It has been great having the INQUA Conference in town as we've been able to see so many people we know from so many different places. We've seen old friends from Darrell's graduate student days, fellow scientists that do similar work to Darrell, and then foreign students and scientists that had come to Flagstaff to use Darrell's shared-use facility. It has been really fun!
The conference took a break on Sunday so people could go on excursions in the area. We decided to go to Murten with Darrell's past student Yarrow and her husband Chris. They are both professors at Northwestern University in Chicago.
Murten is a small town of 5,000 just 42 minutes east of Bern by train. My good friend Vera recommended this medieval town. And our first view was as pleasant as our last - as you will see!
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| Murten is on a lake with many water activities to enjoy. |
Murten has a wall dating from the 1400's that you can walk on around the old town. The wall and towers must have come in handy during a 13-day siege from the Burgundian Charles the Bold in 1476. The Bernese force ultimately arrived and reportedly 10,000 people were slaughtered. And now it seems such a peaceful place!
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| First view of the castle |
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| Darrell, Chris and Yarrow on the wall. |
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| Classic drinking fountain - still used by thirsty tourists! |
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| Beautiful gate to the city |
We wandered on down to the lake, walked along the promenade, and had a picnic of bread, cheese, apples, carrots, and of course, chocolate!
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| Yarrow, Chris and Darrell at the lake |
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| We saw Hansel's and Gretel's house along the promenade! |
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| Street view of old Murten |
We had a wonderful day in Murten. Now it is Monday, and back to the conference again! We hope to see a few more friends before they head back to their home countries on Wednesday.
