Zurich is one of the most famous cities of Switzerland, situated at the northern corner of lake Zurich. The city is bordered by wooden hills, with the centre of the city being the “Lindennof”‘ a small natural hill on the west bank of ‘Limmat’ (river). The city has a number of tourist attractions such as museums, art galleries, walks, the lake, railway journeys, access to Winter Sports, cultural events, etc. The city has the busiest airport, railway station and most people travel to Zurich by either air or train. However travelling to Zurich is also possible by roads. Zurich is a historical city, being 7000 yrs old city that was actually founded by Romans (who called it Turicum). In terms of being described as a place to live, the city has been acknowledged to be the city with ” The Best Quality Of Life” and is also the richest city in Europe, and a financial center for the whole region. When we talk about the areawise division of Zurich, it is currently divided in to 12 Municipal Districts.

History

Historically, in Roman times, the city known as Turicum at that time, was a point more in the nature of a tax collection point, on the border of Gallia Belgica and Raetia, for goods transported on the river Limmat (that runs through the city of Zurich). Their was some expansion of the city over a period of time, with a city wall being built during the 13th century and enclosing an area of 38 hectares. Over a period of time, there were political transformations, including being part of several treaties, with the power of the city increasing and decreasing.

Transport

Zurich is very significant in terms of transport, with the city having the busiest train station and airport in the country. The main mode of transport in the city are through the Railways, Trams, Buses; with a number of people coming to the city via air, through the Zurich International Airport which is situated around 10 kilometers northeast of the city. Public transport network, in addition, also has the following modes – Boats on the lake & on the river. One good facility is that once you buy a ticket for a trip, this ticket is valid on all means of transport (Public transport such as Train, Tram, Bus, Boat), and is one of the major strong points of the city’s transport network.

Economy and people

Zurich is significant in that it is the main economic zone of Switzerland. The city of Zurich is an attractive destination for banking giants and a hub for leading financial institutions. Zurich also serves as one of the main destinations for cultural events. The city is not very large in terms of population, having approx 3,00,000 population, but this is enough to make it the largest city of Switzerland. This population actually contains maximum no of Swiss citizens followed by Germans & Italians.
The most popular language of Zurich is Zurich German as it is the mother tongue of more than 75% of the population. The second most used language is Italian which is followed by a few other language like Serbian, Crotian, Macedonian, Spanish, English, and Albanian. However, since it is a tourist location, language is typically not a constraint when traveling in the city.
In terms of religious proportion, the 20th century saw a shift towards a larger section of the population having Catholicism as their faith, and they form the largest section of the city; however, like many other sections of western thought, there are an increasing number of people who declare that they do not have any religious affiliation.

Climate and Attractions

If we talk about climate of this beautiful city, the statistics are a simple example of why people enjoy being there. Zurich city has four distinct seasons, with summers being much warmer, with average high temperatures of 21-24 degree C (and a low temperature of 10-12 degree C), winters being much colder with average temp. of 10-12 degree C. The months of Spring and Autumn are much better, being cool and mild. The overall classification of the city in terms of weather is a humid continental climate.
What is Zurich’s claim to being a good tourist location ? It can be called a heaven on earth, with a bountiful quantity of such attractions as a great climate, some incredible locations, churches, museums, etc. Some of the many sights to visit are the Church of Grossmunster, Fraumunster, St.Peter are some of the great places that one should visit during a tour to Zurich. For museums, Kunsthaus Zurich, Swiss National Museum, Haus Konstruktiv are great museums that have a collection of modern art, and whose construction, and design tells the story of a city that showed the transformation of an old city in becoming global and one of the attractions of the world. In addition to all these, the Sun Rise Tower of the Serbian district is also a great attraction to the tourist. A more detailed list of such attractions in the city are:
A listing of the attractions of Zurich:
1. Rhine Falls
2. Museum of Art (Kunsthaus Zurich): This museum has a very impressive selection of modern art, and a comprehensive collection all th way back to the 1600′s
3. Church of Our Lady (Fraumunster): A beautiful church, with stained glass windows and a spire seeming to point towards heaven
4. Zurich Toy Museum: A thrill for all kids, this museum has a collection of toys
5. Zurich Zoo: A large collection of animals from all over the world
6. Swiss National Museum: Visit to learn more about Swiss history
7. Great Church (Grossmunster): Originally constructed a very long time back by the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne
8. Belvoir Park: A large park, enjoy strolls through this park
9. The Old town on the banks of the Limmat river
10. Johann Jacobs Museum: Specialty museums
11. Bahnhofstrasse: Enjoy shopping on this famous street of Zurich
12. Criminology Museum (Kriminalmuseum)
13. Museum of Masks (Bündnermasken-Keller)
14. Paleontological Museum (Paläontologisches Museum der Universität)
15. Opera House: A pretty famous cultural location in Zurich, it opened in 1891
16. Flea market Bürkliplatz: Flea markets can be a lot of fun to shop in for all sorts of stuff; open 6am-3:30pm every Saturday, May to October.

Here are some photos from the time that we had spent some time in Zurich.

The exterior architecture of a building in Zurich, Switzerland

Streets in Zurich have large electric overheads because of the train and tram system

Inside the train station in Zurich

Angular view of the bridge over the river Limmat in Zurich

A view of the Bridge on the Limmat river in Zurich, Switzerland

A tourist bus conducting tours of Zurich in Switzerland

A river cruise on the Limmat river in Zurich, Switzerland

A beautiful church in Kriens, almost at the starting point for the Gondolas upto Mount Pilatus

A panoramic gondola, at the starting point of the journey to Mount Pilatus from Kriens

View of a beautiful countryside from the panoramic gondola on the way to Mount Pilatus

The base station is the starting point for small aerial gondolas that carry 4 people up the hill. These go just over the tree line, and make for a wonderful journey. The aerial gondolas go all the way to Fräkmüntegg, from where you need to get out of the gondolas and transfer to the aerial cable car (that can carry more people, and also have an operator; the gondolas did not have any operators). The cableway is supposed to give a great view, but in our case, even though we went in July, it was very overcast and there was fog and clould that totally obscured our view.

Panoramic Gondolas make the journey between Lucerne and Kriens, on the way to Mount Pilatus

We soon reached Mout Pilatus, and boy, did the shivering start as soon as came into the open. The place was cold, with some bitter winds blowing that also obscured visibility. It was a bit difficult to wander around with all the cold, and we soon ducked inside to get some hot coffee and something to eat. There were a couple of eating places, with a hotel at one side, and 2 more hotels (one a fine eating place, and another that was more of a self-service). There were a number of tables and benches in the open as well, but it was hard to visualize anybody eating over there with that cold wind blowing.

The Hotel Pilatus-Kulm on a windy foggy day

Open air restaurant at Mount Pilatus – not possible because of wind, cold and fog

The main building of Mount Pilatus – it was cold and windy

There was also a small path that led up to the top of the peak where there was a small structure, with the way up through a combination of wooden and stone stairs (and in that cold, you can visualize how the wind would have made the climb so difficult). The only creatures who seemed to be easily visible were Black birds, around the size of a crow, that were eating of whatever had been left behind by tourists (and apparently, this was not done, since a local attendant came and removed these leftovers, clucking his head about tourists leaving food stuff behind).

Beautiful round ceiling lights with yellow light inside Mount Pilatus restaurant

Many black birds (Dohle) foraging for food on Mount Pilatus

Our journey to Mount Pilatus over (we did not try any of the supposed adventure sports over there), we decided to head back to Lucerne. This time we took the alternate route, on the cogwheel train that leaves for the station of Alpnachstad. These are small red trains heading through down the hillside, and was a great journey (especially since it was raining). As we reached the base station of Alpnachstad, we started getting a view of the Lake Lucerne from a height.

View of the tracks (including out of alignment) from within the train on Mount Pilatus

Photo shows the steep climb that the train takes to reach Mount Pilatus from Alpnachstad

The last leg of the journey was from Alpnachstad to Luzern. This was on Lake Lucerne, on a 2 hour journey across the waters of the Lake. It was a fairly thrilling journey, and after such a long trip, just relaxing on the cruise ship was like a relaxing end.

And of course, our journey over, we headed back to Zurich on the next day morning, catching a train. We had around 5 hours between our train having reached Zurich, and the departure time for the flight, and we decided to take small view of Zurich in the meantime. We headed out from the station carrying all our luggage, and decided to take a small walk – all around the river, admiring the view, the beautiful buildings. There was almost no crowd around at that time, and we were able to make our small walk around casually. The only problem was carrying luggage on the cobble-stone path. Soon, it was time to head off to catch a train to the airport for the journey back home.

Zurich train station

View of the Limmat river along with surrounding architecture

Elegant bridge and surrounding beautiful architecture

Other articles:
1. Lots of photos on a journey to Mount Pilatus (link)
2. Photos of the return journey from Pilatus to Luzern via the lake (link)
3. Article with lots of photos (link)

Views of Swiss countryside on way from Interlaken to Luzern

Finally we reached Luzern (it looked like a much larger city that Interlaken, as proof, the train station was much larger than the train station of Interlaken). At the Lucerne train station, we started trying to figure out how to find our hotel (the Magic Hotel); there was no easy way to locate our hotel from the railway station. However, once you are unafraid to ask anything, you can get to know anything; so we asked around and were soon pointed to cross the bridge right next to the railway station, and from there, the hotel was to the left side. The Magic Hotel was affiliated to the Best Western Hotel Krone over there, with the checkin to be done in the hotel Krone and the keys for the room at the Hotel Magic would be given after registration. Checking in one hotel for another hotel seemed a bit strange, even more so that the Magic Hotel did not even have a reception, but it was not really a problem. The good part about the Magic Hotel was that it had free internet access (wireless), unlike the hotel Oberland in Interlaken where the internet access is charged.

Map of Luzern on Google Maps:

View Larger Map

Lucerne (also called Luzern in German) is a very beautiful city located on the shore of Lake Lucerne. It is the starting point of cruises on the Lake, it is the starting point of the ride on gondolas and cable cars all the way upto Mount Pilatus, it has a large cultural center called KKR, it has a monument called the Lion Monument (that commemorates the hundreds of Swiss Guards who died when the Bastille was attacked during the start of the French Revolution), and it has a split city, with a modern section, and an old section where the architecture of the city is maintained.
The best part about the location of these hotels was the easy access to some of the better parts of the city. As soon as you get down from the hotel, you find yourselves in a large square surrounded by great looking buildings. Right next door is a staircase that leads down to the lake side (the shore of Lake Lucerne). This is a fascinating place to be near – there is a great view of the Chapel Bridge, there is a whole line of open air tables and covered restaurant place with a huge number of tourists eating, drinking, and generally enjoying themselves (without making a great mess or noise).

The cobble-stone path along the lakefront with open air cafes in Lucerne

Soon, we found ourselves roaming the old city on foot. We spent some time on the Chapel Bridge / Kapellbrücke (Wikipedia), and its water tower, the 140 feet (43 m) tall Wasserturm (Water Tower). The Bridge is made from wood, and looks very beautiful, especially in the evening with the lights on it shining on the water (at this point, the Lake Lucerne is only as wide as a stream). We got caught in a shower for some time, and spent more time in the Bridge than we wanted. Lining the side of the Bridge are some exceedingly beautiful flowers.

People rushing to enter the Chapel Bridge, it’s evening and its raining

Small birds perched on top of Lake Lucerne

View of Chapel Bridge from the main road bridge in Lucerne

Close up of flowers on the outer railing of the wooden Chapel Bridge in Lucerne

After the rain was spent, we moved onto touring through the old part of the city, and along the lake front (where there were a huge number of ducks and swans that would come very close to you, to the point where you would feel more in danger than they would feel from you). There is a large shopping area, and a very large eating and dining area. Just after the rain, the place looked even more magical, and we had lots of fun roaming through the city. After some time, we went looking for the Lion Monument (it was at a walk of atleaset 25 minutes), and when we found it, it was somewhat disappointing.

Many ducks and swans on the lakefront of Lake Lucerne

One of the shopping roads in Lucerne, empty after rain

Photo of the Lion Monument in Lucerne

More photos of Luzern at my photo gallery (link)

Ship moving in reverse

Narrow channel of water that connects Interlaken to Lake Thun

And thus started the wonderful 2 hour stretch. It was 10 in the morning, there was a slightly chilly breeze blowing, and the overall experience was great. The lake looks green-blue from close up, and there were plenty of small boats and speedboats in clear sight soon. The ship takes a leisurely passage on the water, stopping at many points along the cruise when people get off or get on. The cruise ship also acts like a passenger ship for the various small hamlets on the side of Lake Thun, stopping or starting at regular intervals.

A cruise ship similar to the one on which we were traveling

Mom and kids waiting to board the cruise ship on Lake Thun

You truly get to see some beautiful locations on the route, with houses right on the edge of the water of the Lake, with a small entrance from where their boat could directly enter into the confines of their houses. It all seeks to portray a place where boating on the lake is a part of normal life, and imaging such a life brings forth a tremendous feeling of envy.

A beautiful house with its own dock on the edge of Lake Thun

We passed a beautiful castle like structure, a part of an old structure, and a huge number of beautiful houses. In addition, sometimes you would see just a few number of houses on a hill, and try to imagine their life. If you get tired of admiring the outside, you could sit in the classic eating place inside the ship, all very neat and clean. We spent time on all the decks, and took photos from all the places.
And then, pretty soon, the 2 hours were over, and we were moving into a smaller landing place in the city of Thun, and the trip over, we header for the railway station to take a train back to Interlaken.

A castle like structure visible from the cruise on Lake Thun

The cafe of the cruise ship

Ending the cruise on Lake Thun by entering the city of Thun

Many photos of the Trip on Lake Thun available at this location.

The 14-mile Aletsch glacier as seen from Jungfrau

Blackbird balancing on one leg at Jungfrau

After spending some time over there, we decided to enjoy the other major attraction of the place, the ‘Ice Palace’. This is a cross-work of tunnels built inside the slower moving portion of the glacier, and has figurines inside made in the shape of animals and birds. The place has a slightly green color, and you have that feeling of being surrounded on all sides by ice; in fact, sometimes you need to hang on since the floor can be a bit slippery (after all, you are walking on ice with a tinge of water). It feels great, although there is that paranoid feeling about what would happen if the glacier suddenly moved ?

Tunnel leading inside the Ice Palace (with ice on all sides) in Jungfrau

Greenish tinge from the sculptures inside the Ice Palace in Jung frau

Next on the visiting area is an exit to another glacier. This is a place where you can actually walk on a glacier (cordoned off at the sides) where you can gather snow, watch water forming small channels, and get some great views of the surrounding vistas. We had lots of fun at this location, what with a mock snow fight, lots of posing, and the feeling of walking slowly at some of the points where the ice was either slippery or slush had formed due to water and snow. At the same time, there were kids running wildly on the same snow – the feeling of being young !

Tourists enjoying on the glacier next to Jungfrau

Tearing ourselves away from this location, we proceeded to the next destination, the Observation Tower. This is a platform built higher up on the mountain, and is reachable from the main Jungfrau complex through a tunnel called the Sphinx tunnel and then a lift that climbs 100 meters. It remains crowded, but the platform offers a great view. It is a metal platform, supported on the mountain slope, although you can see below that there is infact a sheer drop right below the metal grid that makes the platform. As can be expected, you get a great view.

Weather display at the observation tower in Jungfrau

The bottom of the observation terrace at Jungfrau actually hangs over thin air

Observatory and metal platform at the observation tower at Jungfrau

There are more things you can do at Jungfrau such as the glacier talk, and even a dogsled pulled by huskies, but it was over for us now. Time to head down after having spent many a hours at the location (was a great memory, and the photographs will refresh these memories). We headed back down, although it took time since the train back had a long queue and was a long wait.

More photos of Jungfrau (and the trip) at this location (you can view a slideshow through the option in the menu at the left).

Website of Jungfrau Railways where you can book tickets as well (link)

Photo showing morning in Interlaken partly through a reflection in a huge glass window

Goofy photo of shadow in morning

By around 9 in the morning, we were all ready to leave for the trip to Jungfrau (also called Jungfraujoch). We set out, lead by yours truly. Asking for directions goes against my ethos, so I confidently claimed that we would go to the Interlaken West station, and from there, would walk along the track to the Interlaken East train station (since the train starts from there).
As expected, this led to my lead position getting cancelled; the route I suggested was no good, and instead we (means the other people with me) asked directions and we were told that either we could take the bus from the West train station, or we could walk all the way (a 20 minute walk). We decided to walk (since we missed the bus) and off we went. It was a beautiful walk, with narrow roads, but mostly empty. There were some hotels alongside, but overall, we saw a beautiful large field (the place where the parasailers would land), and some street-side cafes. A good 20 minutes later, we were there, and joined the group of people waiting over there. For some reason, it was not clear as to where the train from Jungfrau would be available, and we had to ask people (maybe the reason was that the train does not go to Jungfrau, but only to Lauterbrunnen (Wikipedia)).

Soon, we got into the train, and starting heading out of Interlaken. The vista soon changed to become even more beautiful, and we started heading into a hilly territory, with a stream running alongside. Some time later, we reached Lauterbrunnen, and changed into another train, a green colored train. Here, there was no doubt, since there were plenty of people heading the same way, and train personnel were also busy guiding people. This train had a better journey, getting into the hills proper, and passing through some terrain with a beautiful view. The flip side was that the train was more cramped, and there was no longer a concept of first class travel.

Train Station of Lauterbrunnen where you change trains

This train finally reaches a station called Kleine Scheidegg (Wikipedia) where we again change trains to climb into a cogwheel red train that will climb through the rocky terrain, through tunnels bored into the mountains and finally arrive at the Jungfraujoch.

In between, when this train is passing through the mountains, it also stops at 2 stations called Eigerwand and Eismeer where you can get a great view of the mountains and the snow and ice glaciers (there are also rest rooms at both these locations if you so need them). And then, after 3 different trains, and a fairly long, but exciting journey, you finally reach Jungfrau.
The next post (this one became longer than I expected) will cover what all is available at Jungfrau, as well as the return journey.

More photos available at this location (link)

Zurich to Bern via train was a normal journey, but as we moved from Bern towards Interlaken on the second train journey, the surroundings grew more beautiful as we mvoed towards Interlaken. Soon, we could see what Switzerland looks like in brochures, with lots of greenery, big fields, mountains, snow lines, blue sky, water streams, and a beautiful arch bridge.

As we moved close to Interlaken, we could soon see a beautiful Lake with an amazing color; we had reached near Lake Thun, a pretty large lake that was bounded by hills on one side and by picture perfect houses on the other side. The train itself would sometimes go pretty close to the Lake, and after a total journey of a few hours, we reached the Interlaken West station (a very small and open station with 2 platforms).

Map to Interlaken (Google Maps)

View Larger Map

Our booking was in a hotel called Chalet Oberland, located around 500 meters away from the station, and located as you move into the town. Interlaken is a pretty small place, known primarily as the launch pad for cruises into Lake Thun, and for the start of the journey to Jungfrau (from the Interlaken East train station). Our flight had landed around noon, and we reached Interlaken late afternoon. Soon after we got recuperated from the journey and were ready to head out, we first thought of the ship cruise on Lake Thun, but the last cruise for that starts around 5, and we had already crossed that time. So, instead we roamed around, saw this beautiful stream running through Interlaken that was coming from the mountains. The place is fabulous for exploring by walking, and after some 2 hours, we headed back towards the hotel.

In July, Interlaken was not hot, but was definitely warm, and the sky had light till late in the evening (around 9 PM). There is a lot of night activity in the place, with streetside cafes open, and people sitting there, enjoying some great food with a drink of their choice. We also had dinner, and soon after, ended the first day of our travel.

Playing chess on the street.

You can see many more photos at this location.