From Basel, we were transported to Zurich by bus. Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and is its economic and financial center. This city is in the north of the country. 

Zurich is an upmarket banking city and the financial capital of Switzerland. It, therefore, comes as no surprise that it’s often labelled as the most expensive in the world, and we can personally attest to its expensive nature! Zurich is famous for luxurious lifestyles, high-end shopping, and fancy chocolates. However, despite its expense and extravagance, it is also ranked as one of the best cities to live in the world. Boasting highly urbanized districts that sit amidst historical and cultural areas, Zurich is also the biggest city in Switzerland. It is also extremely well situated. It sits right on Lake Zurich and has the waters of the River Limmat running right through it. And all this at the foot of the Swiss Alps. 

The Old Town is Zurich’s tourist hub. 

Zurich’s waterfront along the Limmat River is a beautiful and popular area, featuring the Limmatquai promenade with picturesque views and famous church towers. 

The Fraumunster is a church in Zurich which was built on the remains of a former abbey for aristocratic women and which was founded in 853 by Louis the German for his daughter Hildegard. Fraumünster was once part of Fraumunster Abbey founded in A. D. 853. In 1272, the bones of the first two abbesses, Hildegard and Berta, were placed in the south wall of the church transept.

About 1300, someone painted a fresco above their resting place. Someone painted over the original mural which was uncovered in 1847. Franz Hegi made a watercolor copy of the original in 2006. Today, it belongs to the Evangelical Reformed Church of the canton of Zurich and is one of the four main churches of Zurich, the others being the Grossmunster, St. Peter’s, and Prediger churches.

The Grossmunster is a Romanesque-style Protestant church in Zurich. Its congregation forms part of the Evangelical Reformed Church of the Canton of Zurich. The core of the present building, near the banks of the Limmat, was constructed on the site of a Carolingian church, which was, according to legend, originally commissioned by Charlemagne. Construction of the present structure commenced around 1100 and it was inaugurated around 1220. The twin towers of the Grossmunster are regarded as perhaps the most recognized landmark in Zurich

The “green tower with clock” in Zurich refers to the clock tower of St. Peter’s Church. It’s a prominent landmark in Zurich, known for having the largest clock face in Europe. The tower itself is predominantly green, with a distinctive wooden roof covered in larch shingles.

Prediger is the last of the four main churches of the old town of Zurich. First built in 1231 AD as a Romanesque church of the then Dominican Predigerkloster, the Basilica was converted in the first half of the 14th century, the choir between 1308 and 1350 rebuilt, and for that time an unusual high bell tower was built, regarded as the highest Gothic edifice in Zürich.

I did not go on this excursion due to a significant head cold. All photos are by Kay.