Day 163: Smaller than Singapore.
Date: 11 FEB 2009
Where am I heading next? I am going to a country where not many people know of - Liechtenstein. How many of you have heard of this country, please raise up your hands. Not many, I suppose.
Measuring just 25km in length and 6km in width, and with a land area of only 160km square, Liechtenstein is even smaller than Singapore!! Just for your information, Singapore has a land area of 707km square and is the second smallest country in Asia (The smallest being Maldives). Being the smallest German speaking country in the world, Liechtenstein is also one of the only two doubly landlocked countries in the world - being a landlocked country wholly surrounded by other landlocked countries (the other is Uzbekistan).
Alittle more information. Liechtenstein has no military service and its minuscule army (80 men!) was disbanded in 1868. It is best known for wine production, postage stamps, dentures (an important export) and its status as a tax haven. Though tiny, the Prince of Liechtenstein is the world's sixth wealthiest leader with an estimated wealth of USD $5 billion and the country's population enjoys one of the world's highest standards of living. Each year, on its Independence's Day, the king will hold a huge banquet and invites all his citizens to his castle for a blasting celebration.
Well, enough said. Its time to flood you with pictures. To get to Liechtenstein, I have to first take a train to the border of Switzerland. Views along the way.
Then at the border, I transferred to a Liechtenstein bus.
And then.... TATA!!! I am in Liechtenstein!!
Well, since Liechtenstein is famous for its stamps and post ink mark, how can I missed the chance to get it? (Many people came here just for it!) so I went to the post office and sent home a postcard.
Then I went to the tourist information center for some information, ofcourse.
After which I went to see an exhibition. A rather empty one. Well, thats the concept.
Took a walk around Vaduz city (the capital).
The flag of Liechtenstein.
More pictures.
Then I went up a nearby hill, to see the castle where the royal family lives and also to get an overview of the place.
Along the way up, you see many signs like this feeding you with information about the country. I think this is a very good idea as it also helps to make this steep walk up the hill less tiring.
The view of the top.
The castle and its surroundings. This castle can only be viewed from the outside.
After lingering around here for awhile, I went back mid hill, sat there and admired the scenery.
And guess what's next? I sat in the church staring at the cross for more than an hour. Partly because I wanted to and partly also because it was very cold outside.
After spending some personal time with him, I took the bus and went back to Zurich, Switzerland. No, god did not tell me to go back. Liechtenstein was meant to be a day trip.
An interesting article.
Then it was time for me to catch my train. It was only a short ride and I reached my transit train station at about midnight. Now the thing is, my next train will only pull in at about 5am. And so I have another 5 hours on hand. 12am-5am. 5 hours indeed. But never did I know that this was the WORST and most TORTURING 5 hours that I had ever been through on this trip. It was really no joke. Want to know what happened? Stay tune for my next post.
*Click HERE to return to the Main Page of The Cold Journey.*
Where am I heading next? I am going to a country where not many people know of - Liechtenstein. How many of you have heard of this country, please raise up your hands. Not many, I suppose.
Measuring just 25km in length and 6km in width, and with a land area of only 160km square, Liechtenstein is even smaller than Singapore!! Just for your information, Singapore has a land area of 707km square and is the second smallest country in Asia (The smallest being Maldives). Being the smallest German speaking country in the world, Liechtenstein is also one of the only two doubly landlocked countries in the world - being a landlocked country wholly surrounded by other landlocked countries (the other is Uzbekistan).
Alittle more information. Liechtenstein has no military service and its minuscule army (80 men!) was disbanded in 1868. It is best known for wine production, postage stamps, dentures (an important export) and its status as a tax haven. Though tiny, the Prince of Liechtenstein is the world's sixth wealthiest leader with an estimated wealth of USD $5 billion and the country's population enjoys one of the world's highest standards of living. Each year, on its Independence's Day, the king will hold a huge banquet and invites all his citizens to his castle for a blasting celebration.
Well, enough said. Its time to flood you with pictures. To get to Liechtenstein, I have to first take a train to the border of Switzerland. Views along the way.
Then at the border, I transferred to a Liechtenstein bus.
And then.... TATA!!! I am in Liechtenstein!!
Well, since Liechtenstein is famous for its stamps and post ink mark, how can I missed the chance to get it? (Many people came here just for it!) so I went to the post office and sent home a postcard.
Then I went to the tourist information center for some information, ofcourse.
After which I went to see an exhibition. A rather empty one. Well, thats the concept.
Took a walk around Vaduz city (the capital).
The flag of Liechtenstein.
More pictures.
Then I went up a nearby hill, to see the castle where the royal family lives and also to get an overview of the place.
Along the way up, you see many signs like this feeding you with information about the country. I think this is a very good idea as it also helps to make this steep walk up the hill less tiring.
The view of the top.
The castle and its surroundings. This castle can only be viewed from the outside.
After lingering around here for awhile, I went back mid hill, sat there and admired the scenery.
And guess what's next? I sat in the church staring at the cross for more than an hour. Partly because I wanted to and partly also because it was very cold outside.
After spending some personal time with him, I took the bus and went back to Zurich, Switzerland. No, god did not tell me to go back. Liechtenstein was meant to be a day trip.
An interesting article.
Then it was time for me to catch my train. It was only a short ride and I reached my transit train station at about midnight. Now the thing is, my next train will only pull in at about 5am. And so I have another 5 hours on hand. 12am-5am. 5 hours indeed. But never did I know that this was the WORST and most TORTURING 5 hours that I had ever been through on this trip. It was really no joke. Want to know what happened? Stay tune for my next post.
*Click HERE to return to the Main Page of The Cold Journey.*
posted by ZeeVinCeZ at 2:44 PM
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