One of the close by adventures in the town of Basel we had yet to descend on was the toy museum. Well, as it happened, a perfect opportunity occurred one wet and chilly Saturday afternoon, after the travel of the holidays.
The entrance official was a brusque lady with very bright orange hair. The color gave me the impression that she might be in need of some carrot sharpening tools! It is a well known fact eating lots of carrots turns you a bright shade of orange. Just ask the current world champion in the oval office! I failed to get a photo for our records so you will just have to take my word for it. Here is the proof of the tool though.
If you feel the need to acquire one for that well equipped kitchen or for your favorite chef out there here is a link to the store website
Once we had been issued the entrance papers (tickets) the lady abruptly informed us that all backpacks were not allowed beyond the entrance and were to be stored in lockers in a side room. Ok.
Now that names had been taken, favorite colors and the air speed of a swallow answered correctly we took the elevator to the fourth floor where the toy museum tour was to begin.
The fourth floor started with lots of teddy bears both young and very old. Some even had drivers licenses which are not as easily obtained as you are lead to believe here in Switzerland! Believe me, I know, mine is still being processed! I think that they are communicating with Interpol.
Here are a few choice photos of the teddy bears. You could also listen to the history of teddy bear
On the next floor down we were met with a whole fair with and lots of stores that had so much detail as to be overwhelming. You could spend an inordinate amount of time just gazing at the amazing detail of the models. I found that some included some cool celebrity figures too, from recent and times gone by.
One floor, I think it was the second floor, was dedicated to hats. I guess that they were considered toys or filler. Either way, the kids seemed to as much if not more, from the hat show as anything else.
The hats for trying on were, of course, a big hit, with big kids and small kids alike.
It would not look out of place at Royal Ascot with the ladies styles on show! Check out the link if you want to see what I mean or want to take part later this.
Other hats of note
The one on the right does have real rodents. Needless to say, the kids were all over that one.
So I tip my hat to the toy museum as a job well done!