Lying in the middle of Europe and bordering to Germany on the North, Austria on the East, Italy on the South and France on the West, Switzerland is one of the wealthiest countries around the World. But the country is mostly famous for its delicious chocolates, the rocky Alps and the banking sector.
For me, every journey has a different song and when I listen to that song afterwards, I relive the same moments and take myself to those times. My song for Switzerland is ‘Viva la Vida’ from Coldplay. During my journey from Istanbul to Zurich, from Zurich to Basel and while walking down the streets of these two cities, I used to listen to this song and now it is the best reminder of my Switzerland experience. So while reading these lines, please lean your back and listen to this beautiful song from Coldplay to feel the exact same feelings that I had during my journey in Switzerland.
My 6-day-stay in Zurich and 1-day-visit to Basel were enough to open the doors for broadening my horizons. In this guiding article, I will briefly talk about my own Switzerland experience and what you can experience in these two cities.
I still feel the same excitement as in the very first moments when I learned that I was going to Zurich, where our sister school was located at that time. 2010 is the year of my turning points: the time when my passion in traveling has been sparked! On 23 January 2010, a snowy winter day, we had about 3-hour-journey to get from Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport to Zurich’s International Airport.
The language spoken, culture, super-fast metro lines attracted my attention at my first minutes in Zurich. The orderliness of streets, the locals’ respect to themselves and their environment are the very first differences between Turkey and Switzerland that have been caught to my eyes. But there was a reason for that: I found out later on that Zurich has repeatedly been ranked as the city with the highest living standard world-wide for many years.
Eventually I had only thing in my mind: "I was here, I saw this and it mattered to me." (Alain de Botton, the Art of Travel) And I wanted to explore more places!
For me, every journey has a different song and when I listen to that song afterwards, I relive the same moments and take myself to those times. My song for Switzerland is ‘Viva la Vida’ from Coldplay. During my journey from Istanbul to Zurich, from Zurich to Basel and while walking down the streets of these two cities, I used to listen to this song and now it is the best reminder of my Switzerland experience. So while reading these lines, please lean your back and listen to this beautiful song from Coldplay to feel the exact same feelings that I had during my journey in Switzerland.
My 6-day-stay in Zurich and 1-day-visit to Basel were enough to open the doors for broadening my horizons. In this guiding article, I will briefly talk about my own Switzerland experience and what you can experience in these two cities.
I still feel the same excitement as in the very first moments when I learned that I was going to Zurich, where our sister school was located at that time. 2010 is the year of my turning points: the time when my passion in traveling has been sparked! On 23 January 2010, a snowy winter day, we had about 3-hour-journey to get from Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport to Zurich’s International Airport.
The language spoken, culture, super-fast metro lines attracted my attention at my first minutes in Zurich. The orderliness of streets, the locals’ respect to themselves and their environment are the very first differences between Turkey and Switzerland that have been caught to my eyes. But there was a reason for that: I found out later on that Zurich has repeatedly been ranked as the city with the highest living standard world-wide for many years.
Eventually I had only thing in my mind: "I was here, I saw this and it mattered to me." (Alain de Botton, the Art of Travel) And I wanted to explore more places!
Zurich
Mini Info about the City
Being the largest city of Switzerland, Zurich resides on the Lake Zurich in the Northern part of the country, close to the German border. While many people think that it is the capital city of Switzerland, unfortunately this title is owned by Berne.
Zurich is the financial centre of the country as it hosts a large number of the headquarters of national and international companies. The city is also referred as the “portal to the Alps” due to its proximity to the Swiss Alps.
The official language of the city is German and used in local publications, etc. but the locals prefer Swiss German. French and English are also very common in the city so that you can communicate in any of these languages with the locals without any difficulty.
Must-See Places
There are plenty of places that you can visit in Zurich. Below you will see a few of them, which I believe the highlights of the city in brief.
Mini Info about the City
Being the largest city of Switzerland, Zurich resides on the Lake Zurich in the Northern part of the country, close to the German border. While many people think that it is the capital city of Switzerland, unfortunately this title is owned by Berne.
Zurich is the financial centre of the country as it hosts a large number of the headquarters of national and international companies. The city is also referred as the “portal to the Alps” due to its proximity to the Swiss Alps.
The official language of the city is German and used in local publications, etc. but the locals prefer Swiss German. French and English are also very common in the city so that you can communicate in any of these languages with the locals without any difficulty.
Must-See Places
There are plenty of places that you can visit in Zurich. Below you will see a few of them, which I believe the highlights of the city in brief.
- Kunsthaus is an art gallery which hosts a wide collection of art pieces from the Middle Ages to contemporary art. Though the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam owns the largest collection of Van Gogh pieces, the museum also has some pieces from him. It is a great destination for the art-lovers.
- Grossmünster is a Romanesque-style church in Zurich, being one of the four major churches in the city.
- St. Peter is also one of the four main churches in Zurich, and located close to the banks of the Limmat River.
- Lindenhof is a hill where there is one of the best views in the city. You can see the Limmat River from above and some of the most remarkable and symbolic spots of Zurich.
- Lake Zurich: The city of Zurich witnesses the meeting of the Lake Zurich and the Limmat River for ages. On the banks of the lake, you can watch the great nature and have lunch or dinner, and even can feed the gulls, some of which may sometimes be very insistent to grab the food in your hands ☺
- Rathausbrücke is a bridge which crosses the River Limmat and is only open to pedestrians. It is located in the middle of several historical and touristic spots of the city.
- Fraumünster is one of the four major churches in the city of Zurich.
- Zurich Hauptbahnhof (HB) is the largest railway station in Switzerland, and the main train station in Zurich. It is a stunning building which mesmerizes the visitors with its great neo-Renaissance style architecture.
- Bahnhofstrasse is the main downtown street in Zurich which starts from the Zurich HB, and one of the world’s most expensive shopping avenues. Though you don’t buy anything from the shops, it is great to walk from this long avenue while reaching to the historical and touristic areas of the city of Zurich.
- Zoo Zurich hosts a large number of species and was opened in 1929. One of its most popular events is the penguin parade, which is performed when the outside temperature is below 10 degrees Celcius. I feel myself very lucky that I was able to watch the parade as the temperature was freezing cold!
What Can You Taste (*heavy breathing* ☺)
When saying ‘Switzerland’, the first thing that will come to people’s mind will most likely be ‘chocolate’. There are a plenty of stores where you can find the greatest chocolates on Earth and have some coffee at the same time. As a chocolate brand, I prefer Lindt. I remember the time when I spent approximately 100 Francs for chocolate on my last day in Zurich ☺
Swiss cuisine is under many regional influence, including France, Italy and Germany, and also beards traditional dishes made of cheese and potatoes. The most famous dish is probably Fondue, which is a dish made of melted cheese. I strongly recommend you to try it before leaving Switzerland!
When saying ‘Switzerland’, the first thing that will come to people’s mind will most likely be ‘chocolate’. There are a plenty of stores where you can find the greatest chocolates on Earth and have some coffee at the same time. As a chocolate brand, I prefer Lindt. I remember the time when I spent approximately 100 Francs for chocolate on my last day in Zurich ☺
Swiss cuisine is under many regional influence, including France, Italy and Germany, and also beards traditional dishes made of cheese and potatoes. The most famous dish is probably Fondue, which is a dish made of melted cheese. I strongly recommend you to try it before leaving Switzerland!
Basel
On our fifth day in Switzerland, we made a day-trip to the small city of Basel. Narrow streets, rich history and architecture of the city, as well as watching how to make a paper in the Paper Mill were the most enticing parts of my Basel experience. Below you will read a brief info about the city, and some of the places that you can see and visit. I hope you will enjoy the city too ☺
Mini Info about the City
Residing in the north-western corner of Switzerland and bordering France and Germany, the history of the city of Basel dates back to the 2nd century BC. Basel is rich in architecture, ranging from Romanesque to Renaissance, and also hosts various examples of contemporary architecture.
Must-See Places
Below you will see a few of the must-see places, which I believe the highlights of the city.
On our fifth day in Switzerland, we made a day-trip to the small city of Basel. Narrow streets, rich history and architecture of the city, as well as watching how to make a paper in the Paper Mill were the most enticing parts of my Basel experience. Below you will read a brief info about the city, and some of the places that you can see and visit. I hope you will enjoy the city too ☺
Mini Info about the City
Residing in the north-western corner of Switzerland and bordering France and Germany, the history of the city of Basel dates back to the 2nd century BC. Basel is rich in architecture, ranging from Romanesque to Renaissance, and also hosts various examples of contemporary architecture.
Must-See Places
Below you will see a few of the must-see places, which I believe the highlights of the city.
- Basel Minster, which is one of the most famous touristic and historic spots of Basel, offers a great panorama with its location by the banks of the River Rhine. Started to be built in the 11th century, parts of this Protestant church has been completed in various times.
- Elisabethenkirche is a church in the city center of Basel which is built in neo-Gothic style in the 19th century. With its glorious architecture, the church is one of the hotspots in the city of Basel that is worth to visit.
- Rathaus is the 5-century-old Town Hall located in the Markplatz of Basel. With its red color which is because of its sandstone facade, the building looks different than many other structures in the city.
- Basel Historical Museum is a great spot for those who are keen into history or would like to get to know more about the city of Basel and the historical and cultural background of the region. There are basically four sections of the museum located in different parts of the city, one of which is quite outside of Basel.
- Basel Paper Mill which is also known as the Swiss Museum for Paper is a museum dedicated to papermaking, book printing and writing. Old style writing instruments, typewriters are among the exhibited wares that you can see in the museum. There is also a section in the basement of the mill where you can watch men making papers and also try the art of papermaking! I also experienced papermaking and still keep the paper I made from that time ☺