Time exposure of the fireworks display in honor of our National Day. The image was captured yesterday evening from below Westtsteinbrücke (Wettstein-Bridge).
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August 1st is the Swiss National Day. The date refers to a historic alliance concluded in 1291 by the three cantons of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden. This alliance was to become the focal point around which the Switzerland of today was built.
The main celebration in Basel takes place on the evening of July 31. The fireworks are the climax of an evening of entertainment starting with river raft races and live band performances.
The fireworks were launched from two boats on the river Rhine between Grossbasel and Kleinbasel. As always, there was a big debate beforehand about the ecological nonsense of fireworks. In a typical Swiss compromise, the fireworks display lasted only 16 minutes and was loudly applauded by around 100,000 spectators.