Bern Baren

Legend has it that when the city of Bern was founded back in 1191, they decided to choose the name based on the first animal shot during the hunt. (Can you imagine? "Don't shoot the rat! Don't shoot the rat! No, not the pigeon, either!") Because of the link between bears and the city, to this day Bern has a bear pit on the outskirts of the old part of the city. Two bears are in residence.

The idea of bears roaming around is kind of cool, but the reality is a bit sad.

(Apparently they take the bears inside at night, so that if any drunken revelers fall into the bear pit, they won't be eaten. Let's just say they learned this lesson from experience.)