Destination: ZURICH, SWITZERLAND

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland, with a population of some 364,500 in the city proper and close to 1 million in the greater metropolitan area. Zurich is on Lake Zurich, where the lake meets the Limmat River, in the north of Switzerland.

Contrary to popular belief, Zurich is not the capital of Switzerland (that would be Bern), just the largest city. Zurich has long been known as a clean and efficient city, but additionally has been quite a fascinating city for the last ten years. This has a lot to do with the liberalization of the culture, party and gastronomy sector and a much more cosmopolitan and hybrid population. Zurich is also known for banking.

The Zurich dialect of German (which sounds very different from standard German) is the city's main spoken language, but speakers of this dialect invariably also understand standard German. Many people will understand English, French, or Italian as well.

UNDERSTAND ZURICH

Zurich is located at the northwestern end of Lake Zurich (Zurichsee), at the mouth of the Limmat River which divides the city in two. The modern heart of the city including the train station and most churches is on the west side of the river, while the hillier east is home to the little alleys of the Old Town and the hip drinking spots of Niederdorfstrasse.

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THINGS TO SEE IN ZURICH

Most of the interesting sights are in the old town around the river and lakefront.

Grossmunster old Romanesque church, symbol of reformed Zurich, where reformer Huldrych Zwingli was appointed the people's priest in 1519. For 2 CHF you can climb one of the towers for amazing views over the city.
Fraumunster old Gothic church (former convent) with window paintings by Marc Chagal
Landesmuseum The biggest Swiss history museum. You can also learn about the various traditions of the cantons comprising Switzerland.
Kunsthaus One of the major Swiss art museums. Its specialities are modern sculpturer Giacometti and the surrealist 18th Century painter Fuesli, both Swiss. Highly recommended!
Schanzengraben (a small canal that used to be part of the city fortifications between Limmat and Sihl): From the main station, go to Gessnerallee, find the stairways down to the tiny creek, and walk all the way to the lake.
Rietberg Museum One of Europe's best collections of Asian art (mainly Indian drawings).
Langstrasse Red light district of Zurich, with more drug dealers and police than usual, but interesting because even this most notorious spot in Switzerland is so clean and safe. Expect some lewd comments when walking alone at night as a woman.
Zoo With the new Masoalahall, the Zoo is really worth a visit!
Lake Promenade Especially during summer a beautiful place to spend the evening or the weekends. Starting from Bellevue, the boardwalk goes for about three kilometers along the lake towards Tiefenbrunnen. About halfway there is a meadow where you will find thousands of people on a sunny day.
Chinese Garden This small but beautiful Chinese garden was offered to the city of Zurich by the Chinese city of Kumming as symbol of gratitude after Zurich helped the Kumming with technical knowledge.
Le Corbusier House Near the Chinese Gardeen. A beautiful modern villa planned by the famous Swiss architect.
Lindenhof The hill in the heart of the old town. A beautiful view of the city.
Niederdorf The old town offers beautiful allies and luxurious shops.
Bahnhofstrasse One of the busiest and best known shopping streets in the world. Highly refines. Certainly a must-see for every tourist in Zurich! (see below)
Museum Buehrle A rich private art collection worth visiting.
Jacob Coffee Museum An original museum which desribes the evolving of the coffee and different aspects of the culture the developed around it.
Zurich West This modern quarter used to be an industrial one, but modern urban developments made it to a centre of vibrant night life.

THINGS TO DO IN ZURICH

Take the Polybahn, a 19th century funicular, up the steep hill for a fine view. Starts at tram station Central and goes up to the ETH. Nice terrace up there. During the week, the student cafeteria below the terrace is also open to the public.
Go skiing by train - buy a snow'n'rail ticket (train & skipass) at the Hauptbahnhof during winter months, train out in morning, back in evening. Flumserberg is the closest large ski-resort, popular with people from Zurich, with a good range of runs for beginners and experts.
Take a trip on the Zurichsee with one of the two old steam ships. There are a few different routes you can choose from, which will vary mainly in the distance.
Go up Uetliberg, a hill overlooking Zurich. You can hike up, or take a train from the main station. Enjoy the 360 degree view from a tall viewing tower (not for vertigo suferrers!). This is also the start of the planetenweg (planetary walk), an 8 mile walk along the ridge with models of the planets along the way. These are scaled down in true porportion to the solar system. To look at Zurich from the other hills, go to the Irchel (Tram station Milchbuck) or Kaferberg (Bucheggplatz, walk up the hill and keep left of the forest).
Go club-hopping Zurich has proportionately the largest number of clubs per capita in Europe. Pick up a free copy of the 20 Minuten (20 minutes) paper and start exploring.
Dance at the Streetparade currently the biggest open air techno rave in Europe. Starting at 2 pm, trucks which function as mobile soundsystems start driving along the lake side, starting from the east at Utoquai and ending at the west at Hafen Enge. Every year this event attracts nearly a million visitors. After the Streetparade the party doesn't stop, there are open air parties along the route until midnight and club parties at various locations in town until late the next day, to keep the party going.
Enjoy the fireworks of the Swiss national holiday on August 1st.

SHOPPING IN ZURICH

For shopping in Zurich there are three different areas in the centre:

Bahnhofstrasse, which runs from the Zurich Train Main station "Hauptbahnhof" right down to the lake. Bahnhofsstrasse is famous for being one of the most exclusive and expensive shopping streets in the world. Here you can get anything from diamond rings to chocolate and fur coats. Globus and Jelmoli are two fiercely competitive department stores, both of whom carry items from many high-end brands.
Niederdorf, which is the Old Part of Zurich and expands from "Bellevue" by the Lake right to "Central" which is just over the River from the train station. The Niederdorf is more for young people. Aside from a lot of fast food places you will find a lot of trendy clothes stores here.
Lowenstrasse, which runs west of Bahnhofstrasse from the main train station, has lower range shops and a large branch of Migros, a department store chain.

FOOD IN ZURICH

The quintessential Zürich dish is Zürigschnätzlets, veal in a cream and wine sauce. Various kinds of grilled Wurst (sausages) are also popular. These are most often accompanied by boiled potatoes, Rosti, a Swiss potato pancake (grated potato, formed into a pancake then panfried until crisp in butter or oil) or Chnopfli, in German sometimes called Spätzle, (small noodle dumplings). Veal is still very popular, though the use of turkey and other meats as a substitute is growing.

While Fondue (melted cheese in a central pot, dip bread into it) and Raclette (cheese melted in small portions, served with potatoes and pickles) are not really local to Zürich (they come from the Valais region of Switzerland) they are commonly available at restaurants aimed at tourists.

The bread available in Zürich is generally delicious. Try grilled Bratwurst from street stands, served with a large crusty roll of sourdough bread and optional mustard, or sandwiches made with fresh baked Bretzeln (large, soft pretzels). A typically Swiss bread is the Zopf, a braided soft bread that is commonly served on Sundays (the other name for it is Sonntagszopf).

For breakfast, try a bowl of Muesli, which was invented as a health food in Switzerland. The Sprüngli confectionery store tea rooms serve a deluxe version of this fiber-filled cereal with whole milk, crushed berries and cream.

There are a huge variety of cheeses available at the supermarkets, speciality stores and markets, as well as all kinds of hams and dried sausages. Dairy products are generally delicious, especially the butter.

For those with a sweet tooth, there's a huge variety of chocolates to enjoy, from the cheapest chocolate bar to individually hand-made truffles. (See the Shopping section above). The chocolate bar displays at the supermarkets will overwhelm you! Also enjoy pastries and cakes from the various Konditorei scattered around town. A typical cake is the Mandelfisch, an almond cake shaped like a fish.

Like any proper European city, Zürich abounds with cafes where you can enjoy a leisurely cup of coffee, glass of wine or other beverage, and watch the world go by. There are many international dining options available too. The current hot trend seems to be pan-Asian noodle/rice/sushi places.

For more information on Zurich, visit the source at Wikitravel

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Zurich, Switzerland