We only had a couple of days to spend in Zurich, but we made the most of it. To begin our time, we met up with a friend of Shawn and Sarah Cothran's named Daniel Hofer. He was kind enough to take a train to Zurich, even though he doesn't live there, and show us around a bit. A highlight of our afternoon was our time at the Grossmunster church which sits on Zwingliplatz. Don't forget about the great reformer Huldrych Zwingli, everybody. The church was beautiful, and the stained glass windows were particularly amazing. There were no photos allowed inside, but these are online.
I was particularly struck by this one, as it features silhouettes of faces and chalices in between the faces. We enjoyed reading the information material about all the windows. Daniel was so gracious to walk around the city with us to help us get our bearings, and he even bought our afternoon coffees.
We convinced him to allow us to buy his dinner at a Lonely Planet recommendation that didn't disappoint. As we were finishing dinner and getting ready to walk back to the main train station (HBF) where he would catch a train home and we would catch a city train to our apartment, he gave us an Easter basket full of Lindt chocolate. Talk about a wonderful act of hospitality.
The next day, Gracyn was feeling a bit under the weather, so we decided to spend the morning resting. In the afternoon, we explored the city some more and eventually made our way to the National Museum, which is an really interesting building in and of itself. Our favorite exhibit centered around paper cutting. The intricate designs and beautiful scenes were amazing. We also spent some quality time looking at a painting and a tapestry that were supplemented with audio narration and coordinated lighting that highlighted various sections as they were described. I want an entire museum featuring that technology.
In the evening, we went to a fondue place, as Daniel said that's a favorite local dish. For something that's basically melted cheese, bread, and potatoes, it sure did take a long time to arrive at the table, and then when the bill came, we learned that the price in the menu is per person. No worries, though, as it was quite tasty.
The following morning, we had planned to go to the Kunsthaus museum, because it was free on Wednesdays. Once we were in there, with our included audioguides, we decided to stay longer than we had planned and catch a later train to Munich (the joy of the Eurail pass). The museum had works of art by Van Goch, Andy Warhol, Monet, Manet, and a bunch of other artists I'm sure we should know about. Alan's favorite piece was the one that's made of black dice.
This was the point in our trip when spring seemed to arrive, and for that we are extremely thankful. Hopefully you'll be seeing more short sleeves and less Smartwool from now on.
I was particularly struck by this one, as it features silhouettes of faces and chalices in between the faces. We enjoyed reading the information material about all the windows. Daniel was so gracious to walk around the city with us to help us get our bearings, and he even bought our afternoon coffees.
We convinced him to allow us to buy his dinner at a Lonely Planet recommendation that didn't disappoint. As we were finishing dinner and getting ready to walk back to the main train station (HBF) where he would catch a train home and we would catch a city train to our apartment, he gave us an Easter basket full of Lindt chocolate. Talk about a wonderful act of hospitality.
The next day, Gracyn was feeling a bit under the weather, so we decided to spend the morning resting. In the afternoon, we explored the city some more and eventually made our way to the National Museum, which is an really interesting building in and of itself. Our favorite exhibit centered around paper cutting. The intricate designs and beautiful scenes were amazing. We also spent some quality time looking at a painting and a tapestry that were supplemented with audio narration and coordinated lighting that highlighted various sections as they were described. I want an entire museum featuring that technology.
In the evening, we went to a fondue place, as Daniel said that's a favorite local dish. For something that's basically melted cheese, bread, and potatoes, it sure did take a long time to arrive at the table, and then when the bill came, we learned that the price in the menu is per person. No worries, though, as it was quite tasty.
The following morning, we had planned to go to the Kunsthaus museum, because it was free on Wednesdays. Once we were in there, with our included audioguides, we decided to stay longer than we had planned and catch a later train to Munich (the joy of the Eurail pass). The museum had works of art by Van Goch, Andy Warhol, Monet, Manet, and a bunch of other artists I'm sure we should know about. Alan's favorite piece was the one that's made of black dice.
This was the point in our trip when spring seemed to arrive, and for that we are extremely thankful. Hopefully you'll be seeing more short sleeves and less Smartwool from now on.
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