Interesting places in Berne:

PostfinanceArena		Stade de Suisse
Zentrum Paul Klee (art museum)		Grosse Schanze
Münster of Berne		Reithalle
Kornhausbrücke		Tiefenau Viadukt
Aargauerstalden		Kirchenfeldbrücke
Nydeckbruecke		Uni Engehalde, University of Berne
Berne Hauptbahnhof		Swisscom
Historic Museum of Bern		Botanical Garden of Bern
Dachstock		Paul Klee Center
Circuit Bremgarten		Münsterplattform
Bubenbergplatz		Belle Epoque Boutique Hotel
Hotel Restaurant Alpenblick		Sorell Hotel Ador
Astoria Swiss Quality Hotel

Berne also functions as the capital of the Canton of Berne, the second most populous of Switzerland's cantons.

Berne is chock full of history and thus museums. It also has quite a bit of public art, all of which is marked on a walking map which is available from the tourist office in the train station for free.

• Bundeshaus (House of Parlaments), Bundesplatz 3 (Yes, really! Number 1 and 2 are banks...). Representive Building dominating the Square. Constructed by the end of 19th century. Guided tour (free) if no "session" (held 4 times a year). During session only access to the spectators ranks. The house is temporarily under construction now. The guided tour will be open again during summer 2008.

• Einsteinhaus, Kramgasse 49, +41 31 312 00 91 . 10am to 5pm (4pm Saturdays) March to October, 1pm to 5pm (Noon to 4pm Saturdays) March and February. Albert Einstein rented this small flat with his wife during his years working at the Swiss patent office. Their first child, Hans Albert, and the special and general theories of relativity were born here, where Einstein's writing desk overlooked the busy street and its lovely clock-tower. There are numerous photos and original documents from Einstein's life, work, and speeches. 6/4.5 CHF Adults/Students.
• Invasion of Berne >> successful! As you explore, you may notice these small alien graffiti mosaics. GAME NOT OVER was declared by the anonymous artist "Invader" in 1998. Since then, space invaders have been reappearing on the walls, bridges and roofs of cities across the world, most famously on the sign and in several locations in the Louvre. Two additional Swiss cities have been invaded: and . Those with 10 EUR, a longer visit, and a weird sense of humor might consider ordering a map and doing the space invader tour.

• The Clock Tower. Near the center of the old town. On the hour, every hour throughout the day. (Be five minutes early as it starts before the hour!) A stunning display of early animatronic technology and as the locals are proud to tell you "the longest running act in showbusiness". At a few minutes before the hour, it begins with a little song and some flapping from the cock then some drumming by the jester up top. At the hour the bears and the old bearded king get into the act. OK, it's probably a good thing to take kids to see. It tells time too! (And the month, day, sign of the zodiac and phase of the moon). Free. There are guided tours inside the tower that will let you have a look at the clockwork whilst the show is displayed outside. To be booked at the tourist office and defiently worth it if you love mechanics.

• Museum of Fine Arts Known for its Klee collection.

• Bern Historical Museum

• Swiss Alpine Museum

Location is derived from the great work of WikiMapia

Top photos chosen by u all:

Bern
Made by daniel wildi photography
View on the scenic old town of Bern and the Bern Cathedral (UNESCO World Cultural Heritage). Taken with my iPhone 4 before a severe thunder and hail storm approached. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera gear with me. The city of Bern or Berne is the Bundesstadt (federal city, de facto capital) of Switzerland, and, with (as of December 2009) a population of 131,000, the fourth most populous city in Switzerland. The Bern agglomeration, which includes 43 municipalities, has a population of 349,000. The metropolitan area had a population of 660,000 in 2000. Bern is also the capital of the Canton of Bern, the second most populous of Switzerland's cantons. The official language of Bern is German, but the main spoken language is the Alemannic dialect called Bernese German. In 1983 the historic old town in the center of Bern became a UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and Bern is ranked among the world’s top ten cities for the best quality of life. The etymology of the name Bern is uncertain. According to the local legend, based on folk etymology, Berchtold V, Duke of Zähringen, the founder of the city of Bern, vowed to name the city after the first animal he met on the hunt, and this turned out to be a bear. It has long been considered likely that the city was named after the Italian city of Verona, which at the time was known as Bern in Middle High German. As a result of the find of the Berne zinc tablet in the 1980, it is now more common to assume that the city was named after a pre-existing toponym of celtic origin, possibly *berna cleft. The bear was the heraldic animal of the seal and coat of arms of Bern from at least the 1220s. The earliest reference to the keeping of live bears in the Bärengraben dates to the 1440s. The structure of Bern's city center is largely medieval and has been recognised by UNESCO as a Cultural World Heritage Site. Perhaps its most famous sight is the Zytglogge (Bernese German for Time Bell), an elaborate medieval clock tower with moving puppets. It also has an impressive 15th century Gothic cathedral, the Münster, and a 15th century town hall. Thanks to 6 kilometers of arcades, the old town boasts one of the longest covered shopping promenades in Europe (Lauben). Since the 16th century, the city has had a bear pit (the Bärengraben). The extended and renewed pit off the far end of the Nydeggbrücke actually contains four bears, including two young. During his visit in Bern in 2009, the Russian president and his wife gave two more young bears as a private present. They are actually in Dählhölzli, Bern's zoo. The Federal Palace (Bundeshaus), built from 1857 to 1902, which houses the national parliament, government and part of the federal administration, can also be visited. Albert Einstein lived in an apartment at the Kramgasse 49, the site of the Einsteinhaus, from 1903 to 1905, the year in which the Annus Mirabilis Papers were published. The Garden of Roses (Rosengarten), from which a scenic panoramic view of the medieval town centre can be enjoyed, is a well-kept Rosary on a hill, converted into a park from a former cemetery in 1913. Bern's most recent sight is the set of fountains in front of the Federal Palace. It was inaugurated on August 1, 2004. Bern features many heritage sites of national significance. Apart from the entire Old Town and many sites within it, these include the Bärengraben, the Gewerbeschule Bern (1937), the Eidgenössisches Archiv für Denkmalpflege, the Kirchenfeld mansion district (after 1881), the Thunplatzbrunnen, the Federal Mint building, the Federal Archives, the Swiss National Library, the Historical Museum (1894), Alpine Museum, Museum of Communication and Natural History Museum. The Universal Postal Union is situated in Bern. [Source: Wikipedia] iPhone 4 Processed with PS CS5


The Center of Power
Made by daniel wildi photography
The Federal Palace in Berne at Night. The Federal Constitution adopted in 1848 is the legal foundation of the modern federal state. It is among the oldest constitutions in the world. A new Constitution was adopted in 1999, but did not introduce notable changes to the federal structure. It outlines basic and political rights of individuals and citizen participation in public affairs, divides the powers between the Confederation and the cantons and defines federal jurisdiction and authority. There are three main governing bodies on the federal level: the bicameral parliament (legislative), the Federal Council (executive) and the Federal Court (judicial). The Swiss Parliament consists of two houses: the Council of States which has 46 representatives (two from each canton and one from each half-canton) who are elected under a system determined by each canton, and the National Council, which consists of 200 members who are elected under a system of proportional representation, depending on the population of each canton. Members of both houses serve for 4 years. When both houses are in joint session, they are known collectively as the Federal Assembly. Through referendums, citizens may challenge any law passed by parliament and through initiatives, introduce amendments to the federal constitution, thus making Switzerland a direct democracy. The Federal Council constitutes the federal government, directs the federal administration and serves as collective Head of State. It is a collegial body of seven members, elected for a four-year mandate by the Federal Assembly which also exercises oversight over the Council. The President of the Confederation is elected by the Assembly from among the seven members, traditionally in rotation and for a one-year term; the President chairs the government and assumes representative functions. However, the president is a primus inter pares with no additional powers, and remains the head of a department within the administration. Canon EOS 60D Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM Manfrotto tripod. Aperture: f/4 Exposure time: 2.6 seconds Focal length: 17mm, ISO Speed 100 HDR processed with Photomatix Pro out of 5 bracketed photos (EV -2/-1/0/+1/+2), finishing with PS CS5


299/365 - One Year Ago
Made by .avina.
October 26, 2010 One year ago... before the 365 madness, before my D90, before the move to Malta, before Allan's house full of babies, before Omi (Gertrude) and I began making up names, before Amy moved to Nebraska, before Neil was blown away by his 14-24 f2.8, before Darren moved to Edmonton, before Elizabeth showed her face, before drinking Guinness with Mike, before Scott's famous sportraits, before Chris went on hiatus, before Heather showed more than her feet, before Toni met Bowling for Soup, before Jess cut her hair, before I became inspired by all the magic Taya creates, before Seungki posted the Eiffel Tower (ha ha), before Jeff went to Argentina, before Irena's playful banter had me rolling, before Ari's second go at a 365, before Lindy stole a ceramic squirrel, before Anna had a bun in the oven, before Eliza's red dress, before Kathy's only selfie (Day 51), before pizza with Rob, before I got hooked on Christopher's alpine adventures, before Krystin painted herself to a wall, before Kev had Liam, before Nadia's lollipop eyes, before Nancy turned tone maps into art, before Philippe was a banana, before Nicole discovered corn syrup, before Konrad moved, before Lori put Ella on a shelf, before Rivera suggested we play Starcraft2, before Trina drove all over the country, before Kate's ugly shoes, before Dara's 40d went on the fritz, before Michele's huge life changes, before I knew kostolany liked Terry Pratchett, before Georgie became the master of the macro, before Michelle began documenting the parking meters of Montreal, before Juliet showed me her filters, before Didier's 100 things... there was a cold morning in Bern there was me and there was this leaf.


Η γυναίκα που διάβαζε ποιήματα
Made by tiflosourtis
Η γυναίκα που διάβαζε ποιήματα Η γυναίκα που διάβαζε ποιήματα στεκότανε κοντά στη φωτιά και δυο μαύρα πουλιά της φέρναν μυνήματα από μια αγάπη παλιά: “ποτέ πια”! Η γυναίκα που μιλούσε στα κύματα χόρευε σε μια ακρογιαλιά ένα βαλς μανιασμένο με λυτά τα μαλλιά και προχώρησε στα βαθιά. Η γυναίκα που έσκαβε μνήματα και δεν είχε μιλιά κοιτούσε τον θάνατο σαν μια αγάπη παλιά και ψιθύριζε με μάτια σβηστά. Για όλα αυτά που ζήσαμε, μόνοι με τους μόνους μοιράζοντας τους πόνους. Τις ώρες που δακρύσαμε, μόνοι με τους μόνους μοιράζοντας τους πόνους. Στίχοι: Ροδοστόγλου Παντελής


El Hombre Solo
Made by tiflosourtis
El Hombre Solo Το ήξερε πως θα συμβεί μια μέρα εκείνη η ρωγμή που κουβαλούσε -πληγή που έβραζε, σιωπή που αιμορραγούσε- θα τον θρυμμάτιζε για πάντα πέρα ως πέρα Τίναξε από πάνω του τη σκόνη κι αμίλητος προχώρησε στο αγιάζι τον βρίζαν τα παιδιά πίσω απ’ το Γκάζι και κάποιος του ‘ριξε νερό απ’ το μπαλκόνι Και τα σκυλιά κοιτούσαν δακρυσμένα να χάνεται στης νύχτας τον πυθμένα σαν κάποιος που ποτέ του δεν υπήρξε αυτός που τόσο αγάπησε τον κόσμο Στίχοι: Παντελής Ροδοστόγλου


celts - hochdorf golden shoes ornaments
Made by Cåsver
Hochdorf Chieftain's Grave, Germany. About 530 BC The Hochdorf Chieftain's Grave is a richly-furnished burial chamber. Regarded as the Tutankamon of the Celts, it was discovered in 1977 near Hochdorf an der Enz in Baden-Württemberg, Germany). A man of 40 years old, 6 ft 2 in (178 cm) tall was laid out on a bronze couch. He had been buried with a gold-plated torc on his neck, a bracelet on his right arm, and most notably, thin embossed gold plaques were on his now-disintigrated shoes. At the foot of the couch was a large cauldron decorated with three lions around the brim. The east side of the tomb contained a four-wheeled wagon holding a set of bronze dishes - enough to serve nine people. Kunst der Kelten, Historisches Museum Bern. Art of the Celts, Historic Museum of Bern.


Lucky punch
Made by chriscom
Today I was lucky enough to go shooting with Patrik, Ramun & Daniel. This shot has actually no postprocessing, but some crop (I guess the post-look comes from me forgetting to switch back to rear-flash mode) The funny thing is that I didn't look through the viewfinder for taking it and that Patrick his board just after this jump. Yep, some days you're just lucky. Kudos go to Patrik for rocking the area and to Ramun for the organization. strobist: SB-600 on the left (35mm-ish, @1/16) and SB-900 on the right (50mm-ish, @1/8). Both flashes were mounted on a tripod and both were triggered with skyports As we took so many shots I'm not entirely sure if the zoom settings are correct, but it was in this neighbourhood


BERN is ours 3-0!!!!!
Made by B℮n
Slick Dutch stun world champions. Netherlands 3-0 Italy. Netherlands took a firm grip on Euro 2008's so-called Group of Death by winning a classic encounter with Italy. The Oranje ended a 30-year wait to beat Italy as goals from Ruud van Nistelrooy, Wesley Sneijder and Giovanni van Bronckhorst secured an impressive win. My son BieJee already cheers for Holland ;-) en.euro2008.uefa.com/photos/t=95/gallery.html Het Nederlands elftal heeft op het EK een even onverwachte als fraaie zege geboekt op wereldkampioen Italië: 3-0.


Swiss parliament and government building - Explore
Made by M_Strasser
Since 2004, the square in front of the Swiss parliament and government building is made of gneiss stone, a band of light and a water feature, comprising 26 water jets representative of Switzerland's different cantons. The water jets spurt in different rhythmic patterns, or in a random pattern, from 11:00 until 23:00, from the beginning of astronomical spring until November 1st, except for Tuesdays and Saturdays (when the market takes place on the square). Explore #279 - thank you so much for your comments! I appreciate your support very much!


Complicated Pile
Made by Les Rho@des
Latest story: blog.flickr.net/en/2008/08/15/complicated-pile/ An unusual balloon sculpture featured in a wheat field behind the Paul Klee museum in Bern, Switzerland. The artist is American born; Paul McCarthy I'll be going back to this location for a few sunset/blue hour photos. ( 15 minutes from my house) I just found this today and couldn't resist taking some photos. Yes, that is me in the photo! Click here to see a larger version of this image with a black BG:


~ cat lover's bench monday ~
Made by Nordljus*
Last Sunday, I visited the Zentrum Paul Klee in Bern with a friend. On the way from the street to the museum, there was this cat hanging around the benches near the path, enjoying cuddles from passersby. When we walked back about 3 hours later, the cat was still there. We suspected, that he or she just hangs around there all day waiting to be stroked and cuddled. It really was a very friendly cat and very obligingly let him/herself be lifted up on the bench to pose for a bench shot together with my friend :-). Happy Bench Monday!!


Knuddel bear
Made by bayucca (busy)
Special shots for Tambako the Jaguar! Bears at the famous Bärenpark, now built more animal-friendly (for more than 23 Mio. Swiss Francs!) than the former Bärengraben in the City of Berne, the Capital of Switzerland. Berne has the bear as heraldic animal. The two youngsters were born in December 2009 and called Urs and Berna. Dad can berserkering more... Please, do not invite these shots in a wildlife group, since they are not wild but leaving in a big animal park. But as you can see it is not a normal zoo with narrow cages.


nf1009a
Made by robertbonnin
This picture shows the main road in the centre of Bern (Kramgasse) see google street in the same place where photographer place his tripod around 1900 a voir dans google street au meme endroit que le photographe vers 1900 ;-) This photo is part of my collection of negatives on glass plates between 1890 and 1930 all your information will be welcome! cette photo fait partie de ma collection de negatifs sur plaques de verres entre 1890 et 1930 toutes vos informations seront les bienvenues !


Piatto di Antipasti
Made by remozolli
Diverse Antipasti heute zum Znacht: Parmesan-Splitter, gefüllte Peperoncini, eine getrocknete Tomate, ein Artischockenherz, einige eingelegte Oliven, Cashews und die Hauptsache: Ein äusserst feiner Bündner Rohschinken vom Brügger in Parpan! Vari antipasti per cena: Scaglie di parmigiano, Peperoncini ripiene al formaggio fresco, un pomodoro secco, un cuore di carciofo, qualche olive marinate, cashews ed un prosciutto crudo finissimo dal Grigione (Brügger Parpan)!


Bern - River Aar
Made by Wolfgang Staudt
The Aar, a tributary of the High Rhine, is the longest river that both rises and ends entirely within Switzerland. Its total length from its source to its junction with the Rhine comprises about 295 km (183 miles), during which distance it descends 1,565 m (5,135 ft), draining an area of 17,779 km2 (6,865 sq mi), including the whole of central Switzerland. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


trespass
Made by R. Krabichler – Avenues
Street Photography Now Project, Instructions #25 Talk to strangers, let them take you to places. - Mark Alor Powell streetphotographynowproject.wordpress.com/ Talking about buses being late, dry weather, red shoes, atomar energy, death, guilt, hope, help and haughtiness. She took the bus, but just for one station - we got out on the playgound station. He remained. And so did they.


swan around
Made by R. Krabichler – Avenues
View On Black Street Photography Now Project, Instructions #21 Be aware of the way the camera compresses a three dimensional world into a two dimensional plane and use that to your advantage - Nick Turpin streetphotographynowproject.wordpress.com/


Departure
Made by schoeband
Camera: Horizon S3 Pro. Film: Fuji Neopan 400 Pro, developed in the home-brewed developer Caffenol C consisting of instant coffee, washing soda and vitamin C. Thanks to Kay Kremerskothen for using this image as an example in the Flickr Blog about Canocaffenol , on Feb 22, 2011. blog.flickr.net/en/2011/02/22/canocaffenol/


his subconscious and the back door
Made by R. Krabichler – Avenues
View On Black Street Photography Now Project, Instructions #18 Look for a window. Through a window, out of a window, or at the reflections on a window. Arif Asci streetphotographynowproject.wordpress.com/


Rain of fun
Made by Randalfino
One of my favorites..... It's my most viewed and favorited pic... The description is in the thread, I played a bit with the colors.... I like those which make me think of the washed out out of focus pics my parents used to take on their old Kodak in the 70's..... My first pic selected by flickR in the most interesting pic of November 1st... I'm so happy.....