圣尼古拉斯日, 瑞士韦尔比耶 Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland (© Denis Balibouse/Reuters)

圣诞滑雪 Santa slalom

瑞士韦尔比耶圣尼古拉斯日

我们习惯了圣诞老人从烟囱里滑下来，但谁知道他会滑雪呢？每年都有数千名圣诞老人在瑞士韦尔比耶举行一场令人惊叹的下坡滑雪表演，拉开滑雪季的序幕。为什么是服装？每年的12月5日，他们都会在这里庆祝圣尼古拉斯节。

圣尼古拉斯在历史上鲜为人知，但他被认为是在罗马帝国统治下长大的，在现在土耳其南部的一个富裕的希腊家庭。当他的父母去世时，他用自己的遗产帮助那些需要帮助的人、病人和受苦的人，甚至时不时地把礼物扔到陌生人打开的窗户（而不是烟囱）里。尼古拉斯以主教的身份加入了早期的基督教神职人员，将毕生精力奉献给慷慨地服务他人。据说他特别爱和帮助孩子们，这当然是圣诞老人传说的根源。

Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland

We're used to Santa Claus sliding down chimneys, but who knew he could ski? Thousands of Santa Clauses make a stunning downhill display to open the ski season in Verbier, Switzerland, each year. Why the costumes? Their annual descent also celebrates the feast day of Saint Nicholas, observed here each December 5.

Little is known historically of Saint Nicholas, but he's thought to have grown up under the Roman Empire, in a wealthy Greek family in what's now southern Turkey. When his parents died, he used his inheritance to help those in need, the sick, and the suffering—even tossing gifts through strangers' open windows (not chimneys) now and then. Nicholas   joined the early Christian clergy as a bishop, dedicating his life to serving others generously. It's said he loved and helped children especially, and that, of course, is at the root of the legend of Santa Claus.

贝尔尼纳山脉和血月，瑞士 Panoramic view of the Bernina Range with blood moon, Eastern Alps, Engadin, Switzerland (© Bernd Zoller/Shutterstock)

准备迎接血月 Get ready for the blood moon

Lunar eclipse

If you're lucky enough to find yourself under a cloudless sky tonight, you'll be able to see one of our solar system's great wonders, a full lunar eclipse, also known as a 'blood moon.' The spooky nickname derives from the reddish hue the moon takes on when Earth casts its shadow upon it. Featured here is a blood moon over the Swiss Alps. A full lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth and moon align perfectly with the sun, and the moon falls directly behind Earth's shadow. When Earth falls behind the Moon's shadow, a solar eclipse occurs.

While total eclipses of the sun get more attention and make a more dramatic entrance, total lunar eclipses are majestic in their own right and are much more user-friendly. For one, you can look directly at a total lunar eclipse without any worry of harming your eyes. And they're viewable by far more people than solar eclipses. That's because a total lunar eclipse can last for hours, while solar eclipses last just a few minutes. In addition, lunar eclipses are viewable anywhere on the nighttime side of the world while total solar eclipses occur only within a narrow longitude on the planet.

Tonight's lunar eclipse coincides with the Flower Moon, the full moon of every May. It can be seen from Europe, Africa, and parts of Asia, but is best viewed from North and South America. While not exactly rare, total lunar eclipses don't occur too often, and even when they do, they can be hidden by cloud cover. If you miss tonight's blood moon, you'll get a second chance this year in November. Your next chance after that will be in three years, so you might want to plan to stay up late tonight.

月食

如果你足够幸运，今晚能在万里无云的天空下发现自己，你将能够看到我们太阳系的一大奇迹，月全食，也被称为“血月”这个令人毛骨悚然的绰号源于当地球把它的影子投射到月球上时，月球呈现出的微红色。这里的特色是瑞士阿尔卑斯山上的血月。当地球和月球与太阳完全对齐，月球直接落在地球阴影后面时，就会发生月全食。当地球落在月球的阴影后面时，就会发生日食。

虽然日全食得到了更多的关注，并做出了一个更引人注目的入口，但月全食本身就很壮观，而且更方便用户使用。首先，你可以直接看到月全食，而不用担心会伤害你的眼睛。比起日食，人们能看到的人要多得多。这是因为月全食可以持续数小时，而日食只持续几分钟。此外，月食在世界夜间的任何地方都可以看到，而日全食只发生在地球上一个狭窄的经度范围内。

今晚的月食与每年五月的满月——花月重合。从欧洲、非洲和亚洲部分地区都可以看到它，但从北美和南美看得最好。虽然并不十分罕见，但月全食并不经常发生，即使发生，也可能被云层掩盖。如果你错过今晚的血月，你将在今年11月获得第二次机会。之后的下一次机会是三年后，所以你可能想今晚熬夜。

劳特布龙嫩山谷，瑞士阿尔卑斯山 Lauterbrunnen Valley in the Swiss Alps (© Leonid Andronov/Getty Images)

托尔金笔下瑞文戴尔的原型 Tolkien's Rivendell inspiration

Lauterbrunnen Valley in the Swiss Alps

For Tolkien Reading Day, we're visiting the Lauterbrunnen Valley in the Swiss Alps, which is believed to have inspired the Elven sanctuary of Rivendell in J.R.R. Tolkien's novels 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'The Hobbit.' Like Tolkien's mythical Elf settlement, Lauterbrunnen Valley has a bit of storybook appeal, with an unusually narrow valley floor hemmed in by steep Alpine cliffs and dotted with numerous waterfalls. The valley remains a popular tourist destination.

The Tolkien Society organized the first Tolkien Reading Day in 2003 to celebrate and promote his works. They selected March 25 as it is the day that the Dark Lord Sauron was defeated, and the Black Tower destroyed in 'The Lord of the Rings.' Tolkien's writing continues to provide fodder various entertainment forms, with Amazon's 'Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power' debuting in 2022.

瑞士阿尔卑斯山的洛特布鲁宁山谷

在托尔金阅读日，我们将参观瑞士阿尔卑斯山的洛特布伦南山谷，据信这是J.R.R.托尔金小说《指环王》和《霍比特人》中的精灵庇护所里文德尔的灵感来源和托尔金的神话中的精灵聚居地一样，洛特布伦嫩山谷也有点故事书的吸引力，其异常狭窄的谷底被陡峭的阿尔卑斯悬崖包围，并点缀着无数瀑布。这个山谷仍然是一个受欢迎的旅游目的地。

托尔金协会在2003年组织了第一个托尔金阅读日来庆祝和宣传他的作品。他们选择了3月25日，因为这一天黑暗魔王索伦被击败，黑塔在《指环王》中被摧毁托尔金的作品继续为各种娱乐形式提供素材，亚马逊的《指环王：权力之环》于2022年首播

静谧的伯尔尼古城区，瑞士 Old Town section of Bern, Switzerland (© Xantana/Getty Images)

古城区的灯火 The lights of Old Town

Old Town section of Bern, Switzerland

Welcome to a wintry wonderland in Bern, the capital of Switzerland. We're in the city's medieval center—Old Town—which looks much as it did when many of these buildings were constructed between the 12th and 15th centuries.

Old Town was founded in 1191 on a long, narrow peninsula surrounded on three sides by the Aare River. Today, visitors and locals alike enjoy strolling down quaint alleyways and cobblestoned streets amidst the charming medieval buildings. In winter, many stop here en route to ski on the nearby Bernese Oberland mountains or to visit the Schwarzsee ice palaces.

Those in the know also suggest a climb to the top of the Bernese Minster, the highest church spire in all of Switzerland, seen in our photo. It's just 312 steps to the viewing deck, but we hear the panorama of snowy rooftops and the nearby peaks is worth the climb.

瑞士伯尔尼老城区

欢迎来到瑞士首都伯尔尼的冬日仙境。我们在这座城市的中世纪中心旧城区，它看起来和许多这些建筑在12世纪到15世纪之间建造时的样子差不多。

老城区建于1191年，位于一个狭长的半岛上，三面环绕着阿勒河。如今，游客和当地人都喜欢在迷人的中世纪建筑中漫步在古雅的小巷和鹅卵石铺就的街道上。在冬天，许多人会在这里停留，在附近的伯尔尼奥伯兰山滑雪，或参观施瓦西冰宫。

知情人士还建议爬上伯尔尼教堂尖顶，这是全瑞士最高的教堂尖顶，如我们的照片所示。到观景台只有312步，但我们可以听到雪天屋顶和附近山峰的全景，值得攀登。

莫利森艺术家塞佩的《新呼吸》, 瑞士格鲁埃河畔 'A New Breath' by artist Saype in Moléson-sur-Gruyères, Switzerland (© Valentin Flauraud/Shutterstock)

World Children's Day

For World Children's Day, we're featuring an aerial view of a larger-than-life painting next to the summit of the Moléson in the Swiss Prealps. The 16,000-square-foot fresco is titled 'Un Nouveau Souffle' (A New Breath) and depicts a child blowing clouds toward the horizon. It was created by French-Swiss artist Saype—real name Guillaume Legros—who is known for his grassy graffiti around the world. The eco-friendly artist uses biodegradable paints made from natural pigments such as coal and chalk, so by the time you read this, his land art will have already disappeared into the soil.

Saype's mountaintop mural aims to inspire childlike wonder, which is an apt message for World Children's Day. Though there are numerous Children's Day celebrations around the globe, and on varying dates, the United Nations created World Children's Day—observed every November 20—to celebrate kids worldwide and to promote their welfare.

Perhaps you can recall picking out shapes and pictures in the clouds as they drifted by when you were young. Why not turn that fuzzy feeling into action and find out how you can help build a better future for children. Just like watching clouds, all you need is a little imagination.

世界儿童节

为了庆祝世界儿童节，我们将在瑞士公园的莫利森峰旁鸟瞰一幅超凡脱俗的油画。这幅16000平方英尺的壁画名为“新口味的蛋奶酥”（一种新气息），描绘了一个孩子将云朵吹向地平线。它是由法国瑞士艺术家赛义普（Saype）创作的，真名纪尧姆·勒格罗斯（Guillaume Legros），他以其草草涂鸦闻名于世。这位环保艺术家使用由煤和白垩等天然颜料制成的可生物降解的颜料，所以当你读到这篇文章时，他的土地艺术已经消失在土壤中。

Saype的山顶壁画旨在激发孩子般的好奇心，这是世界儿童节的一个恰当信息。尽管全球各地都有许多儿童节庆祝活动，而且日期各不相同，但联合国还是在每年11月20日设立了世界儿童节，以庆祝全世界的儿童并促进他们的福利。

也许你还记得，当你年轻的时候，在云层中飘过的形状和图片中挑选出来的。为什么不把这种模糊的感觉转化为行动，看看你能如何帮助孩子们建立一个更美好的未来。就像看云一样，你只需要一点想象力。

第一悬崖步道，瑞士格林德瓦 First Cliff Walk on First near Grindelwald, Switzerland (© Hans-Georg Eiben/eStock Photo)

Switzerland First Cliff Walk

When it comes to breathtaking mountain scenery, it's difficult to top the village of Grindelwald in the center of the Swiss Alps, flanked as it is on all sides by towering peaks such as Mannlichen, Faulhorn, and the Wetterhorn. In winter, Grindelwald is home to one of the biggest ski resorts in Switzerland's Jungfrau region, and even in the offseason there's still plenty of adrenaline-inducing activity to be found here.

For example, you can take a gondola from the village up to a a small peak called First, home of the First Cliff Walk observation platform, seen in our photo. Visitors walk up the metal footbridge that winds along the side of First and onto the platform, which extends out nearly 150 feet over the abyss. The sheer beauty and verticality of the views from this spot are sure to set just about anyone's heart racing.

瑞士第一悬崖步道

说到令人叹为观止的山景，很难登上瑞士阿尔卑斯山中心的格林德瓦尔德村的顶峰，因为它的两侧都是高耸的山峰，如曼利希峰、福尔霍恩峰和维特霍恩峰。在冬天，格林德瓦尔德是瑞士少女峰地区最大的滑雪胜地之一的所在地，即使在休赛期，这里仍然有大量的肾上腺素诱导活动。

例如，你可以从村子里搭一辆平底船到一个叫First的小山顶，这是我们照片中第一个悬崖步行观察平台的所在地。游客们沿着蜿蜒在第一大道一侧的金属人行桥走上平台，平台延伸到深渊上方近150英尺。从这个地方看去，景色的绝对美丽和垂直肯定会让任何人心跳加速。

苏黎世湖岸边的室外游泳池，瑞士 Strandbad Tiefenbrunnen, an outdoor public pool on the shore of Lake Zürich, Switzerland (© Amazing Aerial Agency/Offset by Shutterstock)

Swim city

Switzerland may be a landlocked country in the middle of Europe, but with about 6% of Europe's fresh water flowing through its countless rivers and lakes, there are plenty of outdoor swimming spots to cool down in the Swiss summer heat. Today, we're dipping our toes in the pristine waters of Lake Zürich in Switzerland's largest city, which has developed its own urban lido culture. Dotted across Zürich, you'll find lots of lidos (public open-air swimming pools or bathing beaches) that make the most of the city's lakes. This time of year, it's common to see bankers and other workers change from business suits into bathing suits as they enjoy a quick swim during their lunch break.

The lakeside lido in our image is called Strandbad Tiefenbrunnen. There's no sand here, but it does feature a circular boardwalk built over the water that surrounds a shallow pool. Nearby, there's a 200-foot water slide spilling into the lake, diving platforms, and a sprawling lawn for sunbathing and activities including yoga, volleyball, and table tennis. And of course, as we're in Switzerland, you're never far from the mountains—the snow-clad Alps are visible from here on a clear day. Swiss bliss.

游泳城

瑞士可能是欧洲中部的内陆国家，但是欧洲大约6%的淡水流经无数的河流和湖泊，在瑞士的夏季热中有很多户外游泳场所可以降温。今天，我们在瑞士最大城市苏里希湖的原始水域中畅游，苏里希湖已经形成了自己的城市丽都文化。在苏黎世，你会发现许多丽都（公共露天游泳池或浴场）充分利用了城市的湖泊。每年的这个时候，银行家和其他员工在午餐休息时间快速游泳时，通常会从工作服换成泳衣。

在我们的图像中，湖边丽都被称为Strandbad Tiefenbrunnen。这里没有沙子，但有一条环绕浅水池的圆形木板路。附近有一个200英尺高的滑水梯，滑向湖中，有潜水平台，还有一片广阔的草坪，可以进行日光浴和瑜伽、排球和乒乓球等活动。当然，当我们在瑞士时，你永远不会远离群山，在晴朗的日子里，从这里可以看到覆盖着白雪的阿尔卑斯山。瑞士的幸福。

鸟瞰罗伊斯河上的教堂桥，瑞士卢塞恩 (© Neleman Initiative/Gallery Stock) Aerial view of Chapel Bridge over the river Reuss in Lucerne, Switzerland (© Neleman Initiative/Gallery Stock)

A Swiss city of bridges

We're in the heart of Switzerland looking down on the compact city of Lucerne, a charming waterfront setting along the shores of its namesake lake and the river Reuss. Surrounded by snow-capped mountains just out of frame, Lucerne lies in the Swiss-German speaking part of central Switzerland and is divided into two parts linked by a series of bridges. The most famous of these bridges—the centerpiece and symbol of Lucerne—is the Kapellbrücke (Chapel Bridge), a covered wooden footbridge which you can see spanning diagonally across the Reuss in our photo. The building rising from the river alongside the footbridge is a medieval water tower, which has been used as a prison, torture chamber, local archive, and treasury.

Originally built in 1333 as part of Lucerne's fortifications, Chapel Bridge connected the old town on the right bank of the Reuss to the new town on the left, securing the city from attack via Lake Lucerne to the south. It is believed to be the oldest covered wooden bridge in Europe, as well as the world's oldest surviving truss bridge, although much of it had to be replaced after a devastating fire in 1993. Named for the nearby St. Peter's Chapel—the oldest original church structure in Lucerne—Chapel Bridge is picturesque in more ways than one: There are dozens of interior paintings on triangular panels underneath the bridge's roof that date back to the 17th century. The paintings by local Catholic artist Hans Heinrich Wägmann depict historical events from the town, and despite the fire destroying most of the artwork, you can still admire some of the original paintings when crossing the river.

瑞士桥梁之城

我们在瑞士的中心，俯瞰着紧凑的城市卢塞恩，这是一个迷人的海滨城市，坐落在与之同名的湖和雷乌斯河沿岸。卢塞恩位于瑞士中部讲瑞士德语的地区，四周是刚出格的雪山，被一系列桥梁连接起来，分成两部分。这些桥中最著名的是卡佩尔布桥——卢塞恩的中心和象征ü教堂桥（Chapel Bridge），一座有盖的木制人行天桥，你可以在我们的照片中看到它斜跨在罗伊斯河上。沿着人行天桥从河里拔地而起的建筑是一座中世纪的水塔，它曾被用作监狱、刑讯室、地方档案馆和国库。

教堂桥始建于1333年，是卢塞恩防御工事的一部分，它连接了罗伊斯河右岸的老城和左岸的新城，通过卢塞恩湖向南保护城市免受攻击。它被认为是欧洲最古老的有盖木桥，也是世界上现存最古老的桁架桥，尽管在1993年的一场毁灭性的火灾后，大部分建筑不得不被替换。卢塞恩教堂桥最古老的原始教堂结构以附近的圣彼得教堂命名，但它在许多方面都如画如画：桥顶下的三角形面板上有几十幅室内画，可以追溯到17世纪。当地天主教艺术家汉斯·海因里希Wä格曼描绘了镇上的历史事件，尽管大火烧毁了大部分艺术品，但过河时你仍然可以欣赏到一些原作。

Areuse峡谷的Saut du Brot石桥，瑞士纳沙泰尔 Saut du Brot stone bridge in the Areuse Gorge, Neuchâtel, Switzerland (© Andreas Gerth/eStock Photo)

Once upon a time there was a bridge…

Although this stone bridge, known as Saut de Brot, looks right out of a fairy tale, it serves a very practical purpose. It connects walking trails on each side of the Areuse Gorge, offering safe passage to hikers exploring the lush Brot-Dessous area in eastern Switzerland, a predominantly French-speaking region of this multilingual country. It's not known when the bridge was built exactly, though it's thought to be a recent construction. But if that's true, how do we not know who built it? All this mystery leads us to suspect it's the work of helpful gnomes and fairies living deep in the Swiss woods.

从前有一座桥…

尽管这座被称为索特德布罗特（Saut de Brot）的石桥看起来就像童话故事，但它有着非常实际的用途。它连接阿瑞斯峡谷两侧的步行道，为徒步旅行者探索瑞士东部郁郁葱葱的布罗特-德索斯地区提供安全通道，这是一个多语种国家的主要法语地区。虽然这座桥被认为是最近才建造的，但不知道它到底是什么时候建造的。但如果这是真的，我们怎么不知道是谁建的呢？所有这些谜团让我们怀疑这是生活在瑞士森林深处的有益的侏儒和仙女的作品。

拉韦尔泰佐附近一条河里的石头，瑞士塞斯卡山谷 Stones in a river near the hamlet of Lavertezzo, in the Valle Verzasca of Switzerland (© Robert Seitz/Offset by Shutterstock)

A river runs through it

In just a few months it'll be warm enough to perch for a while on this smooth river rock, dangle your feet into the water, and take in this gorgeous Swiss scenery. We're here in the Valle Verzasca, a valley in Ticino, Switzerland, close to the Italian border. There in the near distance is the tiny hamlet of Lavertezzo, where most everyone speaks Italian. Tourists normally flock to this area in warm summer months to swim and snorkel in the river's famous turquoise waters and to jump off the 17th century double-arched bridge known as the Ponte dei Salti (Bridge of Jumps). The very, very brave bungee jump off the nearby Contra dam, made famous in the 1995 James Bond film 'GoldenEye.'

一条河穿过它

再过几个月，这里就会暖和起来，可以在这光滑的河石上栖息一会儿，把你的脚吊入水中，欣赏这美丽的瑞士景色。我们现在在瑞士提契诺的一个山谷，靠近意大利边境。在不远处有一个小村庄拉维特佐，那里大多数人都说意大利语。游客通常在温暖的夏季涌向这一地区，在著名的绿松石河水中游泳和浮潜，并从被称为Ponte dei Salti（跳跃桥）的17世纪双拱桥上跳下。从附近的康特拉水坝上非常非常勇敢的蹦极跳下，在1995年詹姆斯·邦德的电影《黄金眼》中成名