Meet Me at St. Gallen
For Megy — when I was thinking of places to add up to my visit, Megy blurted out “go to St. Gallen”. When I inquired, she said it was the title of a recent Filipino movie that was filmed in St. Gallen. It had me curious and so I went online to check it out. There were three points of interest I’ve listed down given the window of time we had. The library, the red square, and the cathedral. St. Gallen surely did not disappoint. And I wished Megy was with me to appreciate, experience and explore the alleys, the tidbits of history preserved, learn some culture and curiously discover unusual attractions. In a not so distant future perhaps.
Left Lyss early on and took a train northeast. It was a joyful three-hour ride. The view of the countryside is as always picturesque. The green fields, the villages at the feet in between mountains, the cows and sheep freely grazing in the grass at times with bells around their necks, the lakes with turquoise blue and green waters, towers of churches as you approach a community, the castles hanging by a cliff — these are a few that made up a perfect train site seeing. Once in St. Gallen, we did not waste time navigating outside the station to locate the three spots on our list.
Roter Platz (AKA the Red Square)
Getting off the train, we wandered into the City. We looked for the Cathedral. From the station to the Cathedral totally changed the planned itinerary. Not too far, we came to a bend and discovered the red square or City Lounge that was designed by artist Pipilotti Rist and Architect Carlos Martinez. By its name Red Square, it is literally a square painted in red. Once in the square, it magnetizes you to relax. The ambiance provides a feeling of being in your living room. The whole square is covered in a bright red carpet of rubber granulate. It made the pavement softer and reduces the impact on your tired feet. The square is also furnished with sofas, couches, tables, chairs, a giant vase, and a Porsche. I love this unique design. Above, you will also find boulder-sized lights that seem to take the shape of a potato as I see it at least. It illuminates the square at night time.
I would love to spend more time here, however, as it is in any other part of Switzerland, there are so many interesting places to explore that you can’t take them all in, in one day. It’s easy to lose track of time because of its immense offerings of options. I tried so hard to stick to the plan. Finally and regretfully, I have to leave the square and moved on to search the library. The Abbey Library of St. Gall. Amazing! My neck turned 180 degrees as I devoured my eyes at the antiquity of the vast collection. Scanning quickly at its history that dates back in the 6th century. The strokes of the writings in the books that were open were so artsy. Very artful penmanship.
Stiftsbibliothek St. Gallen (The Abbey Library)
As a major rule, taking photos is prohibited. Special slip-on footwear is also required before you enter the Library. The Abbey Library of St. Gall may justifiably be ranked among the most important repositories of manuscripts in the world. These manuscripts sit in a space with regulated temperature and through the continual monitoring of climatic conditions at the site. The Library possesses about 170,000 works and at the heart of this formidable collection are the 2100 manuscripts, of which no less than 400 dates from the year 1000. Here also you will find works that form the very basis of Western cultural and intellectual history. This collection of fundamental literature and sumptuously calligraphed and illuminated manuscripts include biblical and liturgical studies, book illuminations by Irish and St. Gall monks, and works on musical and literary history, the Old High German language and the history of law and medicine. Among these precious manuscripts contain the earliest-known architectural plan drawn on parchment. The library’s collection of incunabula (works printed before 1500/1520) is also one of the most impressive in Switzerland. [Stiftsbibliothek St. Gallen info brochure]
St. Gallen Cathedral
The very landmark of St. Gallen is its sublime St. Gallen Cathedral. It is a baroque church that certainly made my head turn. It is considered a world heritage site. Here is an excerpt from the information bulletin at the Cathedral foyer.
The present-day church was erected between 1755–66 under the auspices of Prince-Abbot Colestin Gugger. Considered one of the last great sacred structures of the Baroque era, it is distinguished by the perfectly harmonious longitudinal and transverse axes supported by the central rotunda. After the dissolution of the Benedictine monastery in 1805, the abbey church became the Cathedral for the Dioceses of St. Gallen, established in 1847, as well as the head church of the Dom Parish. The interior was renovated and restored to its original state between 1962–67.
2013, a design of the sanctuary. The Cathedral along with the abbey precinct is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The streets of St. Gallen immense in its history, the cobblestone pavements that are quintessentially Europe, and the landmarks that tie up to some scenes in the movie. I’ve completed my travel to this canton capital and reported back to Megy.
