Market value: why the Swiss rise early
swissinfo.ch got up in the middle of the night to experience and photograph one of Switzerland's most unusual traditions - the Onion Market.
The ‘Zibelemärit’, as it’s called in the local Swiss-German dialect, takes over the streets and squares of the centre of Bern on the last Monday in November.
Every year, farmers from the surrounding area descend on the capital with truckloads of carefully braided onions – around 50 tons to be exact.
swissinfo.ch photographer Ester Unterfinger visited the market in the Swiss capital in 2015.
At 5am, the alleys are already crammed with stalls and people . Not only the decorated onions are for sale; there are traditional sweets and a variety of souvenirs to entice visitors from near and far. Savoury cheese and onion cakes are the traditional breakfast of choice on this day, and mulled wine is the preferred drink to fend off the early morning autumn chill.
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