Vignettes of the World
Just as I wondered about the Albert Einstein Haus, its sign came into view. Up the stairs I walked into the apartment area, where Albert Einstein once lived. Then came a very unfriendly voice, “it’s not free!” I then paid 6 CHF, though not without …
The day was overcast. This characteristic burnt green, the signature color of the archaic buildings in the Altstadt (Old Town) of Bern, somehow matched this unfortunate gloom of the weather well. I meant this as a praise. After exiting the SBB station with no idea …
What’s better than writing on my journal at Ouchy under a warm afternoon sun, looking ahead at the French Alps?
At the Place de Riponne I found the way to Ouchy by metro. 10 minutes later, it took me to the lakeside of Lake Geneva. There were lots of yachts docked and the French Alps was in plain sight.
“Serene” would be an understatement for the view at the lakeshore. As I basked in the beautiful Lausanne sunshine I marveled at this beauty. It was distinctively European. There were many Mr. Cygnus (swans) here. People fed them freely. I spent over an hour admiring this nature. It hovers upon humanity to diminishing proportions. I felt small, and yet in harmony with the environment.
As to the Olympic Museum, I decided that I wasn’t going to spend 18CHF on a subject that I cared little about. Neither did I care about drinking coffee at the Olympic Café with a nice lake view, since I had already spent time writing at the lake side. Despite the hard work of getting to the entrance of the museum (it takes an Olympics athlete to climb those stairs!) I decided to go for the Roman ruins instead, on the west side of Lausanne. Staff at the tour info center told me that it took a 20-minute walk. Google Map suggested taking a bus, but I didn’t see any bus stops so the solution was to walk.
Indeed it took about 25 minutes to the first road sign indicating proximity, and it was another 20 minutes of walk from that point. Google Map was right that it would take 40 minutes. It was a far walk from the Olympic Museum but the experience turned out to be worthwhile.
At the ruins, visitors will see remnants of rock foundations. The buildings in their heyday were glorious Roman structures. Yet when I visited, the sun was quickly receding in the horizon, the river was dead and crows were freely roaming in the open air, and I felt a certain eeriness there.
The real educational points were the lookout posts at various locations. The screens in the view boxes showed a picture of what the original structures were supposed to look like, matching the location of the foundation structures that still remained.
There was a Gallo-Roman settlement, Lousonna, circa 1st to 4th centuries A.D. in this site. Lausanne then bustled with commercial activities. Owing to its proximity to the lake, the land routes connecting the Rhine and Rhone transportation networks, Lausanne was the passage way for cargo ships of the Roman Empire. These activities gave rise to construction and shipping industries.
What was interesting to me was the existence of a large courthouse overseeing the resolution of disputes. “The basilica of Lousonna was divided into two principal halls by a central row of columns and contained a separate meeting room, probably used for court hearings or the city council. This prestigious building, richly decorated with stone columns topped by Corinthinian and mixed capital and painted wall murals, symbolized Roman rule.”
There were also Roman temples worshiping Hercules, Neptune and Mercury, “as the patrons of navigation, voyages and commerce.” The settlement moved inland later and left the site in ruins.
I found the museum next to the site to be very educational. It held a collection of the artifacts from the excavation at the site. They bore witness to the vibrant activities that once took place in the Roman settlement. There were metal tools, golden coins and many earthen pots. Stones of Roman inscriptions reminded me of the Latin lessons that I took. The museum’s intended audience was the locals, and therefore all exhibits were in French. Although I had very little French and Latin, I still got enough of an idea what the exhibits were about.
Lausanne left a very pleasant impression throughout. There was certainly no rush here, but at the same time things get done, quickly and satisfactorily. Food came quickly and hot, and the buses and metro were on time. It was a busy city, yet people never lose civility in their daily interactions. Speaking next to no French is a little bit of a hindrance at times, but then again I have only myself to blame for that.
And finally, I must take note of the water in Switzerland. The water of Lake Geneva was as clear as a mirror. My cousin said that water is the only thing that is cheap in Switzerland. Her husband felt free to use Evian water for the windshield wipers of his car. In comparison, a small cup of coffee, even the most basic brew, could cost as much as 5 to 6 CHF. For 1 CHF I can get a big bottle of Evian.
And so I drank freely in Switzerland — its pristine water that is — and truly Evian.
Source:
The historical descriptions of the Roman settlement Lousonna in this entry came from the exhibition at the Roman ruins.
I arrived at the Chauderon station this morning. Not far ahead stood the eye-catching Rolex building on the block. I remembered it from yesterday and knew that there would be a bit of walk to the Vieille Ville, the Old City of Lausanne. Soon I …
The Walled City area had its beginning more than eight hundred years ago in the Song Dynasty. The Kowloon City and the neighboring Kwun Tong area of Kowloon used to be salt fields. With a decline in salt production, the salt industry eventually fell into …
The Lausanne Cathedral stands at the highest point of Lausanne’s Old Town. Overlooking the City of Lausanne, the Cathedral enables a view of the Lake and the Alps afar as well. Its long history furthermore provides a vantage point of spiritual and cultural significance.
The Cathedral was constructed during the 12th and 13th centuries. In 1275, Pope Gregory X and Rudolf of Habsburg consecrated the cathedral. In 1536, it became a Protestant cathedral during the Reformation era. Pierre Viret, the first Reformer of Lausanne, has studied alongside John Calvin. Following the adoption of Protestantism, the formerly very ornate Cathedral suffered from Reformist iconoclasm.[1]
I have little understanding of the architectural and interior features of the Cathedral, but I did notice the beautiful windows with colorful panes. The decorated windows depict the “medieval view of the world arranged around the figure of God the creator.”[2]
Perhaps the most special feature of the Lausanne Cathedral is the watchman. For more than six hundred years, a watchman would climb hundreds of steps up the Bell Tower every evening. He would announce to the city residents each hour from 10pm to 2am, shouting at each cardinal direction. Originally, the watchman served the function of warning the city in case of emergency. Gradually however, it has become a tradition that never ceased. Currently, the lookout is Renato Hausler.[3]
Finally, the organ of the Lausanne Cathedral is itself worthy of a visit. A product of organ builder Fisk, an American company, the organ prides itself in 7,396 pipes, 5 keyboards and pedalboards, and 2 consoles.[4] Four styles of organ building are present: French classical and symphonic, and German baroque and romantic. Giugiaro, the Italian designer known for Ferrari and Maserati cars, designed the case of this organ. The design symbolizes an angel with spread wings. As such, this organ is the first organ in the world that was designed. Last, but not least, the organ inaugurated in 2003, and the Cathedral holds concerts periodically. Twenty-five recitals coincide with the Christian calendar.[5] Concert programs are available here.
Today, the City of Lausanne is perhaps the best known for the Lausanne Movement of 1974. It is a contemporary movement in world evangelization. Billy Graham initiated the first Congress. Delegations from around the world still meet periodically for the International Congress for World Evangelization, where they pray and discuss strategies for world Christian missions.
These following are the pictures of a quick first tour of the Lausanne Old Town following the Lausanne Cathedral.
[1] First Protestant University in French-Speaking Europe.
[2] Lausanne Cathedral, Lausanne Tourisme.
[3] Renato Hausler, Watchman, at craftsmanship.net.
[4] The Instrument, Les Grandes Orgues, Cathedrale de Lausanne.
[5] Visit of the Organ, Les Grandes Orgues, Cathedrale de Lausanne.
We are expecting an epidemic in Hong Kong. As the city is half-paralyzed due to a government shutdown, and the malls are no longer safe to visit, what is there to do but to visit the countryside? On this chilly winter morning, my friends and …
24 hours later, I arrived in Geneva. Despite it being the hub of international and diplomatic missions, the Geneva airport was down to earth, or perhaps too primitive for the cosmopolitan reputation of the city. There were two lines at the Geneva airport. One for …
A lesson in Australia’s history would not be complete without the history of Port Arthur. It began in the 1880s as a penal colony. Then lieutenant governor of Van Diemen’s Land, George Arthur, established Port Arthur as a settlement for the most incorrigible, repeated offenders from Great Britain and Ireland.[i] The juvenile offenders, on the other hand, would end up in Point Puer, also within the settlement. The idea was that hard labor, psychological punishment, trading and religious education combined would reform even the worst of all convicts.[ii]
Port Arthur situates on the southwestern coast of Van Diemen’s Land. The penal colony inherited natural barriers that prevented the convicts from any kind of escape. The convicts then understood that the waters surrounding the three sides of the penitentiary was infested with sharks.[iii]
Visitors to the Port Arthur historic site would not miss the theme of the site’s history. We went through a very thoughtful exhibition of the life of the convicts there. The research was thorough, and focused on the life stories of the convicts (as opposed to presenting institution-focused presentations that are probably quite typical to penitentiary museums). These stories allowed me a look into the human face of the otherwise haunting ruins that is Port Arthur today.
George Hunt stole a handkerchief worth two shillings in London and he was sentenced to transportation in Port Arthur. During his time at Port Arthur, George Hunt attempted to escape a dozen times. One of his ploys was disguising as a hopping kangaroo to escape. He failed, however, when a soldier lifted his musket thinking that dinner was ready. Seeing that he was about to be shot, George Hunt raised his human hands and yelled, “don’t shoot!”
George Hunt’s erratic behaviors earned him the assessment of being a lunatic, and he has spent time in the New Norfolk asylum (for the mentally ill).
In his days in Van Diemen’s Land, George Hunt “was charged no less than sixty-four occasions. He spent over 1,800 days in leg irons, received 625 lashes and spent 131 days in solitary confinement.”[iv] However, he did receive a certificate of freedom in 1846.
Certainly, life was very harsh in the penal colony. The worst convicts had to work in chained gangs and in knee-deep water at the coal mine. Any kind of miscreant behavior, be it disrespectful language or attempts to abscond, commonly invited lashes, leg irons and solitary confinement as punishment. The most serious crimes, such as murder, were punishable by death.
Yet at the frontier of a new settlement there also was hope. Many of the convicts, particularly those that came with skills or acquired such at the settlement, could participate in trade. Once they have served their sentence, they could receive a certificate of freedom and remain in trade in Port Arthur, Hobart and beyond. In this sense they were more so the early settlers that made Australia, than the unwanted law-breakers that England sent away.
After viewing the exhibition of convict life, we exited the administration building and came face to face with the structures that served various different purposes at the penal colony. There were many buildings of significance, but I only had time for a few.
The Penitentiary was the most notable structure in Port Arthur and its significance would be second to none as well. At its construction, the Penitentiary was a flour mill and a granary, but due to engineering defects it could not serve its intended purpose. Originally, the plan was to produce the flour to feed the convict population and to produce food for export. It later became the penitentiary that hosted the dormitories and solitary cells for the prisoners.
Church service on Sundays was mandatory for all prisoners, and the prison establishment also strictly observed Sabbath. Although the Convict Church is in ruins now, as a work of the prisoners at Port Arthur it stands as a memorial to the use of religious instruction as a way to reform offenders.
The Separate Prison claims itself as the first institution of solitary confinement in the Southern Hemisphere. Many of Port Arthur’s convicts faced solitary confinement as an additional punishment to other forms of punishments (that failed to reform them) in Port Arthur. During the days that Port Arthur remained a penal colony, solitary confinement was a new philosophy in criminal justice. The prisoners supposedly sat in silence and darkness to reflect on their own wrongs. Even then, there were reports of prisoners suffering from delusions after days or up to a month in the Separate Prison. While solitary confinement is still a feature in most penitentiaries of the world, its ill effects on the prisoners’ mental health is uncontested now.
The Commandant’s House was the home to five Commandants at Port Arthur. They served as the most senior official in the penal colony. The house was well-preserved, and bespeaks a lifestyle of luxuries that the penal colony could afford. Located at the far western high grounds of Port Arthur, the Commandant’s house overlooks the sea and the Isle of the Dead.
The final tour of Port Arthur would be the ferry ride going around the Isle of the Dead. This would probably be the most eerie part of the tour. The Isle of the Dead was the burial ground for the settlement. It is a small isle off the shore of Port Arthur. Officers and convicts alike were buried there, but for a very long time only the officers had proper gravestones memorializing their lives.
Finally, in the modern times Port Arthur was the site of a horrendous killing. In 1996, a man armed himself with a gun and rounds of ammunition and rampaged the whole area of Port Arthur including the historic site. He killed more than thirty people, and injured many more. This incident has resulted in the passing of strict gun control laws in Australia.[v]
Now, a memorial garden at the site serves to remember this incident. Visitors should refrain from starting a conversation with the staff at the historic site about this very horrible event. Many have lost loved ones on this day.
The trip to Port Arthur concluded our tour in Tasmania. My only regret was that I did not have the opportunity to see all the structures at the site. For the history buffs there, my recommendation is to spend two days at the historic site. The guided tour is a must, but it only covers some of the more prominent sites and not the rest. The tour of the Isle of the Dead (a haunted tour in the evening) would be a very nice addition to the experience as well. And to do the guided tour plus a visit on all the structures alone requires two half-days or one full day.
[i] A Brief History of Port Arthur, Tasmania.
[ii] Id.
[iii] New World Encyclopedia, Port Arthur, Tasmania.
[iv] Hamish Maxwell-Stewart et. Al., Pack of Thieves? 52 Port Arthur Lives (2001) at 19.
Generous sunshine blessed our last day in Tasmania. We were on our way to Port Arthur. However, we detoured and stopped by a number of interesting natural sites. The Tasman Arch The Tasman Arch began as a small sea cave. Constant sea waves formed …