Zurich – Page 11 – David Kotz

Uetliberg sunset

A beautiful day to view the sunset over the Alps.

Today was a spectacular day to be high – on a summit, that is. Mid-afternoon I caught a tram to the west side of town and hoofed it up the steep slopes of Uetliberg, the hill that dominates the western edge of Zürich. I wish I’d arrived earlier, while the sunlight was still touching the Alpine peaks… but I arrived in time to climb the summit tower and watch the the clouds’ evolving palette of colors for the next half hour. It was hard to capture the magic of this moment… but I’ve posted a gallery of five favorites.

Sunset view from Uetliberg, Zurich.

Bachtel

A pleasant hike to panoramic views on Bachtel, outside Zurich.

It’s still November and we’re still doing fall hiking, close to Zürich. Today Andy and I walked from the little village Gibswil, over fresh dusting of snow and through pastures and forests, to the summit of Bachtel. Although not a high mountain by Swiss standards – only 1,115 meters – it is popular for its panoramic view of the Zürichsee valley and the Alps beyond. There is a road to the summit, which has a restaurant, a playground, and an observation tower. Ok, the purist in me would normally avoid such a summit, but there is really something to be said for sitting in a warm restaurant over a plate of raclette and a glass of beer, enjoying the panoramic view.

Last night there were low clouds hovering over all these hills, leaving behind a dusting of snow at the higher elevations. We began our hike as those clouds slowly began to dissipate and the sunshine sparkled in the snow. Sadly, some clouds persisted between Bachtel and the Alps throughout our lunch, and just began to clear as we snapped a few photos and descended toward Wald. Fortunately the trails and pastures of the descent allowed many fine views toward the Glarusalps over the pretty valley town of Wald.

I certainly plan to return on some future clear-sky day! Check out the photo gallery. If you want to keep up with our adventures, click “Follow” at right.

Hiking notes:

We followed this description, and its gpx file. We made one slight detour (mistake). Our route ended up being 9.9km, 2.5 hours walking time. Tram/train/bus from home to Gibswil was about 50 minutes; from Wald to home was about 40 minutes.
The summit Bachtel Kulm Restaurant actually has pretty good food and drink, and an extensive ice cream menu 😉

Schnebelhorn

Alpine and pastoral views from Schnebelhorn on a grey and windy November day.

Although it is late fall, and I’m seeing the occasional Züricher happy lugging skis toward the train station enroute to a day of skiing at one of the high-altitude resorts, the lowlands are still snow-free and quite lovely. Indeed, yesterday the forecast was for warm (12-14ºC) though blustery conditions. I decided to tackle Schnebelhorn, the highest point in the Canton of Zürich. Read on, and check out the photo gallery. View of the Glarusalps from the descent of Schnebelhorn.

Continue reading “Schnebelhorn”

Christmas lights

I went to watch the city of Zurich celebrate the onset of the Christmas season.

At this particular time on this particular day, the city of Zürich turns on all its Christmas lights and the Christmas markets officially open. Throngs of people turned out for this much-anticipated event, packed shoulder-to-shoulder on Bahnhofstrasse, the central avenue. The photo below shows the moment after the lights came on, with the crowd cheering and the people in the verandas at upper left setting off confetti crackers. The smell of heiss marroni (roasted chestnuts) and glüwein (mulled wine) wafted by, and the shops were handing out free glasses of champagne or live music indoors. A very festive evening… see the short gallery – with video!

Uetliberg

A lovely late-fall stroll along the ridgeline with views down into Zurich.

As we the final leaves fall from the trees in Zürich – and the higher-elevation ski resorts start to open around Switzerland – the options for hiking become narrower. I’ve had my eyes on one hike ever since my first day in town: Uteliberg. This hill dominates the opposite side of the lake, above Zürich, and we watch the sun set over Uetliberg from our flat every evening. With a summit-top observation tower, a telecom tower, a hotel, and a restaurant, it glows prominently in our nighttime view behind the city. Read on, and check out the photo gallery.

map

Continue reading “Uetliberg”

Swimming in the Zürichsee

Zürich is located right at the tip of Lake Zürich, and there are several public swimming facilities easily accessible from the tramline along the shore.

The weather here in Zürich has been exceptionally warm and pleasant for September, or so the locals tell me. This weekend had spectacular weather. On Saturday I went hiking in the Glarus region. On Sunday, Andy and I decided to take a swim in the lake. Zürich is located right at the tip of Lake Zürich, and there are several public swimming facilities easily accessible from the tramline along the shore. For an entry fee of a few francs we joined throngs of happy Swiss folks who were sunning and swimming. The Seebad Utoquai facility, not shown particularly well in this photo, was well-appointed with changing rooms, lockers, showers, and a snack bar. And (though crowded) there was space to lay out your towel and catch a few rays, to see and be seen. Our quick dive into the lake was chilly – cooler than the Connecticut River at home right now – but very pleasant. The water is deep and clear. The swim floats were packed with young folks while the older long-distance swimmers arrived from their swim across the lake. Nice spot!

Alpine sunrise

This morning’s view from our Zürich flat was a real treat, as the rising sun illuminated the Alps beyond the lakeside hills, before it reached the spires of the city center. I look forward to watching how this view shifts with season and light over the next 10 months.

#Nikon #D500 160mm 1/60s at f10, ISO 720.

Quantum mechanics

In a fascinating NYT article this weekend, Even Physicists Don’t Understand Quantum Mechanics, the writer expounds on the importance of research into the fundamentals of quantum mechanics. In the process he mentions two famous Zürich scientists: Einstein did his PhD work here at ETH and Schrödinger was (later) a professor next door at the University of Zürich. As a former physics major (who once thought he understood quantum mechanics), it’s pretty cool to be surrounded by such history.

Last week I visited the Computer Science department, housed in the old chemistry building. That building is even more historic, home to seven Nobel prizes in chemistry. (ETH has a total of 21 Nobel prizes to its credit, including 10 in Chemistry.)

Zurichsee

Zürich sits at the end of a beautiful lake, aptly named Lake Zürich (Zürichsee). On this pleasant sunny Saturday evening, the lakeshore promenade is full of strolling families, wandering tourists, and romantic couples sharing a bottle of wine. Ducks and white swans paddle the clear water to see whom might toss in a breadcrumb or two. Cafés serve wurst to those who want to linger over a beer. All in all, a lovely scene. More photos at the top of the Zürich album.

Bells, bells, bells

Zürich is home to dozens of churches and its skyline is full of steeples. Some of them chime on the hour, or even on the quarter-hour, but what I find most curious is that some steeple bells peal at unexpected times and for extended periods. I do not yet understand when or why, but I always imagine it is celebrating something cheerful like a wedding or birth of a new baby. The bell tower prominent in the view from our open windows belongs to Liebfrauenkirche, and has a particularly large set of bells. They ring through loud and clear despite the ETH office building in the foreground.