Oh, crap

Not only is today Labor Day (and hence a holiday), but it is also the Tag der offenen Bauernbetriebe, or Day of Open Farms. We got a notice in the mail that 50-60 farms around Basel would be having open houses with farm animals, tractors, etc. We saw that the local farm that sells pumpkins in the fall was on the list, so we arranged to meet friends who were bringing their kids. It was packed with people and just as charming as can be. I suppose one could be cynical and say it's all just part of a campaign to boost the image of the friendly local farmer (and perhaps preserve costly and inefficient farm subsidies), but you know what? It worked. Farms really do seem to hold a special place in the culture here.

Anyway, among the various activities and foods, our clear favorite was this:



If you don't speak Swiss German, that roughly translates as "Name that Poop!" Sure enough, they had nine little plates of poop set out, and you could take a quiz that featured a list of animals where you matched the poop to the animal that made it. Brilliant! Sadly, we didn't take the time to give it a go (so to speak)...