ITALY: Rome




St Peters Square and the Vatican City

 

We groaned at the thought of having to leave Zurich at 7 in the morning.  It meant setting the alarm for at least 30-45 minutes giving us enough time to shower and ensuring everything was packed and not leaving anything behind (a situation like the time I left my USB hanging over a mirror at Morocco House Hotel in Cacablanca....the USB with all our ID and passport  information, flight details, accommodation and photos and a whole heap of other personal information that meant quite a lot to us).  However at this point in our travels, 6 months in, we were quite proficient and had 'bag packing' down to a fine art.  (Wonder if there is a skills set or TAFE Cert III in Bag Packing?? - we would have it blitzed).  It was still dark as we made our way to the station walking along Limmatquai and the lake.

All good, except for the fact that we had a disturbed and virtually sleepless night caused by the noise from a couple of bars and restaurants near our accommodation. 

All night partying in Zurich

It was either that or the ladies of the night were trying to attract attention for their trade.  Even with all the goings on it was a bit sad to be leaving Zurich.  The city was welcoming and friendly and we made the most of the time we spent there.

But catching an early train meant we could get in some much needed shut eye.  This also meant missing out of some of the most beautiful scenery yet and this was something Tony and I were not about to do considering it was our last look at Switzerland.  Please let me rephrase that – “it was MY last look at Switzerland” (meaning - guess who got the shut eye?).

Heading due south the train trip would be around 4 hours before we change over in Florence then another change in Milan for the rest of the trip to Rome.  The first part of this leg of the journey we travelled through Lugano and Como with many smaller places in between before we reachedFlorence.  From there it’s through to Bologna (where we would be heading to after Rome), then Florence and finally Rome for a couple of days. 

The next part of our plan is for a short stay in Naples with the highlight of going on a day trip to walk through the ruins of the famous Pompeii – the ancient city buried below Mt Vesuvius which erupted in 79 AD.  Then it’s back to Rome, back to the same apartment for a couple more days before we head north again to Bologna, Venice then into Germany and beyond.

On this part of the trip we weren’t surprised to see that this border region between Switzerland and Italy has some of the most beautiful scenery particularly around Lugano. 

Lake side scenery near Lugano

For some reason I honestly thought we had reached Italy.  Probably because of the marble quarries we were passing, signs written in Italian, the style of buildings, and the agriculture but we could be excused from thinking we were already in Italy as we later found out that Lugano is actually in Switzerland with most of its population Italian speaking.  This was really interesting but not surprising when you consider the number of countries/languages that border on each other in Europe.  



Marble quarry

According to the printed information on our Eurail ticket we were supposed to arrive into Florence at 10.50am (emphasise SUPPOSED) and our departure time from Milan was scheduled for 11.20am – giving us 30 minutes to get our luggage off the train then find the Platform No. we were leaving from. 

Shouldn’t be a problem except THE TRAIN WAS RUNNING 25 minutes LATE !!…..leaving us with only 5 minutes to unload luggage and find the platform from where our next train leaves.

We had no idea why the train was running late.  We weren’t given an explanation (and  generally passengers never are) but we could only suppose the train crew had been in Zurich the night before at one of those loud bars or restaurants (or with the ladies…)  and catching up on lost sleep LOL !!!

Now you will recall in our earlier blogs that one of our biggest gripes with European train travel was for us having to get from one platform to another, especially when there are dozens of platforms at major Central stations.  Florence was no exception.  OK…so these platforms were on ground level.  But because the train was late this was a MAJOR obstacle we had to overcome.  

We had to “think fast....very bloody fast” without panic setting in and we had to do a couple of things.  The first was to grab our luggage and get to the train door so that as soon as it stopped and doors opened – so that we were out of there.  The next was to quickly work out, on-the-hop, which platform our train to Rome was leaving from and then….run like bloody hell to the train at Platform 89 or whatever it was…trying to overtake ALL the other passengers attempting to do the same AND get to the same (OUR) train.   Usain Bolt would have been proud of us. 

Just as we got to the back carriage of the Rome bound train the Conductor blew his whistle then yelled in Italian “All aboard” waving madly at everyone at the same time.  We were frantic and just jumped onto the last carriage heaving our luggage up the stairs – and bloody breathless.  We made it and within half a minute, people still scrambling onto the train behind us, it pulled out of the  station !!  When we looked up at the Carriage numbers we had jumped onto No. 12.  Our reservation was in Carriage 4.  There were other obstacles too!  With people still pushing behind us, we had to manoeuvre our bags (on wheels) through the narrow aisles running over peoples feet and into other peoples luggage – thankful we’d made it by the skin of our teeth – still breathless.  

This experience was to become our first lesson in learning Italian swear words and we quickly came to recognise F**K YOU in Italian.  No, actually it was from hearing it on World Movies on SBS and knowing what it meant. 

Mental Note to Self:  "Hmmm, this would be a handy word to know for later in our travels in Italy".

But that’s not the end of it….when we got to our reserved seats there was some “Tosser” (and his girlfriend) who made himself at home in OUR WINDOW seats all stretched out with the recliner back and magazines and refreshments ready to go.  The seats are 4-berth and the only thing they had not done was to put their feet up on the opposite seats.  Giving us the “death stare”, perhaps thinking that would deter us and we’d move along, when clearly there were no other seats available ….this guy grumbled and swore under his breath (not in Italian) when we showed him our tickets with the correct Carriage and Seat numbers.  He had no option but to move along.  Funny thing was… after trying to give us the “death stare’ earlier he couldn’t even look at us or out at the views during the whole trip but instead having cryptic conversations with his partner (in his best Australian accent - shame to say after all).

When the train arrived at Milano Centrale on schedule and “Sunshine” and partner made a hasty departure that could only be compared to how quickly we got on that train earlier.  Not as good as our Usain Bolt efforts…LOL !! 

Milan to Rome:  Boarding the train we secretly had our fingers crossed that our next travelling companions we would much more friendly and accommodating than the ones we had just encountered. 

 A BIG SHOUT OUT TO..... Elaine and Smitty, from Austin, Texas who were on their way to the Amalfi Coast.  We had plenty of laughs and conversations our our travels that the time just seemed to pass so quickly.  Pleasure to have met you folks and for making our journey enjoyable.

Benvenuti ROMA !!  We had finally made it to Rome and on our first observations the city is best described as a living, breathing museum – just incredible! 

Roma Termini

 

We had to get our bearings and find our accommodation.  This was easier said than done.  Most Tourist Information Centres in big cities at least give away Free Maps.  Not here.  So we settled for one of those laminated, plastic coated ones that folds out to about 3 x 3 ft wide bought at a newsagent for 3 Euro.  Did we look like tourists checking out the map??? Hahahaha!  Only for a little while!!! 


This map was so detailed it showed every laneway, viale, plaza, ponte, piazza,  parco, ruins and just about every conceivable monument marked in such small print...and written in Italian, that I thought my eyesight had deteriorated by at least 50% since we left Australia.

Thankfully it was only the map and I blame it in part to the “plasticised coating” for the reflections that played with my eyes.  The small details also created a problem with finding our way to our apartment at Da Marta e Alida on Largo di Sant Alfonso.  On our first attempt we managed to find the street and the archway that led through to the back of a church but couldn’t find the number of the apartment block.  So we back-tracked around the block for about another 500 metres or more on Via Cavour only to find that we were only about 2 street numbers and 10 metres from where we needed to be….ie. at the front of the church with our apartment directly across the laneway.  We are thinking of renaming our Blog from Tony and Liz’s Travel Adventures to something more appropriate like Tony and Liz’s Travel “Hit & Miss-Adventures “. 

The Apartment Block,
Largo di Sant Alfonso, 5,
 Corrodo, Roma

But just getting back to Roma Termini…we couldn’t wait to get out of there but we knew we had to revisit it a number of times over the next few days.  The station concourse and platforms are just so busy and crowded all the time that touts and thieves hover day and night like moths to a light bulb!  

By now we had come to recognise them.  The most common scam here is tourists are asked if they want help with directions, buying rail tickets for them or helping people with their luggage and so on in exchange for Euros.  Not us, thank you. 

Something to mention here - we noticed this guy at Roma Termini a couple of days in a row.  He was pacing and acting like he was a commuter, looking at people’s bags, hand luggage and particularly where they would put away their wallets/purses after purchasing at the newsagent, food court or buying rail tickets.  It was that bloody obvious!  There has got to be a better way to earn a living. 

Another interesting thing was while we were waiting at Roma Termini I overheard a couple of Russian girls talking about their dilemma of getting back home to Russia as soon as possible instead of leaving in the next 2 days.  Understanding a little Russian/Polish I asked what the problem was.  They had spent all their money and didn’t have the Euros for the reservation fee, but still had a valid Eurail Ticket.  They only needed to change their booking and like most bookings you need money to do so.  I thought maybe it was a scam but turned out they were genuine and after pleading with a kind Trenitalia Customer Service person they managed to swap their later booking for one that night.  So why do I mention this?  It happened that one of the girls lives in the same town, Nova Kakhovka, where my mum lived as a young girl back in the 1920s and 30s.  Back then it was the "old Kakhovka" which was destroyed during the war and thereafter Nova Kakhovka was rebuilt some 15-20 kms away from its original location.  It was kind of strange  talking about this place to these young girls who may not have known the history....and who would have thought?  Big population but still a small world.  God Bless – and in Rome too – home of the Pope and the Vatican. The Holy city.

Our accommodation was in a modern refurbished flat with shared kitchen facilities in an old apartment block – really quite stylish.  To get to our abode we had to first pass through 3 doors/gates.  First was through the main wrought iron gate with an Intercom.  The second was the large Entrance door on the ground floor.  The third was a large wooden door into the flat itself.  In the building grounds was a small garden and path, marble stairs which lead up to the building which had the original old façade, and once inside more marble stairs leading up to a marble lined foyer.  Inside the foyer was an old elevator enclosed in filigree wrought iron and with old wooden doors leading into individual apartments….and a different key was needed for each door.  The apartment block was a short walk from the station (if you know the direct route), close to supermarkets and the well-known landmarks for which Rome is famous.  Just perfect for our 2-part stay in Rome. 

With some time to spare this afternoon and decided to familiarise ourselves with the local area and to get a 24 hr ticket on the Roma Christiana – the big Yellow Open Top tour bus that runs from 9am to 6.30pm. 

From our previous experience this was the best way to go and make use of the Hop-On, Hop-off points around the city then revisit the attractions later on at our own pace.  Tick -Done!!  Firstly though we stock up on some local produce and happened to find the best value double flavour Gelati at the local supermarket.  Well it is local produce !! 

Funny thing happened at this Supermercato too, and it relates to the cheekiness of Italian men.  While we were checking out the fruit and veges one couldn’t help but notice the beautifully dressed and well-proportioned Transvestite sorting through the oranges when a man loudly pointed out and picked up one of the large cucumbers – maybe more to her liking.  Couldn’t understand her comment back to this guy, but it must have been a good one because everyone around us cracked up laughing.  Can only guess which body part the comment related to, or whether it was about his or hers (sic).  LOL.

The European heat wave continued and on this particular day the temperature gauge was sitting on 42 degrees Celsius and we were sitting on the Roma Christiana double decker bus in the shade listening to the commentary about Roman history.  It was an excellent experience and also gave us a chance to see many of the highlight such as:



The Coloseum (Colosseo)

The Coloseum (Colosseo) where men are dressed as Gladiators and charge tourists some ridiculous amount of money to have their photos taken with them.  Off to the lions with them I say !! 


Circo Massimo and Palatine Hill located on Belevedere Romolo e Remo.
 

Palatine Hill with Circo Massimo in the foreground

Spanish Steps

- The Spanish Steps

- Santa Maria Maggiore
- Terme di Diocleziano
- Piazza Venezia
- Catacombes
- The Tiber River 
- Castel S Angelo 
- Arco de Constantino

Arco de Constantino

- St Peter’s Square & Basillica
- the Vatican City

- The Roman Forum

- Trevi Fountain
- Victor Emmanual II Monument
 

Monument of Victor Emmanual II

Tiber River with Castel St Angelo in the background

And many, many more but the one that amazed us the most was overlooking the cordoned off areas and looking down below the level of the street in a relatively modern part of Rome. 

Here archeologists were excavating and brushing and sifting through the ruins underneath the main street of Via Nazionale.  Here we saw steps and arched doorways probably about 7-9 metres below the road surface – only now being exposed to the air since who knows when.



Unearthed -new excavations

The city seems to be in a continuum of reconstruction/restoration whereby many of the ancient buildings have been fortified and scaffolded to stop collapse and decomposition and protect them from further breakdown.  

More Scaffolding



Terme di Diocleziano (Baths of Diocletian)
with scaffolding

Everywhere you seemed to go there was always something “new” to see ie. monuments, statues or fountains that usually aren’t marked on the very detailed maps.

In this city “new” means very old or ancient and for us Aussie folks it takes a while to absorb because there is absolutely nothing like this in Australia. 

Santa Maria Maggiore

After a couple of exhausting days in the heat and taking in the sites we arrived back at the apartment just as the sun was setting, the foyer, hallway and entrance to the flat didn’t have any lights and it was getting dark fast.  We hadn’t found this to be a problem before except on this particular night.  Earlier I mentioned that the building we were staying in had an old façade, marble foyer and old wooden doors.  Soon after our arrival that’s when the panic struck !! 

After fiddling around with the key in the keyhole wondering why the door would not open,  with Tony still jiggling and fiddling some more, then a lot more…..the key broke in the key-hole – snapped right off and here he was standing there gobsmacked holding only half the key in his hand - the rest and most important part was stuck in the key-hole. 

In the very limited light, both of us were trying to see if we could get the short end of the key out with the other part of the key.  Should we ring the Manager?  We hadn’t used Italian public phones before.  TJ went down the road while I stayed in the dim thinking of how we could get into the apartment.  Tony tried the number.  It rang out a couple of times – no answer.  Stress levels rising!!!  It wasn’t until he came back to the apartment block and tried to open the front door of the building with the other keys and realised….. THE WRONG KEY WAS BROKEN IN THE WOODEN DOOR – it was the front door key that broke and NOT the apartment door key.  It still didn’t solve the problem – there was still an obstruction in that key hole.  It was getting darker, there was no-one else around and we even knocked on the neighbours door without any response.  We didn’t have anything sharp that would shift the key out.  If only we could do this then we would have some hope of getting inside our abode using the right key.   

Like on most uncalled for situations and mishaps during our travels – I always have my camera at the ready.  This time was no different.  I took a photo of the key-hole, and just like the camera flash (and the only light in the foyer) my brain engaged and I came up with the idea of using the stem of my earring to edge out the rest of the key out of that little hole.  I didn’t really care if I’d wreck the earring. We were buggered after a big day and frustrated at what was happening here.  Within 2 secs I had the end of the earring grab into one of the cuts on the key and with careful precision slid the key out of the hole and falling onto the floor.  This time Tony put the right key in the right key hole.  What a friggin’ relief.  Yes, we are in the Holy City and my faith brighter than ever. 

We couldn’t get in contact with our Italian-English speaking Nepalese Manager before we left but left him a note outlining what happened together with the pieces of key and some Euros to cover the cost of replacement. 

We will be back to Rome, to this apartment in 4 days.  Hopefully he has a bright new shiny key for us (with any luck one that glows in the dark !!)

Tomorrow we head for Naples and on to the wonders of Pompeii.  Till then .......

Liz and Tony



Tony - On the train Rome to Napoli

Liz - on the train to Napoli
 (with seats all to ourselves)



Roman Style Parking


 

  



Castel S Angelo

SWITZERLAND: Zurich

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ZURICH

Financial Centre of Switzerland.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zurich

It’s the 16 August and now Day 145  of Tony and Liz’s Travel Adventures 

At this point Lyon is behind us and we are travelling at speeds over 300kms per/hr to Mulhouse-Ville on a TGV Lyria.  All going to plan allowing for train changes our ETA into Zurich will be around 2.30pm.  We travel through Mulhouse-Ville in France near the Switzerland/Germany border where we change trains again to catch the ICE (Intercity) to Basel.  Then in Basel northern Switzerland, we have to wait a further 2½ hours for a connection.  This time on the Swiss railway system called the SBB.

It might be worth mentioning a minor detail and perhaps one of our most common gripes about travelling on the European railways and catching connecting trains to other destinations.  And that was:-If you had to disembark at a ‘BIG’ city Central station – most likely you would have to embark on another platform.  Sometimes these stations would have up to 30 platforms or more in major capital cities…and sometimes interlinked with the Metro system.
  

Our biggest and loudest whinge (and groan or worse when we had to change platforms) was to haul our 20kg + plus personal baggage across to another platform at stations with NO escalators or elevators.  Many times we came to stairs that seemed to go forever into the bowels of the underground or up into the station plazas packed with hundreds of people.  At times Elevators and Escalators were “Out of Order”.  That was when we would stop in our tracks and look at the stairs, loaded up with our luggage ….and you could hear each of us swearing under our breath….only words that could be compared to those used by the likes of Billy Connolly, Eddie Murphy, and Kevin “Bloody” Wilson – all combined.  In those instances the swearing wasn’t spoken with a French, Spanish or German accent – it would be in a clear, loud good ol’ Aussie accent!!!



Our worldly possessions for
 8 months - 20kgs each

Thankfully though, we managed a Trifecta at Basel SBB Bahnhof. 

(1)  Our connecting train was leaving from the same platform we had arrived on

(2)  there were Escalators, and;

(3)  there were Elevators.    YESSSS!! and let’s add an extra one for the Quadrella! 

(4) The station, has a beautiful historic interior and exterior in its original condition and on the outside, engraved in the sandstone blocks was the familiar UNESCO logo.

And on this occasion rather than drag our baggage around, TJ and I took turns to wander off, ride the escalator or elevator (smiling) and admire the grandeur of Basel station at our own pace until our train arrived.  So the wait for the ICE (Intercity) train was made even the more pleasant in the interim.

The stairs issues aside, we very much came to enjoy the leisurely train travel in Europe.  We met a lot of interesting people, compared travel experiences, heard many great stories and would exchange our “must see and to-do” lists in different cities.  We were making the most of this life-changing experience and as we would come to find out later on our adventure, European stations and railways are a breeze compared to riding the railways in Asia and China. 

We were still worried about one big dilemma since making our first train booking back in Paris on 20 June!  We couldn’t get a connection between Venice and Munich !!! and we were starting to stress about it.  With all our best efforts to make on-line bookings this was the one big noticeable, problematic gap.  Not only was this an issue for us but also for railway staff who either couldn’t or wouldn’t book our reservations.  Here we were thinking about the “Domino effect”.  A double whammy “Dominos Effect” actually, meaning..... 

1.  If this booking doesn’t work out then all our other train and accommodation bookings through Italy and Germany will fall over and we would have to sequentially change each one.  Or even worse - not being able to get to Nancy, France on the 5^th September.  A special date and place with a lot of special meaning for us.

2.  Our travel plans would look like a dropped-on-the-ground “Dominos” Double Supreme Pizza with Anchovies and extra Olives…..and as much as you tried there was no way you could get it back to its original form.

If we couldn’t get that reservation, then all our advance plans would be stuffed.  Our hopes of getting a Venice / Munich reservation were laying with Zurich HB (Hauptbahnhof) staff that would come to our rescue!! Besides this station is the largest and busiest in the Switzerland.



Zurich HB

Up to this point we were travelling rather freely between countries in Europe however, this was the first time our Passports were checked by Border Security.  It clicked – Switzerland is not part of the European Union (EU) and their currency and trade is still in Swiss Francs. The money conversion is much the same as the Australian Dollar so it was easy to get a sense of the cost of goods and services. 

Swiss guards checking passports



It wasn’t long before we knew we had crossed the border - it was that obvious – the style of houses had changed dramatically to cute chalets surrounded by the greenest country side.  As the train approached Zurich, the views changed to industrial, chemical, biotech, pharmaceutical (Novartis and Roche), Telecommunications (swisscom) and commercial.  We were already in awe.

Swiss Chalets



Our stay in Zurich for the first couple of days would be with Glen and Stephanie in the suburb called Seebach – about a 10-15 minute tram ride from the city centre.  For the other days we’d be based in the centre of Zurich at the Alexandra Guesthouse, close to Limmatquai the heart of the Old Town, shopping area, eateries and bars, and the lake.  More importantly it was close to the Zurich HB (Hauptbahnhof). 

We chose this location for its proximity to all modes of transport ie. trains, buses, trams and ferries that zigzag across the Zürichsee and the Limmat River and being summer time is where most of the action is. 

With a few hours to spare before Glen and Stefanie would be home from work we hit the Tourism Information Office at the HB to gather local maps, transport schedules and other useful information.  This is where we purchased a ZVV – The Zurich Pass which offers free transportation on all modes of travel around Zurich, free entrance into specified museums and other discounts for Souvenirs, restaurants and the like.  “The cost” you ask?  A 72 hour (4 day) pass is 40 Swiss Francs – for unlimited travel, scenic river and rail rides, hop on-hop off anywhere on the scheduled stops.  At a bargain $10 bucks a day - tomorrow we hit the ground running!! 

Limmatquai on Lake Zurich

Zurich HB (Hauptbahnhof) was incredible and bustling, people going about their business everywhere.  The London Olympics had just finished on the 12^th August which could account for why there were so many travellers at the station – many heading to other European destinations after London. 

But here, under the one roof Zurich HB contains 3 levels of shops, food courts, cafes, bakeries (with all those Yum pastries), supermarkets, telephones, Showers and Toilets (which you have to pay half a Swiss Franc to use -the last time we paid to use loos was in Morocco)  

We first found the “Left Luggage” lockers and checked in our bags allowing us some time alone – parting ways with our luggage for a couple of hours.  No love lost there!

Over the coming days we found the transport system above our expectations – on-time and super-efficient.  And ‘efficient’ can only be used to describe the railway Zurich HB Customer Service staff who were able to finalise the gap in our travel plans i.e. Venice to Munich.  We couldn’t be more grateful….and…The reason we had problems?  The rail line between Brennero/Brenner (northern Italy) and Innsbruck (Austria) HB (Hauptbahnhof – love that word!!   Pronounced HORFFT-BARN-HOFF) was closed for maintenance.  This meant catching a bus for that leg of the journey, about a 45 minute trip – no problem – our travel arrangements were thankfully still according to plan. 

Stepping out of the station there were Two, NO… make that Three big things that hit us: 

1.   The “COOP” supermarket (pronounced COORRRP) on the banks of Limmat River; 

2.   The huge Lindt Chocolate sign staring straight at you that you instantly CRAVE Swiss chocolate, and; 

         3. Posters everywhere of the most humble, greatest sportsman and world champion tennis player – Roger Federer.  Locals tell us that when Roger is out in public alone or with his family, he is left to go about his business in peace – no celebrity factor here.  How good is that!!  No wonder he chooses to live in Switzerland and the Swiss just love him to bits. 




Roger Federer



Close by were the church towers of Fraumunster and Grossmunster,  plus many other towers that the Swiss are famous for i.e. its many Clock towers, especially the Kirche-St Peter with the largest clock face in Europe.

One of the many clock towers in Zurich



Grossmunster

There were bridges, numerous heritage buildings of the Old Town, Parks, cafes, courtyards and upmarket restaurants along Limmaquai.  And trams running in every direction.

Looking out across the picturesque Lake Zurich were mountains in the distance, and even though it was summer, further out we could see the snow-capped Alps.  

This city exuded friendliness, charm, wealth and affluence and all without the snootiness. 

We’d be back tomorrow to further discover the Lake, River and mountains that surround Zurich using our trusty Zurich card. 

By the days end we found our way to Seebach, got immersed in conversation with Glen and Stephanie over food and beers while watching the sun set over the city from their apartment.  Later on watching each other’s photos of Peru and of our travels.  Wonderful memories and recollections, and really nice moments in time. 


Over the next few days the Zurich HB was our primary landmark.  From here we’d take tram rides just to see where they would carry us, set off on train rides to lakeside stations and catch the ferries from the Limmatquai to take us on a hop-on, hop-off journey across the lake.

Sunset at Seebach



On one of the days when walking along towards our train we heard an Aussie accent – not something we were used to here.  Without looking obvious, but pricking up the ears (yes OK, EAVESDROPPING) the person was heard to say “You just cannot imagine the pressure that is on you when you have to represent your country”.  I just couldn’t resist I just had to turn around and see who it was. 

There he was, a young athletic man flanked by two equally looking athletic young blonde ladies, bragging about “the pressure”. Poor darling!  No prizes for guessing but here are a few hints, here goes…He:

- had just competed in the 2012 London Olympics

- was a member of Australian swim team (their worst ever performance in an Olympics)

- was charged and convicted of an assaulting another Australian sportsman….in a drunken mess (if you please!!)

- declared himself a Bankrupt after the court found him guilty of assault, and ordered to pay 180K damages, and let’s not forget,

- the “Gun slinger” photos on social media with another swimmer.

Who is it?  – Nick D’Arcy of course (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_D'Arcy)  “Controversies” topic is worth reading.

But wait – just when you thought it was over - there’s more!  The following week he posted photos on social media of himself somewhere in Dubrovnik or thereabouts surrounded by …you guessed it….Blondes!!  The Australian Swim Team were supposed to return to Australia following the Olympics albeit tails between their legs.  Oh the pressures of representing your country……!!  And he was representing Australia.  Just shameful! 

We have a theory as to why Nick D’Arcy was in Zurich?  Here goes….Swiss (secret) Bank Accounts, tax dodges etc.  This bankrupt swimmer was probably withdrawing funds for his extended overseas stay after the Olympics.  It’s plausible!  LOL.

There was just so much to see and even though our time was limited, we made the most of playing the tourist.  Our list included:

A train ride up to Mt Uetliberg – “The Top of Zurich” with panoramic views over the city and lake.  Uetliberg is 871 mtrs above sea level with an observation and communications tower atop. It is covered in pristine forest with numerous hiking trails and is also hugely popular with extreme mountain bike riders. 

Observation Tower on Uetliberg



Endless Boat rides on Lake Zurich, hop-on, hop-off where we discovered antique and bric-a-brac markets, lakeside swimming and recreational spots, Open Air cinema and lakeside restaurants. 

Swiss National Museum which houses the largest cultural exhibition and artefacts in the country

Archaeological collection of the University of Zurich



Inside the Archeological Museum

which contains collections of the Mesopotamia, Greek, Egyptian, Roman eras including casts of numerous statues.  I just want to make a quick comment here about this museum.  On the day we visited, other than the security staff at the door, TJ and I had the whole building to ourselves and were the only people checking out the exhibits. It was a little spooky and a little /creepy at the same time because we were surrounded by these  life-size statues - whose eyes seemed to be following us as we walked around.  Very surreal, but something you should definitely check it out if you are ever in Zurich.







Paleontological Museum of the University of Zurich

with its collection of fossils from around the world

Fossil of a Siberian Baby Mammoth





Entrance to Zoological Museum



Zoological Museum with over 1500 animal species with interactive displays to view  



Sharman

Museum of Medical History with exhibits ranging curious therapies including Sharman, witch doctors & snake oil to modern medicine and medical instruments

Burkliplatz Square near the Bahnhofstrasse

Lindenhop a popular public park and vantage point overlooking Zurich and Limmat River. 

Mediaeval architecture of Old Town and Old Quarters below Lindenhop

Admired the Urania Police headquarters building which was once and orphanage and restored several years ago.



We also passed the Frauenbadi on the Limmat River – “Women only” swimming enclosure built in 1888 to protect women bathers from prying eyes.  One could not help but look because most of the bathers were topless and lounged around like mermaids on a sunny day.







Another big highlight for us was going to Weggis with Glen and Stefanie travelling at ground hugging speeds on the Autobahn in her “Racing Green” Mini Cooper S. (very cute and sporty) .There Tony and Glen went swimming and TJ assured us the water was warm even though there were snow-capped mountains around us.  Glen unfortunately stubbed his toe on a rock coming out of the water - grimacing painfully for most of the night.  (A quick call to his (GP) father in Belgium assured him it wasn’t broken).  Painkillers to the rescue and a couple of alcoholic drinks!



Dining Out Weggis Style
 (L-R, Liz, Stephanie, Glen, Tony)

Weggis, about a 45 mins car ride, was beautiful and is a summertime retreat for holidaymakers.  This particular night after dinner we all strolled through the town hearing Karaoke echo from a lakeside restaurant (someone singing ABBA !).  We were happy to just take it all in, admiring the buildings, lakeside, the fireworks on the distant mountaintop and the atmosphere before another low-flying Formula One ride back to Zurich on the freeway.  A 45 mins journey might be an “under-estimation".  We think we did 30 mins each way.  LOL.

Of course our adventures always take on an amusing or hilarious spin and being in Zurich proved to be no different. 

During one of our boat cruises we noticed a large sign advertising a “CASINO” on the lake not far from the open air cinema.  On our last night we decided to dress up, catch a bus from Limmatquai to the Casino and spin a few lucky numbers on the Roulette tables.  It was smiles all the way.  There seemed to be so many people going our way. That was a good sign – or so we thought. 

When we arrived at the Casino, the doors were closed. Maybe we had arrived a little early before opening time….and all those other people going our way??...They were heading to the Open Air cinema.  After walking around the complex a young man appeared from the restaurant inside.  When asked about the Casino – he laughed!  He told us that the Casino is “only” in name and NOT a Roulette-wheeling, card-shuffling, keno-drawing, slot-machining, Pokie-driven, Sic-Bo-ing Casino.  It was only a restaurant with the Casino Bling.  LOL, LOL.  All dressed up and No where to Go.  Haha!  So to drown our sorrows we headed back into the city and noshed up on Cocktails….and we looked the part too ….all dressed up!!

And while on the subject of ‘Dressed Up’ we witnessed a curious site in the river which involved a couple of hundred swimmers with “Undressed” novelty floaties. We weren’t sure of the theme of this event but it looked like it wasn’t very challenging and the swimmers were having a good time and a good laugh.  We figured this was the real reason Nick D’Arcy was visiting Zurich.  It was up to his speed and a probably a participant in the event.  LOL.

 Ladies....Frauenbadi is the other way

Pity we had to leave Zurich – this city is a 'must see and do' on anyone’s travel agenda.  I have just so many beautiful photos of places we visited that there are just too many to upload on this blog.

But in the morning it’s an early start to catch the 7am Trenitalia to Milan then catch a connector to Rome, ETA 2.45pm.  Hopefully there aren’t any surprises.

Until Roma, Arrivederci !

Liz and Tony


PS.  Nick we forgive you but in future don't be such a TOSSER !!

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Who's a bad boy ? - needs no explanation !