No visitor to Zurich can ever be disappointed with the city's setting, on the edge of the incredibly blue and crescent shaped lake, which can be seen clearly from the plane as one arrives. At the mouth of the river there are swans, seagulls and sailboats, all set against the backdrop of the snowy peaks of the Alps.
The city's coat of arms gives even those visitors who haven't read their guidebooks an indication of what makes the residents of Zurich most proud, supported by a lion, one half represents the blue of the sky and the lake, and the other the white of the mountains. One thing is for sure, the city will live up to most visitors' expectations. Bahnhofstrasse is lined with banks and insurance companies, everything is clean and orderly, and even the river Limmat is distinctly elegant. Obvius wealth is everywhere, but there is no ostentation and the city's reputation for Puritanism remains intact. Visitors soon discover that the most important sights can be visited in just a few days, for instance to the left of the Limmat is Peterskirhce and the Fraumünster, while on the right are the Grossmünster and the Predigerkirhce, all extremely photogenic. The exhibits in the Kunsthaus, the Rietbergmuseum and the Schweizerisches Landesmuseum can be viewed in just a few hours, leaving time to admire the impressive guild houses on the right bank of the river.
But then something unexpected happens, having crossed all the major landmarks off their lists, visitors are still reluctant to leave. Maybe it is not the principle tourist attractions themselves that are the most rewarding, but what lies in between. The old medieval town contradicts all the clichés ever heard about Zurich - that it is insufferably pedantic, boring and entirely focussed on moneymaking, with no room for leisure and pleasure and nothing even slightly out of the ordinary or in any way exciting. In fact, the old town is a treasure-trove of intricacy and amazing detail, and, once discovered, this fact which comes as a surprise forces visitors to abandon any plan they may have had to "do" the city in just a couple of days. In this area of the town there is not a single street without something to catch your attention, wrought-iron door knockers, quaint building, archways, and grinning or snarling gargoyles surprise the visitor at every turn and leave them eager to find out more about the history of the city. Some of the houses have peculiar and rather mysterious names, such as "Flying Mountain", or "Crazy Wind". However, not all the names are quite so abstruse - it doesn't take much to work out the origin of "Empty Pocket".
With nearly one thousand fountains and well-tended parks, these are further attractions that may well encourage visitors to extend their stay. And the city has another fascinating face, in Oberdorf, for example, where the gardens belonging to the houses in the narrow streets give the place the air of a countryside idyll reminiscent of the middle ages. Even though the thriving and elegant metropolis is just a few blocks away, strangely enough the great activity of Rämmitstrasse and all the other usual city noises are scarcely audible. Another special aspect of the city is that even though it is not the capital of Switzerland, important decisions for world financial circles are made here and Zurich's world fame bears no relation to its size.
We've touched on the unexpected charms of the city, and perhaps we should mention some facts and figures. One of out every six inhabitants of Switzerland lives in or around Zurich. For several hundreds years, the city's history has been linked to the lake, which measures some 88 square kilometres and which, 8000 years ago, reached as far as the Paradeplatz. Today, it is 143 metres at its deepest point and around 4 kilometres at its widest. In 1362 Charles IV presented the lake as a gift to the city. The river Limmat, which some would say it just as attractive as the lake, is also very important for Zurich. Less than 100 metres wide it winds through the old town for 1 kilometre, subsequently merging with the river Sihl and flowing towards the Rhine.
Water plays a crucial part in the life of the city. There are 948 fountains of which 800 are publicly owned, 113 are in private hands, and 35 are designated as drinking fountains. A total of 2,4 billion litres of water flows through them daily. While this may sound wasteful it in fact represents barely 3 per cent of the entire water consumption of the city. Besides, fountains are part of the city's history. The Helvetians earned how to build them from the Romans and passed on the tradition to their descendants, who perfected the technology. The lake and the river add more than their beauty, they have an important place in the lives of the city's population of approximately 400 000. It is possible to feel close to nature almost everywhere and, since the lake is lined with red-roofed villas rather than giant factories, the whole place has the air of a resort. It is very much a part of the Zurich lifestyle simply to pop down to the lake for a quick swim or a sail.
There are those who like to talk disparagingly about Zurich's cultural life, but the rich and diverse programmes offered by the Opera House, the various theatres and the Tonhalle concert venue, as well as the many small art galleries, prove such people to be mistaken. In fact, a great deal of money, either in the form of state subsidies or by private sponsorship, is spent on cultural programmes, to ensure that there is something to satisfy every visitor to this multifaceted city.
One should not ignore the intellectual reputation of Zurich, since in this respect the city has always been something of a focal point. In the middle ages Zurich was a principle centre for the Reformation, which had an impact on the whole of Europe, even as far as England, and in the period of Enlightenment, philosophers, poets and artists came here on pilgrimage and many settled and worked in the city. And thus Zurich became known as "The Athens on the Limmat".
Inhabitants of Zurich are extremely enthusiastic when it comes to keeping up traditions. Politeness is a habit here, and while some may think it is more suited to the provinces nevertheless it is always a pleasure to be treated with civility. Holidays are another important aspect of Zurich tradition. The most important, the "burning of winter", or Sechsläuten, was celebrated for a long time on the 21st. March and was moved to April in the hope of guaranteeing better weather. While the original traditions are closely adhered to, certain aspects have been modernised. The festival centres around the symbol of winter in the form of a 3-4 metre tall effigy known as Böög, which is packed with 80 kilograms of stuffing. Following a number of unfortunate incidents in the past, nowadays the construction and burning of the effigy are supervised by a pyrotechnics expert. Once, for example, strong winds somehow caused the figure to catch light at 2pm, rather than at the usual 6pm, and by the time the ritual procession was due to take place all that remained was a pile of ashes. On other occasions it has obstinately refused to burn at all. Now, to avoid any such disasters, the Bulbindermeister, Böög's creator, inserts a number of rockets into the body while adhering meticulously to the traditions for Böög's outward appearance. The diameter of the head is always 180 centimetres, the arm span is 190 centimetres, the nose is made of a carrot, and Böög always holds a broom under its left arm. The 3-4 metre tall figure is then placed on top of a pile of wood 13 metre tall figure is then placed on top of a pile of wood 13 metres high. The celebrations begin with a masked ball on the Saturday following 16th. April, then on the Sunday a parade of thousands of children makes its colourful way through the city. The real holiday is on the Monday when representatives of the twenty-seven guilds dress up in extravagant medieval costumes and parade through the city following a strictly prescribed route. The festivities last for the whole day, but the high point, of course, is setting fire to Böög at 6pm. Once the effigy has been burnt, Zurich turns into a huge open-air pub. But no matter when visitors arrive in Zurich, they are bound to find some kind of celebrations taking place. Just one word of warning, no matter how well you speak German it is highly unlikely that you will understand the local dialect. But do not feel embarrassed because Züritüütsch, which is spoken by 2,5 million of the 3,5 million German-speaking Swiss, remains a mystery even to native Germans.