Zürich, Take Two

One tip for traveling overseas with a bike is to buffer the trip with a day or two on both ends. From Burgdorf I headed back to Zürich, where the airport would be a short hop away.

A hunch and a little investigation paid off: When my train arrived, I headed straight for the “Left Luggage” office. For a small fee, I checked my bike bag. Not only did I not have to haul it back and forth to the hotel, they would transport it to the airport—where I would claim it a short walk from the airline's check-in counters. [I could get used to this ...]

After settling into my hotel on Saturday, I went for walk (uphill, of course).

This was fresh territory for me, having climbed above the city on the opposite side of the lake on a previous visit.

The higher I rose, the more it looked like the countryside.

 The afternoon light was dramatic, with a storm moving in.

I remembered to bring my umbrella. Steam rose from the pavement after some showers—something I haven't experienced for many years, as the rainy season in California is winter.

If you take a close look at how steeply the street drops off in my photo, you can see why I was happy not to be cycling here. I saw a sign marking a 22% grade on one hill, but I'd bet this street is steeper.

People do cycle here, however; and the infrastructure is done so well. In the photo above, we can see that the placement for bikes is separately allocated for cyclists turning left and for those traveling straight; and the “stop” line for vehicles is placed behind the bicycle markings. That way the cyclists are fully visible, and not expected to squeeze into the lane-width with a motor vehicle.

Back in town, I found a nice view of the Grossmünster towers as I strolled along the Linmat after dinner. One more full day before I head home ...