DAY 5 - Zurich

Sunday, 24 April 2005

Liechtenstein
Yesterday, we stopped over in Vaduz, Liechtenstein for dinner. Not much to see (confirmed twice now by Al), but dinner was a nice break. However, the bill was quite high – the price we pay for an expensive country. It was also interesting to note that there is a definite rush hour in this small country...a lot of folks commuting in from either Switzerland or Austria to work in the finance industry. On to Zurich and our first stop in Switzerland.

Zurich
We get out early and the first stop is a Starbucks! Nothing like a little cafe latte to start one's morning... :) Old town/Altstadt Zurich is quaint...lots of ethnic shops to reflect both Zurich's and Switzerland's international flavor. We also strolled along the city's riverbank – replete with a lot of bridges – and watch a couple of pairs of swans glide along. An interesting note...Switzerland was spared the bombing from World War II and thus has a lot of more historical buildings than most other European cities. However, there is almost a "clean sterility" to the Swiss cities – clean and functional, but lacking in personality.

Heidelberg Castle/Schloss Heidelberg
Since the weather was very rainy, we deleted Lake Constance/Bodenzee and the Black Forest/Schwarzwald from our itinerary and head straight for Heidelberg back in Germany. Schloss Heidelberg is quite interesting ...it has Roman influences, yet a huge tower can be seen breaking off – our assumption is damage from WWII. Old town/Altstadt Heidelberg is definitely THE social scene in Germany – it's a wonderful college town with an eclectic mix of people, shops and sidewalk cafes that allow you to relax and people-watch all day.

Rhein-Main Air Base
We also stop over at Al's old duty station of Rhein-Main AB. It's just a shell of its former self and will be formally turned over to the German government at the end of 2005. From the end of WWII thru the mid-90s, it was known as the "Gateway to Europe" for American troops arriving here. While here, we repack our backpacks for the 2-day diversion to Berlin, and leave all the rest of our stuff in the car trunk.

Frankfurt
The rain is coming down harder as we leave my car at a local train station and head for downtown Frankfurt. After a brief walk thru the red light district, we come upon our hotel and crash for a quick night's stay.

-- Locke & Al