Zurich - day one
Mar. 26th, 2011 07:59 am![[personal profile]](http://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
capricious_kI made it safely to Zurich if not comfortably. Note to self: remember you hate American Airlines - the only reason the ticket is cheap is that they are cheapskates. Bleh.
Got here, negotiated train into the city and tram to the hotel with only minor delays. Arrived before 9am so they couldn't check me in. I got a day pass for the tram system, left my bags, and went to explore the city. I looked at the lake and the river (both full of giant white swans!) running through the old part of town before I found a lovely cafe where I had muesli, cafe creme, and orange juice while reading. Nice. Then I wandered the streets looking at shops, churches, and an old fort for a few hours. The weather is surprisingly nice - mid 50s, sunny with a light breeze. Then it was on to a park by the lake and lunch at a museum cafe (the museum is in a set of villas on an old estate so surrounded by parkland and just beautiful - I didn't even go in and felt enriched). Then more wandering through a residential part of town until I got back to where my hotel is.
They told me the room would be ready between 2 and 3 so I didn't want to show up before 2:30 so I also wandered a bit in the mall that's right next to the hotel. It was here I realized that I must really look like a local - everyone I'd encountered during the day immediately spoke to me in German and kept at it until I badly mangled my reply, then they switched to flawless English. I got away with a murmur or just a smile/nod in a few cases, too. I'd forgotten that aspect from my trip to Germany a couple of years ago. It's mildly hilarious because my German roots are 13 generations back. :)
Anyhoo, back to the room - turns out they completely failed to notice that my assigned roommate was already checked in and I could have gone up to the room in the morning and had a much-longed-for shower instead of perambulating with a vague itchiness all day. *sigh* Also, when I did finally get that shower, the water couldn't stay one temperature for more than 30 seconds. Also also, the room is fairly small for two people who are strangers - the twin beds are pushed together to form a king, sort of, so we pushed them apart and there's no door on the bathroom so if someone comes into the room as you step out of the shower, they will totally see you naked. Made me quite nervous as my roommate wasn't around when I started my shower (thankfully, she didn't show up until after I was mostly dressed).
So far, I like this town. Everyone is nice. The food I had was yummy. The sightseeing with little to no prep is good. Tomorrow I have a tour booked that will give me all of the highlights of the city, a trip through the countryside to Heidiland and a visit to Lichtenstein - 2 countries!
UPDATE: Am now in hotel bar. Free and reasonably fast wireless. Comfy chair. People watching opportunities. Glass of wine while I work on Saturday from Zurich in order meet my deadline. Not bad. :)
Got here, negotiated train into the city and tram to the hotel with only minor delays. Arrived before 9am so they couldn't check me in. I got a day pass for the tram system, left my bags, and went to explore the city. I looked at the lake and the river (both full of giant white swans!) running through the old part of town before I found a lovely cafe where I had muesli, cafe creme, and orange juice while reading. Nice. Then I wandered the streets looking at shops, churches, and an old fort for a few hours. The weather is surprisingly nice - mid 50s, sunny with a light breeze. Then it was on to a park by the lake and lunch at a museum cafe (the museum is in a set of villas on an old estate so surrounded by parkland and just beautiful - I didn't even go in and felt enriched). Then more wandering through a residential part of town until I got back to where my hotel is.
They told me the room would be ready between 2 and 3 so I didn't want to show up before 2:30 so I also wandered a bit in the mall that's right next to the hotel. It was here I realized that I must really look like a local - everyone I'd encountered during the day immediately spoke to me in German and kept at it until I badly mangled my reply, then they switched to flawless English. I got away with a murmur or just a smile/nod in a few cases, too. I'd forgotten that aspect from my trip to Germany a couple of years ago. It's mildly hilarious because my German roots are 13 generations back. :)
Anyhoo, back to the room - turns out they completely failed to notice that my assigned roommate was already checked in and I could have gone up to the room in the morning and had a much-longed-for shower instead of perambulating with a vague itchiness all day. *sigh* Also, when I did finally get that shower, the water couldn't stay one temperature for more than 30 seconds. Also also, the room is fairly small for two people who are strangers - the twin beds are pushed together to form a king, sort of, so we pushed them apart and there's no door on the bathroom so if someone comes into the room as you step out of the shower, they will totally see you naked. Made me quite nervous as my roommate wasn't around when I started my shower (thankfully, she didn't show up until after I was mostly dressed).
So far, I like this town. Everyone is nice. The food I had was yummy. The sightseeing with little to no prep is good. Tomorrow I have a tour booked that will give me all of the highlights of the city, a trip through the countryside to Heidiland and a visit to Lichtenstein - 2 countries!
UPDATE: Am now in hotel bar. Free and reasonably fast wireless. Comfy chair. People watching opportunities. Glass of wine while I work on Saturday from Zurich in order meet my deadline. Not bad. :)