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Published: July 22nd 2008
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Everything about Switzerland went wrong, right from the beginning! In Swiss, I wanted to visit Geneva and Interlaken and ride the glacier express. But Rajesh was bent on hanging out with his college buddy in Zurich and staying with him for 3 days, that I had to give in. Couple of days before our departure, the friend’s kid got chicken pox. I put my foot down and insisted on booking a hotel. Though we both had gotten chicken pox before, I didn’t want to risk a relapse. Euro 08 soccer match was on. Switzerland and Austria were the hosts. And Zurich was packed with fans. No decent hotel near the train station was available. If they had rooms on Friday and Saturday, there were none on Sunday. Finally I stumbled upon a “hostel” that had openings for all 3 nights and decided to give it a shot, as the reviews were really good and it was next to the tram stop.
We traveled Sitzplatze (sitting) from Vienna to Zurich; we had no idea that coupes were not available. To add to our discomfort, they did not provide us blankets or pillows and kept the light in the compartment on all
the time. The train stopped in Salzburg and a man with a dog came in and sat across from us, causing us even more discomfort, because we had been stretching our legs on the opposite seat and had to come back to sitzplatze mode again. The dog occupied the adjoining seat and stared at me viciously. I got up to use the toilets and the dog barked dangerously at me. Some people got down at Innsbruck, and the man decided that he needed privacy with his dog and moved over to an empty seat. Throughout all this crap, Rajesh slept peacefully and soundly!
As the sun rose, I looked out at the countryside. Lovely crystal blue lakes, breathtaking mountain passes, waterfalls, endless lush green meadows, tiny villages, cows and goats - Switzerland, the perfect Heidi storybook setting! I had loved reading Heidi as a kid and wondered if she lived in one of those tiny little cottages on the mountains with her grandpa and Goat Peter. The scenery was perfect chocolate box material! Speaking of Swiss chocolates, I craved for some. To me, they are the finest chocolate in the world, with the mildest hint of cocoa!
It
rained in steady trickles, not sprinkling, not pouring, but very irritating. We got down at Zurich HB and Rajesh’s friend, RV was waiting for us. The buddies, hugged each other, slapped each other and literally wrestled with each other in joy, creating onlookers to stare and smile. At that moment, I felt sitzplatze was well worth the trouble to see such display of affection between two old friends. RV took us to his office in Stockerstrasse in the tram #7. We left our luggage there and freshened up as again check-in at our “hostel” was at 3 pm. RV’s German boss, the only person there at 7 am warmly welcomed us to Switzerland and suggested we catch one of the Euro 08 soccer matches. I could tell that Rajesh was indeed, tempted!
RV took us for breakfast to Movenpick. We ate Swiss danishes and drank Swiss coffee and then went for a walk by Zurich Lake. It was grey and foggy, but still so beautiful and peaceful. Then into the Old Town, past the Grossmunster church, the Fraumuenster Church with its famous Chagall windows, historical Limmatquai and the university district. Along the Limmatquai, a popular antique shopping street, are
a number of elegant old guild-houses with rich interiors I believe, reflecting the wealth of the guilds, who once governed the town.
We strolled on Bahnofstrasse, the most expensive street in the world that beats other urban shopping meccas. This area beats other haute shopping centers because of the variety; and the cluster of small boutiques and local designers who co-exist and thrive next to the usual Prada, D&G, Chanel, etc. World famous jewelry stores - Omega, Tiffany, Cartier, Rolex in their typical Swiss discreteness exist next to small boutiques. I found it funny that there were hardly any cars on the streets of Zurich except on Bahnhofstrasse where I saw the chauffeurs of Mercedes, Bentleys, and Aston Martins parked outside stores waiting for their clients to come out to be whisked away.
I had to shop on Bahnofstrasse; how often do I get such opportunities! I went to Franz Webb Kids and bought clothes and Swiss T-shirts for my kinder (kids) along with a few bric-a-brac for their school. At Manor I bought a Swiss bell, a few magnets and more trinkets. I looked at the Swatches and made up my mind to buy for myself and
the kids, but seing so many designs and confused, reserved it for later. At Coop. I bought Swiss chocolates, cookies and instant Swiss coffee. RV took us to Luxemburgerlii, a Swiss confectionary. My craving was satisfied by biting into the light and airy sugar-based cookie with rich hazelnut cream filling in the center.
Switzerland was very expensive; a total rip-off! We felt France and Italy to be nominal and Austria inexpensive. But in Swiss, everything cost twice that of US, though the franc and the dollar were at par. The Lindt chocolates I would buy for $8.99 at BJs cost 16 Swiss francs ($16). No wonder it was the home of UBS (Union Bank of Switzerland); the world's biggest manager of other people's money!
We picked up our luggage at RV’s office and went to our hostel taking tram #7 again. Another shock awaited me. I learnt that we would not be assigned rooms; we were assigned beds in dorms that we had to share with 3 other people. The bathrooms were shared and located outside the dorms. I was to be in the ladies dorm and my husband in the men’s. The hostel did have double bedrooms
with attached baths, but they were all full, too bad! And we paid $150 per night for both of us! Rajesh was glaring at me dangerously, while I tried to avoid his gaze.
It was only noon, so the lady in the reception let us keep our luggage in lockers. RV took us to his home for a nice Indian lunch cooked by his wife. It was our first Indian meal on our vacation. The buddies wouldn’t budge out of the couch, talking stories; old and new. RV’s wife gave me lots of Swiss chocolate; and I ate away, adding more cavities to my tooth. I got the chance to make phone calls to India and US and also to my cousin in Fribourg, promising to visit and spend a half day with her on Sunday.
RV drove us to Rheinfalls, Europe’s largest waterfall. The minute we got out of Zurich onto the autobahn, the rain stopped. The falls is truly magnificent, not so much for its height but for its impressive breadth. The best way to see the falls is from one of the daredevil boats which scurry around in the spray. Rajesh remarked it was nothing
compared to Niagara, but I couldn’t agree; because the sheer drama of the place, with the spray rising in a cloud of rainbows above the forested banks was a rare beauty. The turreted castle Schloss Laufen on a cliff directly above the falls completes the spectacle. There is no ancient castle in Niagara. All you can see across the US border are jazzy Canadian casinos!
RV’s Toyota corolla looked like a wagon in Switzerland. His GPS made him go around in circles and into some no-entry roads. Finally, he dropped us at the hostel promising to pick us up at 10 am the next morning to go to Lucerne. We went into the hostel and were given room-entry cards and a colored bracelet to wear each day for security check due to the match. People of all ages sat in the lobby watching the soccer match on TV. Switzerland was losing; so there was no cheer. We went to our respective rooms, feeling like college kids sleeping in college dorms.
It was 11 pm. Two of my room-mates were fast asleep. The third, a girl from Barcelona said Hola! We whispered in Spanglish for almost an hour and
I learnt all about Spain. Rajesh met a Canadian student who put him to sleep by singing a steady lullaby of his European travels. The experience was not at all bad. Though there was no phone and no TV, we had very clean accommodations and nice room-mates. It was an entirely unforgettable experience!
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