Stadtlounge (City Lounge), St. Gallen

Can you guess what this huge bubble is?

Walking through the streets of St. Gallen we came across this unusual red street… a very bright red street. The whole area was covered with a rubberized tennis court coating. There was a living room setting, huge tables, a pool, even a car! The whole project is the local municipality’s idea to encourage people to loiter around and chat with each other.



This modern art installation was done by Pipilotti Rist, a woman artist, and Carlos Martinez architecture firm. It was fun exploring this unique set up. So? Could you guess what that bubble is? Yes, it is the street lamp there. My only regret is, I couldn’t stay back till night to capture it lighted.

SkyWatch Friday

Faces of India - 15

Not many sales today.
Shot taken at a textile store.

Faces of India, a series through which I intend to portray the various characters of my country. See more here.

St. Gallen Cathedral Interiors

The interior of St. Gallen Cathedral is opulently decorated with beautiful paintings and carvings. All the works here are themed; the walls depict scenes of life of St. Benedict. Malachite green color is used abundantly. The railings have delicate carvings.







The abbey library here has the oldest library. The designs in the ceilings here too are marvelous. There are books dating from the 8th and 11th centuries. They number more than 150,000 books. This is included in the UNESCO World Heritage list. It is for this tag we went all the way to east of Switzerland. Worth the effort!

See more of the World at: That's My World

St. Gallen Cathedral, Switzerland

A short train ride from Winterthur, and we were at St. Gallen. The target destination was the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Abbey of St. Gallen. Winding our way through the pedestrian only Old Town of St. Gallen, we were soon in front of yet another beautiful façade!

This is the east façade of St. Gallen cathedral. The extraordinarily tall façade, with light streaming in through the two towers looked enchanting.



The legend associated with this cathedral is that in AD 612 Gallus fell into a briar. He then survived an encounter with a bear and got him to procure a piece of log in return for bread. With this piece of log he started building a hermitage which eventually became St. Gallen’s cathedral.

The convex facade in the north. The entrance to the cathedral was through this door in the north of the cathedral.

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Faces of India - 14

Elderly gentleman.

Faces of India, a series through which I intend to portray the various characters of my country. See more here.

The Rhine Falls, Switzerland

One of the best day trips we made from Zurich is the visit to Rhine Falls in Schaffhausen. It is Europe’s largest waterfall. The height of the falls is not much just 23m, but the breadth is an impressive 150m.



Hordes of tourists crowded both sides of the falls. People kept pouring in continuously and it was difficult find a good spot to photograph. The spray rising like cloud from the falls created a rainbow which thrilled adults and children alike. Platforms are built in such a way that they extend over the falls and you feel as if the water falls will pour straight on to you. You can experience the power of falls standing directly under it.



There are trains every hour from Winterthur to Schaffhausen, if you miss one you will have to loiter around for an hour. So better time yourselves if you are ever there.

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Animal Themed Sculptures in Zurich

Our game of hunting down animal sculptures continued in Zurich too. Like in Basel, there were a variety of them in Zurich.

This one is of plastic, a huge in the balcony of a building in Zurich’s old town.


A deer sitting proudly on the facade of Zunfthaus zur Haue tại Limmatquai. It is one of the historical buildings of Zurich.


This one is a metallic sculpture. The name below suggests it was sculpted by the sculptor Luigi Zanini.

I am linking up with Camera Critters.

Grossmünster, Zurich

The most recognized landmark of Zurich is the twin towers of Grossmunster. Situated on the banks of River Limmat, the church is believed to have been built over the graves of Felix and Regula.



Felix and Regula were siblings who belonged to Theban legion. They were chased from their home grounds. The fleeing siblings reached Zurich where they were overpowered, tried and finally executed. The legend is that the siblings stood up on their feet, carried their heads, walked up the hill, prayed and finally dropped down dead. The foundations of this church are at the spot where the twins have been buried.

The exteriors are quite plain with white and grey stone. After I became aware of this legend, it seemed to me as if the whole church is enveloped in a Godly aura.

SkyWatch Friday

Faces of India - 13

Camera shy!

Can't see the face? Pause for a moment then run the mouse in and out of the image and see what happens.

Faces of India, a series through which I intend to portray the various characters of my country. See more here.

Zurich's Largest Clock Face

Zurich is famous for the largest clock face of Europe. The steeple of the St. Peter’s church has the largest clock face. It measures a diameter of 8.7 meters and built in 1534.

Click for a complete List of biggest clock faces.


The Fraumünster abbey of Zurich nearby too has a huge clock face with interesting patterns on the hands of the clock.

See more of the World at: That's My World

Orchid Blooms

My lone orchid plant surprised me with two blooming sticks when I returned home after vacation. It was a pleasant sign, the orchid sticks swaying a warm welcome to me. It is the Dendrobium Phalaenopsis variety.


The plant is now two years old, has a good growth and seems to be overflowing from the pot. I am often tempted to re-pot and make two plants out of it, but lack the expertise to do it. And moreover I have read orchids resent repotting. I am planning to wait for another year and re-pot it only if the growth unbalances the pot.


It is three weeks now, and the flowers in my vase look fresh as if cut from plant just now.

Macroflower Saturday

Today's Flowers

Rathaus, Basel

Walking through the streets of Basel’s old town we were pleasantly surprised to see the beautiful red Rathaus of Basel. This town hall is so different from the row of buildings adjacent to it and cheered us instantly. Even the damp weather around hardly seemed to matter.




Rathaus dates from sixteenth century, the façade is elaborately painted with various characters. Each fresco there is worth framing with lens.
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SkyWatch Friday

Faces of India - 12

She suddenly felt shy!

Faces of India, a series through which I intend to portray the various characters of my country. See more here.

Basel Münster

The exterior of Basel Munster is of dark red sandstone, but the interiors are sober. The cathedral is a mix of Gothic exteriors and Romanesque interiors. `Not many elaborate carvings inside, but the stain glass windows are breath taking. Such colors and contrasts, the series depict the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ. These stain glass art date from the nineteenth century onwards.




The church was partially damaged in 1356 due to a massive earthquake, there after it was restored in Gothic style. The southern facade of the church has several interesting statues. The sculpted image below is that of the emperor, depicted as a young and beardless man carrying a church model in his arms.

See more of the World at: That's My World

Animal Themed Sculptures in Basel

There are some interesting animal themed sculptures and installations in Basel. At each bend of the streets there, we would find either a frog popping out or fish crawling over walls and many more. Soon it was a game for my daughters, searching out unique critters.




The pic below is Basel’s heraldic animal. It is the basilisk, a dragon with a snake’s tail and chicken’s head. In European bestiaries and legends, a basilisk is a legendary reptile reputed to be king of serpents and said to have the power to cause death with a single glance. It features on the city seal and some fountains.

Camera Critters

Basel, Switzerland

We did a good two hours walking tour of the old city of Basel, crossing the bridge over Rhine and through the cobbled streets. The red sandstone Münster with its two tall towers was visible from across the river. With this towering architecture as reference point we navigated well through the town.



The sky didn’t show good colors and was threatening to pour any moment, though luckily it didn't. Most of the shots taken that day need a good make up. Sharing with you all the shot of the facade of Basel Münster.

Skywatch Friday

Faces of India - 11

We are friends!

Faces of India, a series through which I intend to portray the various characters of my country. See more here.