Wednesday 29 August, 2013
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| One member came all the way from Melbourne to enjoy the rain |
On one of the wettest days of the summer, 21 members of the
ZIWA Discovering Zürich and Switzerland group travelled by train from Zürich
via Gossau SG to the smallest cantonal capital of Switzerland’s smallest canton,
Appenzell Innerrhoden. Heavy rain and our local guide
Maria Inauen greeted us
at the station. Umbrellas were the order of the day. The picturesque village of
Appenzell now has around 5.500 inhabitants, and the canton has a mere 15,000
inhabitants living in an area of 172 square kilometres. The canton is divided
into mountains, forest and farmland, and agriculture, tourism and handicrafts
support the local economy. As we dodged the rain under a canopy of umbrellas,
we learnt more about this historic town and its traditions. Some people had to
seek out sensible shoes before they could relax and enjoy the tour.
Appenzell’s history and tradition
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| Paintings of local traditions are on sale in the local shops |
The canton of Appenzell became independent from St. Gallen
and was accepted into the Swiss confederation in 1513, and this year is celebrating
its 500
th anniversary. In
1560, a fire
destroyed 170 wooden houses in the small town, and one person lost his
life. Appenzell village was Catholic, but the Protestant canton of Zürich gave
gold to help the recovery. In 1597, the canton divided into
two half-cantons along religious lines, with
Innerhoden (IR) being Catholic and Ausserrhoden (AR) Protestant. People were
given the choice of where to settle but a strict divide was maintained. There
are four nunneries in Innerrhoden, and today we stood outside one of them which
had sadly closed its doors when the sisters of the Franciscan order were reduced
in number to five. Pilgrims on the way to Santiago de Compostelo can still stay
in the Appenzeller convent though.
Next door in the Postplatz was a castle, or what goes for
such in Switzerland, a once elegant family home built for the Löw family in
1563, with a turreted roof and an extensive garden. However the current owners,
the Sutter family, have no children so its future is insecure. Across the road
we saw one of many arts and crafts shops, this one selling works by local
artist Mettler, who painted scenes of cows and the alpine parades. The festival of bringing the cows down from the high pasture at
the end of summer, from mid-August to mid-September, is one of the most famous
and colourful, something to see once at least during one’s stay in Switzerland.
Several processions take place with a similar format with a leader, a man
dressed in tight yellow trousers, the three cows bearing large heavy bells, and
the white goats. The landscape of the Alpstein Mountains is a popular destination
for hikers, and would be even lovelier on a dry day.
Life in Appenzell
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| The interior of the Catholic Church of St. Mauritius is ornate |
Appenzell is famous for its
cheese, and opposite the art
shop we saw a yellow house which is the headquarters of the cheese producers.
Beer is another famous local product, and we glimpsed the
Quöllfrisch brewery
near the fast-flowing River Sitter. The artist Dörig makes bells for the cows
and also personal jewellery items; men’s single earrings are especially popular
in Appenzell apparently. It’s true that
many local farmers are on the lookout for a prospective marital partner.
The tower of the Catholic Church
survived the fire of 1560, and we noted the 1920 portrait of St. Moritz
on the tower exterior; it caused some controversy at the time due to the saint’s
bare legs. We took shelter in the church crypt, to learn more about the traditional costumes that are worn for the local
parades and are often handed down – our guide Maria had a dress and headgear
from her grandmother. Men wear red jackets and women have colourful skirts and
headpieces which can take 360 hours to make. The colour of lace on the hat
determines whether the wearer is single or married. Baptisms and meditation
take place in the church crypt. Outside we viewed the
cemetery which appeared to be very full; nowadays cremated relics are
also scattered here on a smaller plot. The church interior is now very ornate,
in the Baroque style seen in Einsiedeln, and we learnt that it originated in
1320, was rebuilt in 1488-1515, and was renovated again in 1823-28. Stained
glass windows were given by donors. The high altar is not centrally located due
to the hardness of the underlying Alpstein rock.
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| The pharmacy is suitably illustrated with herbs |
Appenzell’s politics
Up the main street or Hauptgasse, we passed the brick-red 16th
century Rathaus with its colourful flags, and noted the position of the Museum
Appenzell on the floor above the adjacent tourist office, with its distinctive
hanging sign. The building also contains original prison cells from the olden
days. The buildings all along the Hauptgasse had been recently repainted on
their facades in differing styles, by Johannes Hugentobler, who married the pharmacy
owner’s daughter. We saw murals of flowers, geometric shapes and symbols as
well as 35 different medicinal herbs.
At the top of the main street we reached the Landsgemeindeplatz where voting is conducted
outdoors on the last Sunday in April. Elections are held for the local
government, the high court officials and the representative to the Ständerat.
5000 people traditionally attend these occasions which are also popular with
tourists. Voting is done by a show of hands unless it appears to be a close call,
in which case there are two exits where voters are counted out. Men carry swords
in the parade from the Town Hall to the main square; it was only in 1991 that women in Appenzell got the vote.
Our resident guide hoped for a better future from now on!
After the informative tour, a lovely lunch was taken at the traditional
Café-Hotel Appenzell before
visiting the Museum Appenzell with its artefacts and photos of local history
and the Liner Museum, which features traditional and contemporary artwork.
Julia Newton, 5 September 2013.
