Bring on the fondue, we made it to Switzerland

If in the last five years you have asked me which European country I most want to visit, well then I am excited to tell you that it's time for you to ask again, because I have officially made it to Switzerland! I am not exactly sure why Switzerland has always been on my list, given that everyone who knows me knows I hate the cold. Perhaps it's the UN headquarters in Geneva or the multitude of UNESCO sites throughout the country. Maybe it's the fact that no matter how weak I am when it comes to cold weather, there is something inexplicably magical about snow-covered mountaintops and trees - especially off in the distance where I cannot get wet and cold as the wind blows the snow around. I really couldn't tell you. I can, however, tell you Zurich is everything I ever imagined and more, even despite exploring through the worst weather I've had in four months - rain and snow.

Once I landed after my quick flight from Milan, I bought a 72 hour Zurich Card and hit the trains to head to my Airbnb. I should probably pause to explain a Zurich card. Basically, this is a pass that enables one to ride any train, tram, bus, and boat in the city for free, as well as gain free entrance to numerous museums and receive discounts at a multitude of restaurants, bars, and shops throughout the city. It is the perfect investment for visitors looking to explore a lot in a short period of time. You can buy the Card online before arrival or at a kiosk inside the airport. Since my Airbnb was about a 10-minute train ride from the city center, the pass proved to be invaluable - although, I must note that no one ever checked it except for on the Limmat Riverboat Cruise route.

Anywho, back to the story. My flight landed late, so by the time I took the 30-minute train to my stop and walked to my Airbnb, it was pitch black (yes, I was having flashbacks to finding my Airbnb in Kyoto, Japan earlier in the semester), and it was nearly 22:00 - way past dinner time. I stayed at Niels' place and found the apartment to be great - everything I could possibly need including a good workout up the steps to the 4th-floor apartment and numerous space heaters. The place was a stocked with kitchen appliances, so I made plans to wake up early and hit the Aldi before meeting up with Hattie, one of my sorority sisters who is studying in Florence. I woke up at 0645 on my first full day in Zurich to tram over to the Aldi near the city center. My groceries were cheap compared to the rest of the city. Yet, I could not seem to find eggs, even after stopping by two other grocery stores. Defeated in my egg search, I made it back to the apartment, after standing at the Aldi register seriously confused about how to check out and waiting to see the face of one of my best friends.

Walking the streets from my Airbnb to Aldi.

I ended up getting antsy and walked to the train stop to meet Hattie - it had been too long since I had seen my friend (six months is a long time when you are used to seeing each other every day). After dropping her stuff off, we went for a walk in the city. The city was empty, or as Hattie joked - dead to the world. Granted, it was 10:00 on a Saturday, so I was not too surprised to find stores still closed. We quickly learned people in Zurich sleep in.

Finally reunited with Hattie post - study abroad!

We wandered through side streets and into the few stores that were open, before stumbling upon a market near Burkliplatz where 15 minutes later, we got soaked in a downpour and ran to the nearest passing tram to take cover. The next thing we knew, we were across the river and decided to look for food as we explored. Somehow we managed to stumble across Niederdorf with every type of food one can imagine. We settled on Asian food at Suan Long, promising to get fondue for dinner.

Top Left: Burklipatz market; Top Right: Limmat River; Bottom Left: Marktgasse in Niederdorf; Bottom Middle: Streets of Niederdorf; Bottom Right: Snapping photos above the river

After a delicious lunch, during which the rain passed, we made our way through the streets of Zurich towards our Airbnb. Naturally, we passed the cutest travel book store that we couldn't dive into because the owner had stepped out for lunch and locked up. As we walked closer to Zurich HB to hop on the train to the Airbnb, we crossed over a lock bridge. Despite Paris maintaining the famous lock bridge, I seem to always come across bridges filled with locks in major cities across Europe. Zurich was no different! Finally, we made it to our Swiss home for some much-needed downtime before heading back into the cold for a crowded, albeit cozy fondue dinner. We spent the evening curled up with hot tea and blankets to warm up after getting stuck in the rain/hail headed to the Airbnb.

Lock bridge in Zurich filled with love!

Top Left: waiting for the train at the stop; Top Right: Fondue!!!
Bottom Left: Bookstore in Niederdorf

The next morning we arose early and hopped on the train without a destination. We ended up in Saalsporthalle where we had coffee at Joe & The Juice before exploring the area. After, we got back on the train to walk the city center. On our walk, we passed the St. Peter Church Clock and a local bookstore (which we did stop in). We stopped for hot chocolate and split a chocolate mousse at a small local corner shop before swinging by the Airbnb to grab Hattie's bag and hustling to the main train station for her trip back to school in Italy.

Wandering around the Saalsporthalle Train stop

Left: St. Peter's Clock; Middle: Zurich Station; Right: Zurich City Center Streets

With the late afternoon free, I headed to the FIFA World Football Museum just in time to explore before closing. You need a ticket to enter the museum, but there is a discount on the ticket with a Zurich card. I spent about 2 hours in the Museum, which was the perfect amount of time. I recommend dedicating 1.5 - 2.5 hours as there are lots of interactive exhibits that you'll want to try. There are videos, games, and challenges to complete. The museum is multiple floors and wraps around through different themes - such as uniforms, the history of regulations, and soccer balls through the years. It ends with a large gift shop and a bar!

Exploring the FIFA World Football Museum!!

I decided to spend my last day in Zurich exploring Lichtenstein, a small country about 2 hours from Zurich. You can find more about my day trip to Vaduz, the capital of Lichtenstein, here! All too soon, my departure date arrived, and I packed up my stuff for an early morning flight back to the USA.