First Impressions

 Yesterday morning I eagerly headed out to explore and discover the city of Basel. My future home town. It was a beautiful morning with the sun shining brightly on the water flowing along the big Rhine river. The river runs right through the city dividing it into two parts. On one side you have what is known as Kline Basel (small Basel) and the other side just Basel town. Right now C lives in Klein Basel area. My first day was a beautiful day even if the air was quite chilly. I regretted not having brought my gloves with me when I headed out this morning.

My first impressions of the city are good. I like it. I like the proximity of the water and the river. It is large and wide enough. The locals enjoy it during summer by packing their clothes into water tight bags and then jump into the Rhein river and let the current take them down streams. They get off somewhere further down the river, get dressed and grab a beer. The city has a nice mix of old and new. It is about the size of Gothenburg in Sweden. Not too large but yet not too small. It is the perfect size to explore on fot. I walked all day long yesterday from about 9 am to 6 pm. I slept so well last night. There are quite a few beautiful old churches.

You get a little bit of that San Francisco feeling but without the hills by all the cable cars running everywhere across the city. Buses, cable cars and bikes are the main ways of getting around. Of course you can walk as well. Basel is a walk friendly city just like Stockholm is.

 The shore and area around the Rhein is absolutely gorgeous. It is impossible not to fall in love with. I took a long walk here. You have easy access to the river and can get very close to the water.

 They have this strolling area that runs right along the river bank. It goes on for quite a distance. Perfect for a quiet and nice walk. It seemed very popular among joggers as well.

 Along the river shore you got some of the most beautiful and old homes in town. A small townhouse like these ones probably would cost a fortune to live in. 

 Of course they got Bretzels here. They have them in all kinds of versions as you can see. Besides the regular kind with just salt you can get ones without salt, those with pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds or sesame seeds. They also have kind of baguette like sandwiches made of bretzel bread. They are sold warm. I bought one with roasted sun flower seeds as an afternoon snack.

 The famous bright red court house built during the 1500-hundreds. One of Basel´s most famous buildings. I explored parts of old town with it´s many winding and narrow streets. Suddenly it almost feels like you are in some small village high up in the Alps as you walk on the twisting cobble stoned streets here.

 From old to modern. Basel is a great mix of just old and modern and that is something that I like. Had a cup of coffee at Starbucks to warm my cold hands.  Plenty of coffee shops around the city. 

Many beautiful town squares like this one. Open air markets. Many fountains. My first impression of the city is a good one. Yes I can imagine living here.