More than halfway done, we head west to Zurich

The train to Zurich was to leave early the next morning. With that in mind, I booked us first class tickets so we could enjoy reserved seating for 778 kms trip (estimated to take 8h23min). That might have been an April Fools joke and the joke was on us.

There was an issue with our connecting train. We managed to get to our first stop, Salzburg, just in time to not miss our connection. We had 7 minutes, not one to spare. But our train left late because there were some mechanical issues. Then in Salzburg, they told us to get on another train that was leaving for Zurich soon. In effect, we were boarding a double-booked train. So much for the 1st class reserved seats. We were lucky to get a seat at all and that was in the dining lounge. Our server did explain that we could sit as long as we ordered something. So that’s how we ended up day-drinking. Oh we did order a meal too, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. And we made new friends from Slovenia who were in the same situation as us and headed even further to Lucerne. We had a rollicking time, with some awesome sights of the Alps along the way as I visited Switzerland for the first time. Towards the end of the trip, our Slovenian friend brought out a bottle of liqueur made with honey and apples. I politely joined the small group, including our now off-duty server, for a toast. Let’s just say that this version of strong mead may not be on my shopping list.

We finally arrived in Zurich, about 3 hours late, and found our hotel near the train station. Like the one in Vienna, this was a fully automated accommodation. The location was perfect for visiting Zurich on foot and taking a day trip to Lucerne. We only had 2 full days to get all that travel in. But after checking in, we at least took a nice walk around our neighbourhood to see if there were any good restaurants about. We found that we were very near a former military barracks and likely an interesting historical building, but it was all closed for renovations, save the open-air parade grounds that seemed to be housing a circus. Time enough to explore the next day.

We took the train to Lucerne the following day. Our friend Grayson was meeting us late in the morning. It was going into Easter holidays now, so he was able to get away from his work in Basel. The train ride is short, 50 min, about 1 km per minute. About $2CDN per kilometer! Yikes! Grayson had warned us that Switzerland was expensive! It’s mostly that they don’t use Euros and their currency is strong compared to ours.

Lucerne is breathtaking! The lake end, the mountains, the old buildings all look like a postcard. It was just a delight to walk around. In no time, I was ready to stop for lunch and we found a lovely restaurant on the waterfront. The sun was returning and it was nice to sit outside. As the waiter came up to us for our order, a young woman rushed up too. It was Eva, our new Slovenian friend from the train. The waiter is her brother. He was her reason for the visit to Lucerne. Small world category!

After lunch, there was more wandering and I managed to buy some souvenir yarn in a local shop. The yarn is from Denmark. Perhaps they don’t have local yarn dyers in Lucerne? Perhaps tourists don’t ask for yarn as their souvenir of choice? Anyway, the guys waited patiently while I made my purchase, then we continued our walk along the other side of the train station on the lakefront. Later in the afternoon, we made our way back to the train station to return to Zurich and bid So long to Grayson. At least until he visits Vancouver again.

On our last day in Zurich, we walked all through the old town, along the lakefront, even taking a short boat cruise. The cruise in question was actually a commuter boat that made 4 stops at different parts of the extended city. I was not expecting Zurich to look like an old European city. Knowing that banking and industry are what drive the Swiss economy, I expected skyscrapers, a bit like Melbourne. We did walk past the large Swiss banks, which are stately old buildings, reminding me of the Bank of Montreal building in Old Montreal and we did see a Google campus which was housed in new low rise buildings near the train station. All in all, Zurich was not what I expected and I will have to return to explore more Swiss cities.