Zurich (& Milan, it hardly deserves it's own page given we were only there 24 hours)

30 March 2024

After a painless 12 hour flight from Bangkok to Zurich, we were welcomed by the snowcapped Swiss Alps and the lovely staff at the Central Plaza Hotel. Our early arrival time meant leaving the bags and making full use of the reception girl’s marked-up Zurich map.

The Central Plaza is located really conveniently, across the river from the train station and with a large tram & bus stop at the doorstep.

So off we went, nearly the only people out & about at 8am, our only hindrance being the trams and remembering that cars drive on the other side of the road.

We headed toward the lake, crossing the river at intervals and admiring the beautiful stone architecture from the 15, 16 & 1700’s. A quick stop for a cuppa and we made our way to the lake & a jetty that didn’t start to operate until 1pm. We continued around the plaza outside the Opera House (Opernhaus) and wondered about the manacled chairs, in random locations & gathered numbers strewn around the plaza.

Finally made it to an operating jetty so boarded the short term cruise, which actually was a normal commuter route but sounded far more attractive to tourists, such as ourselves. Fortuitously we grabbed the 10am cruise as when we returned to the jetty, it was full of queued patrons awaiting the 11:30am cruise.

Cruising the shoreline bore some lovely examples of obviously old money homes, complete with manicured lawns reaching lapping lake edges. A number of stops later and we realised a number of common denominators about Zurich.

You are almost obliged to smoke; there are ashtrays everywhere including at every table on our ferry.

Dogs go everywhere with their owners, including ferries.

And the weather can drop a number of degrees very quickly, making me thankful for dragging my heavy overcoat half way around the World.

After disembarkation, we strolled back to the hotel for a lovely lunch and were handed our room cards around 1:30pm. Bags unpacked, Mandy’s recharging on the bed and I’m writing this. Out & about later and for dinner.

31 March 2024

I woke (as in woke-up, not the other hijacked friggin’ abused phrase, starting well here hey) with slight trepidation ahead of a bus ride to the snowfields, something I haven’t done since 2019 in Chile. That day was interesting to say the least; wrong bus, wrong language, get left behind at a pathetic ski-field (worse snow for years in Chile), pass out, get my arms butchered by a part-time nurse, need a blood transfusion due to the amount of blood that she let (not really but close) and get helevacted to hospital (without taking 1 photo during the ride) and being discharged 4 hours later as the wonderful doctors & nurses couldn’t find anything wrong with me.

(Read more here: https://www.theweirytraveller.com/post/santiago-chile-cuzco-machu-picchu-peru-july-2019 & scroll down to Friday 19th July)

So you understand my trepidation now.

The body clocks have started to correct themselves so Mandy & I were up moderately early, still dark outside and not too cold.

Unfortunately the hotel breakfast didn’t commence service until 8am, the same time our bus left so we’d have to wait for an opportunity down the road.

We started walking the 1km to the Zurich Bus Centre, which we found still Under Construction, and soon located our appropriate bus, or should I say the mini-moke of buses (compared with all the others). The driver, Alex was a lovely guy and great driver; we felt really comfortable with his driving given that we’re both (or someone) is slightly nervous with others driving.

We headed off in the direction of Interlaken and the ultimate destination, Jungfraujoch (photo courtesy of some website, though wish I’d taken it from a helicopter, though not while being helevacted), the one place I was really, really, really looking forward to going on this trip. We did have a bit of concern as to whether we’d actually make it given the weather report we saw at 6am back at the hotel (see below).

The bus took us from amazing scenery to incredible scenery and back as we twisted through tunnels, around bends on cantilevered sections of road, sheer drops thousands of metres (nothing to freak out about though) until we made a roadside stop for a photo opportunity (see pic below) We reboarded the mini-moke, sorry, bus/coach (though I think I’m embellishing a bit) for Alex to inform us that unfortunately Jungfraujoch was closed due to 190km winds. And with that, as though sent by a higher power, a gust hit the bus, and I mean HIT, and gave us a serious shake up; then it was gone. Options were given, none of which sounded exciting so we’d just have more time in Interlaken and look forward to a refund.

We carried on nonetheless and made our way to a lovely little village, Lauterbrunnen, to stretch our legs, take photos and have a cuppa and some absolutely delicious carrot cake. We disembarked to the sight of numerous waterfalls, apparently there are 27 in this and the nearby area. An hour later we were on our way to Interlaken, & once there, be told that we’d be there for 5 & 1/2 hours.

So off we went, walking who-knows-where and enjoying the sights. It is a beautiful town and all around you see incredible mountainscapes, however, for one who rarely wears shoes (and then only for a few hours) the pace declined as the day grew longer. We eventually found ourselves back near where we started, opposite the main park, at the Schuh Grand Cafe Restaurant, which was obviously extremely popular with locals. The food was spectacular so we just locked in and took our time, observing the natives which watching the parachutists landing in the park, and the dogs bark at each other.

Time was quite static throughout our stay in Interlaken however after 4 & 1/2 someone was getting a bit twitchy, so we made our way back to the bus pick-up spot to find the bus not there. I immediately, internally, exploded with tremors and flashbacks of wandering a bus park in the Andes for hours looking for my bus, only this time I didn’t pass out. My wife, on the other hand was threatening numerous options of physical torment for our poor Alex if he was 1 minute passed the 4:30pm promised departure time.

In the end, is was all good, a great day, incredible scenery, great lunch and I’ll only need a couple of sessions with my specialist when I get home to work through a couple of issues.

2 April 224

After the disappointment of the failed mission to Jungfraujoch, we decided to have a rest day doing absolutely nothing, other than reading, watching downloaded videos and going our for dinner & early to bed.

Mandy is starting to evolve and learn to sleep for 8 hours, so I end up getting up at 5:30am and reading the newspapers from home.

The day started as a wet one with a solid breeze as well, it didn't augur well for our next day of activity.

So breakfast was had in the hotel then we made our way to the transport vending machine located in the middle of the tram/bus island opposite the hotel. Numerous attempts were made, success coming around 10 minutes later due to total incompetence on our behalf and the fact that the people nearby who we asked for help were the only people in Zurich who didn't speak English. So with tickets in hand, we realised that we had to validate them, after walking a couple of hundred metres. We returned to the scene of stupidity, validated the tickets accordingly and took the Polybahn (a funicular train) up to the university.

Since opening in 1889, the slightly cute tram/train has made it way from Zurich street-level up to the Zurich University and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, so highly popular with students. And it's a short 100 second ride. Once at university level you're welcomed to a lovely view over Zurich.

The University building were beautiful as were the views, our Hotel noticeable (upper right passed the pedestrian crossings). Once back to earth we walked over to the railway station and found the train to Uetilberg, which rises 2,857 feet (871m) above sea level & the city rooftops. The 20 minute train ride from Zurich Central runs every 30 minutes and is an easy day out.We disembarked and started the last climb to the top, up uneven stairs, past the telecommunications tower & opening to a panorama of Zurich with the snow-capped Alps in the background. I noticed a very dark cloud nearing us from the south so some quick photos were taken and we headed into the Hotel Uto Kulm, a lovely old hotel at the peak. undergoing renovation of it's outdoor decking, this hotel would be absolutely pumping in summer. The building itself appears to have been built is phases but even so, it is truly worth the trip to witness the views.

Some refreshment was taken then we made our way back down to street level, the hotel, some afternoon resting and bag packing as we head off tomorrow to Milan and the Last Supper.

3rd April 2024

An early train had us both up at stupid-o'clock, (and I have no idea how that weird foreign language thing got on the bottom of the c, actually I've worked it out and you can't see it now, and I'm rambling so I'll stop), Mandy as she had a terrible nights sleep and me because she had a terrible nights sleep. Nonetheless, trains had to be caught & someone decided to take over the management of the hard-copy print out of our tickets, without looking at them, then finally looking at then and whinging about why we were at the station so early & previously berating me while I whinged prior to the tickets being looked at about being at the station so early! Moral; I think we can work that one out.

The train headed out of Zurich along the west side of the lake, similar to the way we went to Interlaken the other day, and almost immediately the scenery became breathtakingly beautiful; something that would change at a given point down the tracks.

Lakes & tunnels gave way to more tunnels and lakes and lakes & tunnels & snow caps & freeways right beside the railway going in and out of more tunnels. Avalanche fences are built just above roads & railways, yes there's often another railway up or down from the one we're on, and roads with roofs cling to mountainsides.They're quite unusual but must keep the roads clear of snow in winter.

Clouds lingered low in valleys and waterfalls start to appear everywhere, some trickling while others making streams fuller while distant Alps slowly become invisible as the snow & sky merge into one. And the temperature drops, rather quickly, down to -6 degrees. Fortuitously we are in the cocoon of European engineering and design and no minus temperature is going to disrupt the display of awe that we're witnessing; it is truly one of the most incredible scenes I've ever seen.

It also reinforces the head start Europe has, or lag we have in our country (although we've done incredible well for our time) but the engineering feats in, around, over and through these mountains is totally gobsmaking, we'll, nearly always, will be chasing our tails (my opinion, I realise we have to have the mountains to start with but nonetheless, the engineering is outstanding).

We pass through villages full of classic old houses, still maintained, classic Swiss design & beautifully manicured gardens surrounding them.

I could go on and on but I think some photos could speak far more words than I could use to describe Switzerland.

It's been 23 years since I called into Switzerland to see old mate, James Turner, who was living in Verbier at the time. A different area in Switzerland, more near the Italian/French border and I remember getting the train around Lake Geneva and being driven up to Verbier, only to sit on his balcony for the night with my eyes bulging & my jaw open in sheer amazement of the view; this was a very similar experience.

Meanwhile, my lovely wife announced to me that she was "a bit Alped out"; each to their own I suppose.

After a few hours, 3 or so, the rain greeted us to Italy and the terrain became totally different; flatter by the moment until there was no form of elevation anywhere. Green fields abounded in all directions then the start of the urban sprawl began, with apartment blocks after apartment blocks, the less salubrious housing areas slowly making way, like any city in the World, for more attractive options until the suburban railway corridor took over and welcomed us to Milan.

Our hotel, The Hyatt Centric Milan Centrale was only a couple of hundred metres away from the station, so the map told us, so we had a nice 10 minute stroll around the Milan Railway Station building and down another street and we were there. On the way we saw the most epic display of Roman stone masonry: a hotel completely covered façade by at least 3 different kinds of granite (see picture below). It was absolutely appalling, but someone must have liked it.

The Hyatt staff at the Hotel, I must say, treated us like royalty upon arrival, to the point of Mandy & I looking at each other as though neither of us knew the joke. But not to be, they were incredibly welcoming.

We drop our bags, well actually the bellboy did, dropped our bags in our room and then headed out, grabbed a taxi & headed to the Dominican monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie, completed in 1469 & a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to view The Last Supper. The ride there was really bumpy due to the brick roadways, no idea how old but they must play absolute havoc with car suspension systems. It was like driving on a corrugated road, and I mean everywhere.

We arrived hoping that the rain would stay at bay. A hearse arrived and a coffin was wheeled out and into the Convent followed by quite a number of mourners leaving the hearse drivers & staff on the footpath smoking, it is Italy after all.

Our hopes were dashed when the rain commenced and we finally found our tour guide, who issued radios & earpieces to her tour group and began the history of Leonardo de Vinci. As knowledgeable as she was about Leonardo, the major points we took out of it was the facts that Milan used to have a canal system, similar to Venice until 1922 (!!!!), and that Leonardo made it work correctly, and that Milan was right in line for foreign invaders of Italy to destroy it while making their way to attack Rome, or for the Romans to destroy it while they were making their way somewhere to attack & destroy somebody else. Either way, Milan copped if both ways and also frequently.

Our turn finally came to enter the Convent via the security machines, airtight sets (3) of glass doors to finally stop outside the doors leading to the Refectory, which eventually opened for our 15 minutes of viewing. The actual room that is was house in was roughly 30 metres by 10 metres and approximately 8-9 metres high. The Last Supper takes up one complete end whilst the other is home to Crucifixion by Giovanni Donato da Montorfano, 1495. These 2 paintings are both incredible but in the same breathe both completely different. The Crucifixion is done in the fresco style of painting while The Last Supper, painted between 1495 & 1498, Leonardo tried an experimental technique using tempera or oil paint on two layers of dry preparatory ground, unfortunately this compromised method meant it didn't permanently attach to the wall and began flaking a few years late. To the point that now only around 60% of the real painting remains for us to view.

We made our way back via another taxi and saw some interesting buildings, both old and new, along the way. Unfortunately we were feeling tired from our days adventure, so we didn't explore any further & decided to have an early. We walked around the corner and checked out some restaurant until we came upon the Norin Bristro and had some beautiful prosciutto followed by a Spaghetti Bolognese & Carbonara, good old traditional pastas, all of which was sensational, while Mandy had 4 wines, all for the luxury price of around 60 Euros; welcome to Italy!!