the city and also home to the highest church spire and largest clock in Europe - now this I have to see! Indeed it is a long and steep walk and Google Iphone gets us completely lost...turning to old-fashioned ...

... is lovely, and we really should have gone trough there by bus. We realize now that the whole idea of spontaneous travel in Europe without guidance and reservations of some sort, can cause one to miss out on some neat experiences. We arrived in Bern and ...

... insistence of signage inside the invariably roasting booths that major credit cards are, indeed, legal tender for these contraptions. The "Europe-wide" calling card I purchased in Italy, and that worked a charm there, was utterly useless once I left ...

... bathroom any of us had ever seen.  It gave new meaning to the term Water Closet which is what they call the bathrooms throughout Europe.  He had to slide the shower doors together in order to sit on the toilet with his legs on the outside of the ...