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superpurd
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Editor Pick

Zürich for World Wide Pilgrims

  • February 9, 2009
  • Rated 5 of 5 by SeenThat from Tel Aviv, Israel
Zürich for World Wide Pilgrims


I arrived at Zurich as an invitee of an international corporation. At the time I was unaware to have been chosen by them to perform a technology transfer for my country; eventually that led to my leaving it and becoming a world wide pilgrim. However, for a week I had the opportunity to enjoy one of the most beautiful towns in Europe.

Background

The largest city in Switzerland is a small town of less than 400000 inhabitants and is the main commercial and cultural center of the country; indisputably it is one of the main global financial centers. The name is Celtic in origin – Turus. It was Romanized into Turicum and afterwards Germanized into Zürich.

History

Within the Roman Empire, Turicum was a tax-collecting point for goods trafficked on the Limmat River. Afterwards – during the ninth century - a Carolingian Castle was built by the grandson of Charlemagne, Louis the German. He also founded the Fraumünster Abbey and endowed the Benedictine convent with the lands of Zürich, Uri, and the Albis forest. In 1045, King Henry III made the abbess the ruler of the area by granting the convent the right to hold markets, collect tolls, and even mint coins.

Emperor Frederick II promoted the abbess of the Fraumünster to the rank of a duchess in 1234. The abbess assigned the mayor, and she frequently delegated the minting of coins to citizens of the city. In the 14th century, the Guild Laws (called here Zunftordnung) were established and in 1336 Rudolf Brun, became the first independent mayor.

In 1351, Zürich joined the Swiss confederation as the fifth member; however, it was expelled from the confederation in 1440 due to a war with the other member states over the territory of Toggenburg. The event is known as the Old Zürich War. The city was defeated in 1446 and re-admitted to the confederation in 1450.

The city featured a central role in the Reformation. Zwingli began the Swiss reformation by preaching in Zürich; he lived in the city from 1484 until his death in 1531.

The first railway on Swiss territory was built here since 1847, connecting the Zurich with Baden. Even nowadays, trains are a main mass-transport system in the country. The beautiful and functional Hauptbahnhof (Zurich railway terminal) was built in 1871.

Environment

Zürich was built around the Sihl and Limmat Rivers; they meet at the end of Platzspitz, which borders the Swiss National Museum (Landesmuseum). Lake Zurich delimits the town to the south and wooded hills, which are part of the Albis Range, delimit it to the north. The Glattal – or Valley of the Glatt River – delimits its northwest. The historic center of the city is the Lindenhof, a hill on the left bank of the Limmat River, 700 meters north from Lake Zürich. The Old Town is not surrounded by walls anymore, but its maze of narrow alleys successfully keeps its medieval look.
The city is divided into twelve districts (Kreis in German), each one of which contains between 1 and 4 neighborhoods; District One contains the Old Town and is thus the most important one for travelers. The district boundaries follow the boundaries of previously existing municipalities before they were incorporated into the city during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.


Traveling Around

Zurich has several railway stations: Hauptbahnhof (Zurich Main Railway Terminal), Oerlikon, Stadelhofen, Hardbrücke, Tiefenbrunnen, Enge, Wiedikon and Altstetten. The Hauptbahnhof is worth a visit even if not using it. The French TGV high-speed, the Cisalpino and the InterCityExpress stop in Zürich.
The Swiss A1, A3 and A4 motorways pass nearby Zürich, connecting the city with all the main destinations in the country. The Zürich International Airport is located less than 10 kilometres northeast of the city, in Kloten.

Within the city there are four means of mass-transportation: the S-Bahn (local trains), trams, electric trolley buses and diesel buses. Boats cross the rivers and the lake.

Language

Switzerland has four official languages. The Canton of Zurich is a German speaking one. However, I could communicate easily in English, even while asking casual passerby’s for directions.

Main Sights

The Swiss Reform of the Church created several churches of historical importance. The Grossmünster is within the old city; there Zwingli was pastor. It was building in the ninth century and was declared by Charlemagne an "Imperial church." Another old church of interest is the Fraumünster, on the opposite side of the Limmat River, which was also built from the ninth century. Its Romanesque choir dates from 1250-70 and Marc Chagall prepared its stained glass windows. The Church of St. Peter is south from the Fraumünster, in the old city and features largest clock in Europe.

The Bahnhofstrasse is Zürich main shopping avenue; it starts at the main train station and reaches the lakeside. The sumptuous banks on Parade-Platz, the plaza in the middle of Bahnhofstrasse, seem to be the real cathedrals of modern Switzerland. This is the main visible testimony of Zürich being the world's primary centre for offshore banking, a result of the Swiss banks secrecy’s practices. This practice as well as the low taxation attracted global corporations like Dow Chemical, IBM, General Motors, Google, Microsoft, and Pfizer into creating their European Centers in Zurich.
The Lindenhof is near St. Peter, it was the site of a Roman castle.
The Old Town and the Guild Houses in its surroundings transport the visitor back in time, into a long gone Medieval Europe.
There are many interesting museums in town. The most interesting ones for the casual traveler are the Museum Bärengasse, which specializes in the history of the city in the 17th century. The Kunsthaus Zürich displays one a huge collection of Classic Modern Art in the world. The Swiss National Museum (Landesmuseum) is located in the Platzspitz Park in front of the Hauptbahnhof and provides an awesome glimpse into Swiss history.

Zürich's old town at offers a lot of nightlife and clubbing at the Niederdorf district and it hosts the Street Parade in August every year; there is an astounding variety of restaurants offering food from all over the world.

From journal A Taste of Old Europe

Editor Pick

Churches of Zurich

  • March 20, 2007
  • Rated 4 of 5 by Krys T from Somerset, United Kingdom
Churches of Zurich

Zurich has 3 main churches in the centre, and we visited all 3 of them on our first day.

First the Grossmünster. This cathedral stands in a little square at the junction of Oberdorf and Niederdorf, and faces northwest over the Limmat river. It was founded in the 9th century by Charlemagne and the current church was built in the 12th century. Its distinctive two towers can be seen from all over the city.

At 10am it had only just opened so we were amongst the first visitors. This was great as it meant that we could climb the 187 steps to the top of the south tower and enjoy the views practically uninterrupted. Fabulous views over the whole of Zurich, hazily over to the ZurichSee made those steps, and the 2CHF fee, more than worthwhile. It gave us a great sense of the layout of the city too. We also enjoyed watching the jackdaws flying in and out of the very top of the tower, dropping twigs as they went, clearly nest building.

Back down into the church, which is quite plain and austere - a result, my guidebook told me, of the Reformation. Many people go to enjoy the large colourful stained glass windows by Giacometti, but being contrary, I really like the large modern floral arrangement that stood where you might expect an altar to be. We went down into the little peaceful vaulted crypt too, where the original 15th century statue of Charlemagne from the South Tower is kept (there's a replacement up there now).

Out into the morning air once more and across the river to the Fraumünster. Just the one graceful spire this time, and to my mind, a less pleasant interior. However the main feature of this church is the stained glass windows by Marc Chagall in the transept - in fact most people seem to ignore the rest of the church altogether. How much you like them really depends on how much you like his work. They're somewhat oddly sited in that there is a wall across the church in front of them that separates that end off like a Lady Chapel, and bisects the space. It means that even from the other end of the church, you don't get a full view of the glass, whereas you'd think they should illuminate the whole building. From the other side you can enjoy the glass and get fairly close. However Chagall isn't really my thing, and the way in which the rest of the building felt almost abandoned mean that the place seemed more like a gallery than a church.

Out again, and off to St Peters Kirche, which has the largest clock face in Europe - and it really is big! Inside is a very peaceful and calm place a bit like a ballroom, the most "religious" feeling of the three to my mind. We sat and listened to the organist practising for that night's concert and enjoyed it.

From journal Zurich - Are the Gnomes on to a Good Thing?

Editor Pick

More Zurich Activities

  • March 30, 2004
  • Rated 4 of 5 by lcampbell from Port Angeles, Washington
Zürich Tourism Tours and Excursions

In addition to the Walking Tour of Old Town (see separate journal entry) that I took, Zürich Tourism offers many other tours and excursions that looked interesting.

Some short tours include a trolley tour of the city with head-set narration, and a Zürich city tour (sights on Old Town walking tour, plus Lake Zürich and the University), each 2 hours in length. The Zürich and Surroundings tour is 3.5 hours and includes the city tour sights plus two suburbs, a cable car ride to Felsenegg, a ferry crossing of Lake Zürich and a bus trip back along the lake coast. A four-hour combination tour includes the trolley tour plus a guided tour to the Uetliberg tower with great views of Zürich, the lake, and the Alps. Prices of these tours range from CHF20-43.

Longer tours, from 7.5 to 11 hours, take visitors to nearby villages and cities and on mountain excursions. There is the Heidiland Tour, Mt. Titlis Glacier Paradise, Jungfrau-Eiger Glacier, and trips to Rigi, Lucerne, Engelberg, and Interlaken. Prices of these tours range from CHF49-120.

Museums

There are over 40 museum of all types in Zürich. There are cultural history museums, art museums, architecture museums, and those dedicated to science and nature. Some notable ones include the Swiss National Museum, the Botanical Gardens, Museum Für Gestaltung, the Strauhof City Chamber of Art, the Zürich City Hall, and the Ethnology Museum. Museum entrance is free with the ZürichCARD (see Overview).

Lake Zürich

One activity that I wanted to do, but did not have time for, was a boat trip on Lake Zürich. The lake is 40km in length, and it is possible to get out on the lake year round. The price for a 90-minute boat trip is only CHF5,40 (it is part of public transportation system), and it is free with the ZürichCARD (see Overview). There are two daily departures in winter (1pm, 2:30pm) and departures all day during the summer. Departure point is Zürich Bürkliplatz.

Other things to do

Of course there are plenty of other cultural activities in Zürich, such as the theater, cinema, opera, art galleries, and concerts. You don’t have to stick to guided activities – you can visit the sights of the Walking Tour of Old Town on your own, and you can make your own day trips, for example to the Zürich Zoo, to Rhine Falls (summer), or Rapperswil town. Explore the city on free bicycles (see Overview) or find another sport to suit your fancy (for instance swimming, skating, yoga, hiking, or horseback riding) Maybe go to the spa! Families might enjoy excursions to the hand-on Technorama, the Giant Slide, or the Alpamare indoor water park.

I know that I have missed many worthwhile spots – check the Zürich Tourism website (link in Overview) or get a guidebook for more suggestions. The possibilities seem to be endless – I just wish I could have stayed longer to explore, and to share the details with others.

From journal Zürich on Foot

An overview of our time in Zurich

  • September 14, 2000
  • Rated 2 of 5 by superpurd from Williams Lake, British Columbia
Of our 4 nights in Zurich two of the days were spent elsewhere as documented in our other journals. We stayed at the Pension St. Joseph, about a half mile from the train station. Nice place, nothing too special, about $90 US per night. We walked from one end of the city to the other, there is a large lake at one end, very scenic. We went to a movie one evening as they are in English. We toured a couple of museums, the Kunsthaus, which featured artists from Rembrandt to Dali, was very good if you are into art. We toured the Grossmunster cathedral, which has two Gothic towers, which legend says was built there because Charlemagne's horse tripped there. Also toured the Fraumunster, which has stained glass windows painted by Marc Chagall. We windowshopped the Bahnhofstrasse, a very expensive street where you can buy the very best of swiss watches if your pockets are deep enough. We didn't attempt to do any fine dining, but our meals were fine, though not memorable. Maybe we missed the highlights, but we found Lucerne more interesting than Zurich.

From journal Zurich and surrounding areas

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