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Home » Switzerland » Our Two Busy Afternoons In Basel, Switzerland
Switzerland

Our Two Busy Afternoons In Basel, Switzerland

Matthew Klint Posted onDecember 28, 2023December 27, 2023 7 Comments

a ferris wheel with lights

While we did not do much in Germany during our recent holiday, we did quite a lot of museum hopping in Basel in just two afternoons…

Museum Hopping In Basel

Most museums in Basel offer free entry on the first Sunday of the month. We decided to head over in the afternoon to check out a few museums because Augustine has been deeply interested in everything Egypt for many months now (and yes, I will take him to Egypt one of these days).

Our visit happened to coincide with the Basler Herbstmesse (autumn fair) that has been an annual fixture since 1471 (you have to love Western Europe…). These days there are all sorts of rides and food available.

a ferris wheel in a city

a crowd of people standing in front of a ferris wheel

a crowd of people walking on a cobblestone street with a ferris wheel

a group of people in front of a building with lights

But our visit was aimed at museums and our first stop was the Natural History Museum, which included a nice collection of artifacts ranging from dinosaur bones to a collection of indigenous snakes to the region. The museum was appropriately located on Augustinergasse 2.

a group of children playing with a wall mural

a person standing on a staircase

two children walking up stairs in a building

a child walking in a museum

a group of kids looking at a dinosaur skeleton in a glass case

a group of people in a museum display case

a child touching a snake in a glass case

a dinosaur head in a room with a painting on the wall

Next, we headed over to the Kunstmuseum (art museum), which had a special open house aimed at children. The kids had a lot of fun creating their own art:

a crosswalk with people walking on it

a green train on the street

a group of people walking on a sidewalk

a building with windows and a tree
We did stop at the museum coffee shop for a very memorable cappuccino…

a group of people around a table

a group of people in a room with cardboard boxes

a child opening a box

a child in a box

a group of people in a room with cardboard boxes

a white wall with purple text on it
#notart…this is called graffiti…

But we made a deadly mistake (at least according to Augustine). He had his heart intent on visiting the Antikenmuseum (antiquity museum), which houses a permanent collection of Egyptian artwork and artifacts. It closed at 4:00 pm (we thought we had another hour) and Augustine was absolutely devastated.

a tan rectangular object with writing on it

We promised we would take him on Tuesday .

It was All Saints Day and I took Augustine to church–the Anglican Church meets in a chapel in the Basler Münster.

a tall building with spires and blue sky

a building with a round window and spires

a group of people singing in a church

We then went home.

But on Tuesday (since the museum closed even earlier on Monday) we returned to Basel to visit the antiquities museum. It was good we allowed the extra time because we spent a couple hours there…with Augustine acting as a docent explaining everything to us. I’m frankly amazed at his knowledge of ancient Egypt.

a hallway with a couple of people walking

a group of white objects on a display

a display case with egyptian coffins

a woman and a child looking at an ancient egyptian papyrus

a boy and girl looking at a display case

a room with a large wall with paintings on it

a kids looking at a display case

a group of kids looking at a display case

a boy and girl looking at a statue

a mummy in a wooden coffin

a wooden box with designs on it

a kids looking at an exhibit
Look at Augustine taking notes! ♥

a statue of a man on a glass case

The museum had Persian and Greek artifacts as well.

a stone carving of a woman and a child

a room with statues and a black floor

CONCLUSION

Basel is a great city–a wealthy and clean city–and I appreciated my time here. This would be another great city to live in, though I love that just 10 minutes away over the German or French borders you can live a nice life with a much cheaper cost of living.

a boy and girl standing on a concrete wall looking at a body of water

a boy and girl standing on a stone wall next to a body of water

a street with a building and people walking on it

a street with cars and people walking on it

a group of people walking down a street

a girl sitting on a ledge looking at a rainbow

a building with many windows

a rainbow over a street light

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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7 Comments

  1. MeanMeosh Reply
    December 28, 2023 at 1:21 pm

    I see your daughter likes hanging out in boxes. She clearly has a future as a crazy cat lady. (I say this with affection as a crazy cat guy myself.)

  2. Eliyahu Reply
    December 28, 2023 at 4:06 pm

    I have a very fond memory of the square pictured in your first two photos — when I visited Basel many years ago, there was a farmers’ market. I had just gotten off the plane and was starving, so I walked up to a farmer, who sold me a massive hunk of local cheese for about 3 CHF. An odd snack, but it was one of the most delicious pieces of cheese I have ever eaten.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      December 28, 2023 at 5:02 pm

      Cool story. Swiss cheese (especially Gruyère) is some of my favorite.

  3. John Dogas Reply
    December 28, 2023 at 8:19 pm

    The natural history museum reminds me of the one in Vienna. It’s such a fun thing to see because these are the things we don’t do at home after a certain age. I wonder how seeing the history and architecture up close will influence their future interests and career interests, although, the smartest thing is to probably continue the family business if trav b is still a thing.

  4. Nika B. Reply
    December 28, 2023 at 10:45 pm

    They’re adorable! If you’re visiting Egypt and your little one is such a fan of antiques, I’d recommend waiting for the Grand Egyptian Museum to open fully in late spring (they currently operate a few sections, but you’ll have a better experience once everything is available including the kids section). It’s a really impressive collection and building.

  5. Jerry Reply
    December 29, 2023 at 9:57 am

    Tangentially related, I just spent the last two nights in Cairo. You should go now. Visitor numbers are down because of the conflict in Israel and Palestine, but there’s obviously no risk in Cairo. The exchange rate makes everything dirt cheap, and there’s apparently even a black market starting to form where a USD fetches 50 EGP. The brand new Waldorf Astoria is a great deal on Amex FHR.

  6. Rock De Augustine Reply
    December 31, 2023 at 2:42 am

    Just left Basel, we’re bopping around Europe for a few months with our 5 yr old. Yes, a great, beautiful, clean safe city. Immediately, “why can’t we have this at home?” Comes to mind. Then you go out to eat, anywhere, and you realize the underlying cost.
    As you mentioned: one of the best things about Basel is location: you can pop into Colmar or Strassbourg for Christmas Markets, over to the Black Forest, or down to Lucerne and other parts of Switzerland.

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