It was wonderful to arrive in Zurich after a long flight.
8 hours to Singapore and a further 13 hours to Zurich. We arrived at 6.10am to
a beautiful late summer day. Fortunately our room was available when we arrived
– we had been told we would need to wait until 3.00pm!
We are staying in Wollishofen about 5km from the
centre of Zurich. Like most European cities there is an excellent transport
system here. There is a very efficient tram system, as well as trains &
buses.
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and is located
on the beautiful Lake Zurich. It is a great city to walk around and see the
sights. The first day of sightseeing included a walk along the banks of the Limmat
River and Lake Zurich.
The walk takes you through the “Old Town” – where we saw
the wonderful ‘Grossmunster Church’. Construction on this site began in the
1100’s. Since 2009,
artistically designed stained-glass windows by Sigmar Polke have decorated the
Grossmünster Church. The windows are quite contemporary but do not look out of
place in this ancient building. The twin towers of the
Grossmünster are regarded as perhaps the most recognized landmark in Zurich. Architecturally,
the church is considered Romanesque in style and is a part of the
first pan-European architectural trend since Imperial Roman architecture.
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| Grossmunster Church |
Another amazing building was the ‘Rathaus’ or Town Hall.
It was built in 1694-1698. It served as the seat of government until 1798. Since
1803, it has been both the cantonal (local government) and the city's municipal
parliaments. The baroque architecture of this building is full of character.
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| The Rathaus (Town Hall), |
The river and lake area is a popular spot for the locals
with many cafes and restaurants doing a roaring trade while the weather is so
nice. The lake is a popular swimming spot for the locals and we saw many people
taking advantage of the hot weather.
On our second day here we took the train up to the ‘Uetliberg Observation Tower’. It is located at 871 meters above sea level on Zürich’s local mountain. The tower is a Zürich landmark and is considered to be one of the highest accessible observation towers in Switzerland. Needless to say the views were amazing. When we were there it was rather hazy and you could not see the Alps. However the views down in the valleys and over the city were stunning. After getting off the train there it is a decent walk to the top where the tower is located. It was lovely walking through the forest of evergreen & confer trees and then coming across some rather unusual ‘street lamps’ – these were a combination of a street lamp and street art and rather amusing.
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| Walk to the lookout. |
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| The Lamps and/or street art! |
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