Appenzell is a rather curious place in Switzerland. While the country was named after the canton of Schwyz in the centre of the country and its language is as diverse as birds in the trees, Appenzell feels to me as the most quintessentially Swiss region. Appenzell is located in the mountainous regions to the east near the border with Liechtenstein and Austria in the pre-Alpine region. The city of Appenzell is inside the canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden, which is an enclave of Appenzell Ausserrhoden, and Appenzell Ausserrhoden is an enclave of St. Gallen.
With this onion style layering of political divisions, each deeper into the mountains than the outer layer, only 16,000 people live in the heart of Appenzell. This makes it easy to preserve cultural traditions, linguistic traits, and culinary flavours. Twice a year on December 31st and January 13th, the main villages in the two Appenzell provinces celebrate Saint Sylvester’s day called “Sylsvesterklausen”.
There are two foods that are a must-try in this region. The first is the creamy and mild Appenzeller cheese made from alpine milk. The second is a sweet digestif liquor made from ingredients in Appenzell, but only buy this in local stores as souvenir shops will mark up the price by 250%.
If you want to experience real Switzerland, Appenzell is my top recommendation.
