Posted December 6, 20195 yr Over Christmas and New Years 2018-19 I traveled to Europe with a couple of friends. Below is a link to each of the previous posts. Munich, Germany: December 21-24 Vienna, Austria: December 24-27 Prague, Czechia: December 27-29 Berlin, Germany: December 29-January 3 Zermatt, Switzerland: January 3-5 Thun, Switzerland: January 5 Bern, Switzerland: January 5 Zurich, Switzerland: January 5-7 The final stop on the trip was to Zurich, Switzerland, which the local Swiss population simply calls Züri. I arrived after dark from Bern and went to a concert, but didn't take my camera with me. The band was called Ay Wing, and they performed in a small venue called Nordbrücke that felt like a mix of MOTR and Northside Tavern for anyone from Cincinnati. The door was immediately to the left, and it was nearly impossible to get into the building because of the packed crowd and the door opened into the bar instead of out into the street. I was stuck on the side of the stage for the set. The next day I brought my camera with me when we went out. It was a relatively dreary day, but it never rained heavily. Just some light drizzle all day. The photos below are taken at the Limmet River through downtown. DSC_2677 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2684 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2686 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2690 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2697 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr The photos below are in the Old Town part of Zurich on the east side of the river. DSC_2699 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2702 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2709 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2712 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2714 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2716 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr Some interesting details on this building DSC_2718 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr Any vexillologists out there have any idea what this flag is? DSC_2719 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2723 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr The two towers in the distance is the Großmünster. We'll get there in a bit. DSC_2731 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr For now we're on our way to a city plaza called Lindenhof that serves as a great lookout over the city from the western bank of the river. DSC_2733 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2737 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2738 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2742 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2754 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2756 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2770 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2775 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr Below are a few shots of St. Peter's Church (St. Peterskirche). The first church dates to the 900's, and the current structure has elements dating to the 1200's. Apparently, the clock is the largest clock face on any church tower in Europe. DSC_2777 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2778 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2779 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2782 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr From the courtyard outside of St. Peter's. DSC_2789 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr Before going to the Großmünster, we checked out the older church on the other side of the river called the Fraumünster, which dates to the 11th century, though most of the structure was rebuilt and added on at later dates. The church was granted the right to mint coins, collect tolls, and host markets in 1045, which at the time essentially meant the city was run by this church. The first independent mayor was brought to power in 1336, thus ending the church's role as leader of the city, though it still held significance. DSC_2803 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr We weren't supposed to take photos inside the church, and I obeyed the request. It has some famous stained glass from cubist/expressionist artist Marc Chagall in it. They are some of his last commissioned pieces, and were installed in the 1970s. Google has plenty of images of them. Below are some images from the plaza in front of the church. DSC_2790 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2794 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr There used to be a monastery next door, but it was torn down to accommodate a new city hall shown below. DSC_2798 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr There was a crypt below the church that had been turned into a museum about the church. It was a great resource, and I highly recommend you visit it. It shows the old ruins from the original structure as well. Now we move on to the Großmünster just on the other side of the river. DSC_2805 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr The Großmünster started construction around 1100 and began a rivalry with the Fraumünster for political and social control. Quick history lesson for everyone. The Patron Saints of Zurich are Felix and Regula. According to legend, they were siblings who were to be executed in 286. They were caught in Zurich and executed at the riverfront in front of the current site of the Großmünster. There is a very small church called Wasserkirche (literally Water Church) at the sight that they were allegedly decapitated. After being decapitated, they allegedly stood to their feet, pucked up their own heads, walked forty paces uphill, and prayed before actually dying. Their burial site is under the Großmünster. So they built where they did because of this legend. Below is an image I pulled from wikipedia showing jesus talking to Felix and Regula (and their servant, Exuperantius, who was unfortunately not granted the same level of fame and recognition as Felix and Regula). Originally a Catholic church, the Großmünster switched to a protestant denomination during the Reformation in Switzerland around 1520. The leader of this movement was Huldrych Zwingli, who was the pastor here. During the Reformation, the elaborate decorative elements of the former Catholic Church were removed. The organ was removed, statues were taken down, and religious imagery was defaced. You can enter the western tower of the Großmünster by climbing a series of stairs. The following photos are taken from that location. The Fraumünster shown below. DSC_2809 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr St. Peterskirche below. DSC_2811 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2812 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2813 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2814 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2817 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2820 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr The aforementioned Wasserkirche below. DSC_2823 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2827 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2829 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2830 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2832 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr Below is the bridge that connects Fraumünster to the Großmünster and Wasserkirche. DSC_2856 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2869 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr Back to the streets walking around Zurich. Below is a Toblerone bike. DSC_2880 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr Forgive my excessive use of low shots. I only had a ~12" tripod. DSC_2882 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2885 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2886 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2891 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2893 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr DSC_2896 by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr Hope you enjoyed my trip though Europe!
December 6, 20195 yr Great shots. I was there in 2007 and enjoyed my time there for a week. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
December 6, 20195 yr I was there in 2003, but only for a weekend. Great city. I loved the old section.
December 6, 20195 yr I am really surprised you found a bar that you described as being similar to MOTR and Northside Tavern in Zurich. Good for you. I've been to quite a few of the principle cities in Switzerland and never came across anything remotely like those establishments. I find Zurich, and Geneva to be clean, accessible, safe, and SUPER EXPENSIVE, but all in all pretty boring. Thanks for sharing your trip through Europe. I've looked at all the photo's you posted. Prague is one of my favorite cities to visit.
December 6, 20195 yr Author 20 minutes ago, NsideProp said: I am really surprised you found a bar that you described as being similar to MOTR and Northside Tavern in Zurich. Good for you. I've been to quite a few of the principle cities in Switzerland and never came across anything remotely like those establishments. I find Zurich, and Geneva to be clean, accessible, safe, and SUPER EXPENSIVE, but all in all pretty boring. Yeah I had a little time on the train to look up concerts and this one caught my eye. I think there are usually tables in the room with the stage, but it felt like a place that had concerts fairly often. That's definitely the impression I've heard from everyone who I talked to - Zurich is boring. I was only there for two nights, so I didn't have a lot of time to exhaust my options, but I had a good time in Zurich.
December 9, 20195 yr Who says you need to have TALL TOWERS or buildings painted brightly to have a robust and vibrant city! Great photos.
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