For the third time in three years, Maccabi Tel Aviv will face FC Basel. There have been many Yellow-and-Blue supporters that have traveled with the club to Switzerland for one of the last two matches in Basel and of course this time around there will be many fans who will accompany the team yet again. For those who are making their first trip to the city, then read up bellow to find out the best of what to get out of your trip to Basel.
History and geography:
Switzerland has existed as a state in its present form since 1848, while a confederation of states has existed since 1291 when the three communities signed an agreement and completed an eternal covenant with the motto of "One for all, and all for one." The country has a current structure of 26 autonomous provinces that make up one country. Switzerland sits in the central-western part of Europe and borders on a number of countries including, Germany, France, Austria and Liechtenstein. Due to the various provinces in Switzerland, the country has four official languages, German, French, Italian and Romansh which is a Latin language spoken in the south. Basel is located in the northern portion of the country, right on the Rhine River which is the second longest river in Europe. The city is on the border of France and Germany and is home to 180,000 people.
Culture:
Basel is one of the richest cities when it comes to culture. There are close to 40 museums and numerous exhibitions that the supporters can enjoy until the match. Starting with the Music Museum which is housed in a magnificent building that was at once a church to the Paper Museum where you can learn about the history of printing and the production of paper. There is also the Museum of Medicine which contains exhibitions of medicines from animals and plants from ancient times to the Basel Historical museum and of course a zoo. In addition, there is also the oldest university of Switzerland that can be found in Basel.
Carnival of Basel:
Every February the city hosts a carnival called "Basler Fasnacht" that lasts for three days as people from all around the world and the locals take to the streets of Basel in masks and costumes dressed as fantasy and gothic characters. Even though the carnival lasts for three days the residents of Basel spend the whole year preparing for it.
Jewish Perspective:
Any time you hear the word Basel, how can you not think of the famous picture of Theodor Herzl, the visionary for the State of Israel, standing on a balcony overlooking the Rhine River. The picture was taken at the Grand Hotel Les Trois Rois, the Three Kings Grand Hotel which is still one of the city's finest hotels that has renamed the first floor room 117 as "Herzl's Room". If you can't get into the hotel you can always visit the Jewish Museum where you can find Herzl's hand written letters and notes from the First Zionist Conference that took place in Basel.
Weather:
In Israel we are struggling with the heat and humidity, however visitors to Basel will have a very pleasant surprise. On Tuesday the high will be 22 degrees and the skies will be cloudy and on Wednesday make sure you bring an umbrella to the match as it may rain.
Useful Information:
The local currency is Swiss Francs (CHF) which is equivalent to roughly 3.92 NIS per Franc although many places will also accept Euros. The electrical outlets in Switzerland are not the same as in Israel, so there is need to bring a converter.
