Saturday, April 26, 2008

BERNER OBERLAND

KLEE AND THE ALPS - OCTOBER 2006

My first time in Bern was in 1975, just married! Don't know whether this had any influence, but I think the Bernese Oberland is surely one of the most wonderful regions of Switzerland, which has a lot of them! The snow-capped mountain peaks are stunning and the lush green hills will fascinate anyone around! This time, however, the main reason to visit was a different one!


"WHAT IS THIS? Any idea? Looks a bit weird..."


"THE OTHER SIDE! With a highway just below..."


"CLOSER LOOK"


"FINALLY THERE - The Paul Klee Zentrum is a museum dedicated to Klee, featuring about 40 percent of Klee’s pictorial works. In the summer of 1997, Livia Klee-Meyer, Paul Klee's daughter-in-law, donated her inheritance of almost 690 works to the city of Bern. Together with additional works donated and loaned by the family and the Paul-Klee-Foundation as well as with 200 loans from private collections, it makes the largest collection of Paul Klee's works. The museum, designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano and taking the form of three undulations blending into the landscape, was completed in Schöngrün in 2005"


"KLEE - Paul Klee was born from a German father in Münchenbuchsee (near Bern). He studied art at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich and after travelling to Italy and then back to Bern, settled in Munich, where he met Kandinsky and became associated with Der Blaue Reiter. He died in Muralto, Switzerland, in 1940, at the age of sixty, with at least 8926 works of art created and without having obtained Swiss citizenship. The Swiss authorities accepted his request six days after his death"


"RESTAURANT SCHÖNGRÜN - A wonderful place for a lunch break (fill the wallet or bring the cards...)"


"ROSES!"


"A WONDERFUL MEAL - Amuse-bouche, scallops, amuse-bouche, chocolate dessert..."


"SCULPTURE IN THE PARK, behind the restaurant and close to the parking lot"



"ALPS - «The Jungfrau-Aletsch-Bietschhorn region is the most glaciated part of the European Alps, containing Europe's largest glacier and a range of classic glacial features, and provides an outstanding record of the geological processes that formed the High Alps.» This is one of the reasons why it has been included in Unesco's World Heritage List. The Eiger (3970 m, the Mönch (4105 m) and the Jungfrau (4158 m) dominate the Bernese Oberland"


"BERN AND THE ALPS - From left to right (hopefully correct): Wetterhorn, Schreckhorn, Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau!"


"SUNSET at Lake Léman (Lake Geneva)"

43 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi friends and visitors! I’m back to blogosphere after a musical break and a very short Brazilian incursion. This time I’m getting to a beautiful place, as you may see from the pictures posted here; and I’m maintaining my delay in posting in eighteen months! ;))
Sorry for the stains in the pictures, but my old camera was starting to become a bit wacky…

JO said...

LOVELY white tops! Great pics with those in the back ground.... but O MY GOSH! Those roses! Fabulous!! and I would liek some of those yummy chocolate desserts - YUMMY!

Glad you are back - hope you had a great time.

Anonymous said...

trotter,nice to see Paul klee Zentrum museum.Many thanks.
Ce peintre,né en Suisse mais de nationalité allemande,a été influencé par de nombreux styles artistiques:expressionisme,,cubisme et surréalisme.A 33ans en 1912,il vient en France avec son épouse et rencontre le couple Delaunay qui va révéler à Klee comment utiliser la couleur et la lumière. On ne met pas les taches de couleur au hasard:une couleur en appelle une autre. Merci d'avoir parlé de ce peintre prolifique et à la personnalité eclectique. Saviez-vous qu'il était aussi musicien. Il jouait dans un orchestre,sa femme jouait du piano et son fils d'un autre instrument.Il est mort en 1940 d'une maladie rare. J'ai beaucoup lu sur sa vie et sa peinture...J

Anonymous said...

Great to have you back !!
Bern is a beautiful city just like any other swiss city, but didn't quite know about this museum else would have visited.

And those ROSES !!! Wow !

di.di said...

another perfect album i must say.. with the gorgeous Swiss Alps in the background it looked picture perfect.

Viewing the pictures of the Alps, is just like I have been on holidays with you....

Daniel Chérouvrier said...

Encore une très belle visite de tourisme culturel et gastronomique.

Noushy Syah said...

Swiss is definitely a great place for honeymooners...you must be reminiscing those lovely times in 1975..hehhehe..

hahhaha that museum really look weird on that angle*wink wink*!!

Love the roses and precisely the choc dessert!

Happy weekend!

Azer Mantessa said...

the site of alps is really really really nice

Nikon said...

Beautiful series, Gil, I love the white alps & the greenery combination!
The Matterhorn & Eiger looks very formidable, no wonder it is such a Mecca for climbers.
I remember Switzerland as being soooo clean :-)

S-V-H said...

I have visited the Paul Klee house in Muralto (by Locarno Ticino) in the late 50's as a kid. My parents had connections to the family and we get invited to see it and the wonderful gardens - and the art work of course.

Very nice post, Gil! Made me homesick a little bit...:-) wish to see the mountains again....

isa said...

It is a beautiful area of Switzerland, but I believe that your honeymoon status had some influence on your memories ;-)
For me, Lake Lucerne, where I spent my honeymoon is the most enchanting ;-)

Thank you Gil for all the visits and comments over at NDP. I will miss my favorite Globetrotter...

Anonymous said...

Estao um espanto as fotos. E o almoço foi inesquecivel..
beijocas
Luisa

Steve Cuddihy said...

That first building, the wavy roof line is fantasticly designed. Looks like a successfuly photographed trip. Nice captures!

Slinger - Daily Photos from the Twin Cities

Anonymous said...

Ahhh! A museum. I like the way it looks from the outside. I love the rose arrangement. I wouldn't mind receiving an arrangement like that. Very nice photos. Thank you. ;-)

Paz

chanpheng said...

I really like Paul Klee's work - when I lived in NYC, I often went to MOMA and enjoyed his artistry. He could say some much with the way he molded a line. The museum building blends with his work as well.

And of course, love the mountain views. Sigh - no snow capped mountains where I live now!

Thanks for your informative post - I learned a lot about Bern and about Klee!

Anonymous said...

My niece was lucky enough to visit and stay some time in Bern. She loved it. Thank you Gil for taking the time to visit us at CedarHill. ~ Lynn

Tawnya Shields said...

Hi Trotter,
Wow! I could fall in love with this place. The scenery, the art, the food, everything is a pleasure to the eye. Thank you for sharing your enchanting experience.

Shionge said...

I think I just have to check this place out Gil what a lovely place ;)

You looked gorgeous my friend ;)

Neva said...

Those Alps are amazing!! Thanks for dropping by to visit...I always enjoy your blog....

Dorothée said...

Hi GlobTrot and welcome back!
I hope you had a great time in Brazil.
I found your Switzerland series very nice and I like very much the way you presented it. It's very instructive and captivating in different aspects. I would have loved to visit the Paul Klee Zentrum. It sounds a very interesting and lovely place!
Thanks a lot for your kind comment on my blog. I was also away and I have a hard time getting back on track. I hope I can post in the following days.
PS: je ne peux faire d'accents sur l'ordinateur que j'utilise c'est pourquoi j'ai ecrit ce commentaire en anglais.

alice said...

Y a t'il toujours des ours au zoo de Bern?

lyliane six said...

Encore un enchantement pour les yeux et la bouche.Je ne suis pas allée à Berne et ne connaissais pas Klee, maintenant c'est fait, j'ai pris ma leçon de la semaine.

Unknown said...

that wawy building is really cool and i love that heart shaped flower, and of course food pictures always make me hungry. wonderful pics as usual :)

Tinsie said...

WOW!!! That's an amazing looking building!!!!

indicaspecies said...

Gil,

I hope you had a good trip to Brasilia.

Another set of lovely photographs of a fascinating Berne. Of course my first choice is pictures of the Eiger, the Mönch and the Jungrau. :)

leo said...

another admirer of the roses *sigh* hope u had a good trip!
thanks so much for taking the time to visit me.

Indrani said...

Wow the rorses! I have never seen so many of them together. I liked the sunset at Lake Geneva too and the way you approached Klee's museum. :)

Thanks for your comments in my blog. Thanks for being so thoughtful and taking time to visit my blog.

Nihal said...

Hi Gil, glad to see that you are back home safe. Looking forward to read your travel notes from South America. Pleez do not keep us waited too long;)
As far as Berne, I remember the day so vividly. Like it was just yesterday and beloved Rosemarie, my grandma..one of my earliest memories is while she was strolling in her garden with her cute dog named Gypsy...watering the plants.
Well, life is precious. Y'all are precious. And one more reason to move my journal to a new platform 'WonderLand' with your comments, because:
All of the comments - precious, precious comments:)

THANK YOU SO MUCH INDEED, Gil, for your visits and leaving so nice comments.

Have a great week. Kindest.

~~ N at CrossRoads

lyliane six said...

Ce bouquet de roses! qu'elle merveille, ce sont des vraies?
Le plus gros bouquet que j'ai eu de Michel, c'est 50 roses pour mes 50 ans, il y a un bout de temps...

MedaM said...

Hi Gil,
I really completely enjoyed in your posts that I have missed to see. There are so many photos that I like: the water fountains, the flowers clock, various kind of sculptures, monuments, beautiful old buildings, photos of the Alps, roses… etc. All of your photos are just great and colorful followed by so many interesting information. I am simply impressed with the beauty of the Geneva and Bern…and your work really is great. I almost forget to say that I also like your honeymoon photos from 1975. You two really looked great; young and happy :-)
I have noticed that you were absent for a while. I hope you had enjoyable music weekend and interesting trip.
I’ve been busy lately and I only didn’t have enough time to see all of your photos and to read all of the articles in peace.
Thank you for your nice and kind comment on my blog, I do appreciate it a lot.

Lori said...

What glorious views of the alps! And that restaurant, wow! I love the shot of the roses too. Thanks for taking us along on all of your trips! You see the most wonderful things. (I think you should write a travel book!)

julia said...

The Peaks in line is very impressive. Clever design in museum. Extaordinary beauty, Interlarken etc 'blew us away' once upon a time. We have just been away to the antithesis of all this, to where beauty can be found even when it is not 'in 'yer face'!

JB's Big and Small Worlds said...

Nice to meet you. Saw you over at Medam's. My mom's mom is from Spiez in Berner Oberland. My mom has visited Switzerland and family there a few times, and loves it. Last time she went up on the Jungfrau which was gorgeous. Nice post!
--JB

Lakshmi said...

those roses are amazing..and thanks for bringing back memories of my Jungfrau trip ..Im back from Coorg and all set to travel again this weekend on the Hoysala trail..and visiting quite a bit of coffee estates :)
Lakshmi

virtualjourney said...

Stunning shots - especially the last one. So atmospherice. Saw a Klee exhibition in London some years ago.

Anonymous said...

I agree with you that this is a wonderful landscape. I have already been there twice and I can't get enough of it.

Elizabeth said...

What a wonderful visit to Switzerland where I haven't been for 18 years.
The restaurant looked wonderful......and the Klee Museum..one day when we're back from Marrakech.
All best wishes from the south

alicesg said...

Oh, I love the photos. The scenery are so beautiful. Love the background of the mountains.

Lara said...

thanks for visiting my page! and you were so right about terminal 5 :))! new and weird, and causing lots of stress upon return, since they do not give a gate for the flight and you just have to watch the pannels, to see it published...

lyliane six said...

Est ce que l'on fête le 1er mai au Portugal? Je vous envoie un gros bouquet de muguet porte bonheur pour vous deux.Bises.

Anonymous said...

Hi everybody! I’ll profit from the holiday to reply to your comments! Thanks for commenting here. I truly adore reading your messages!

Jo,
Those mountains are stunning! The roses were a lovely surprise and the dessert… awesome!!

Anonymous,
Thanks for dropping by and commenting!
Le père de Klee était allemand mais la mère était suisse; il a commencé par apprendre la musique avant de faire ses études des beaux-arts! C’est vraie l’influence des Delaunay (amis aussi de Vieira da Silva et d’Árpád Szenes…)!

Cuckoo,
The museum is quite recent (opened on June 20th, 2005) and is a bit out of the centre of Bern!

Di.Di.
Thanks! Next time you’ll make a holiday in Lisbon…

Daniel,
Merci!

Noushy Syah,
You can imagine we remember 1975; just 33 years younger and many kilos less… ;))
José’s ghost was finally defeating those Reds…

Azer,
You’re right!!

Paul,
Thanks! The Matterhorn is in Zermatt, but the Jungfrau here is gorgeous!

Sue,
Lucky girl with those family connections! Homesick is easy to heal, though it may take some time: Charleston-New York-Lisbon-Zürich… ;))

Isabella,
Thanks! I’ll definitely miss you, your humour and the lovely pictures from Naples, Florida! Enjoy your life and drop by once in a while…

Luísa,
É verdade que as fotos estão boas, embora a máquina já andasse a meter aquelas «pintas» no céu azul…

Slinger,
Thanks! That Renzo Piano building is fantastic!

Paz,
An arrangement like that would cost a little fortune… in Swiss francs! ;))

Changphen,
The MoMA has a nice collection of Klee works and hold an interesting exhibition in 2006… I imagine there are no snow capped mountains in Vientiane… ;))

Lynn,
Thanks for your comments! Lucky girl your niece…

Titania,
You wouldn’t be the only one to fall in love with the Bernese Oberland… ;))

Shionge,
Thanks! That’s a gorgeous place; I wouldn’t say the same of the pictured guy… ;))

Neva,
Switzerland is a tourist paradise!

Dorothée,
Brazil was rather short, and actually only Brasília!
Merci pour les commentaires; je mets des accents dans les posts mais je ne sais pas comment ils se dévoilent dans les ordinateurs sans accents… ;)

Alice,
La dernière fois que j’y suis allé il y en avait encore des ours à Berne… ;))

Lyliane,
Berne n’est pas si loin… Et les roses sont vraies; je suspecte qu’il y aura presque mille roses dans le bouquet…
Merci pour le bouquet; on célèbre le 1er mai au Portugal; il y a toujours des «manifs» pour ceux qui ne vont pas à la plage… ;))

M.Kate,
Tinsie,
Thanks!

Celine,
Short trip. Your choice is of very good taste: Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau are fabulous…

Leo,
Those roses are making a huge success… ;)

Indrani,
I had never seen so many flowers in an only bouquet; incredible! The Leman sunset is also one of my favourites!

Nihal,
Brasília was a very short trip with not so many pictures, but my delay is still 18 months… ;))
I’ll check your Wonderland!
Thanks!

Medam,
Thanks! Happy we may still be, but young… ;)) We all have busy lives isn’t it? Anyhow, some time should be spared to enjoy good things of life…

Lori,
Maybe one day will write some travel memories, when I’ll have some time left… ;))

Julia,
You’re right; those peaks are fabulous and Interlaken a beautiful spot!

JB’s
Thanks for your comment here; first time I believe…
Spiez at Lake Thun is a quite nice place and the Jungfraujoch is magnificent!

Lakshmi,
Lucky girl, travelling a lot; and including the Jungfrau! I’ll try to check your posts as soon as I’ve some time left…

Julie,
Klee is a surprising artist (and prolific; more than eight thousand works produced…)!

April,
I was sure you would love that Berner Oberland!

Elizabeth,
Thanks for your comment here; first time I believe!
You haven’t been in Switzerland for eighteen years; just check my next post and imagine what is the country I’ll be posting about… First time there! ;))

Alice SG,
No such snow capped mountains in Singapore… ;))

Lara,
At least I hope you got all your luggage from that Heathrow Terminal 5… ;))

Z said...

Hi Gil, I've been to the Klee museum twice and always find new things to photograph. I love the way the building mirrors the landscape and as you point out, you don't even realize that the highway is just below. I haven't been to the restaurant, and now I see that I definitely must. The cafe in the museum building was quite good, so I can imagine the restaurant is too, if they're related. Thanks for the idea!

Anonymous said...

Hi Z, I was expecting that you had been to the Klee Zentrum. The cafe is quite good, but rather crowded; the restaurant (quite more expensive) still had a table free for people without a reservation... ;))