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| Sherlock Holmes is an honorary citizen of Meringen, Switzerland. |
A long-time admirer of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famed
detective, Sherlock Holmes, I was delighted recently when I visited friends in
Switzerland and they proposed a day trip to Reichenbach Falls. Holmes’ fans
will know this as the place where he fought the evil Professor Moriarty in 1891,
with both apparently falling to their deaths over the falls.
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| Reichenbach Falls, Switzerland. |
We took a funicular then hiked to the top of Reichenbach
Falls and later visited the Sherlock Holmes museum in nearby Meiringen where
Holmes has been declared an honorary citizen. The museum has faithfully created
the sitting room of Holmes and Watson as described in the stories.
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| Holmes and Watson's living room at Sherlock Holmes Museum in Meiringen. |
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| The Holmes sites in Switzerland attract pilgrims. |
As you may know, Doyle relented in the face of his readers’ grief
and rage at the news of Holmes death. Three
years later Doyle started writing more stories about Holmes, explaining that the
detective had survived the battle at the falls but faked his death to trick
other enemies.
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| Outside Meiringen museum. |
My favourite Holmes movies are those with Robert Downey Jr.
and Jude Law: Sherlock Holmes (2009)
and Sherlock Holmes: A game of shadows
(2011). Earlier this summer I had reread several Sherlock Holmes stories and
watched two Sherlock Holmes made for television movies – The Case of the Silk Stocking (2004) and The Hound of the Baskervilles (2002).
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| In the Meiringen museum. |
In 2003 my late husband
and I enjoyed a visit to the Sherlock Holmes museum on Baker Street in London. However, I had not expected to have
the chance to see another Sherlock Holmes site.
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| Holmes' presence is felt in London's Baker Street underground station. |
