One Quick Day in the Swiss Capital

I had heard that Bern was quaint and beautiful but I didn't have any expectations and did almost no research prior to our arrival. Bern began as a simple stopover for my sister and me, a convenient meeting place to hook up with our friend who lives in Milan. We arrived around noon at the Bern train station on Thanksgiving Day. We had been lucky enough to travel on a TGV, so our trip was relatively short, comfortable and scienic four and a half hours from Paris. I don't know what Bern is like all of the time but on this particular day, it was a happening place to be. There was a traveling snowboarding festival in the town center, sponsored by Bluewin, one of the swiss internet portals. They had built an entire mountain of snow in the center of town from which they could showcase the jumping and acrobatics of local and national snowboarders. Loud music, snowboarding fashions and equipment, food and drinks made of Red Bull and red colored vodka contributed to the festive atmosphere.

Quick Tips:

For a town of 40,000 people we were surprised to find that the Bern train station was so large. The Swiss are famous for their cleanliness and organization and this train station is no exception. After we met our friend, we took the escalator up to the first floor and went strait to the tourist information office to arrange for a hotel reservation. There was no line and several people available to help us; all spoke English fluently. After determining our needs, the attendant found a room for the three of us and our dog at a hotel located a quick walk from the train station.

Best Way To Get Around:

We found this hotel through the tourist office at the Bern train station. It fit all our requirements, including allowing a small dog. This extremely clean and well organized hotel was in a very central location, near shopping, restaurants, the train station and the town square. We paid 220 Swiss francs for a large room overlooking the street with three single beds. While this hotel was fine and fit all of our needs, it had absolutely no charm. Compared to the rest of Bern it was somewhat boring and uninspired. I''d have to be honest and say that I believe for the price I will try to find something with a little more character next time I visit Bern.

We arrived at the Arlequin after unsuccessfully trying a few other places. The problem was that it was almost two o'clock and most restaurants had finished serving lunch and were shutting down to prepare for dinner. Fortunately we stumbled upon the Arlequin where the chef generously agreed to stay longer in order to prepare our food.

Our waiter was kind and helped us out by bringing us the English version of the menu and a bowl of water for our little pug Siggy. Each of us ordered a chicken dish, mine was similar to a chicken piccatta with pasta in a lemon garlic sauce. I enjoyed this tremendously, although if I was totally honest I'd also say that I was so hungry at this point I probably would have eaten anything. We enjoyed a bottle of pino grigio which cost 38.5 sf and a bottle of mineral water for 11sf. The total price for three was 115 sf or $63 USD. The atmosphere was cozy and warm and I think this would be a nice quiet place to hang out and have a beer or a glass of wine.

While my sister and friend Julie were napping and resting up for a big evening on the town, I wandered around Bern and into the shops. Speed is filled with ultra hip clothing including Miss Sixty and Diesel along with other brands I didn't recognize. Pleather, denim, fur and feathers abound. I thought that this was a fun place to shop ...the techno music is upbeat and loud and the staff is helpful and friendly. The prices were kind of erratic, some things were expensive for trendy wear, others were pretty good deals. I ended up purchasing a long pleather skirt and a sweater that were reasonably priced. Now that I'm back at home and have received numerous compliments on my purchases, I wish that I would have spent more time and money at Speed.

This is a sophisticated, Italian-modernist style bar and a good place to begin our evening in Bern. It is located in front of a very popular dance spot called Toni's club and the patrons are professional, educated and hip twenty-something and thirty-something men and women. We sat at the bar and struck up a conversation with the Persian bartender/manager and had a great time. But after about an hour we were ready to move on to a more loud, lively atmosphere. We would have gone next door to Toni's, but Thursday is Latin night and none of us are Salsa queens. Luckily our Persian friend suggested a nearby place called Peri Bar and off we went.

This was a great bar. Located in the upper level of an old building, Peri Bar is a happening place jammed with young, successful Swiss men and women. The bartenders were busy and each thought I was crazy to order Vodka and soda. They really didn't understand what I wanted so I ended up with a shot of vodka and a bottle of Perrier - which did the job. The Swiss have a reputation for being reserved but we found just the opposite. Outgoing, well educated and talkative, we truly enjoyed the people we met at the Peri Bar. It was interesting to glimpse the Swiss singles scene. There were good looking men everywhere, but there were not even half as many women. The guys said the women just don't go out to bars too much. I wondered how they meet each other and date if the women stay home all of the time. But in a town of only 40,000 they said they already know everyone in their age group and category. Besides, the pressure to marry is just not there like it is in the US, many thirty somethings had never been married and we really unconcerned about making plans to do so.

Pristine, Quaint, Friendly, Hip, Old, Modern, Small, Grand. These are the contradictions which describe Bern. Talk to anyone whose been here and you'll discover that most would return in an instant.