Word: altdorf
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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Aside from being the cradle of the federation, this is also William Tell country: near Rütli is the town of Altdorf, where the legendary peasant farmer is reputed to have shot an apple from his son's head and then despatched the Austrian bailiff who forced him to do it. All around is the mountain scenery that inspired Rossini's operatic homage to the Tell legend. It is breathtakingly beautiful, yet remains largely unknown outside Switzerland. (See 50 essential travel tips...
With its charming cafés and restaurants, Altdorf makes a natural pit stop. Be sure to visit the statue of Tell and his son, which marks the spot where the apple-shooting incident supposedly took place. "We can't say for sure that Tell ever existed but we don't care," says Ralph Aschwanden, a local journalist and historian. "Man or myth, he is important to us as a symbol of our national identity...
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