Zurich to Venice

This morning, I got a 6:15 wake up call, and I felt rough. After grabbing a fresh roll on the way out the door (they'd just been delivered), I made it to the 7:04 to Milano Centrale. The Zurich to Milan train was in good shape and fast.

When I got to Milan it was warm and humid. The IC train to Venice was way over capacity. People were sitting on their bags in the passageways. I walked through one car of that and got right back off. The IC train did not require a reservation so it was cheaper and therefore packed. I got in a long line at the Billeteria and made a reservation for myself on the 11:55 which did require reservations. I even turned down a different train around the same time because I knew it would be full too--it was cheaper than the 11:55. The difference was small, like total of 8.00 Euros instead of the 15.00 Euros I paid for the reservation, but it worked like a champ. I had time to get cash and scarf down a salami sandwich while I stared down the automatically updated train timetable waiting for the 11:55 gate number to show up. While I was sweating and chewing my dry sandwich, the gate number for the 11:55 popped up, and I hopped on. The train was about one third full--perfect. When we rolled in, I checked my backpack and walked out of the train station and into the Venice experience.

It was balmy with a scent of brackish seawater, and the Grande Canale was smack in front of me. People crammed on the waterbuses while others sat on the train station steps soaking up the sun and enjoying the atmosphere. I got a 24-hour pass and took Vaporetto #1 to the Lido. Riding along the canal, I quickly gave up trying to identify the key buildings in the book.

A beachy mist hangs in the air here and the water is a pale green, almost turquoise. The boat's diesel ground away and we made stops all along the canal on both sides while I checked out the buildings and bridges, some of which were being repaired to prepare for the high season. Most were slowly elegantly decomposing, but in a strangely beautiful and comforting way. All the buildings have different ages and many are in a state of disrepair. I think the water contributes to the weathered look of these buildings. That and the fact that everything is hundreds of years old.

At the Gallerie dell'Accademia I got off and scoped out a few hotels. Finally, I found the one I really wanted, the Locanda Orseolo near San Marco, and they found me a room for the night. Apparently, all the hotels fill up in Venice, especially during the busy season which was just beginning.

After taking Vaporetto #1 all the way to the Lido, I found a seat up front and rode it all the way back to the train station to get my bag. I had great views of everything along the canal. I got my bag and managed to get a seat facing backwards for a different canal view. When the boat rounds corners, the buildings in the distance blend together in the sea mist. All the buildings are so intricately designed and densely packed. Couple that with the different styles and conditions of each building and things get blended together visually in an organic way--not at all like some of the structural steel and glass cities you see nowadays. I got home and went right back out.

The street layout is crazy. There are no cars, which is great, but it's not a grid, and since the canal goes through the city in a backwards 'S'-shape, it's hard to use that as a reference point. Getting lost becomes normal quickly. You get used to it and actually kind of enjoy getting lost once you start discovering all these new and beautiful squares and buildings.

The folks at the Locanda Orseolo put me on to their new location near the Rialto Bridge--the Al Ponte Antico. The Rialto is not as busy an area as San Marco, but still extremely popular. I checked out the new location on my way to dinner at an excellent little ostaria that they mentioned--Ostaria Antico Dolo.

Afterwards, I got lost of course, then made it home. B--- at the Locanda noticed that today was my birthday.

Zurich

After four hours of sleep, I had breakfast around 8:30 and talked with the sweet buffet server. She is from Vietnam and studying hotel management. Her parents have owned several businesses.

After that, I went to the train station and bought a reservation to Milano which is about halfway to Venice. For some reason the person at the train station ticket counter couldn't get me one straight through to Venice. We'll see if I get stuck in Milan tomorrow at 11AM.

In the first part of the day, I walked along the north side of Zürichsee to the Le Corbusier building which I found interesting. Afterwards, I took a nap and then took another walking tour from the guidebook that went along a canal. The canal walk was so-so. More places are closed today, notably Sprungli, so I won't be able to get one more ho-cho before I leave.

Last night as I was trying to sleep, I started to get discouraged and then remembered that I'm not doing this because it is easy, but because it is hard, like JFK said in his moon speech. Granted, I'm not traveling 250,000 miles or spending billions, but I am pretty far from home.

This morning, I got cleaned up, packed, and said goodbye to the model-like concierge/assistant manager--blond hair, blue eyes, sweet expressions when showing concern for my cold symptoms, just beautiful. Fortunately, I resisted the urge to try to make it anything other than a friendly conversation. I shook her hand and thanked her rather than asking for her email address which would have been odd and pointless.

Before bed, I had chamomile tea while sitting in the park overlooking the Zürichsee. It was a relaxing enjoyable way to end my stay in Zurich. As I walked back to the hotel, the last of the 7PM chimes were finishing from the churches nearby. Easter weekend was over.

Lucerne

It's Easter Sunday, and I have not yet risen from the dead. I'm still getting over my cold. I had breakfast at 10:30 then did some reading until about 1PM. Then, I decided to go to Lucerne with the half day I had left and was glad I did, not only because it saved me from wasting a day, but also because Lucerne is very pretty. It's smaller and quieter than Zurich and has an older feel with its wooden bridges and city wall. I took the walk in my Lonely Planet guidebook, and it was perfect. I took it easy and still saw the whole town. In the evening, I had dinner and coffee at Hotel des Alpes restaurant right on the river near Kappelbrucke. After that, it was back to the Kindli in Zurich for a hot tea and a hot shower.

Zurich

I woke up at a normal hour today and felt a bit better, so I repeated yesterday's breakfast but added an extra egg. Afterwards, I sat around feeling kind of bad, then I showered and decided to blow off Geneva and extend my stay in Zurich for two days before I leave for Venice. I needed to take it easy but didn't want to waste a day, so I took a train out to Uetliberg which was west of town about 60km.

Once at Uetliberg, I followed a little bit of the Planet Walk starting at the sun, but I only got as far as the earth since I was on the way up to the Top of Zurich. I walked up the trail and then climbed the lookout tower for a nice view of Zurich and the surrounding area. On the way back down, I started south on a little hike, but I was too worn out from being sick, so I headed back via the S10 train to Zurich Hbf.

On the way back to the hotel, I went over to Jelmoli department store and checked out the below ground food court. Although it looked great with a nice selection of cheese, wine, prepared foods, meat, and fish, I decided to use the day pass I bought for the Uetliberg train to take the #31 bus/tram to Neumarkt. At Kantorei, not far from the Kunsthaus, I had the veggie special--white asparagus with hollandaise and new potatoes. It was pretty good.

A cute little girl was running around the fountain and making funny faces at me. I copied her and made her laugh. Her name is S---. I know because she kept running around the fountain, shaking the umbrella near my table and talking to her parents who sat next to me. It's 6 PM now, and not everything is closed for Easter as I worried it might be.

Zurich

I woke up at 11:30 and thought I'd missed breakfast but didn't. After I ate, I slept and read. Breakfast was pretty nice. I'm getting spoiled in this place. They have a great fruit salad with mango, pineapple, orange, apple, grapefruit, and kiwi. The waitress cooks your egg for you how you like it (boiled, medium). They had good bread too with butter, jam, and cheese. I was still exhausted from the plane and night train, so I slept more and tried to fight off a cold, but it didn't work.

Zurich

From the Zurich main station I walked to a few different hotels before deciding on Hotel Kindli and got it for 165 Swiss francs per night because everything will be closed tomorrow through Sunday for the Easter holiday. Apparently, Easter is big 4-day affair in Switzerland and other parts of Europe. The hotel is right near two of the churches and Lake Zurich, and there's a park with a great view of everything a half block down the road.

After I got settled in, I made a to do list of rest, email, postcards, food, and museums, then went out and found the Sprungli chocolate store and cafe. Across the street, I had to buy fifteen postcards to cover the minimum purchase at a knife store that carried Swiss army knives, refrigerator magnets, and other knicknacks. Afterwards, I walked to Fraumünster and saw the stained glass by Marc Chagall. There is more lovely stained glass by Augusto Giacometti in Grossmünster which I also saw, but I skipped the tower tour. Afterwards, I went to Kunsthaus Zürich and saw Alberto Giacometti sculptures, an excellent Rodin exhibit and the permanent collection which consisted of some modern artists and many Swiss artists. Outside the museum, I also took in the Henry Moore sculpture along with Rodin's Gates of Hell.

Then I went to Restaurant Zeughauskeller and had the Wurst of the Month, the Basserdorfer Landwurst. It came with a kind of zesty potato salad and I ordered a lemony iced tea along with it. I was starving, and it was a great meal. They brought large rolls and good mustard with horseradish in it. After that, I sat in the restaurant and wrote postcards. For dessert, I walked across the street to the Sprungli cafe where they were about to close up for the four day Easter holiday. After one "sorry", the waitress felt bad for me and let me have one grosse tasseshokolade at the bar. I was so excited, I burned my mouth a bit as I started writing a postcard card to S---, without whose recommendation, I might never have gone to Zurich. Afterwards, it was back home to the hotel and a hot shower.