Day 11 Zurich

April 14, 2005. Today was our second and last full day in Zurich. We awoke this morning to a gorgeous sunny spring day with the temperature in the 60s. Today we broke with tradition and had Starbucks coffee, and of course croissants for breakfast. It was nice to have some North American coffee again. The price was about $3.75 US which is not bad for Switzerland.

After breakfast we played jumping on and off the trams. For $12 US each we bought a pass that is good for 24 hours on all the trams, boats, and most museums in Zurich. After breakfast we set out to find a small art gallery on the Left Bank, which has reproductions of Grand Masters. After three trams and a mile of walking up and down hills we discovered that the gallery had closed and was now an apartment building. Oh well, it was a great adventure.

After our usual lunch of Swiss bread and cheese, washed down with Coke Lite (Diet Coke in Europe), we set off for a two hour boat ride on Lake Zurich. The boat takes tourists and is also a ferry stopping up and down the lake to let people get on and off. Interesting to see the vistas of Zurich from the water.

When we got back to the Old City we jumped on two more trams to visit the clock museum on Bahnhofstrasse.  They had clocks going back to the 15^th century. Many of them were inlaid in gold and jewels. An amazing collection.

To end the day we sat outside in the garden terrace of Baur au Lac and had a glass of chardonnay. Some of the leaves and blossoms are out and it was great to sit in the sunlight and enjoy the view. In the center of the garden they have built a bench from wooden wine cases. What a great idea.

Tonight we’re having a relaxing dinner in our suite along with a bottle of champagne. It will be an early night as we’re up at 5 tomorrow morning to fly to Salzburg in Austria.

Stay tuned for Day 12 in my “Around the World in 30 Days” saga.

Alan Salmon
eClub One