View towards the Limmatquai from the Bahnhofbrücke
Looking upriver along the Limmat
This is the second of two pages documenting our trip to Switzerland. Click here to go to the first page.
On August 4, 2019, we left Neuchâtel in the afternoon and drove to Zurich. We had reserved a hotel near the airport so as not to have to drive into the city. The downside was that we were in the middle of nowhere; to grab a bite to eat, we had to take a streetcar to the airport. However, the entire next day was reserved for sightseeing in Zurich. In the morning, we strolled along the Limmat and explored the Niederdorf. We had lunch off the Bahnhofstrasse and later on met my high school friend Hanspeter by the lake. Hanspeter has lived in Zurich for many years and was therefore the perfect tour guide. Among many other things, he showed us the beautiful Chagall stained glass windows in the Fraumünster where I managed to sneak a forbidden photo shooting blind from the hip. I continue to be amazed how many places forbid photography even when no flash is used. By late afternoon, Hanspeter's wife Caroline joined us and we went back to the Niederdorf for a wonderful al fresco dinner during which we got the first few raindrops of this trip. There were to be many more during the next two days!
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View towards the Limmatquai from the Bahnhofbrücke |
Looking upriver along the Limmat |
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The Mühlesteg is one of the footbridges spanning the Limmat |
The building of the regional police Zurich City on the Bahnhofquai |
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View towards the Lindenhof terrace and the St. Peter church tower |
Looking down the Stüssihofstatt in the Niederdorf |
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Walking up the Rindermarkt |
The Predigergasse... |
...leads to the side of the Predigerkirche. |
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In the old town |
The Grossmünster |
Cat ladder on the Lindenhof |
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Wine bar in the Glockengasse |
Back on the Limmatquai |
The Fraumünster from the Münsterbrücke |
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Chagall windows in the Fraumünster |
Münsterhof |
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Looking southeast from the Lindenhof terrace |
Looking northeast from the Lindenhof terrace |
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Strolling south along the Schanzengrabenpromenade |
Strolling north along the Schanzengrabenpromenade |
When we left Zurich in the morning of August 6, it was coming down in buckets, and only as we gained altitude on our way to the Grisons did the rain abate and we began to see light gray, and eventually even blue patches of sky. By the time we arrived in Klosters, the rain had stopped completely. We had booked a very nice, simple hotel, but due to some noisy construction nearby, they sent us to what is probably the best place in town, the amazing Hotel Vereina, of course at no extra charge. No, we didn't mind (they asked!). We had lunch (a very tasty Wurstsalat) at a place called "Al Capone" (really!) before exploring the village. The hotel had given us a complimentary public transportation pass that included railway service to Davos, postal buses, and even aerial trams and other means of transportation to nearby mountaintops. We chose to take advantage of this by riding up to Gotschnagrat from where we enjoyed a fabulous view onto the valley far below. When we got back down to Klosters (1,090 meters or 3,577 feet below), we took the postal bus to Serneus where we met my cousin Béa and Tasso for coffee and cake before savoring a delightful dinner at the Hotel Alpina.
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The view from our hotel window onto the Bahnhofstrasse |
Looking north from our hotel room |
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The Chesa Grischuna hotel |
The Al Capone where we had lunch |
The Vereina Hotel, our Klosters home |
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The sitting area in our hotel room |
The hotel lobby |
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Walking through the village |
The hotel Alpina where we had dinner with my cousin Béa |
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Ascending to Gotschnagrat (photo by Vicki) |
Our gondola has made it all the way to the top |
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On Gotschnagrat (2,281 meters or 7,484 feet above sea level) |
Boarding the cable car for the journey down |
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Almost back in Klosters at 1,191 meters (3,907 feet) above sea level |
Beautiful old village house in Serneus |
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From Serneus, one has gorgeous views onto the mountains |
Stopping in the Vereina breakfast room before driving to Lugano |
For August 7, we had planned to drive through the Engadin, take the Maloja Pass, cross the border into Italy, drive along Lake Como until Menaggio and from there head west, cross back into Switzerland, and reach Lugano that way. Alas, the weather forecasts was truly awful, and so we chose to take the shortest possible route to Lugano, the San Bernardino Tunnel. It was drizzling until we entered the tunnel, but when we exited on the other side, it was raining extremely hard, there were patches of dense fog, and visibility was extremely poor. The windshield wipers of our rental car were barely able to cope with the amount of water that came down. Except for the fog, this weather stayed with us all the way into Lugano. Only after lunch did it ease up enough for us to walk through town and take in some sights. We awoke the next morning to beautiful sunshine and clear skies, and this allowed us to enjoy a bit more of this lovely town. Afterwards, we checked out of our hotel, filled up the car, and headed back to Cannes where we arrived in the early afternoon. What a fun journey! At all times, we just did whatever we felt like, and this, combined with beautiful sights, fond memories, and old friends, made this trip special.
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On the Piazzetta Emilio Maraini |
Lugano Arte e Cultura (LAC) |
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Strolling along... |
... the Lugano lakefront. |
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Along the Riva Vincenzo Vela |
The Villa Ciani in Parco Ciani |
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Lovely iron gate to the lake |
By the lake in Ciani parc |
In the Via Nassa |
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On the Piazza Riforma |
The fountain on the Piazza Riziero Rezzonico |
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The lakefront looks more inviting when the sun is shining! |
The San Lorenzo cathedral |
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Spending a little bit of time... |
...enjoying the beautiful lakefront... |
...promenade in the sun. |
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This is how far we got before we had to head back to check out |
A last look at the Piazza Riziero Rezzonico |
The photos on this page were taken between August 5 and 8, 2019 with our Fujifilm X100s.
This is the second of two pages documenting our trip to Switzerland. Click here to go to the first page.
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