After checking into the Leoneck Hotel, I took a short nap. A few hours later, I woke up and realised that it was still light outside. It seemed like the perfect time to explore further by strolling through Zurich.
Strolling through Zurich – sights I saw
I went out of the Leoneck Hotel and just walked around. Next to the Leoneck hotel was a beautiful Catholic church called the Liebfrauen Kirche, a Roman-Catholic church.
I walked down to Lake Zurich and saw many beautiful buildings. The little traffic in Zurich amazed me; I saw a maximum of five cars in the streets. In South Africa, cars are everywhere, and we depend entirely on them. I wondered if it was because it was Sunday or if this was the norm in Zurich.
I saw many beautiful churches. As I walked past the Predigerkirche, the service must have just finished as many people were coming outside.
The next church I walked passed was the Grossmünster. It was a huge church with a lot of detail on the door and some parts of the walls.
On the opposite side of the lake, I could see the Frauenkirche or Fraumunster Kirche. It has a beautiful turquoise spiral.
Next, I saw the statue of Huldrych Zwingli in front of the Wasserkirche.
Crossing to the other side
I crossed Zurich See at this point. As I crossed on the Quaibrücke or Quay Bridge, I watched the people sitting on the edge of the lake. There were also many swans either swimming on the lake or sitting next to Quaibrucke. They seemed bigger than the birds I remembered from back home.
After passing the bridge, I arrived at Bürkliplatz. The first thing I noticed was the statue of Ganymede. According to Greek mythology, Ganymede was the handsome son of a king. Zeus kidnapped Ganymede and took him to Mount Olympus. The statue of Ganymede represents man’s longing to ascent to Mount Olympus. Ganymede’s outstretched hand is him pleading to Zeus as an eagle to take him to Mount Olympus (Source: Ganymede – the prominent sculpture by Lake Zurich).
Near to Burkiplatz, there were yachts for short or longer trips on Lake Zurich. Sadly, the tours for the day had already left.