The first thing my friends and I tried to do was find our hotel. A guy on the train told us we were staying just on the outskirts of the red light district. This made us very nervous, however it turned out to be a very nice Comfort Inn--clean, cheap, and a good free breakfast.
After finding the hotel we made our way to the center of town to find sausage and beer. Fortunately, Zurich has a heavy German influence, so we were able to satisfy the sausage/beer craving. I also experienced rustii for the first time. All rustii is is hash browns, but it sounds cool to say I tried rustii :). After dinner we found a bar that was playing live music, which is a rarity in Lugano, so we thoroughly enjoyed that. A funny thing happened at the bar. I happened to overhear someone say Red Sox. It turns out the guy is from Boston, and he is visiting a friend he went to MIT. What a small world!
Our first full day in Zurich (Saturday), we did a lot of sightseeing. Our first stop was the Grossmunster. This cathedral has the most amazing views of the city from all sides. It also has beautiful stained glass windows.
The next stop was the Fraumunster. This 13th century church was by far my favorite place to see in Zurich. It has six stained glass windows by Marc Chagall. He was commissioned in the 60's to create the windows. They are absolutely stunning in person. My pictures definitely don't do them justice.
After the Fraumunster we made a quick stop to St. Peter's. This church is said to have one of the largest clock faces in Europe (8.5 meters in diameter). It's big, but I don't think it can be the biggest--what about Big Ben??
The afternoon was filled with window shopping. I didn't actually buy anything because Switzerland in general is insanely expensive and Zurich is no exception. That evening we went to a restaurant called Neumarket for dinner. The food was good and the atmosphere was great. It wasn't too cold outside, so we sat on the covered patio. The weather in general was gorgeous all weekend.
On Sunday a few of us rented bikes and rode to our friend Pete's rugby game. We missed the game by five minutes, but it was great to ride bikes! After the rugby game we rode through some neighborhoods to the lake called Zurichsee. It was a great day to ride bikes and just look at the scenery. We stopped for a sausage at lunch time, which is so good you cannot believe it. They serve the sausages wrapped in paper, and instead of a bun they give you a hunk of really good bread.
After bike riding all day we were ready to head back down to Lugano. We were all pretty tired and wanted to sleep and relax on the train. I even spent 13.90CHF for a Self magazine. Fortunately, the entire train was filled with German, Swiss, and Italian teenagers......Needless to say it wasn't the most relaxing train ride I've ever been, although it was still beautiful. Well, enjoy the pictures!!
S.
Me and Blair
View of the Fraumunster and St. Peter's from the Grossmunster tower
View of Zurichsee from the Grossmunster
At the top of the Grossmunster
Zurichsee with the Alps from the Grossmunster
The interior of the Fraumunster
Chagall windows at the Fraumunster (sorry I couldn't turn the picture)
The Grossmunster (I went to the top of the tower on the right)
Dinner at Neumarket on Saturday--from the left going around the table--Lizzie, Blair, Allyson, Eric, John, Tim, Emily, Allie, and Carla
Late to Pete's rugby game--Pete, Allie, Emily, and Carla--the bike riders :)
Zurichsee from my bike
Me and the Zurichsee!
This guy was balancing these rocks on the edge of the lake...pretty cool
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