Alpine Journey 3: Stumbling Above the City

This is my second day in Zürich and I had my first official walk in the hills in the afternoon. The day was searingly hot and all the people outside were sweating and getting lobster red sunburns (except for those great number of Swiss who seem to have permanent suntans and are in incredibly good shape- I’ve never seen so many people who so consistently look so fit). I took the train up into the hills overlooking the city and walked along the ridge to the south of the city. I was shocked by how similar it all was to the hills of Japan, especially to a very popular walk west of the metropolitan part of Tokyo called “Takao-san”. The only big differences were the number of working dairy farms complete with cows wearing bells, and the stunning views of the huge and turquiose green Lake Zürich. Unfortunately the haze in the air was so bad that the Alps remained invisible. I was hoping to see The Eiger. Because the cable car was closed for today I ended up having to walk down a very steep trail to the bottom of the hill at the end. And there I found that my thigh cramps had returned. I just hope my legs are up for the Alps!