Switzerland Part 1: Zurich

Written by Jadon

The first weekend in May, we had the opportunity to go to Zurich, Switzerland with our friend Emily, who was visiting from the States. While Zurich was nice, the highlight of the trip was Jungfraujoch—the highest (tourist) destination in Europe. But more on Jungfraujoch in the next blog.

Map of our flight from Prague to Zurich

 The weather during our two days in Zurich wasn’t the best—it rained almost the whole time—and it turned out that the first day was a national holiday and the second a Sunday, meaning that most shops were closed. But despite the rather deserted streets and the drizzle, we managed to have a good time.

Old Town Zurich street

  We ducked into three different churches during the day, not only to get a reprieve from the rain, but also just to see their stained glass and learn about their history.

The first church was Grossmünster. Grossmünster’s huge, metal front doors are separated into many small (8in) square panels, each of which tells a biblical story in one picture. The stained glass windows are also of note, because they are unlike any stained glass I have seen before. The only way to describe them is to say that instead of glass, the windows are made of many thinly cut rocks (think: geode or agate). The effect is quite similar to stained glass with a heavy geology display vibe. Grossmünster was also the starting place for the 16^th century reformer Ulrich Zwingli, and is now a Protestant church.

Door of Grossmunster Cathedral

Grossmunster Geode Stained Glass

The second church, just across the river, was Fraumünster. Most noteworthy about Fraumünster, is its stained glass. While the windows here are more similar to what we would expect from stained glass windows, they are still quite unique. And Fraumünster’s windows are breathtaking. Each is made with variants of one color, and shows pictures of biblical stories/character from one theme. So there is a Law window, a Christ window, a Zion window, and so forth. Both of these churches are major landmarks in Zurich, piercing the low skyline and standing opposite each other with only the river in between. Interesting since one is a Protestant and the other Catholic.

Three of the five stained glass pieces in Fraumunster Church

The third church, St. Peter’s, makes the list of places to visit in Zurich, because its steeple is home to the  largest clock face in Europe. St. Peter’s was also interesting, because, while the outside looked like a church, the inside did not. When you step through the front doors you are immediately surrounded by varnished wooden pillars, lavishly adorned, white walls, chandeliers, and a balcony that stretches almost all the way around the church. This leaves one with the unshakeable feeling that were the very moveable looking chairs absent, one would have just stepped into a splendid ballroom. Interestingly, the one place that remained unadorned was the area around and behind the pulpit, which was rough stone.

Inside St. Peter's Church

Outside St. Peter's - check out the giant clock face!

All three churches, in somewhat quick succession, made for a very interesting tour despite the rain. We also managed to find a cozy teashop, were able to eat at one of the oldest—technically the longest, most consistently open—vegetarian restaurants in Europe, and take a free cruise on Zurich’s lake, giving us our first view of the Alps. All in all, it was a great day.

Beautiful view from our short cruise.

To see more pictures from our trip to Zurich, click here!