Tidy Zurich

Tidy Zurich

During our Eurotrip we spent most of the nights in campings, as we had a small tent with us, student budgets and were keen to experiment the camping experience itself. I have to say that, by far, the camping in Switzerland, in Buochs (about an hour away from Lucerne), was the best of all. Every tent / caravan section was clearly delimited, the lawns for tents were well maintained (mown, without bumps) as well as the roadway and the alleys. The bathrooms were clean, no ugly smells, plus there was a general common sense and everyone was cleaning up the water after showering. You couldn’t just flood everything and walk away nonchalantly. And, the receptionist spoke a perfect English, despite his older age. The views were spectacular, all mountains and lakes, fresh air and a welcome silence and peace.

I’m more of the seaside type of girl, but I was so greatly impressed with the landscape of Switzerland and the attitude of its people towards foreigners, that I’m definitely eager for another road trip to their beautiful country.

But let’s get to Zurich, the highlight of our short stay in Switzerland.

I’ve always looked up to Switzerland, always seen it as the best country you could live in, a sort of a bad ass, although I’ve never visited it before, nor have I met any local. After my visit this summer, I don’t know if it truly is the best place you could live in, but I was so positively impressed with what I saw!

Zurich is the definition of a tidy city, as far as my traveling experience is concerned. Clean, with everything in place, parkings well placed near the old center and well signaled. The streets are filled with outdoor bars and restaurants, small shops and the well-known high-fashion, expensive jewellery, luxurious watches and delicious chocolate shops, plus a handful of banks every now and then. The people were all, with the touristy typical exceptions (and there were a lot of them), well-dressed and mostly either elegant or casual-elegant, but I didn’t notice any local to be loosely or poorly dressed. Everyone there seemed to be a business man or woman and it was fun to spot them at the outdoor tables having lunch and trying to picture what type of company they were in charge of.

I was also fascinated about how many people were using bikes and how well the system is working and I was amazed by how they were letting their bikes loose in front of the shops (oh, and what bikes…). Leave a bike unwatched for a second on the streets of Romania or Spain and it disappears in an instant (even if it’s locked). Just that here, in Zurich, apparently, nobody cares to steal somebody else’s bike.

I loved Zurich. I loved every little stone of the old town’s pavement, I loved its architecture, I loved window shopping and wandering through the stylish streets. Oh, yes, another thing: most streets are overwhelmed with their national flag, hanged at the buildings, just in case you ever dare to forget where you are.

And although it is as expensive as they say it is, it’s just a baby compared to what I experienced in Southern France.

Zurich and Switzerland, I hope to see you again one day! <3



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