Not going home to Zurich

After over a month of sleeping in my own bed (for a change), it was time to move around a little bit. So last week I hopped on a train and headed back to Zurich for a quick visit.

It's always strange to go back to a former home city for the first time. It's like talking to a former boyfriend you haven't seen since the break-up. There's so much familiarity, but you know your relationship as you knew it was over. You're not sure how it will play out from here. Shut up, I never said I was good at metaphors.

Zurich is more familiar than Munich, but I don't live there any more. I'm also not Swiss, and I'm not from Zurich, so what is our relationship? Do we mean anything at all to each other now? Am I just a tourist when I go there now?

Despite my best efforts to temporarily un-degrüezi-fy my vocabulary, I seemed to be tossing around "Gruβ Gott!" left and right. I'm tempted to drop all regional greetings from my vocabulary entirely and reverting to the textbook "Guten Tag" no matter where I am...

Naturally I fit in a trip to Sprüngli to pick up some Valentine's Day truffles for my husband (hey, I'm a good wife), but the highlight of the trip was definitely seeing my Zurich-based friends. I miss them!

Definitive proof of Bavaria's culinary dominance over Zurich

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you... the cheesy pretzel.

First, Zurich's version:

A dry, almost stale pretzel which has been sliced opened, buttered, and filled with a couple of cold slices of cheese (which, as you'll notice, are nowhere near pretzel-shaped, leaving one with many bites that include only cheese or buttered cheese).

And now the Bavarian version:

A giant, fresh pretzel with... you'll never believe this was possible... cheese MELTED ON TOP OF IT! All I can say is yum yum yum yum yum yum yum. I know what I'll be living off of for the next year.

You might also notice that this Bavarian giant cheesy pretzel costs less than the regular-sized Swiss cheesy pretzel, proving that this amazing technology isn't even cost-prohibitive. I'm considering offering a scholarship to some Swiss bakers to come up here and study the top-secret cheesy pretzel methods of the Bavarians. Any takers?

Posted from Munich.

Me and the chocolate factory

After two years here, I finally made it to the Lindt & Sprüngli chocolate factory in Kilchberg, just outside of Zurich. You can't actually go inside the factory (which may or may not be run by Oompa Loompas), but you can (1) walk by it and breathe in its insanely chocolaty smells, and (2) visit the factory outlet chocolate shop.

30 minutes later, and all my Christmas shopping was done.

The factory shop has limited opening hours, so check the schedule before you go. To get there, take bus 165 from Bürkliplatz to the Schooren stop, about 10 minutes away. The bus runs as infrequently as every half hour during the day; check out sbb.ch for specific schedule info.


Posted from Thalwil.

And you thought the White Man's Overbite was an American thing

As it turns out, the Swiss are pretty good at it, too.

So tonight we went to a Wir Sind Helden concert. Now don't get me wrong - Wir Sind Helden is definitely one of my all-time favorite German-singing bands. Right up there with Xavier Naidoo and the late great Falco. But I'm not such a fan of standing in a smoke-filled crowded room listening to really loud live music while drinking 7-franc Miller Genuine Draft (an atrocity which I'm sure would never happen in Germany, but the Swiss' taste in beer is a story for another post). At least I had the good sense to hit up the coat check counter at the beginning of the encore, thus saving us an hour-long wait...

Mmmm.... winter

When we weren't pulling our hair out trying to plan travel this weekend, we were off enjoying some lovely winter-like activities. Zurich is a fabulous place to be in the winter, assuming you like, um, winter. I am sorry we will be leaving before the real winter starts, but at least we are getting a little tease now.

Fondue season was declared officially open on Saturday. I think raclette season is right around the corner. Sure we'll be bringing our fondue pot and raclette grill with us to our next home, but what if these treats don't taste as good when you're not physically located in Switzerland? Best to eat as much melted cheese as physically possible while we're still in the country, just to be safe.

On Sunday morning we woke up early and went ice skating at Dolder. Environmentalists are unhappy with the fact that Zurich's outdoor rinks have opened despite unseasonably warm weather, since it's awfully inefficient to make all that ice. But if Al Gore can travel by private jet, I certainly get to take a little spin around the ice every once in a while. It was glorious. The rink was pretty deserted for a weekend, with the exception of some intense curling (matches? games?) going on in a roped-off section of ice. Given that it was before noon, we resisted the Gluehwein on offer in the snack bar, but it was tempting...

The wintery weekend was topped off with some roasted chestnuts. Now I'm just crossing my fingers that Coop will start selling Zimtsterne before we move away. Sometimes it doesn't take very much at all to make me happy.

Links - 8 Oct 2007

• The New York Times picks up the Swiss Black Sheep story (obviously inspired by me). Also, violence erupted at a protest in Bern over the weekend.

• Check out the latest edition of the Carnival of Cities.

• Looking for a fabulous night out in Zurich? I highly recommend this exciting art opening coming up on November 2nd. :)

So you want to move to Zurich? Have I got some tips for you

Midsummer Night’s Knitter asked me a bit ago if I had any advice for someone moving to Zurich. While I certainly don’t feel like an expert on the subject, I suppose I might have some useful things to suggest after 2 years here. At least I should, shouldn't I? I mean, it would be pretty pathetic if I had spent all this time here and not learned anything useful... So here’s what I came up with:

1. Read Living and Working in Switzerland. It has its faults (like how it perpetuates scary myths about Swiss apartment house rules) but overall it’s pretty useful info to help you feel more prepared.
   
   
2. If you plan on exploring Switzerland by train (which I highly recommend), consider getting a GA card. This is something I wish we had done, but we didn’t consider it soon enough. It’s an investment, but it pays for itself if you’re a frequent traveler. Plus the money goes to a good cause (Swiss public transportation counts as a good cause in my book – I love it so much I once wrote a poem about it). Plus no buying tickets. Plus when you know the trip is already paid for, you’re more likely to jump off the couch and go get to know a new city or Alp on any given day. If you don’t get a GA, definitely get a half-fare card. These things pay for themselves with one or two trips.
   
   
3. Random grocery advice: sign up for a Migros card right away (they send you coupons for free money!); get outside the big chain supermarkets some and shop at the outdoor markets, your local Reformhaus, and specialty shops such as Asian groceries and El Maiz.
   
   
4. Zurich things to see/do at least once: Street Parade, Sechseläuten, a movie on the lake, the Kunsthaus, the food basement at Globus (the cheese counter has cheddar), the Limmat Swim, the Uetliberg, the zoo, the Christkindli Markt, ice skating, swimming in the lake, a Laughing Lemon class, museum night, the Blinde Kuh, Expovina, an evening stroll down Langstrasse.
   
   
5. Things to see/do on day or weekend trips from Zurich: a cow parade, Murren, Fribourg, Lucerne, Bern, sledding, skiing, Basel, Art Basel, the Matterhorn, Bellinzona, Lugano, Rapperswil, Milan, Strasbourg, Colmar.

I’m sure I’ll think of more to add later…

Jugendstil, Qi-Gong, and the world’s worst muffin

On Saturday night, Zurich’s museums opened their doors for the Lange Nacht der Museen, an annual affair that involves late-night openings and special events all over the city (with, of course, extremely efficient all-night public transportation connecting it all). We visited an impressive eight museums (out of 40) over the course of the evening, definitely getting our money’s worth out of the CHF 25 admission fee.

We started out at the Museum Rietberg, where we took in some Asian sculpture. Then it was across town to the Botanical Garden, which lured us in with its Slow Food exhibit. Given that we were hungry for actual food, we kind of hurried through the exhibit (stopping to sample many varieties of tomatoes at one display on the way) and headed to our next stop, the Museum Bellerive. In addition to a lovely Jugendstil exhibit inside, the courtyard of the museum was turned into a Bavarian beer garden for the evening. We filled up on pretzels, salads, sausages, and beer, took a quick spin around the inside of the museum, and then wandered towards the Chinagarten. A gift from one of Zurich’s sister cities, the Chinagarten is a lovely little oasis hidden behind a big brick wall. There we watched some martial arts demonstrations before moving on yet again.

Next up was the Johann Jacobs Museum, a tiny place where you can learn all about coffee. Well, a little about coffee. A short tram ride later and we were at the Mühlerama, a popular destination featuring a (disappointing) chocolate fountain, baked goods, and an exhibition about fat in all its incarnations. After reading about America’s contribution to the fat world (olestra, which according to the display causes one to lose control over a certain vital bodily function) and daring each other to go listen to what the beer belly had to say, we decided we’d had enough fat education for one evening.

Next it was on to the NONAM, or Native American museum (who knew Zurich had such a thing?), which I will now always remember for (1) the hideously acted old western film they were showing in the courtyard, and (2) the hideous-tasting pumpkin muffin that we made the mistake of purchasing there. The evening’s grand finale (for us, anyway) took place at the Kunsthaus, Zurich’s main art museum. We took in the current exhibit and checked out the tragically hip disco before yawning our way home to bed. Zurich's museum night gets my full endorsement - fun stuff!

Floating through the city

After two years of cancellation, Zurich’s annual Limmat River Swim was finally able to take place yesterday. The weather was gloriously sunny, making us oh-so-excited to jump in the cool water for a leisurely float through the city.

The event was extremely well organized (as we should have expected). We purchased our 27-franc tickets near the start and then went to the Frauenbad to get ready to go. We placed all of our clothes and other belongings into numbered plastic bags; these bags went onto a boat that beat us to the finish line, meaning our things were conveniently waiting for us on arrival. We were also given numbered wristbands (so we could retrieve the correct bags) and round floaty things to take with us on our swim.

There was an MC broadcasting over a loud speaker system, narrating exciting stuff such as ‘the next group is getting ready to go’ and interviewing participants about whether it was their first time ‘dabii’. When it was time for our group to start, we took our floaty things and jumped in. The river gently carried us in the right direction, and we were left to enjoy the effort-free ride.

Several spectators looked on from the river banks and bridges in places, but mostly it was a quiet, tranquil journey through the heart of the city. We floated peacefully past the Grossmunster, the Hauptbahnhof, and all of Zurich’s other landmarks. It was a lot of fun to see the city from a new angle (unfortunately we don’t own a waterproof camera, so no swimmer’s-eye-view pics).

At the end (which came all too soon), we collected our things and changed out of our bathing suits in the makeshift changing rooms (public buses with the windows covered over). Then we went to find out what free stuff was waiting for us – a souvenir glass, a bottle of Rivella, and a veggie burger (or sausage). And as if that wasn’t enough, we got to keep our floaty things, too.

All in all it was a really nice way to spend a sunny afternoon (and I’m not just saying that because there was free stuff). It's definitely something I'd do again.

Fondling food in the darkness

Last night we crossed another item off the things-we-should-do-in-Switzerland-but-haven't-gotten-around-to-yet list: dining in the dark. Apparently dark restaurants are becoming quite trendy these days, but Zurich's Blinde Kuh (German for 'Blind Cow') was the very first of them.

I found myself giddily excited while anticipating the evening, something which almost never happens to me. We arrived at the church-like restaurant and placed our bags, umbrellas, and cell phones (anything with a light is banned) into lockers in the entry way. In the (well-lit) foyer, we were told to choose our food from a menu projected onto the wall. We were also told our server's name (Elisabeth), and instructed to call out for her if we ever needed anything once inside. We then lined up conga-style to be led into the darkness.

We were led through one set of heavy curtains to a slightly darkened area, where our waitress and guide paused to let us adjust a bit and talk to us (she started in Swiss German but was happy to switch to High German or English for us). She reiterated that we should call her name and wait for an answer if we needed anything, and to let her know immediately if we didn't feel well, and she could lead us out. The suggestion that I might be going into a situation that would cause me to feel unwell set my brain into a little panic - why wouldn't we feel well? Do lots of people not feel well inside? What's not to feel well about? Do I feel well now?

And then we went onwards, through a couple more sets of heavy curtains, into the dark. We could hear the noises of people eating and chatting away all around us as Elisabeth led us to our table and then one by one to our chairs. We giggled nervously and got a feel for where each of our dining companions were sitting based on the locations of their voices. We felt the table in front of us to discover silverware and napkins (which we all tucked into our shirt fronts to avoid losing - since no one could see how silly we looked, anyway). I kept expecting my eyes to adjust, but of course they never did. The darkness was so all-encompassing that it made me feel claustrophobic, like I was trapped under a heavy blanket that I couldn't escape from. But just for a second or two. After that it was fun. And dark.

We ordered into the darkness and waited for our food to, well, appear. I could smell the wine as it was put down in front of us. Plates came next, with a few words of description from Elisabeth, but it was awfully daunting to actually start eating. Some people gave up on their forks right away, and just used their hands. I managed reasonably well with my fork, although every once in a while I'd get a little freaked out by the mystery food it delivered to my mouth. I was halfway through my dish of mushroom ravioli before I realized that there was also steamed broccoli and roasted tomatoes on the plate. Surprise!

Once we were ready to go, we had to call out for the waitress several times before she appeared to lead us out. While waiting for her, we came up with various theories as to why she wasn't responding... was she collapsed in a corner somewhere, but nobody could see her? Had we inadvertently offended her, and as payback she was going to leave us there all night? We decided we wouldn't start panicking and trying to crawl our way out until we stopped hearing the voices of the other guests around us.

I found myself grateful that we were at this particular style of dark restaurant, where the wait staff is actually blind (and not wearing night-vision goggles so they can watch your feeble attempts to get your food into your mouth) and the room is actually dark (had we just been blindfolded, the temptation to peek at the food or the room would have been irresistible).

The experience didn't come cheap - our bill came out to around CHF 70 per person for two courses, wine, and water. The food was reasonably tasty - nothing fabulous, but certainly edible. I'd definitely recommend trying it once. Go with people whom you don't mind touching. Or whom you're looking for an excuse to touch.

Despite rumors about months-long waits, we were able to get dinner reservations at Blinde Kuh just a week in advance (perhaps because it's vacation season?). The website also says that lunch reservations are easy to get on the fly, and there's even a Blinde Kuh bar for those interested in the dark thing, but not ready to commit to a whole meal. There's a second restaurant in Basel, too.

Zurich turns into one big party

Saturday was Zurich's annual Street Parade, a gigantic techno party which takes over all of downtown. In addition to the parade with floats blaring out dance music, there were several stages with DJs blaring out dance music, and pretty much every restaurant and bar in the downtown area seemed to have hired a DJ to blare out dance music. I guess what I'm trying to say here is, there was a lot of dance music. Attendees were all decked out in their clubbing finest, and they made it clear that despite recent events, Zurich actually likes bare boobies.



In the afternoon we went out to people-watch, take photos and mingle amongst the 800,000 or so revelers. The atmosphere was for the most part cheerful and drunken, although we did see one fight break out (unfortunately there were others, including a fatal stabbing, during the day). We then met up with some friends to party on into the night (which included a ferris wheel ride, a little dancing, and a whole lot of techno music). Usually we're not the late-night partying type, but on the rare occasion that the Zurich trams run all night, one just has to take advantage.



It's such a change to see Zurich be so loud, so colorful, and so dirty. Of course clean up was quick - the clean up crews were out in full force before we even made it home, and the city was back to normal by Sunday afternoon. There is talk about this being the last Street Parade, since the organizers are having difficulty finding sponsors. I certainly hope that's not the case. Street Parade is definitely my favorite Zurich celebration. What can I say? I prefer hot pink feather boas and sparkly platform shoes to alphorns and old men on horses.

More Street Parade 2007 photos here.

Zurich Public Transport: 0, Mariachis: 2

For those of you following the Zurich trams vs. mariachis story with baited breath, here's your long-awaited update. According to this morning's 20 Minuten (which, in addition to The Daily Show, is the source of all my daily news intake), the VBZ has finally relented and pulled the commercial featuring mariachis busking on a tram. The capitulation occurred after complaints from the Mexican embassy. How often do foreign embassies in your country have to complain to the local public transportation authorities?

***

In other news (also brought to us, naturally, by 20 Minuten), a local woman was kicked out of a Zurich restaurant for breastfeeding. And here I was thinking that this sort of thing only happened in boobie-fearing America. Alas, even the Swiss are now getting offended by mothers feeding their children.

If you take away one message from today's post, please make it this: breasts cannot hurt you. Even when they're in your extended visual field, the chances of you catching cooties from them is virtually zero. (OK, so I don't have any scientific studies to back this claim up. Any scienticians out there looking for a new research study topic?)

Zurich: upcoming events

Just in case you find yourself in Zurich in the month of August, I figured I'd share some upcoming events we're looking forward to...

Street Parade - Time to break out the peacock-feather pasties, boys and girls! This coming Saturday, downtown Zurich will turn into one great big techno dance party, with floats, costumes, and music thumping louder than your heartbeat. The people-watching is divine. Some more photos from last year's event to whet your appetite...

Limmat River Swim - this elusive event has been canceled due to inclement weather for the last two years. Given the way this summer has been going, it's hard to count on it happening this year, either, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. From what I hear it's really more floating than swimming, and a whole lot of easy-going summer fun.

Lucerne Festival Street Music - not quite Zurich (but not very far away, either), Lucerne will be filled with free music every evening from Aug 21-26 as the "crème de la crème of the world's buskers" perform. I wonder if there will be any mariachis?

A snack with a view

Back in Zurich, more guests to entertain. This time we opted for a trip up the Zürichberg, the mountain which borders Zurich on the east (take tram 6 from the main station). Although less celebrated than the Uetliberg to the west, the Zürichberg can be entertaining, too. The zoo is up there, as are several hiking trails, not to mention some gigantic houses with incredible views of the city and the lake.

A short uphill walk from the tram stop and you're at the Hotel Zürichberg, a swank place with a snooty restaurant and stylish bar. Both the bar and the restaurant have terraces that boast the lovely lake view. On a clear day you can see all the way to the snow-capped Alps.

We snagged front-row seats on the bar's terrace and ordered from the extensive ice cream menu. I went with the pear sorbet in williamine, a strong, clear, pear-flavored liquor similar to kirsch. Given how liberal they were with the williamine, the price was actually pretty reasonable, too. Or maybe I've just lived in Zurich too long and have lost all perspective on reasonable pricing. At any rate, it was a lovely way to spend an hour on a pleasant Saturday afternoon.

I've seen the Simpsons movie and you haven't

Or maybe you have. But we did get to see it on opening night, which here in Switzerland is a whole day earlier than in the US. International movie releases sure have come a long way since my Germany days, when films were released in the theaters long after they had gone to video in the US (note: video is what existed before DVDs. Remember?).

We had to shop around (online, about a week ago) to make sure we found a theater showing it in English, but luckily that wasn't too difficult in Zurich. The Simpsons just isn't the same in translation - in German, Homer says "nein!" instead of "d'oh!" That's just not right.

The movie was pretty good. Lots of little inside jokes for those of us loyal fans who spent most of our twenties memorizing each and every episode. Stay put for the credits - lots of extra little funny bits are in there all the way until the bitter, pimply end. Oh, and before you see it, go play the games on the official movie website, and make yourself into a Simspons character (like I did).

Zurich plagued by underwear-clad teens

The headline on the front page of 20 Minuten this morning announced Zurich's latest crisis - Public baths: trouble due to underwear trend. Naturally I snatched up a paper and began reading furiously, hoping to learn more about this disturbing story. Here is a summary of what I learned.

Apparently, it has become fashionable among teenage boys to wear boxer shorts underneath their shorts-style bathing suits while swimming at the city's numerous badi (public beaches and pools). "Why is this a problem?" you ask? Simply put, "Das ist unhygenisch," at least according to several of the city's bademeister (pool attendants). One bademeister went on to explain, "You never know when those underwear were last in the washing machine." The same boys' ability to keep their bathing suits (or their bodies) clean, however, was not called into question.

Basel is far ahead of Zurich in fighting this hazard, having already instigated a poster campaign against swimming in the boxers + bathing suit combo. The Zurich officials are just not cooperating, laments one local bademeister, who has decided to take the law into his own hands and eject offenders from his pool on the spot (he also makes use of his "good eye" to distinguish today's modern bathing suit styles from actual shorts - not an easy task for the untrained, apparently). Until he has succeeded in eradicating all the offenders, though, I can only beg you, dear readers, to inform yourself of the risks before swimming in the badi of Zurich. Or better yet, head to Basel. It's safer there.

Trams vs. Mariachis, round two

This commercial has started playing before movies in theaters around Zurich:



A little background, for those who are not up-to-date on the Zurich Public Transport (VBZ) vs. Mariachis saga: Back in early 2006, Zurich officially banned mariachis from trams with this sign. After numerous protests from individuals and the Mexican consulate, the signs were replaced a few months later. VBZ was out a little money, and had looked a little foolish. And it appeared that the issue was dead.

But apparently someone at the VBZ loves ethnic stereotypes of Mexicans sooooo much that they just couldn't resist revisiting the topic with this brand new commercial (which, despite how it may seem, is not inviting mariachis to start performing on trams. The VBZ is still firmly against buskers of all ethnicities.) The Mexican consulate is investigating.

What do you think: offensive stereotyping or good clean mariachi fun?

Toodling around Zurich

Can you believe it has been almost a month since I left Zurich last? My travel schedule slows down considerably in the summer, since I'm not a big fan of the heat (or moving around in the heat). It works out just fine this way, since the summer tends to be when other people want to come visit us. So I've been entertaining guests and trying to make Zurich look interesting even in the dreary, rainy weather we have been having (which, for the record, I absolutely love). Here's a sampling of what we've been up to:

• Beer Exhibit at Mühlerama, an old (and still functional) mill in the Seefeld neighborhood of Zurich. The beer exhibit taught me that I've got male taste buds. You can pretend you're a sack of freshly-milled flour and ride down the flour slide. Good times.

• Barefoot bar hopping - it may have been too cold to swim for most of the summer so far, but luckily the Badi (public baths) around Lake Zurich double as hip outdoor bars at night. They are referred to as 'barefoot' bars because you aren't supposed to wear street shoes inside; also you can sit on the edge of the dock and dip your feet in the lake (but no nightswimming allowed).

• Up the Uetliberg - this is obviously more fun in decent weather, but the day we chose to do it was clear enough to have a decent view, and we only got rained on a little bit. At the top there's a playground, several restaurants with great views, and some hiking trails. Take the S10 from the main station.

• Chilbi - this is the insanely unpronounceable Swiss German word for 'carnival' (if I even attempt to say it, I get a sore throat - that initial 'ch' requires some effort). Late one evening a friend and I ventured into the one at Bellevueplatz for a quick spin on the big swing ride. Good old-fashioned fun. The roving gangs of teenagers must have been wondering what us old ladies were doing out there in their territory.

• Swimming! The past couple days have actually been hot and summer-like, which is good in a way because it gave us a chance to go for a swim in the lake, one of my favorite activities in Zurich. The scenery is so perfect it looks like a matte painting film backdrop. And the water is so clean and clear that it feels downright healthy to be swimming around in. Or something.

A little bit of Züri Fäscht

OK, I admit it. I'm old and lame. I didn't do any all-night partying, despite the fact that the trams were running all night long and the Fäscht officially ended at 5 AM each morning. I skipped the choreographed fireworks and the air-guitar contest (this is probably my biggest regret). But I'm just not a crowd person. And quite frankly, Züri Fäscht ended up resembling many of the minor Zurich festivals I've already attended over the years (OK, the year and a half), but bigger - the same sausage stands, the same beer, the same Paris Hilton brand prosecco-in-a-can. Which reminds me... Zurich, you need to get some standards when it comes to prosecco in a can. It's hurting your otherwise pristine image. Danke.



I did end up seeing several air shows, a motorcycle jumping thing, and a whole lot of crowds. And the bouncy kid area looked like it would have been a blast, were I about 7 years old.



More of our pictures here. Check out Jill's pictures and videos to see what more adventurous people saw at the Fäscht.

Zurich gets ready to party

It's time for the Züri Fäscht, a gigantic festival which takes over downtown Zurich once every four years. Bratwurst stands, concert stages, carnival rides, and caipirinha stands have sprouted up all over the place in anticipation of an estimated 2 million visitors this weekend. For a city with a population of less than 400,000, that's a whole lot of people.

The official website, despite its oh-so-handy countdown clock, is relatively void of information, since the organizers are dead set on selling everyone 5-franc information booklets with the schedule of events. With succulent offerings such as an air guitar contest and a giant slip-and-slide competition, I expect this book to be worth every rappen. Or not. I'll let you know.