Day #209 - Zurich, Switzerland

Fraumunster (center) & St. Peter-Kirche (right)

Old Town along the River Limmat

Bahnhofstrasse - main street through town

Fraumunster

Grossmunster

Saturday, October 9th

Today I got out of Baden-Baden late morning. I then took a 3-1/2 hour train to Zurich, Switzerland. I plan to make this my home base for about 3 days before moving into Austria.

Zurich --- before coming on this trip, I would have identified Zurich with money, class, mystique. After taking this afternoon/evening to walk around the city - I would have no reason to alter my perception. The 3rd most expensive city in Europe certainly feels the part. It's like I need to be wearing a tuxedo, a lady on my arm, tickets to the theatre, and some fine wine while overlooking the river from the second floor balcony of an exclusive restaurant.

Permenantly settled for over 7,000 years, the history of Zurich goes back to its founding by the Romans. In 15 BC, they called the city Turicum. Present-day, the city is relatively small in comparison to most well-known cities in Europe (380,000 people). It didn't take me long to hit the highlights. The river Limmat flows north through the city from Lake Zurich. It separates the Old Town - which lines both banks of the river. The main avenue is called Bahnhofstrasse. This mile long street is highlighed with shops, restaurants, cafes, department stores, etc.

I did most of my walking during the dark - as daylight hours are slowly deminishing with the season. This made things even better. Looking out over the water, seeing the boats and all the lights from the skyline - impressive. Some of the points of interest include: Lindenhof (small, natural hill on west bank of Limmat - geographic and historical center of the city), St. Peter Kirche (Oldest city parish church. Also has the largest clock face in Europe), Fraumunster (Benedictine abbey founded in 853 - mostly noble women lived here), and Grossmunster (Romanesque church completed in 1220.)

I'll have a chance to see more of the city the next couple days. Tomorrow I might try for a day trip - to a village town at the base of the Alps - called Lucerne.