I can’t believe Christmas is already here!! It seems to me that this year has been shorter… OK, it’s been a busy year… Moving from Dublin to Zurich, travels, trips around Switzerland, the German lessons, weddings… And here we are, preparing the bags for another holiday in Spain with family and friends!
These last weeks I’ve enjoyed how my new city prepares for Christmas. This wasn’t my first time in Zurich in December though. The first time I visited Zurich, three years ago, was also during Advent. But this year I had enough time to really explore the city during this magical season! And it has been beautiful!
Zurich is one of the prettiest cities I’ve seen during Christmas (I think I can only compare it with Stockholm!). The city dresses up with magical lights everywhere, but in a very minimalist and elegant way. You don’t see complicated light designs… Instead, you feel like the stars from the sky are just a few meters above you in every street. The Zuricher love their Christmas lights so much that they even gave them a name: Lucy! And every year there is a huge event when Lucy is switched on: the main street, Bahnhofstrasse, is packed with people, the shops open until late, there are stages along the street where there are people singing Christmas carols, and food stalls, roasted chestnuts and glühwein everywhere.
But if the pretty lights weren’t enough, Christmas markets are everywhere too! The most beautiful, in Bellevue, is the perfect Christmas market: fondue chalets, pretty red stalls, a huge Christmas tree, ice-ring and a beautiful carousel… a wonderful sight with an incredible atmosphere every day! But there are more around the city… The most famous is the Christkindlimarkt in Hauptbahnhof, Zurich’s main train station, the biggest indoor Christmas market in Europe, famous for its huge Christmas tree decorated with more than 7000 Swarovsky crystals…
Apart from all the decorations, markets and lights, this year I’ve learn a lot about the Swiss Christmas traditions, which I love now! I tried a lot of typical Swiss Christmas sweets, chocolates and even the glühwein! And the snow has covered the city many times since the season started, giving it an even more magical look… I had my White Christmas this year and I couldn’t love it more! I think my 2017 can’t finish better than this!
Here are some photos (well, a lot!) that I’ve been taking during this season in Zurich. I hope you like them! This will be also the last post until I come back from holidays… So I wish you Merry Christmas and a very Happy 2018 to all of you!!!!!! And thanks for being here this year, I hope 2018 comes with a lot of new trips, landscapes and beautiful things to show you!
Fröhliche Weihnachten!!!
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