Zurich - Idette's Visit

View of Zurich From Bridge, Photograph (c) Idette

Luck does not only smile on me, it also smiles on Idette.

Last weekend Idette came over to visit and so I finally stopped trying to sort out my flat (I’ve come from sorting out my flat in Egypt to sorting out my flat in Switzerland!) and had a weekend of relaxation and tourism.

She arrived on Friday and left on Sunday, so it was a short visit, but we tried to pack a lot in.

My move into my flat is still underway, so there were no curtains in the spare bedroom and a pile of empty boxes in the hallway. Cardboard collection isn’t until next week, so the boxes had to stay where they were (I did pack them all into a single box, though)! It would have been nice to have introduced Idette to a finished flat, but it was not to be. I’d started hanging curtains in the lounge (not yet finished), but that was as far as I’d got.

Friday was quiet; I showed Idette my local shops and my place of work and then subjected her to my cooking. I’ve recently discovered that I can make pasta carbonara myself. For some reason, I decided to give it a go at home and it came off quite well. I was a bit over-excited as a consequence and subsequently made it three days running. And now I trotted it out to Idette as well. It’s rare for me to try making a new dish; and even rarer for me to like the result consistently, so it was a bit of a milestone moment for me (hence the over-exuberance).

We had snow last week but, miraculously, as soon as Idette arrived, the sun shone and a blue sky spread above us. To my surprise, as we went into town on Saturday, I realized that this was the first time since I’d been back in Zurich that I’d wandered around the city; I’ve just been too busy with other things.

We walked down the cobbled streets of the Niederdorf; I became completely absorbed by a lot of new shops there that I hadn’t seen before, so I became a tourist in my own home. Idette took a lot of photographs, which was also good, because it forced me to stop and really look at where I was and also to appreciate the beauty and charm of the old buildings. I try not to get blasé, but sometimes you need a wake-up call.

We also walked along by the lake – since it was a lovely day, the Niederdorf hadn’t been so crowded and there were a good number of people enjoying a promenade by the lakeside. Zurich is a very wealthy city, so I always find it quite refreshing how much the people take simple pleasure in the lake and the outdoors in general. 

At weekends, many people go skiing, hiking, or take a promenade along the lake. A place hiring out paddle boats was open and seemed to be getting good custom. There were even a couple of paddle boarders on the water. I wouldn't like to be doing that when the water is still so cold!

After that, we nipped over to the other side of the river Limmat and explored the old town on that side of the embankment; even then there were places that we never got round to seeing. I overheard one couple talking about plans as to how they could come over to live in Zurich for a few years; they were so excited and full of desire and determination to live here that it made me realize just how lucky I am. The old town is beautiful with its quaint shops, cobbled streets, view on to the river, and peaceful pedestrians. I really need to appreciate this more. In a way, I am living two dreams in one life – how amazing is that!

In the evening, we had a meal and ate our very own meringue Boeoeg on top of a chocolate mousse pyre all in celebration of Sechselaeuten (see last blog). This Boeoeg, at least, was quickly demolished. 

It was the first time that I’d noticed how much of a fuss was made over Sechselaeuten – another advantage of seeing Zurich as a tourist for a change! There were chocolates of the Boeoeg, miniature Boeoegs, food creations of the Boeoeg... and the shopkeepers loved to talk about it too.

On Sunday morning, we went to the “long-sleepers’ brunch cruise” on Lake Zurich. As Idette pointed out, this isn’t really so late, as we had to be there for 10am, which meant getting up by around 8.45am. If you want to go, I would advise to reserve in advance, since it was pretty full and if you reserve you are more likely to get a window seat (not that it really matters). This is also very Swiss – things get booked up really quickly.

However, actually, I would recommend it only if you really want to do the boat trip. The juice was made from concentrate and not fresh, there were no desserts, the coffee was just filter coffee (no speciality coffees), no prosecco was included, and there were no main lunch meals (just hot breakfast items of bacon, scrambled egg, sausage, and some ham). There were cold meats, cereals, breads, etc. The Hiltl brunch is far superior, as is the one at the Kameha, which are both the same price or less. You don’t get the cruise included, but the quality and selection of food is much better (a true brunch as opposed to just breakfast). Nevertheless, it was fun to be on the boat and to see further up the lake while we talked and ate.

After that, it was time for Idette to get her flight, and that was also the end of my weekend of being a tourist. It had been a great opportunity to chat and catch up. But now it's back to reality and work!