Today I set out to explore a little more of Basel; it was another day when everyone else was dressed for winter whereas I had come prepared only for spring.
Thanks to Patrick, there were a couple of things I now notice as I walk around Basel: the number of drinking fountains that are to be found around the old town and the amount of building works. The fountains all flow with drinkable water and the larger ones are apparently also used to bathe in during the heat of summer. As for the building works, the Swiss apparently call Basel Switzerland's largest building site on account of their permanent nature in the city; in the twelve years he has lived here Patrick reckons there hasn’t been a day when a crane hasn’t been visible or a street is not being dug up.
When I left this morning I first headed for the Kunstmuseum, the oldest public art collection in the world, established in 1661. I spent the morning in the old section admiring the classics of Holbein, Cezanne and many others, and standing bemused by many of the modern works in the new section. By the time I left Kunstmuseum and visited the History of Basel Museum located in a large old church, the best part of the day had gone.
Tomorrow I leave Basel and Switzerland and head into Germany. With two days off in the last four it will be good to get going again, to get back into a daily rhythm and to make progress eastwards. So now it is time to tinker with the bike, tighten bolts, check wheel spokes and apply a little lubricant, and to decide a destination for tomorrow.
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