A return to Switzerland – land of mountains, museums and moos! COMPLETED 12/4 - Page 74 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
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There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
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So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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There's a lot of interesting things going on in that museum. A lot of different subjects!
__________________
Tanya
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Every time I see dioramas, I think of the movie Night at the Museum and little Owen Wilson going to battle! Maybe that's just me?
Funny the way things eventually connect to something else!
I can't believe the fact about women and the vote, though! I had no idea!
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Friday 6 September – part four: money, holidays, wars and crafts
The next section taught you about Swiss industry over the years, from cottage industries such as weaving over this hand loom:
Not something I expected to learn…
… to more modern day industries, such as pharmaceuticals.
There was a short section on money and banking in Switzerland, and earlier on, we had learnt how even that had been hugely contentious in the past. During the Second World War, the Swiss were taking and storing Nazi gold, something which then became a stigma for them for years afterwards. After World War II, the exhibitions had explained how Switzerland became isolated through being neutral, as of course it really didn’t have any allies, the only downside to being neutral.
A similar problem happened in the First World War, with the country divided in two, as the French speaking part wanted to back France, and of course the German speaking part wanted to back Germany. Obvious when you think about it, but it’s not something that’s ever occurred to me before.
There was a short section on Switzerland as a holiday destination…
The final section shows you some of the crafts that Switzerland is famous for, and like much of this museum, it’s certainly an eclectic mix.
The final item we saw on the way out was this:
We retrieved the backpack, and headed out, and across to Zurich’s main station. This place is massive, it’s like a huge cavern, and it has something like 30 plus platforms for the trains. This is one big station!
Our mission in there was to get the rest of the money off the travel money card, so that we had enough money to pay for dinner tonight, our bed and breakfast and cow trekking.
That done, we headed out, and got some photos of the Swiss National Museum from the front.
The heron was still in the river, albeit in a different location now.
We headed back to the car, and paid the extortionate parking fee 7.70 CHF (c. $8.30) for an hour and a half!
We headed out through Zurich. It’s a very industrial place, and I have to be honest, it’s not a place I want to return to, now having seen the Swiss National Museum. We did the city tour last time, and saw all the main sights, and now I feel we’ve done everything here.
Yes, we drove underneath this crane! We think this must’ve been the head office for Migros…
Lots of interesting exhibits at the museum! I confess I'm not a fan of Swiss cities at all and have spent very little time in them. They seem very efficient and prosperous, but the architecture is mostly cold and they don't feel to me like warm and friendly places to live. I'm sure if you know where to go for a more "neighborhood" atmosphere they do exist!
Eclectic - that's the word! Interesting stuff, for sure.
Very cool that you drove under that crane though!
__________________
Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
Lots of interesting exhibits at the museum! I confess I'm not a fan of Swiss cities at all and have spent very little time in them. They seem very efficient and prosperous, but the architecture is mostly cold and they don't feel to me like warm and friendly places to live. I'm sure if you know where to go for a more "neighborhood" atmosphere they do exist!
I think you can see by our itinerary this time (no time at all in Geneva or Bern and only this stop for Zurich) that I'd pretty much agree with that. I'd say the exception to the rule is Lucerne and I'd happily go back there again on our next trip, as I love that city.
I love your new signature pic by the way - very seasonal.
Thanks! I took that at WL last year.
__________________
Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
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