How I found my inner romantic traveling spirit in the Swiss city of Thun and its environs
Hidden places where gentility and adventure converge
--
Thun, a small city of about forty-six thousand inhabitants in the western part of Switzerland lies at the tip of its namesake lake. The color of lake Thun is a deep blue silver jade, the lake’s shores are flanked by dramatic alpine peaks and by the great mountains of the Eiger, Mönch, und Jungfrau.
The city of Thun and its fascinating lake greeted me with ultra-modern charm and old-world glory. Even a distant view of the alps during sunset hour was picture perfect. I was excited to be spending a few days in this amazing environment.
Once a magnetic tourist town for European travelers seeking access to the nearby Bernese Alps, the city of Thun is now a melting pot of outdoor adventure seekers, native people gathering in cafés and river-side restaurants, and fleeting explorers on their way to high-altitude alpine mountaineering spots.
I considered myself tourist and knowledge seeker, flaneur and voyeur. And the city and its environs did not disappoint.
Thun itself is a beautiful medieval town with original wooden bridges. It is famous for its castle, whose foundation was built around 1190 by a member of the aristocratic family von Zähringen.
In later centuries, ownership of the castle changed hands, and the castle itself was extended to its present shape.
Everything around Thun is worth exploring. I’ve traveled a lot in my life, seen many strange things. But never did I have a feeling of enchantment and delight of a romantic past that is seamlessly blending with contemporary ultra-modernization.
Here are four of my top most-beloved spots I visited during my all-too-short stay in the month of August:
