Today we were up early and packing. We marched through town with our suitcases on a mission – we had to make the train to Zurich. We caught the train, and got off at the Zurich Airport. We did that as the hotel has an airport shuttle operating from the airport to the hotel! Navigating the airport was easier than we expected, and we had no problem finding the hotel shuttle – clearly marked “Hilton Zurich Airport’ shuttle.

We checked in and were lucky enough to get room upgrades – 3 rooms side-by-side. Just what we needed – thank you.

It was a 10 minute walk from the hotel to the train station and the trains only go every 1/2 hour. We walked briskly and made it with 2 minutes to spare. A local helped us purchase our tickets from the vending machine – which were still printing as the train was pulling into the station. Just in time we leapt aboard bound for Zurich city central. Swiss timing means there is no room for lateness.

We headed first for a walk up Bahnhofstrasse. This is Zurich’s main downtown street and one of the world’s most expensive and exclusive shopping avenues. Probably not the best day for the girls to think about shopping!

After sitting on a parkbench in a mall outside eating a kebab, Suzanne did think about shopping! We had finally convinced her that carrying a backpack around Morocco would be a much better idea that carrying a small shoulder bag – and she waited until we were on the most expensive street in the world to agree! Needless to say, we found her a lovely backpack and it wasn’t badly priced at all.

We headed towards the river which connected us with Old Town Zurich. This was more like what we wanted to see – narrow lanes, older buildings, cannabis shops (not that we were looking for those), condomeries (who knew they existed), and lots of bars and cafes.

There were some lovely old churches and old buildings scattered throughout the Old Town and on the riverfront.

On the waterfront we found a nice waterside bar where we stopped for refreshments. Suzanne got a glass of sine – but she had to wait until we played before she could drink it. Once the waiter had put it down, I noticed the reflection of the Old Church in the glass.

While I was busy taking photos, Kirsteen also got set up and took some, then Suzanne realised what we were doing and she had a go too. In the interim the re were some Brits and Irish at the next table who thought we were crazy. They wondered what we were taking photos of in a wine glass and what was so special about a glass of wine. An Asian tourist also got in on the act and took one too! Poor Suzanne – lucky she wasn’t thirsty. By this time I had spent some time chatting to the guys at the next table explaining what we could see and why we were taking the photos.

We headed back on the train to the hotel to upload photos, shower and change before heading to the bar for pre-dinner drinks. We decided a night in would be a good plan. We had to make the most of the hotel services not knowing we would be up for once we hit Morocco.

It’s not very often that I would get a gin that took me more than an hour to drink – but this was it. The bowl of the glass was about 3″ high – and the gin inside it was about 2″ of straight gin! A small bottle of tonic was provided on the side!! A challenge.

We had dinner and relaxed at the hotel and had a relatively early night – storing sleep for the future.