Am I still in Antarctica? I wondered this as I trekked through some of the still snowy capped mountains of the Swiss Alps. Much to my surprise I was not in fact down south – lol – but in Zurich, Switzerland! I was just starting my Pizol 5 lake hike. A challenging hike up and down through the mountain tops to see five (actually there were only four?!) glacial lakes. This was my inaugural hike on our trip to Zurich this summer. Obi had the idea to visit Zurich so that I could hike and bike while he works at the Google office. He knows me well and suggested this idea so that I could have access to the great outdoors a place I long for and love. We arrived in Zurich on Friday morning, sleep deprived from the red eye flight. We found a luggage storage at the main train station in the city, secured our goods and committed to staying awake until our 3 pm Airbnb check in. We decided to visit the National Swiss Museum across the street to pass some time – and learn a bit more about Swiss history and culture. The museum was full of many small exhibits one which I particularly found interesting was various examples of how waste is being reused. There were on display examples of not just the three Rs (reuse, reduce and recycle) but actually the 10 Rs including refuse, repurpose, or repair as additional examples. The museum also had an exhibit telling the story of finger rings from historical roman, Egyptian and medieval periods to contemporary 20th and 21st century. The variety was mind-blowing – as each ring felt so different and told a different story. The collection is from Alice and Louis Koch on display at the museum. The ring was was spellbound by was a large blue oval representing the ocean and in the middle was a gold figure of which you could only see the head and an arm – the parts of a body one sees above water when swimming. The ring was satisfying to look at and I felt such a sense of freedom in that simple image. We were admittedly very tired and eventually rested in the cafe with some cool drinks. Behind the museum was a small park which we ventured through and then at last, to our rental. Checking in was smooth (after negotiating with two lock boxes found our key) in we went! We were both pleased with the place we rented. Large windows with a lot of natural light, a living, eating and sleeping area laid out simply but effective. Sunday was dedicated to acclimating – so we found a local breakfast spot, enjoyed a hearty meal and then explored by foot some of the city. We tried to get groceries for the apartment only to quickly realize stores are not open on Sunday (even though I know this – I always seem to forget!). We had not been to the FIFA Museum and decided to check it out. We were both highly impressed with the quality of the exhibit and spent just over two hours reading about the history of soccer rules, many facts about the Men’s and Women’s World Cups, the design features of soccer balls over the years, imagery on national jerseys, and facts about key players, team coaches and referees. We even visited the world famous Maracanã stadium in Brazil:)
Following our soccer or football immersive experience it was back to Swiss culture with a visit to the Fraumünster and Grossmünster in the “old city.” Having visited these historic churches before venturing inside felt familiar. Remembering the smell of the concrete walls, wooden pews and crypts below was enjoyable but not as much as looking at the glorious stained glass windows with late afternoon sunlight pressing it’s way through. Our dinner that night was a delightful find – we were walking across a street and I happened to glance over to see some food being carried out to the dinners. It looked colorful, fresh and so so yummy! We decided to abandon our original plan and asked for a table. We made a great choice and dined on Lebanese food- a spot we will most likely eat at again!
Monday morning came which meant Obi needed to head to work and I, after doing some research found a hike to tackle. The Pizol 5 Lake hike was a great way to start this trip – as I mentioned above it was a challenging hike with so many lovely surprises along the way. The hike guides you from one lake to the next and so you need to hike up and down in order to pass through the valley from one body of water to the next. Given the altitude and temperature of the water, two lakes were ice-capped with large pieces of ice floating around. I found it impossible to not think about Antarctica and the massive glaciers and ice floes which remain strongly imprinted in my mind – but these baby ice-floes were delightful in their own way. Despite the hot sun – rushing glacial melt flooded these lakes and aroused excited yelps from hikers who took their own version of the polar plunge. I did not stop to swim as I was eager to reach the end of the trail. My engine was running – I wanted to keep pushing. Sometimes when I stop too long in the middle of a high intensity physical activity, it requires more work to get the muscles firing again, than to keep them moving at a steady clip. A highlight of the trail was a rock cairn collection from which many previous hikers have contributed. Some small and others life sized the fragile pillars stood erect and at attention overlooking the expansive valley below. Admittedly I am not so great at taking pictures when I am alone – and in the zone – but here are a few I quickly captured which should give you a sense of the atmosphere. I enjoyed this hike so much I will probably come back again for a repeat adventure – maybe this time I will stop and take a plunge:)
On Tuesday, our 5th day here (counting the arrival day) I had planned to hike again – after a little over an hour of scouting last night for a hike to conquer I woke up to heavy rain. While the surrounding city of Zurich was supposed to clear up – the mountains I was heading to predicted thunderstorms for most of the day. I will hike through a lot – but thunder and lightening is a safety concern no hiker should take the risk in. If todays trail would be anything like yesterday – rain would add to the steep drops, slippery rocks and mud slides. I knew it was not wise and so I shifted gears and began looking for a bike to rent. Much to my surprise, renting a road bike (let alone a half way decent bike) is surprisingly not that easy – despite how bike friendly this city is. I tried many possibilities all dead ends and after Obi left for work I gave up on the computer, packed up and head out not knowing where I would find a bike, but going to try. The neighborhood we live in is lovely, calm and seemingly family friendly. A synagogue down the street, some delicious restaurants, two local ice-cream shops and a Park Slope Food Coop type store a few minutes away (yes, I have already done a big shop there:). Also around the corner from our place is a bike shop – so I asked if they knew of a good bike rental shop and well, it was a lucky day after all – they had a bike left and would be happy to rent it! It’s a red, sturdy hybrid bike with disc breaks – fits me perfectly and rides smooth. They needed an hour to tune her up – and then voila – I was off. Once again I was not sure where I would end up and decided to pick a point along the lake which was about 35 km out and then bike back…but as you know, it’s hard to contain the adventurer in me and before I knew it I mapped out a huge loop cutting across the Seedam bridge. In the photo below – the yellow route maps my ride today and the orange section I did not complete yet (the two stars indicate our apartment and the Google office). Not tomorrow, but probably on Thursday I will do the whole lake from tip to tip – yes, I rented the bike for a week so I could enjoy a few more rides this week. I will save more hikes for the last two weeks.
Today I biked just about 46 miles – with the extra tip the loop should be 56 miles. While the ride is not particularly beautiful – I am mostly on the bike lane shoulder of the road (route 3 and route 17) it’s nice to just be able to ride without interruption pumping my legs like pistons. The terrain is relatively flat with some rolling hills but the hardest component is the wind. It pounds on your relentlessly – and reminded me of my Tour de Fran which I completed a few years ago through Spain and France. When I rode through France the wind was aggressive (as it’s known to be in that area). Today I felt like le mistral came back to say hello. I was immersed in the experience and it wasn’t until my stomach sent me a signal to eat something – the hours of riding had caught up to me and so I pulled over at a train station, with the lake as my view and chowed down the cheese sandwich, trial mix and fruit bar I brought along. Powered up I launched head first into the final 20 km – parting the wind with my tires and helmet. There were a few points at which I was convinced the rain would return as the sun disappeared behind large thick grey clouds and a few drizzling drops reached my face – but again, as luck would have it, the rain held off and I arrived safely back home after 3 hours and 45 minutes of high powered biking. Google claims the ride should take 4.5 hours… Yes the Franimal always has to beat Google. I’ll write again before we leave for Greece on Friday:)
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