As you move a bit higher up on the Zuriberg it becomes more residential. Nice leafy streets though and a combination of old and new. This is a sought-after part of town, and quite pricey, but there are few locked gates and high fences. Feels really nice. Wish I had the money
We're back on our little stroll up the hill from the lake. We've reached Kirche Fluntern, about halfway, arriving by Zurichbergstrasse which you can see coming up to the left of the church. You can just see the lake in the distance down below.
Not a brilliant photograph, but it illustrates our little journey. Somewhere else I was extolling the virtues of Zürich, including the ability to take car-less photos. However here we see one of the objective problems - overhead tram cables. Sometimes in town they add to the scene, but here I could have done without them
This post is by way of an interlude. On my way to Kirche Fluntern I passed a school and spotted these guys (two school kids and the janitor I guess) getting the flags out, so we're a wee bit off-route here. The reason is that this coming Monday is Sechseläuten - the Zurich spring festival that marks the end of winter. More on this on Sunday and Monday. The two flags are the Zurich cantonal flag and the Swiss national flag.
Update: The Swiss flag is square. There is only one other national flag in the world which is square. Answers on a postcard please........
A short walk uphill from the Gates of Hell, and we come to the lower slopes of the Zuriberg (still in town centre really) which are liberally sprinkled with the campus of ETH, Zurich (Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule). This is a renowned international research university, not all woodworking and metalwork as the name might suggest. The building shown here is one of the originals and is famous as the place where Churchill made his "Iron Curtain" speech on March 5th 1946
This blog is turning into a bit of a travelogue for this series, so picture quality has suffered a bit as I've chained myself to the task of commissioning photos to accompany the brief. This morning the light was a bit boring, so I plumped for this silhouette, rescued only by the appearance of the waning moon.
I've been playing with Google Maps new feature that allows you to easily save your own maps with images. (You could always do this using the API, but it was more complicated) now it's a bit easier. Click here to see what I mean. I'm interested to know what people think of this and how useful it is for the blog etc. Tomorrow we head up Gloriastrasse to check out Kirche Fluntern
(click image for a big closeup)
One tram stop, or a short walk up Rämi-strasse brings you to Heim-Platz, home of the Zurich Kunsthaus (Art gallery) and Schauspielhaus (Theatre). This picture is of the very Gates of Hell by Rodin, back in it's original location after being on loan to London recently. I say original location, but it's been shifted a bit. Used to be fixed to the wall outside the gallery, now it sits out from it on a plinth. I preferred it before. NB This photo was taken with the little point and shoot Lumix I've talked about. Notice how the figures at top of gates have been chopped off. Perils of only having an LCD screen and no viewfinder
If you're interested, I wrote some bits about the gallery on my other Zurich blog, and also some mutterings about Cafe Pfauen on Heimplatz, once the haunt of Joyce, Lenin and other assorted types
Bit late with this - left home on Tuesday without camera or memory card
Bellevue, situated right at the head of the lake is an ideal kicking off point for our trip up the Züriberg, mainly because we can stock up with massive amount of calories in the Bellevue Cafe Rotonda. This was recently renovated to it's 1930's splendour (so they say) and is another icon of Zurich life. Right in the middle of a busy tram junction it's cantilevered concrete roof speaks of another age
Here's another view while I'm at it - oh and yes I went back to B+W for this. I didn't like yesterdays colour effort at all
If you follow the google map link, you will see that Bellevue is situated at the foot of Ramistrasse - that's where we're heading up tomorrow
I though I'd be a copycat this week and pinch a theme from the likes of Isabella and Chuckeroon (and others). Zurich has a "Sea" (lake) and is surrounded by modest hills. I though it would be nice to make a trip from one to t'other. Don't know how long this will take, it's uphill all the way, although I may nip on a tram from time to time ;). And I'm going to do them all in colour like true holiday photos (maybe) as a change from my sometimes rather earnest B+W
To start with, an early morning stroll this morning in the spring sunshine by the lake. Easter Monday and the town is quiet, but the pedalos are out of hibernation ready for the summer. Bit chilly this morning for this though
