R&R on the Rhine - Zurich Day 1

R&R on the Rhine - Memphis to Amsterdam
R&R on the Rhine - Viking Bestla
R&R on the Rhine - Amsterdam
R&R on the Rhine - Kinderdijk
R&R on the Rhine - Cologne
R&R on the Rhine - Marksburg Castle
R&R on the Rhine - Upper Rhine Valley
R&R on the Rhine - Rüdesheim
R&R on the Rhine - Heidelberg Castle
R&R on the Rhine - Heidelberg and Speyer
R&R on the Rhine - Strasbourg
R&R on the Rhine - Black Forest
R&R on the Rhine - Colmar
R&R on the Rhine - Zurich Day 1
R&R on the Rhine - Zurich Day 2
R&R on the Rhine - Zurich to Memphis

After sending most of my friends off to the airport, my cruise roommate C and I hopped a taxi to the train station.  There we bought tickets to Zurich and only had to wait about 15-20 minutes for the next train.  We hauled our luggage aboard and soon enough we were on our way.

I must say it was a very pleasant experience.  I finally cracked open the book I'd brought and got some reading done.  We also enjoyed just looking at the scenery on our hour-long trip.  After seeing that other on board had brought lunch we kinda wished we'd done that too but we weren't starving yet so it wasn't an issue.

We arrived at the main train station in Zurich (the Hauptbahnof - don't you just love that word?!) and wandered up to the main concourse.  I'd previously corresponded with the concierge at our hotel and was told that the local tram would stop just a couple of blocks away from our hotel, so our next challenge was to find tram tickets.  Eventually we found the tourist information center and the lovely people there helped us out with the correct tram and with our ticket.  Once we found the correct track it wasn't long at all before the tram came by.  It was a bit of a challenge to hoist our large suitcases up into the tram but we managed.

Our stop was about the third or fourth from the train station - not far by foot but further than we wanted to drag luggage.  We walked a couple of blocks down the side street and thought the hotel should have been easily visible. As it turned out, we WERE right in front of our hotel, the Park Hyatt, but the signage was so subtle we didn't see it from right across the street!

VERY subtle signage!

Making our way inside we were promptly greeted and checked in and then escorted to our room.  The staff member showed us the workings of the blackout curtains and the thermostat and we thought we had it down but had to ask questions about it later.  Our main complaint was that we couldn't get the temperature cool enough at night.  Nothing like sweating under the covers to keep you awake!

Overall the room was lovely and huge.  We had two beds that were larger than standard twins but smaller than doubles so that was nice after the small bunks on the ship.  Once again we only had a duvet, no top sheet.  This wouldn't have been so bad if we could have gotten the room cooler at night but as it was we kept throwing covers off and pulling them back on all night.

The bathroom was quite large and had sliding panels that opened it up to the sleeping area.  We're good friends, C and I, but some things should remain behind closed doors!  Fortunately we were able to keep the panels closed and our friendship intact.  The room did include robes and slippers.  If you're a larger person, you may need a larger robe but I'm told the front desk can provide those.

Then it was time to explore Zurich!  We began just walking and ended up at Parkanlage Zuerihorn, which is a beautiful park beside Lake Zurich.  I loved the large greenspace and seeing the various boats in the marina.  There was also a dancing fountain to keep the view interesting.  Across the lake we could see houses, hotels and businesses all with lovely views of the lake.  We enjoyed just sitting and enjoying the sunshine for awhile before getting up to explore a bit more.  Mostly we just enjoyed wandering around and being tourists.

Pakanlage Zuerihorn

We ended up having dinner at Café Kränzlin and it was very good.  They even had the chocolate melting cake we didn't get on the boat!  Of course I had to send a photo of it to my friends who were still on the way back to the US.  About the time we were having dessert they were going through Customs in Detroit before their final flight home.  It was fun to needle them with the picture!

After dinner we found our way back to the hotel without the need for the tram and enjoyed the rest of the evening in very comfortable, if very warm, beds.