Berne

Berne has a population of 136,000, the capital city of Switzerland. Bern is also known for its Bear Pits, where six bears spend their days cadging carrots from tourists. It has many fine examples of early-15th-century architecture sothat the U.N. has declared it a World Heritage Site. The main attraction is the thick-walled stone houses in the Old Town which brightened by boxes of geraniums on the balconies; providing sharp contrast are majestic green-domed government buildings that hang on a high bluff at the Aare River.