When was the last time you made soap bubbles? And I mean: real soap bubbles, huge soap bubbles which will fly high up in the sky (well, weather and humidity permitting …)?

Catch a fleeting moment and treasure it, watch a child playing and giving total commitment to the here and now.

Fasnachtzyschdig – Tuesday

Basel Fasnacht – where even kings wear costumes

Many will agree with me that Tuesday is the icing on the Fasnacht cake: the day when everybody is free to do what they want, enjoy themselves and live out their originality. It is a feast for all senses and above all very funny.

Originally it was the day when we went to see the lanterns being exhibited in a hall and there was little happening in downtown Basel. As Fasnacht became bigger and there were more cliques and therefore also more lanterns, there was not enough space in the hall and it moved to Münsterplatz, the place in front of the cathedral.

There is so much creativity and new techniques (e.g. digital print) to be admired, enjoy the pictures:

It is a long day, we start later in the morning with a very healthy breakfast of Fastenwähe and Coco Cola to settle our delicate stomach.

In the afternoon we meet up with some fifers and drummers for the gigantic Museumszygli, we are about 80 fifers and 35 drummers. We always meet the same people and at the end we are awarded with a glass of Gspritzte and some appetizers in a lovely courtyard close to Münsterplatz.

The special atmosphere on the terrace of Les Trois Rois in the evening

A picture says more than a 1’000 words:

or What Has Meat Got To Do With It?

Fasnacht or Carnival celebrates (or mourns) the beginning of Lent, the period in which you are not supposed to eat meat. In Basel Fasnacht takes place one week after Ash Wednesday. It is known to be the biggest Protestant carnival of the world, with roughly 20’000 participants. Want more history and background information, in English here and here and here in German.

The last day of January, 2012

Last night we went to the opening of an exhibition at the Tinguely Museum in Basel: Face to Face II, photographic portraits of artists by Vera Isler.

Vera Isler is a multitalented Swiss artist, born in Germany in 1931 and sent to Switzerland by her caring and worried parents in 1936. In 1980, due to a broken arm from a skating incident and being able to use only one hand, she started to photograph.

Vogel Gryff – A Local Custom

I believe that taking part in local customs is root building, strengthens our social skills and – well – let us just have some fun!

This last Friday, on a rather rainy and grey day, we celebrated a local custom in Kleinbasel (the part of the town which is on the right side of the river Rhine): Vogel Gryff.

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