Trendy Zürich Par Georges Rouzeau A tradition of anti-establishment activity and tolerance Surprise, surprise! Zürich is not the finance capital we imagine. The major Swiss financial and industrial centre is in fact a centre of anti-establishment activity, tolerance and hospitality. This tradition has been going for several centuries - from the moment perhaps when preacher Ulrich Zwingli defended tooth and nail the Reform in Alemannic Switzerland. It is difficult to list all the personalities - artists, politicians and writers - who, over the centuries, have found refuge here or simply a marvellous destination to unwind.
 James Joyce' s grave © G. Rouzeau/ViaMichelinCasanova held fashionable society gatherings here and acquainted himself with the art of gambling on exchange rates. A political exile, the writer Georg Büchner died here from typhus before having finished Woyzeck. Threatened with imprisonment in Dresden for his political convictions, Richard Wagner was received by poetess Mathilde Wesendonck and began work on Tristan and Isolde. Lenin and Trotski took up residence here for some time to quietly foment their revolution while enjoying drinking chocolate. Dissident psychoanalyst Jung started his own school here. At the Cabaret Voltaire, Hugo Ball launched, in 1916, Dadaism, an avant-garde movement that flouted Western culture. James Joyce, undoubtedly the 20th century's greatest writer, is buried here. It is also in Zürich that the first gay review was published in 1896 and that the first car pool cooperative was founded in 1948. Please, no more! Of course, this 'tolerance' went through dark hours. In the 1990s, hundreds of junkies shooted up in the very town centre, particularly in the park alongside the National Swiss Museum, in atrocious hygiene conditions, falling prey to overdoses and AIDS. The city has progressively decided to tackle this problem, yet without managing to eradicate it. As in many northern countries, prostitution is also prosperous and tolerated (especially on Langstrasse), which does not fail to surprise visitors.  Lake Zürich © G. Rouzeau/ViaMichelinOtherwise, Zürich is the quintessential 'mountain town', at once dynamic and peaceful. It is crossed by two rivers and is located at the tip of a lake which the Romans, forever sybarites, already greatly appreciated as a vacation destination. In fine weather, Switzerland's largest city enjoys a magnificent setting with, on the horizon, the Jura and Vosges mountains and the Alps. Of note, some 1,200 public fountains supply perfectly potable water. Discover the city by bikeI strongly recommend visiting the city by bike as the best way of seeing the most without spending anything! Züri rollt will indeed lend you a bike (or else an electric bike or a skate-board) free of charge, from May to October, in exchange for some form of identity and 20 Swiss francs. There are several bike stations (Velogate Hauptbahnhof, Globus City, Opernhaus, Oerlikon - Swissôtel, Bahnhof Enge). The closest to the main railway station is the Globus City station, located in front of the shop of the same name on Bahnhofstrasse. Most streets have bike lanes and drivers show respect for cyclists.  The Limmat embankment © G. Rouzeau/ViaMichelinZürich-WestZürich-West is the trendy Zürich destination. This former industrial district undergoing major transformation is hemmed in between River Limmat, Europe Bridge (Europabrücke) and the railway tracks leaving the main station. The district developed at the end of the 19th century, especially due to Hans Caspar Escher who revolutionised the cotton industry. Turbines, pump works, and all kinds of machinery then mushroomed in the area. The first Swiss steam ship was moreover built here. Soapworks, textiles, machine tools, light engineering: activities proliferated until the end of the 1980s before moving out to the edge of town, leaving behind a mishmash of viaducts, disused railway lines, wasteland, brick warehouses, factory chimneys, foundries... Not exactly glamorous scenery but which offers many possibilities for redevelopment as evidenced today by the fact that Zürich-West's concrete image is swiftly changing. Hip restaurants and bars, and theatres and concert halls now lie side by side here with artists workshops, housing, offices, creches and dance schools.The district will almost certainly continue to be redeveloped because it is so close to city centre - under ten minutes by bike.  Puls 5 © G. Rouzeau/ViaMichelinTake for instance Puls 5, a former foundry that has kept within its metallic frame and a few winches. Outside, an elegant glass frontage covers the former facade. The building now houses apartments, a superb fitness room, restaurants and shops. Since 1996, the former Löwenbrau brewery, a giant red brick block, offers its huge volumes to contemporary art under the auspices of the Migros Museum for Contemporary Arts, Migros being Switzerland's biggest supermarket retailer.  The Schiffbau © G. Rouzeau/ViaMichelinThe building is sufficiently large to also house private galleries like those of Eva Presenhuber or Peter Kilchmann. Zürich also boasts more than 40 museums and a hundred or so galleries and occupies a leading place in the European art market. Just opposte the Migros museum, you'll find one of Swizerland's poshest clubs, Indochine. The Schiffbau, a former shipbuilding hall, is to our mind one of the most successful redevelopments, both architecturally and culturally. Something is always going on here thanks to the simultaneous presence of an Italian inspiration restaurant (LaSalle), an excellent jazz club (Moods), a trendy bar at the top of the building (Nietturm Bar), and Switzerland's second biggest entertainment hall. A Freitag bagIn Zürich-West, you can buy a Freitag bag, the must-have trendy accessory. The story of this commercial success is worth being told.  In 1993, two graphism students used to truck-spot because their windows overlooked a major motorway crossing the city. They decided to make bags from the dirty tarps covering trucks, first for their personal use and then for their friends. Huge success came. Designed entirely from recycled materials (tarpaulins, bicycle inner tubes, safety belts, airbags), each model is hand-assembled and unique – which explains the prohibitive price (expect to pay 200 Swiss francs). The only one of its kind, the shop is a pile of containers forming a tower from the top of which you can watch... trucks go by. Not to be missed.  Alternative refreshment © G. Rouzeau/ViaMichelinThe Limmat embankmentsHip youths also like to lounge in the sun or dip into the Limmat, the main river crossing Zürich. This takes place mere minutes from town centre, in the Letten district, along a disused railway line now planted with vegetation. You'll find here an alternative refreshment stall, benches facing direct south, a wood landing stage, ladders down to the water, and a multitude of bikes. Slightly further afield, the beach volley areas are taken by storm as is the skateboard track under a bridge. The strong current and dull colour of the Limmat may however discourage some of you...  Rote Fabrik © G. Rouzeau/ViaMichelinOn the banks of Lake Zürich: the Red Factory (Rote Fabrik)If you have been put off by the Limmat, then try Zürich Lake where the water is admirably pure. You can go on a boat trip around the lake, hire an electric boat or of course swim. Why not take advantage of the Red Factory's beach? This former red brick factory is now a mecca of alternative culture of which the beginnings should be related in detail as they shed so much light on Zürich's special atmosphere. The opening of Zürich Opera had, in its time, led to a wave of protest among some youths. Every day, hundreds of protesters met to break a maximum number of windows in the brand new building. They intended to protest against the exorbitant budget assigned to this official institution and, in exchange, demanded a place of their own. The municipality gave them the well known Rote Fabrik which houses an exhibition hall, a concert hall and a vast bar-restaurant managed as a cooperative venture. Mention should also be made of the child-minding facility so that parents can watch shows. The restaurant, called Ziegel oh lac, places great emphasis on fish and vegetarian dishes. Take advantage of the magnificent shady terrace by the lakeside. The site has no car parking so the best means to come is by bike along the lakeside bikepath surrounded by joggers and people out for a stroll.  Rietberg Museum © G. Rouzeau/ViaMichelinThe superb Rietberg MuseumFor once, the expression is not hackneyed: Rietberg Museum 'enjoys an exceptional setting': grounds from the top of which you can see the lake. It is here that the couple Otto and Mathilde Wesendonck set up home in 1857 in a superb neoclassical villa. Their residence became a fashionable salon and they even had a visit by Richard Wagner in exile (in the Schönberg pavilion on the other side of the road) who thanked his hosts by seducing Mrs Wesendonck. A few years later, the Rieter family bought their property (the Rietberg name has been kept), but the museum's star attraction is formed by Baron Eduard von der Heydt's (1882–1964) tribal art collections. In 2002, a superb emerald green pavilion signed by the duo Alfred Grazioli (Berlin) and Adolf Krischanitz (Vienna and Berlin) was inaugurated as a venue for temporary exhibitions. Practical informationZürich tourisme Stampfenbachstrasse 52 P.O. Box CH-8023 Zürich Tel.: 44 215 40 00 Zürich tourisme (at the main station) CH-8023 Zürich Tel.: 44 215 40 00 East European TGV Thanks to the East European TGV, Switzerland is closer to the UK. It now takes barely 4h35 to reach Zürich from Paris. Puls 5 Giessereistrasse 18 CH-8005 Zürich Freitag shop Freitag lab. ag, Hardstrasse 219/L CH-8005 Zürich Migros Museum (Migros museum für gegenwartskunst) Limmatstrasse 270 CH-8005 Zürich Tel.: 44 277 20 50 Club Indochine Limmatstrasse 275 CH-8005 Zürich Tel.: 44 448 11 11 Fax. 44 448 11 12 Der Rote Fabrik Seestrasse 395 Postfach 1073 CH-8038 Zürich Rietberg Museum Gablerstrasse 15 CH-8002 Zürich Tel. : 44 206 31 31 |
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