In Zurich, the financial capital of Switzerland, the first thing you notice is not the banks or the watch shops that make it famous, but the water. Lake Zurich and the Limmat, which divide the city, are the main attraction in this enclave. A great place with a view of the lake is the Bernadette restaurant next to the opera house. Through the windows you can see his picture, surrounded by the hills of Üetliberg. Sailboats and ferries navigate the waters, dodging the canoes and stand-up paddleboarders who spend the day enjoying the sport. On one side the city; on the other side the Alps and in between the many fairytale towns on Lake Zurich.
The elegant Bahnhofstrasse was built in 1864 where the old walls once stood. Its length is just over a kilometer and is primarily home to jewelry and watch shops, which become more exclusive and therefore more expensive as they get closer to the lake, where the privileged street practically ends.
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What is surprising is the network of blue and white trams that circulate through the streets and are grouped at Paradeplatz, surrounded by buildings like the Savoy Hotel or the Credit Suisse Gallery. To start exploring the city, it is recommended to get on tram number 4 with the tourist card, as the tracks run parallel to the Limmat and the windows offer a beautiful view of the old town. You can see the image of the legendary Hotel Storchen, the clock tower and the Lindenhof. When you get off the tram on the way to the sustainable and pleasant Hotel Marktgasse, you pass a café that attracts attention: the Cabaret Voltaire. Born as the cradle of Dadaism, it was founded in 1916 by Hugo Ball and Emmy Hennings and was a meeting place for followers of the cultural movement that preached spontaneity, anarchy versus order, and imperfection versus perfection. Even today it is still in its original corner and welcomes Dada friends.
A tram runs along Bahnhofstrasse, one of the main streets in Zurich.Brigitte Blättler (Getty Images (Getty Images)
However, it is not the only place in Zurich that has a surprise in store. You will be amazed when you enter the Kronenhalle bar-restaurant on Rämistrasse, which is lined with art galleries, and notice that there is an original by Picasso, Chagall or Miro hanging on the walls. The explanation is simple. The city was a meeting place for writers, actors, musicians and painters. During their bohemian experiences, some of these artists paid off their debts with the works that transformed the restaurant into a small museum where, by the way, you can taste excellent Swiss cuisine, such as Zurich Geschnetzelte with sauce.
Pictures hang on the walls of the Kronenhalle Bar in Zurich (Switzerland).
Famous Cafés: Dating back to 1911, the Odeon was the first to offer champagne by the glass, when it was frequented by scientists of the caliber of Albert Einstein, politicians and businessmen. When World War II broke out, the clientele became emigrants, including James Joyce, who adored Zurich – he wrote part of his “Ulysses” here – Klaus Mann and many others who sought refuge in the welcoming Swiss city. The trick of the unexpected lies in the Zurich police station, a former orphanage. The building in question was so gloomy that in 1922 the city council held a competition to paint the lobby. The winner was none other than Augusto Giacometti, who joyfully covered the walls with a mix of ochre, orange and red tones, representing stonemasons, carpenters but also astronomers and magicians in honor of work and science. Locals call this place “Blüemlihalle” (“Hall of Small Flowers” in Spanish) because of the countless floral patterns it also displays.
The river seen from the pier of the Hotel Zum Storchen in Zurich.Dukas (Getty Images) (Universal Images Group via Getty)
In streets
Walking through the winding streets of the old town is like entering a quiet place where you can experience the quality of life that Zurich has to offer. Its residents enjoy their city with a calm appearance. You stop at the fresh bread shop, buy cheese at the stalls of the many markets or play giant chess at the Lindenhof, from where you can enjoy panoramic views of the river and the city. Zurich lacks nothing. There are even urban vineyards. It's not a bad idea to try a creamy cheese fondue at the Milk Bar and then enjoy the Landolt wine tasting, whose vineyards are located in the heart of the city on the slopes of the Renaissance church of Enge, from where you can enjoy more beautiful views. And to enjoy purely Swiss products, they are served in the Rechberg Restaurant. Its building, dating from 1837, houses an exquisitely decorated place whose gastronomy is limited only to what could be grown, fished or hunted in Switzerland that year and eschews any foreign gastronomic elements.
To continue with the first impressions, we have to include the bags and backpacks that most Zurich women carry. They are an eye-catcher because the material looks like rubber and the shapes are modern but simple. The bags from Freitag are very trendy, their warehouse made of stacked containers is located in the avant-garde and fashionable district of western Zurich, under whose railway viaduct there are around 50 shops, each one even more attractive.
three jewels
There are three other important visits for a first experience in Zurich. The first, sweet and educational, is located a little away from the center: it is the Lindt Home of Chocolate, which welcomes visitors with a nine-meter-high chocolate fountain. And then he immerses you in the exciting history of cacao, the seed of the gods, from its beginnings to the stimulating snack it is today.
You also have to visit the Kunsthaus Museum in Zurich, a real revelation. Switzerland's most important museum is independent and committed to artistic freedom and is continually expanding its existing areas. The original museum, the work of architects Karl Moser and Robert Curjel, was built on Hemplatz in 1910 and features Rodin's Gates of Hell and Moore's reclining figure at the entrance. In 2021, it carried out one of its expansions, adding the new art house designed by architect David Chipperfield. The marble tunnel that connects one museum to another is impressive. The new collection features, among others, the largest collection of Edvard Munch outside Norway as well as impressionists such as Marc Chagall and Claude Monet. Of note are the numerous paintings by Pablo Picasso in his collection; a journey through his creative phases that include blue, pink, cubism and neoclassicism. There are the secessionists Max Beckmann, Lovis Corinth and Oskar Kokoschka as well as works by Richard Hamilton and Andy Warhol. Dazzling would be the adjective for the light installation by Pipilotti Rist, as well as for the works of the Swiss painter and sculptor Alberto Giacometti.
“The Boy in the Red Vest” by Paul Cézanne at the Kunsthaus Zurich. ARND WIEGMANN (AFP / Getty Image (AFP via Getty Images)
The towers of the Großmünsterdom, seen standing upright in the river photo, are worth a visit to complete a journey of first impressions in a city to which we must return.
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