So, we’ve reached the last of the holiday posts just in time for school to start. We finished the last post in Friedrichshafen and that’s where we’ll pick back up, aboard the boat to Romanshorn.
This was a bit of the trip I’d been looking forward to and one of the Google reviews described it as “a very relaxing way to get to Switzerland”. Which it would have been if I wasn’t convinced that Eva was going to drop her phone off the edge. The sides only came up to seat level and so there was more than enough potential for it to go off her lap and into the green depths. I thought I was being overly paranoid but she dropped it on the edge of the platform at Leicester Square last night, so I think I’m justified.
Fortunately, she didn’t drop it and the views as we sailed were indeed soothing.
It cost around 32 Euros for the four of us and we bought a ticket that would have let us on any boat that day (they go hourly from Friedrichshafen, at 20 past). It took 45 minutes to get across the Bodensee and when we got to Romanshorn, we had around 45 minutes before our train to Zürich. In the original plan, we had a day in Romanshorn as I wanted to go to the Seebad but that would have meant finding left luggage and travelling with wet swimwear so would have been a hassle anyway. In the new plan, timings were a bit more compressed so all we had time for was a quick walk to the lakeside – with the luggage – and a sit down and snack under the tree
I did manage to spot our boat going back across the lake though, in between these fountains:
Then it was time for our train. It was about an hour to Zürich, past some nice rolling hills and picturesque countryside.
The change of plan meant we wouldn’t be going anywhere with proper mountains so the hills would have to do for now until we can get back to Europe and do the bits we missed.
Arriving in Zürich was full on – having been in a quiet small town for five days, we were suddenly in the middle of a bustling city again with trams, cars and buses all going in different directions as soon as we stepped out of the station. We’d booked into the Hotel Limmathof, which was just about visible from where we were – the giant “CAMPARI” sign on the roof made it easy to spot.
We’d planned to just leave our bags there and go for lunch but happily the room was ready early so we could check in. Along the way, we saw hundreds of swimmers floating down the Limmat with inflatable ducks. A weaner friend of mine was somewhere in there but weirdly enough I didn’t spot her. There were also real ducks:
Having checked in, we wandered the streets a little looking for food before deciding on Holy Cow Burgers. Eva had the veggie patty but wasn’t too fussed though she declared the fries outstanding. Roo and I had smoky BBQ burgers and I think Nathan had something chickeny. It was all good and they had a shady little outdoor area to sit so we could enjoy the summery weather.
Talking of which, it was really getting quite hot so it was time to try and find somewhere to cool down. I couldn’t watch the Limmat floaters with envy all afternoon. We’d successfully managed to buy 24 hour travel passes from a machine right outside the hotel, with the only complication being that you could only buy three tickets in one transaction and we needed four. I think it was about 6CHF each for the kids and about 12CHF so, after a second transaction, we had the freedom to roam around the central zone (Zone 110) as much as we liked. Plus the trams had aircon, which was heavenly on a hot day.
My first choice of swimming place was Seebad Utoquai as it looked nearby and had good reviews. Naively, I thought it would be similar to the Strandbad in Friedrichshafen where there were beach-like shallow areas but apparently not.
A conversation in German with an impatient young man on the counter revealed that the swimming areas were 10 metres deep – not ideal for those of us who weren’t real swimmers. Conscious of the growing queue behind us, I told him we’d think about it and ducked out.
A quick google came up with a more family-friendly alternative – Strandbad Tiefenbrunnen. This would be on the edge of where our travel passes got us to but still within the bounds. Google promised shallow water and grassy areas. We hopped back on the tram and within a few minutes we were there. There was a bit of a queue to get in, but nothing too bad, and my first priority was to get a drink of some kind. There was a window selling drinks on the outside of the queue but I didn’t want to risk leaving the queue and not being able to rejoin. So we waited until we were in and then found a little express shop where we could either pick up cans or fill a plastic cup from some large bottles of juice.
I chose the Apfelsaft and my goodness, it was the best thing ever. So cold and so fresh. I downed 5CHF’s worth in about ten seconds but it was worth it.
Then we found the shallow swimming area – also near the loos and the paddling pool – and set up camp under a tree. It was properly busy, way more so than the last Strandbad had been, but we carved out some space. I couldn’t figure out the changing rooms – I think maybe they were bookable as they all seemed locked – and the main changing areas were a bit of a walk away so I changed in the loos, which was probably against all the rules. Roo went to the mens’ only area back near where we bought the drinks. He is a bit of a rule-follower.
Eva and I spent most of the afternoon in the non-swimmer area, which was still pretty deep and strangely tidal. It was up to her armpits most of the time. At one point, the metal barriers to the actual lake broke loose and there was a huge gap between the non-swimmer area and the depths of Lake Zürich itself. Luckily Eva wasn’t tempted to try and push her luck. Roo, meanwhile, alarmed me by disappearing off and jumping into the lake from the diving board (the low one but still). I keep having to remind myself that he can swim just fine but I wouldn’t be a mother if I didn’t fuss occasionally.
We also spent some time in a round kids’ pool that was over a bridge. I’m not entirely sure how it worked but it was a bit like a flooded platform I think – so an artificial floor over the lake water but also full of lake water. It felt like being in a lobster pot but a good depth for Eva to potter about in. Weirdly slippery underfoot though.
At one point, we stopped for ice cream and I had an amazing lemon sorbet, along with a bottle of ice tea that I pretty much downed again. I know in theory if you’re dehydrated you’re meant to si[ fluids, not chug them but I’ve never quite got the knack of doing that.
We left the Strandbad at around six as I had one more thing I wanted to do before settling into our hotel for the night. All the recommendations for Zürich had mentioned the Polybahn – a funicular railway that takes you up the side of the hill to look over the city. I’d spotted the tracks while we were having lunch and had seen signs for it but couldn’t work out where to get in.
I felt somewhat stupid when I realised it was literally next door to our hotel. To be fair, it doesn’t look like a station as such but it’s where you get on. The travelcards we had for the day covered this as well so it didn’t even cost anything. It took a few minutes to get to the top and then we hung out for a while, looking over Zürich at sunset.
Before getting some more sunset shots from our hotel room:
For dinner, I just bought some bread, houmous and salami from the Migrolino supermarket a few doors down. It was pretty eye-wateringly expensive but that’s to be expected in Switzerland. We also bought a few breakfast foods because our next train was at 7:30 in the morning. Lucky we were so close to the bahnhof really.
And the next morning, we left a rainy Zürich for another four-hour train journey but we’re getting good at these now. Which brought to us full circle to Paris and so here is where the blogging odyssey ends. Thanks for sticking with it!
