Zurich, the City with the Hidden Gold.

One of many clock towers in Zurich
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Journal Entry 14, 7 November 2006 - Zurich, the City with the Hidden Gold.

After boarding a train from Brussels via Cologne and Basel I arrived into Zurich 9 hours later, in the early evening. At last I arrived into a train station that looked like it belonged to a spy movie. Zurich train station was impressive and had the distinctive atmosphere of being an important hub to Europe. In fact it is, nearly every train in Europe goes via Zurich onto another city. I strolled out of the station and headed for my hostel, as described in my Lonely Planet guide as clean, fun and secure. How wrong the LP was! After quickly unpacking and taking a night time stroll around the bank of the river I retired to get a hard earned sleep before exploring the city the next day.

I was truly a dwarf in a giant’s world.

Zurich by night
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This was the start of a torture, a torture that would remain with me for the rest of my life. The man in the bed next to me decided he was going to teach himself English......at 12AM AT NIGHT! I tried everything from getting up and drinking a few baileys, to sighing so loud that he might get the point. The last resort was sticking my mp3 player on and drowning the monkey out. I just had my very first lesson in the politics of shared dorms.

The next morning I arose roughly, got dressed, banged the door on my way out and headed for a Starbucks. There is a great Starbucks located right near the river with excellent views. I decided my day would be best spent strolling the streets and absorbing everything that was best to be.......absorbed. Once I walked down the ancient cobbled streets, watching the Swiss go about their daily chores, I reached Zurich Lake and I was absolutely gob smacked. I hadn’t realised, I never knew, how could I - it was dark when I arrived and obviously my LP guide wouldn’t of said. I was surrounded by the Alps, the ALPS PEOPLE! Unbelievable, a child hood dream instantly realised. I could see the snow capped mountains meeting the blue skies above and realised I was truly a dwarf in a giant’s world.

Dusk by Zurich
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The lake was sparking with the sun’s rays and the trams that floated around me made the whole place seem so environmentally beautiful. I continued on a stroll around the fantastic green parks and pass the many banks that had vaults of gold hidden below it. I continued my walk back up the other side of the lake's inlet across the many arched bridges and just sat dangling my legs over the edge looking at the expensive houses and the millionaire’s yachts......dreaming of what ifs?

I decided I wanted to practice my German, so with a few memorisations tried my best German on shop keepers, the internet guy, souvenir shop assistants and waiters. I came to the conclusion the Swiss had no time for Australian German learners and decided to go back to my Aussie. The afternoon consisted of a fresh walk to the top of a hill overlooking Zurich and where the university is found. The views over the city were breathtaking and well worth the walk. Hint: Take the step directly up instead of walking the street, a lot easier on the legs. Unless you’re a sadistic person like me and want to walk that walk.

A View from the top
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My plans were to spend another night in Zurich however with the English learner and my unhappiness of the hostel, I decided to leave that night. My options were to go to Rome and spend the remaining 2 weeks there and be broke within 2 days, or head to Germany and see what I can find there. So on that note, I booked a train ticket to Prague. I needed an adventure and something that wasn’t planned, Praha was the answer. My night train was to leave at 11pm and with only a few hours left decided to catch up on my sleep, at the station.

River View
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Zurich is an interesting place full of money and unbelievably picturesque, where you can literally point your camera anywhere and get the perfect postcard shot every time. The people seem protective of their country and reluctant to let you into their lives. In perspective looking back, Zurich was the only city I didn’t meet a single soul in terms of companionship. The Swiss are not a proud people as which the Americans portray, however they portray a high confidence in what they believe in and they know what they stand for.....even if they do sit on the fence. This is and remains a pleasant surprise. Be prepared to pay through the nose in the mighty Swiss franc, however for the high payments you will receive an efficient city which feels like the gold is truly hidden beneath the surface, not just physically.

It;s Christmas.....a shop window.
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To be continued....