Europe is heaven for art and fashion lovers. I was blessed enough to spend 3 weeks in Bern, Switzerland last year with my husband. Whilst he engaged in an intensive summer course, I mused the quirky and clean streets of the heritage-listed capital of Switzerland. I knew the city like the back of my hand after walking to and fro admiring all the shops. I will post about window shopping (and shopping) another time. This post is about the 3 life size statues that greeted me when I wandered around Bern’s CBD.

I was a little alarmed to see a naked guy playing the flute in front of a water fountain. I secretly applauded the sculptor for the clever pose he is in (although he would have sore ham strings…) I was there in summer, I sure hope he gets a coat during winter. All of the water fountains in Bern’s CBD are clean enough to fill your water bottle to drink. They are cleaned daily and they are usually guarded by a statue. To see the saints, prophets, monsters, etc, please click this link: http://travelguide.all-about-switzerland.info/berne/berne-ancient-fountains-fontaines.html. Even though Swiss water does not compare to Melbourne (unlike their chocolate), but at least it’s edible.

As you may have gathered, I love anything quirky and eclectic. I was walking along the tiled streets and suddenly a pair of life size chocolate bears stared right at me. I smiled. They are just adorable. If only they were for sale… would they need to be quarantined coming into Australia?

Another sculptural delight is this man composed of inter-weaving aluminium strips. He seems to have befriended the crawling plant next door, who has draped her blossoming arm around his neck. Well, at least he will not be lonely. Should I tell her that he is of no substance?

I am most impressed by the mint condition these sculptures were in. There were no scratches or dints to be seen. They were all graffiti-free. In a medieval-style city which is on the UNESCO world heritage list, these life-sized modern art are simply eye-candy for all passers-by.