When in Zurich
Zurich is a city on the up. The city has undergone a vast amount of expansion and improvement in recent years, yet despite this it has lost little of it orderly beauty. The surrounds of the city are also something to behold, with the Zürichsee lake and the Alpine backdrop making for a wonderful sight.
The city has a proud heritage of culture and freethinking, with Carl Jung one of the city's leading sons, while the Dada art movement was formed here in 1916 and Lenin lived here for a while. James Joyce resided in Zurich for a large proportion of his life and one of the city's significant tourist spots is the Fluntern Cemetery on Zürichbergstrasse, where both James and Nore Joyce are buried - the former marked with a statue of the writer. The cemetery also contains the graves of Johanna Spyri, the author of Heidi, and Elias Cannetti, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1981.
A walk around the Old Town is a must, with its numerous fountains, winding alleys, 16th century houses offering much to explore and enjoy. Guided tours are available but ditching the map and trying to get lost is just as much fun.
The 13th century Fraumunster church on Munsterhof is well worth visiting, with its gothic spire and magnificent five stained glass windows having wowed many a tourist in its time.
Being in the city of a million watches, it is only polite to visit the Beyer Museum, which is home to a surprisingly entertaining tour of timepieces through the ages. From primitive sundials and mediaeval time keeping candles to the most modern of devices, this city centre museum has plenty to enjoy, with many wild and wacky timepieces to enjoy along the way.
The impressive Le Corbusier Pavilion in Zürichhorn Park is a big favourite with visitors. It was the last building designed by Le Corbusier before his death in 1965 and was only completed afterwards. It is now home to a museum housing a huge number of plans, drawings, and paintings by the great man, dutifully collected by friend Heidi Weber. It is important to check opening times before turning up if you fancy a look around, as it is often shut.
Those flying in to the city will find themselves at Kloten airport, six miles north of the centre of town. There are around five trains an hour making the ten-minute journey to the city's main train station (Hauptbahnhof). The Hauptbahnhof offers regular trains to Milan, Innsbruck, Stuttgart and Munich and well as frequent services to most parts of the country.
Getting around Zurich is a joy thanks to the city's unified bus, tram, S-Bahn and boat service along the Limmat River. A 24-hour pass allows you unlimited travel on all these modes of transport, making the expensive taxis an unnecessary extravagance.
Winters can be cold, with temperatures between November and April capable of getting down to as low as -5°C, although closer to 5°C is the norm. Spring and summer are invariably wet affairs although temperatures are usually pleasantly warm, with summer days rarely hitting 30°C.
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Introduction
