Road Trip – Zurich, Switzerland

Zurich, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways…

It’s not your size. Although you are the largest city in Switzerland, the truth is you are quite small. Still, you’re wonderful!

Perhaps, it’s your famous shopping street: Bahnhofstrasse. Your bank vaults are located below the street and are rumored to be bursting with gold and silver!

Or maybe it’s Jemoli, your high-end department store? Jemoli covers the gamut. The grocery section is in the basement and the top floor houses a spa.

Naturally, beautiful Lake Zurich adds to your appeal.

Your many sweet shops tickle my fancy.

And that’s okay, because culturally you enjoy your sweets regularly, but responsibly. My kind of people!

We were caught up in all your delights when we wandered into Cafe Schober, where we enjoyed the best hot chocolate in town. Quite an accolade, considering the Swiss reputation for chocolate.

Your St. Peter’s church boasts the largest clock face in all of Europe. A testament to your skill at watch-making and a reminder that G and I each should own a Rolex!

And your houses of worship inspire more than thoughts of worldly goods – like a Rolex. Zurich, at every turn you give your residents something more, something special. Like your Fraumünster Abbey (Church of Our Lady) above, which contains a complete set of Marc Chagall stained-glass windows that are considered some of the artist’s best work. The Fraumünster is a place of worship and as such, photographs are not permitted.

And if the Chagall windows and large clocks aren’t enough, there’s your Grossmünster Cathedral with its iconic twin towers.

Legend has it that Charlemagne himself founded the church on the burial site of the martyrs, Felix and Regina. The legend supports the idea that Grossmünster is Zurich’s oldest church. FYI: Archaeologists have confirmed the presence of a Roman burial ground at the site.

Not to be outdone, Grossmünster has its own impressive collection of modern stained-glass windows by Swiss artist Augusto Giacometti.The window above the main entrance, gives a small glimpse of what a visitor can expect to see inside. This window depicts images of the inside of sliced, semi-precious stones. The window reminded me of D, who I think would really love it.

But enough about churches. What is there to say about a city that elevates a lowly bowl of muesli to an art form? Zurich, what have you done to me? I’m waxing rhapsodic about Cafe Sprüngli’s cereal masterpiece!

And don’t even get me started on Hiltl, Europe’s oldest vegetarian restaurant founded – as a vegetarian restaurant – in 1898.

I’m overcome with sheer delight and left speechless (wordless?) at the thought of the restaurant’s vegetarian beef stroganoff. I think I may have heard an otherworldly chorus of “hallelujah” when the dish was placed before me.

Zurich, you are so special that Ireland’s son, the great James Joyce, wrote his magnum opus “Ulysses” here. So grateful was the pacifist for Zurich’s neutrality during WWI and the refuge the city offered him that he chose to spend eternity here in Fluntern Cemetary.

For these reasons, and many more like:

– The Swiss quality of life ranks highest among all industrialized nations with Zurich in the top spot.

– The Swiss national healthcare system is recognized as the world’s best and the care administered through that system is considered some of the finest in the world. A model of good social stewardship.

– Zurich is clean and well-organized.

– Zurich is incredibly elegant.

– The city was good enough for James Joyce, it’s good enough for me. C’mon people, the man wrote Ulysses!

Zurich, I love thee with all my heart and if fortune allows, I will again find myself warmly ensconced in one of your legendary beds outfitted entirely in down bedding one day soon.

Arrivederci!

Road Trip – Innsbruck, Austria

I suspect G and I are the only two people ever to pass through Innsbruck’s “Triumphal Arch” with no plans to ski.

Not that there isn’t great skiing here – this is Innsbruck, after all. To start, there’s the Bergisel Ski Jump pictured in the distance here. This is the site of the biggest event on the ski jumping calendar, the Vierschanzen-Tournee (Four Hills Tournament).

For you architecture buffs, the Nordpark Cable Railway tower at the top of the ski jump was designed by Zaha Hadid.

Instead, we opted to do some sightseeing. The Golden Roof museum commands your attention. The roof is capped with 3,657 gold plated tiles!

The balcony under the Golden Roof was added in the year 1500 by emperor Maximillian I. The emperor enjoyed viewing the beauty of the Alps and the hustle and bustle of the Herzog-Friedrichstrasse (main street) below from this privileged position.

Next stop: the Grassmayr Glockenmuseum.

The museum explores 400 years of the Grassmayr family’s bell-making tradition.

The museum has many fine examples of Romanesque and Gothic bells on display.

As well as, a bell made from a bomb casing! I think it’s ironic that this one can make you an angel first, then insure you get your wings! Very efficient.

Later, a leisurely stroll along the River Inn towards the clock tower below…

reminded us it was time for a snack.

So, we popped into Cafe Katzung for a traditional apres-ski treat: the “best hot chocolate in town.”

As we continued to survey this Tyrolean gem we realized Innsbruck has so much more to offer than just skiing. It’s no wonder this city hosted the Olympic winter games in both 1964 and 1976.

Who knows? Maybe next time we’ll ski.

Arrivederci!

 

 

Road Trip – Stuttgart, Germany

Naturally, the thing to do in Stuttgart is tour the Porsche factory and museum. G and I toured the museum only, as the factory was closed for the holidays.

The Porsche 911 GT1 StraBenversion: considered the perfect car by many professional drivers, critics and car enthusiasts alike.

Warning: I’ve used the rest of this post to engage in a bit of “car porn.” (Be sure to scroll to the end to see what I managed to buy at the museum.) Enjoy!

My snack at the museum cafe. I enjoyed the pretzel and hot chocolate, but not as much as I’m sure I would have enjoyed a brand new Porsche! Maybe next Christmas?

Arrivederci!

Road Trip – Strasbourg, France

G and I spent Christmas in Strasbourg, France.

Many of you may already know that Strasbourg is considered the Christmas capital.

And there’s good reason for this.

You see, (spoiler alert), if Santa really did exist then Strasbourg is what he’d model his North Pole after.

The best thing about Christmas in Strasbourg is the palpable holiday spirit that envelopes the place.

And the fact that it’s in France is also a plus (A+), because that means loads of wonderful French food.

G and I stopped by this cheese stand to sample their specialty dish: tartine.

The cheese monger carefully cut a hunk of cheese, assembled the tartine on a paper plate with some bread, basil and garlic, heated it in a portable oven and …

Voila! Outdoor market food the French way.

But there is more to this city than food and its famed Christmas market. There’s the Strasbourg Cathedral de Notre-Dame, considered one of the most beautiful Gothic cathedrals in Europe.

A section of Strasbourg known as “La Petite France” is so special it is a UNESCO world heritage site.

The European Parliament makes Strasbourg its home.

As does the European Court of Human Rights.

After so much sightseeing it was time for some French-style fortification.

A couple of drinking bowls of hot chocolate warmed us inside and out, and prepared us for the next leg of our journey.

We hope you all had a lovely holiday. We look forward to seeing you all again (here or in the U.S.) in 2013.

Arrivederci!

 

Culture Club

Recently, G and I attended a small cultural event inside the historical, Teatro Sociale.

You may remember the Teatro Sociale from an earlier post. The wonderful Caffè del Teatro, with it’s awe inspiring cioccolata calda and homemade brioches, is located inside.

Naturally, there is the main concert hall.

But there are smaller rooms, like this one, that afford the locals less formal events.

On this particular occasion, we enjoyed a classical music performance featuring a violinist and pianist. The program and performance was top-notch and included selections by Veracini, Mozart, Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, and Bartok.

As you can see, the room was filled with rapt listeners.

The musicianship was outstanding and the musicians were gracious. Here, Antonella De Vinco, the pianist, thanks the audience for supporting the arts in these difficult financial times.

Both Ghigi and De Vinco’s graciousness extended well past the performance, when they so kindly agreed to let me take this photo. I’m sure they were exhausted and anxious to get changed and relaxed, but they sweetly agreed to the photo and thanked me for my interest.

Arrivederci!

 

 

 

 

 

Free To Be…

As mentioned in an earlier post, Biella is a mountain town. As such, it bears many similarities to both Denver and Boulder. The climate and scenery are similar and surprisingly, the people dress and live a similarly outdoorsy lifestyle. Yet, every now and again subtle differences emerge.

No doubt you’re familiar with Italians’ penchant for cleanliness. Bidets, like the one pictured above, are a common fixture in homes and hotel rooms here. The amusing thing about the bathroom in this photo is that it is located inside the offices of a local real estate company!

A condom dispensing machine located outside, on the sidewalk of a busy commercial street. See the photo below for a better look at the machine’s contents. (Notice how many empty slots there are.  Ah Italia!)

I love how Italians temper your expectations. Case in point: the “Very Good” corn flakes below. And really, is there such a thing as an excellent or fantastic bowl of corn flakes? To my mind, this brand is right on the money.

My clothes’ dryer. (Honest. Those are my skivvies peeking out the back.)

Finally, in our super-sized world, I give you my daily 3 p.m. treat, cioccolata calda (hot chocolate) in a very respectable 8oz cup. The only size available in the cafés and cremerias.